Puppy Emotions 2.0: A Fresh Take on Teaching French Feelings
Breathing New Life into an Old Favorite: Puppy Emotions
Today, I dusted off one of the very first resources I ever created for Teachers Pay Teachers — my Puppy Emotions syllable vocabulary cards. These were designed to be laminated, so students could piece them together to spell French emotion words like fâché, contente, inquiète, and more.
It’s an older resource and hasn’t seen much love in my store lately, so I decided it was time for a complete makeover — not just a facelift, but a full transformation into a richer, more interactive lesson. This is nothing new, I have been leveling up my lessons with audio narrations for awhile and have absolutely no idea how my buyers will react to it.
If you are a Spanish teacher looking to Explore Spanish Grammar and Tenses with audio into your classroom, I explored this in Spanish as well and it works fantastic!
From Cards to Interactive French Lesson
The new version will be a Google Slides activity that not only teaches French emotion vocabulary but also ties directly into the Zones of Regulation framework:
Blue Zone (sad, tired)
Yellow Zone (anxious, frustrated)
Green Zone (calm, happy)
Red Zone (angry, out of control)
By grouping the vocabulary into these zones, students will see emotions in context and make stronger connections between words and feelings.
Going Beyond Vocabulary
Once students know the words, I’ll introduce simple French sentences and short paragraphs using these emotions in everyday situations. This way, they’ll practice moving from isolated vocabulary to meaningful communication.
But the part I’m most excited about? Embedded audio narrations for every slide. From my own years learning languages, I know how essential instant audio feedback is — and how valuable it is for students to have those files available anytime for listening and repetition.
Why Audio Matters
Language learning thrives on repetition. I want students to:
Listen with eyes closed – focusing only on the sounds and rhythm of the words.
Repeat after the speaker – imitating pronunciation as closely as possible.
Read along with the speaker – combining visual and auditory learning for deeper retention.
This blend of techniques helps learners acquire a foreign language more naturally and confidently.
A Work in Progress
The lesson is still in the works, and yes — it’s a lot of work. But I can already see how much more engaging and effective this new version will be. I’m excited to share it when it’s ready, and I hope it inspires students to feel more confident expressing emotions in French — whether they’re in the green zone or the red!
