Short Stories for KS3 French

Select your genre:
  • Science Fiction
  • Historical Fiction
  • Fantasy
  • Gothic
  • Spy/Detective
  • Romance
  • Comedy

Let your students have fun with language!

A pack of eight original, genre-based short stories, plays and poems designed to enthuse and enable students across KS3. With a wealth of differentiated pre- and post-reading activities, these imaginative and unique texts promise authentic reading material at the perfect level.


I was very impressed. It is certainly of the quality I have come to expect from ZigZag resources

I Coleman, Teacher and Peer Reviewer
  • Fun, inventive and relatable texts to engage and motivate students – no dry textbook style!
  • For every text:
    • Pre-reading activities provide context and enable understanding
    • Post-reading activities break story down into bite-sized chunks and encourage students to exploit their new-found knowledge
    • Vocabulary builders, comprehension questions, translation practice, creative tasks and more!
  • Popular genres pique students' interest
  • Fully differentiated – supports weaker students while stretching the most able
  • Includes full translations of texts and answers to all tasks

Before this resource, I would never have considered using such authentic materials with Y8 pupils

I Coleman, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

Fully geared towards the new National Curriculum, these texts introduce students to higher echelons of language while building on what they already know. Also great preparation for the new GCSEs!

What do teachers say about this resource? (6324)

I LOVED it and as a teenager, I would have loved to have a go at it! I think it is going to really appeal to Y8 students. It has good visuals and is set out well. I like the fact that it is linked to the new NC. It also covers the cultural aspect of France and French speaking countries. I like the fact that there are different types of reading material in here too – eg, poem, short stories, play and information leaflet – it is a good mix and will have the children reading something that they perhaps have not read before, eg a play. I can’t wait for it to be released!

A Scigliano, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

An amazing resource (...) A great range of texts with a variety of exercises for both pre and post reading. (...) The variety of vocabulary will provide all pupils with the opportunity to learn new words in interesting and possibly very different contexts.

V Pick, HoD and Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6194)

An excellent resource! The stories are intriguing, exciting and attractive to Yr 9 readers. The differentiation of activities throughout this resource is excellent. The coding allows both the teacher and the pupil to identify the level of each activity quickly and there is extension material for the more able. This resource is very enjoyable, it enhances learning and it certainly meets the requirements of new KS3 Curriculum.

F Di Piazza, HoD and Peer Reviewer

Crucial for the new KS3 programme and fills a gap in the market! A really comprehensive package, covering many different skills and tackling the 'new' practices that we will need to employ. A good range of activities too and a lot of different challenges, to allow students to work at their own level and pace.

C Kellett, HoD and Peer Reviewer

This is an outstanding resource which I have used with my MAT students. It is informative and fun to complete. One student in particular did outstanding work.

Margaret Parker, Teacher and Customer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6113)

I was very impressed- I really like both the level of the texts and the level of exploitation of each text. Each text is very suitable for Y8 pupils and should grab their interest. I think that reading skills are underdeveloped at KS3 and resources that are as well thought-out as this are a big step in the right direction. Before this resource, I would never have considered using such authentic materials with Y8 pupils. it is certainly of the quality I have come to expect from ZigZag resources

I Coleman, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

A delightful resource, well conceived and developed. I would certainly find it of use and am full of admiration for the author in producing this. It is imaginative, thorough and provides a busy teacher with lots of useful material and ideas. Producing meaningful, authentic texts at an early stage of language learning is quite a challenge and the author has succeeded very well. Not only are the texts interesting, but they are also very informative (I learned a lot about the Métro!) and they provide a wide range of activities for pupils of all abilities. The difficult area of differentiation is addressed, with scope for the teacher to dip into materials appropriately.

J Ireland, French Lecturer and Peer Reviewer

I think this is a very good resource- it gives a range of very good ideas and tips on how to exploit the texts fully with a range of different types of activities, which would appeal to a range of pupils of varying abilities. (...) I feel this resource enhances learning as it gives good tips for developing translation skills. This is not only a skill for KS3 but also necessary for success in the new GCSE. (...) This resource is very valuable to meet the current curriculum requirements!

F Di Piazza, HoD and Peer Reviewer

I REALLY liked this resource. I believe it would really appeal to a young audience and I would be really keen to use this with my classes. I think they would really enjoy it and be fascinated by its ‘off the wall’ stories and facts. I think this is a really well thought out resource which WILL appeal to young people in KS3 and will give them a springboard and the confidence to create their own poems and their own short plays. Very well done to the author!

A Scigliano, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

Very creative. I like the idea of students reading and working on narrative as they are only often exposed to very limiting short texts. I also like the choice of language and structures, and the fact that the resource has been clearly thought through with sequenced progress to engage able Year 8s.

R Bravo, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

This is an excellent resource which I have used for year 8 MAT students.

M Parker, Teacher and Customer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6518)

This is a super resource which I use for MAT pupils as a stretch challenge exercise. It stretches their use of French as well as giving background information on the history of France. I would recommend this resource

M Parker, Teacher and Customer

The resource is just the right length. It handles the historical theme meaningfully without trying to be too authoritative and will retain a Year 7 class’s concentration and interest either intermittently over the course of the year or for a concentrated period of a term.

E Winter, HoD

What do teachers say about this resource? (6129)

I thought it was an excellent resource, clearly laid out and with lots of good grammar exercises and short and motivating stories. It is a good and inventive way to try and motivate students of French before they take the GCSE and to have fun with the language. I liked the fact that the stories were original, motivating and imaginative and they can appeal to young teenagers, thanks to the settings like Summer camps, holidays, relationships etc.

J Ermina, Teacher, Examiner and Peer Reviewer

I like the variety of exercises which are all relevant, interesting and challenging and the fact that the activities around each texts are divided into different parts. It's very different from resources you would find in a textbook and the texts can be challenging which is really good. The topic should appeal to a lot of teenagers. Very good for the new KS3 curriculum!

E Sinot, HoD and Peer Reviewer

The resource is geared to keep up the students' interest especially as the story carries on. It also allows for discussion and the 'speaking' element of the language is thus promoted and encouraged. Different styles of exercises are offered which promotes concentration

A Andrews, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6385)

Great use of idiomatic authentic language and fun as a reading for enjoyment resource. Clearly written by some one who wants students to enjoy the language. (...) I love the inclusion of teachers notes and translations and it's a great idea to have audio.

I Shaw, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

I like very much the variety of tasks created by the author. They provide pupils with opportunities to succeed in a range of ways. The resource supports teachers too. Language skills are developed over the series of stories: the recognition of adjectival agreement, connectives and sequencers, idioms and exclamations, tense agreements. If followed alongside regular lessons, these stories and tasks allow both teacher and pupil to see progress.

S Owen, HoD and Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6321)

This resource was the most engaging. It was nice to see pupils motivated throughout the whole of term 6. There was a huge variety of activities, with extensions. I particularly liked that pupils had to draw pictures of the vocabulary they had learned. It was nice to see translations that will be very useful in preparing them for the 2016 exam. I liked how the mystery could only be resolved at the end.

J Guibert-Paxton, HoD and Customer

I really liked this story and its associated activities and for the top end of students, it would really help them to become independent, thinking language learners and it would give them LOTS of good adjectives to use in their GCSEs and it models well the sort of higher range vocabulary and structures that will be rewarded at GCSE. Very well done to the author and I would certainly be interested in enabling my students to access this resource. It also links really well with Year 7 Medieval Realms history too, so that could also be referred to as a cross-curricular link.

A Scigliano, Teacher and Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (6454)

The educational value is in the authenticity of the texts. It feels like texts that pupils in France would study in order to learn more about their own language. Grammar is covered in reference to its use in the text, showing the pupils how it should be used. The style of the resource encourages independent learning by structuring the exercises and leading the pupil through the activities. The opportunities for research also encourages independent learning and wider topics including history.

V Pick, HoD and Peer Reviewer