Letter 01 from France
Why is France called the Hexagon?
France for kids: its natural borders, its regions, its people, and the secret of its nickname.
Bonjour!
Welcome to your very first Letter from France!
My name is Nathalie, and every month I write to you from France to help you discover my country: its geography, its history, its traditions, and so much more. This month, we start from the very beginning, with France itself!
A question for you, right from the start: do you know why France is called "the Hexagon"? No? Don't worry! By the end of this letter, you'll understand everything. I promise! Let's go!
Read it in French
Bienvenue dans ta toute première Lettre de France !
Je m'appelle Nathalie, et chaque mois, je t'écris depuis la France pour te faire découvrir mon pays : sa géographie, son histoire, ses traditions, et plein d'autres choses encore. Ce mois-ci, on commence par le début, par la France elle-même !
Une question pour toi : est-ce que tu sais pourquoi on appelle la France « l'Hexagone » ? Non ? Pas de panique ! À la fin de cette lettre, tu vas tout comprendre. Promis ! Alors, c'est parti !
Nathalie
In this letter
- What is France?
- The natural borders
- The regions of France
- Who lives in France?
- The secret of the Hexagon
The secret of the Hexagon
A hexagon is a geometric shape with 6 sides and 6 angles. If you look carefully at a map of France, you can see that the outline of the country forms, almost perfectly, a hexagon! You can connect the 6 "corners" of the country and get this shape.
This nickname was born in French schools in the 19th century to help pupils remember how many sides France has. Handy, right?
French words to learn
| Français | English |
|---|---|
| un / le pays | a / the country |
| une / la frontière | a / the border |
| une frontière naturelle | a natural border |
| la métropole | mainland France |
| une / la région | a / the region |
| les territoires d'outre-mer | overseas territories |
| un hexagone | a hexagon |
| la diversité | diversity |
| La Manche | The English Channel |
| la mer Méditerranée | the Mediterranean Sea |
Free printable: France word search
Find 16 French words about France, from "frontières" to "Pyrénées", in this word search from the Discovery Sheets that come with the letter. Print it on A4.
Download the PDFRecipe: Gâteau au yaourt (French yogurt cake)
This cake is one of the staples of French patisserie and is extremely simple to make with children, which makes it an ideal first recipe for little cooks learning to bake. It is also pretty foolproof: comfort food that never disappoints!
Prep 10 min · Cooking 35 min · Serves 8
Ingredients
- 120 g yogurt
- 200 g sugar
- 225 g plain flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 110 ml vegetable oil
- 3 large eggs
- Optional: 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or lemon zest
What you need
- A mixing bowl
- A 23 cm (9-inch) cake tin
- A whisk
- Kitchen scales
- Measuring spoons
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Grease the inside of your cake tin with butter or oil.
- Pour the yogurt into a mixing bowl.
- Add the eggs, sugar and oil (and the vanilla extract or lemon zest, if using). Whisk until well combined.
- Add the flour and baking powder and mix well.
- Pour into the tin and bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let it cool completely before serving. The cake keeps for up to 5 days in an airtight container.
