Crib Sheet

Belgian Maman (see my post of 3rd January 2012) and I have put our heads together to create a list of phrases that we use regularly with our little ones and which we would have welcomed with open arms at the beginning of our non-native journey.

We both really hope that this list really helps other non-native English or French speakers out there in their pursuit of bilingualism for their child(ren).

If you do find this list helpful please do leave a comment on my blog or email me at non.native.adventure@gmail.com

Also, should you have anything you wish to add, just let me know.

This is a work in progress which I will update as and when. Last updated 6th March 2012.

So far the categories are as follows:

(1) Hugs & Kisses (2) Playing (3) Moving Around (4) Getting Dressed (5) Bathtime (6) Going Out (7) Bedtime

Hugs & Kisses

Viens me faire un câlin!
Come and give me a hug/ cuddle!

Tu me fais un câlin?
Are you going to give me a hug/ cuddle?

Je peux avoir un câlin?
Can I have a hug/ cuddle?

Fais-lui un câlin.
Give him a hug/ cuddle.

Donne-moi/ lui un bisou!
Give me/ him a kiss.

Fais-moi encore un bisou!
Give me another kiss

Playing

Tu veux jouer avec moi?
Do you want to play with me?

À quoi joues-tu?
What are you playing?

Joue avec ton camion.
Play with your truck.

Joue un peu tout seul maintenant.
Play on your own for a little while now.
Play on your own for a bit now.

Range tes jouets.
Put your toys away.

Viens danser!
Come and dance.

Tu veux danser?
Do you want to dance?
Shall we have a dance?

Je mets de la musique pour que tu danses.
I'll put some music on so that you can dance.

Moving Around

Pas trop vite!

Slow down!

Ne vas pas trop vite!
Don't go too fast!

Bravo, tu marches bien!
Well done, you're walking really well!
Clever girl/ boy, you are walking really well!

Tu cours vite!
Look how fast you're running!
Wow, you're running really fast/ you can run really fast!

Arrête!
Stop!

Fais doucement!
Do it gently/ carefully!
Be gentle/ careful!

Bouge-toi, recule!
Get back!
Get out of the way!
Move!

Tu gènes le passage, va plus loin!
You're in the way, go a bit further along/ move along a bit.

Getting Dressed

Il fait froid. Viens mettre ton pull.
It's cold, come and put your jumper on.

Il fait trop chaud, je vais enlever ton pull.
It's too hot, i'm going to take your jumper off.

Mets ta main dans la manche/ dans ta manche.
Put your hand in the sleeve/ your sleeve.

Tends ton bras.
Push your hand through (if it's stuck).

Lève ton pied.
Lift your foot up.

Appuie-toi sur moi.
Lean on me.

Appuie-toi sur le lit pour ne pas tomber.
Lean on the bed so that you don't fall over.
Hold onto the ved so that you don't fall over.

Tu veux mettre quel t-shirt?
Which t-shirt do you want to wear?
Which t-shirt would you like to wear?

Bathtime

C'est l'heure du bain!
It's bathtime!

Viens prendre un bain/ viens prendre ton bain.
Come and have a bath/ come and have your bath.

Tu vas prendre un bain/ tu vas prendre ton bain.
You're going to have a bath/ your bath.

Ne jette pas l'eau hors du bain.
Don't throw water over the side of the bath/ out of the bath.

Arrête de jeter l'eau hors du bain!
Stop throwing water over the side of the bath!

Tu veux tes jouets de bain?
Do you want your bath toys?

Tu éclabousses!
You're splashing!

Arrête d'éclabousser!
Stop splashing!

Tu fais des bulles!
You're making bubbles!

Il y a beaucoup de bulles!
There are lots of bubbles!

Regarde les bulles!
Look at the bubbles!

Ça fait des bulles quand tu pousses sur la bouteille/ quand tu souffles dans l'eau.
It makes bubbles when you squeeze the bottle/ when you blow into the water.

Tu ne peux pas prendre ton livre dans le bain.
You can't take your book in the bath with you.

Ne bois pas l'eau du bain.
Don't drink the bath water.

Plouf!
Splash!

Je vais to couper les ongles/ On va couper tes ongles.
I'm going to cut your nails/ let's cut your nails.

Je vais to coiffer/ on va to coiffer/ coiffe-toi.
I'm going to brush your hair/ let's brush your hair/ brush your hair.

Je vais te faire une couette/ une tresse.
I'm going to put your hair in a ponytail/ a plait/ i'm going to plait your hair.

Je vais te mettre une pince dans les cheveux/ je vais mettre une pince dans tes cheveux.
I'm going to put a clip in your hair.

N'ouvre pas le robinet.
Don't turn the tap on.

On sort du bain?
Are you getting out of the the bath/ are you getting out/ are you ready to get out of the bath?

Il faut sortir du bain maintenant.
Come on, it's time to get out of the bath.

Going Out

On va chez papy/ au magasin, tu viens avec? / tu viens avec moi/nous?
We're off to visit grandad/ the shop, are you coming?/ are you coming with me/ us?

On va à la piscine.
We're going to the swimming pool/ swimming baths.
Let's go swimming.

On va au magasin.
We're going to the shop.
Let's go to the shop.

On va chez le coiffeur
Let's go to the hairdressers.
Shall we go to the hairdressers?

On va faire les courses/ des courses.
Let's go shopping.
We are going shopping.

On va se promener/ On va faire une promenade.
Let's go for a walk/ Shall we go for a walk?

Tu t'amuses bien?
Are you having fun?
Are you enjoying yourself?

Tu t'es bien amusé(e)?
Did you have fun?
Did you enjoy yourself?

Demain, on ira à la crèche, tu vas bien t'amuser.
Tomorrow we'll go to the nursery, you'll have a great time/ you'll have lots of fun.

À bientôt.
See you soon.

À tout à l'heure.
See you shortly.

Au revoir.
Bye/ Bye bye.

Tu veux marcher ou t'asseoir dans la poussette?
Do you want to walk or go in your stroller?

Reste assis(e) dans ton siège.
Stay in your seat.

N'enlève pas la ceinture!
Don't take off your seatbelt!
Leave your seatbelt fastened/ on!

Voilà notre bus.
Here's our bus.

Ne te lève pas, si le bus redémarre tu vas tomber.
Sit down, if the bus sets off you will fall over.

Ne marches pas dans les flaques.
Don't stand in the puddles.
Don't walk in the puddles.
Keep out of the puddles.

Fais attention, tu vas te salir.
Be careful, you'll get dirty.

Regarde des deux côtés avant de traverser.
Look both ways before crossing.

On va travserser la route, donne-moi la main.
We're going to cross the road, give me your hand.


Bedtime

Tu es fatigué(é).
You're tired.

Il faut aller dormir maintenant/ Il est l'heure d'aller dormir.
It's time for bed now/ it's bedtime.

Tu as l'air bien fatigué(e).
You seem very tired/ You look very tired.

Si tu pleures comme ça, c'est que tu es fatigué(e).
You're crying because you're tired.

Hop! Au Lit!
Come on, bed time!/ Come on, it's bed time!

Je vais te lire une histoire.
I'm going to read you a story.

Tu veux que je te lise une histoire?
Do you want me to read you a story?

Va chercher ton doudou/ ta sucette.
Go get your doudou/ your dummy/ pacifier.

Donne-moi ton doudou/ ta sucette
Give me your doudou/ dummy/ pacifier.

Laisse ton doudou dans le lit.
Leave your doudou in your bed.

Chut!
Sssh!/ Be quiet!

Chut, tu vas réveiller papa/ ton frère/ ta soeur.
Sssh, you'll wake your daddy/ brother/ sister.

Ne réveille pas maman!
Don't wake mummy up.

Fais moins de bruit.
Stop making so much noise.