✍️ CE2 Conjugation: what you need to know and exercises to help remember it

Your child is in CE2 and suddenly conjugation becomes important: four tenses, verbs that change form, endings that look alike. In the evening, faced with the lesson, the question comes: “But why do we write ils chantent and not ils chante?”

Don’t worry. CE2 conjugation only covers a few key points, as long as you organise them in the right order. Here’s what your child needs to know this year, how to help them remember the endings, and some simple CE2 conjugation exercises to do at home, with answers included.

CE2 Conjugation: what your child needs to know this year

In CE2, children focus on four indicative tenses: présent, futur, imparfait and passé composé. The official guidelines from the French Education Ministry target these tenses for three groups of verbs:

• être and avoir, the two verbs used everywhere;
• 1st group verbs (-er verbs like chanter, jouer, manger);
• a few very common irregular verbs: faire, aller, dire, venir, pouvoir, voir, vouloir, prendre.

The pace and order depend on the teacher: some start with the future, others with the imperfect. Check your child’s lesson book to see where the class is, and follow that rhythm rather than getting ahead.

Before conjugating: finding the verb

Many conjugation mistakes come from skipping a step: your child hasn’t spotted the verb or its subject. Two simple tests can help.

• The “ne… pas” test: put these words around the verb. “Léo ne mange pas sa soupe.” The word inside is the verb.
• The tense test: say the sentence with “hier” (yesterday) or “demain” (tomorrow). “Demain, Léo mangera sa soupe.” The word that changes is the verb.

Next, find the subject by asking “Who is eating?” The subject determines the ending: il → -e, ils → -ent.

The endings for the 4 CE2 tenses in one table

Here’s the verb chanter (1st group) in all four tenses. Print it out or copy it onto a sheet to keep near your child’s desk.

Three key points to show your child:

• With we, you almost always find -ons (except in the imperfect: -ions);
• With you, almost always -ez (imperfect: -iez);
• With they, the ending is written but often not pronounced: ils chantent sounds the same as il chante.

The tricky parts of each tense, and how to avoid mistakes

Present tense: irregular verbs

First group verbs are regular. Irregular verbs need to be learned by heart, one each evening: je vais, nous allons, ils vont; je fais, vous faites, ils font; je dis, vous dites; je prends, nous prenons, ils prennent. To remember the “we” rule, have your child say it out loud: listening helps a lot.

Future tense: keep the infinitive

For verbs ending in -er, start with the full infinitive and add -ai, -as, -a, -ons, -ez, -ont: je jouerai. The common mistake is forgetting the “e”: je jouerai, not “je jourai”. Irregular verbs change their stem: je serai, j'aurai, j'irai, je ferai, je viendrai, je pourrai, je verrai, je voudrai.

Imperfect tense: the most regular tense

Endings are the same for all verbs: -ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient. To find the verb stem, start from “we” in the present: nous fais-ons → je fais-ais. Only être is an exception: j'étais. Also watch out for verbs ending in -ger and -cer: je mangeais, je lançais.

Perfect tense: two words

It's the auxiliary avoir or être in the present, followed by the past participle: j'ai mangé, elle est venue. We've dedicated a full article to the passé composé in CE2, including how to choose the auxiliary and agreement rules.

CE2 conjugation exercises to try tonight (with answers)

Ten minutes is enough. Start by saying them out loud, then write them on a whiteboard or piece of paper.

1. Find the verb and its subject.
a) Les enfants jouent dans la cour. b) Demain, nous irons à la piscine. c) Mon chat dormait sur le canapé.

2. Conjugate in the present tense.
a) Tu (regarder) un dessin animé. b) Nous (aller) au parc. c) Ils (prendre) le bus.

3. Conjugate in the future tense.
a) Je (être) en vacances. b) Vous (faire) un gâteau. c) Elle (chanter) à la fête.

4. Conjugate in the imperfect tense.
a) Nous (manger) des crêpes. b) Tu (avoir) un vélo rouge. c) Ils (dire) bonjour.

Answers: 1. a) jouent, subject les enfants; b) irons, subject nous; c) dormait, subject mon chat. 2. a) regardes; b) allons; c) prennent. 3. a) serai; b) ferez; c) chantera. 4. a) mangions; b) avais; c) disaient.

For more printable exercises, our free Kidibook workbook offers short pages to do together as a family.

How to help your child remember conjugations without spending the whole evening

• One verb a day, conjugated out loud on the way to school or during bath time. Five minutes is enough.
• One sheet per tense, with endings in colour. Our Memory Tricks bring these rules together on illustrated cards that are easy to review.
• Review the day before, then three days later: spaced repetition works better than one long session.
• Make it a game: roll a die for the person (1 = I, 2 = you…), pick a verb, and off you go.

If the endings still won't stick, our 7 tips for learning conjugations offer more ideas, all tested at home.