A Do Now is a short task pupils start as soon as they come in, without waiting for instructions. In MFL, a version that works particularly well is a fixed five-minute routine in the target language: the date, a quick question on the weather or how people feel, a number, a word of the day, sometimes a tongue twister. The structure stays the same every lesson, the content changes every day, and nothing is marked.
Why start every lesson the same way
The first minutes of a lesson set its tone. A routine that pupils know by heart lets them start without instructions, while you take the register, deal with a late arrival or hand out books.
In a language lesson, a routine does more than settle the class:
- The target language from the first minute. The lesson starts in Spanish or French, not in English about Spanish or French.
- High-frequency language, all year. Dates, numbers, the weather and feelings come back every lesson instead of being “done” in one unit and forgotten.
- Retrieval built in. Each routine asks pupils to recall what they learnt days or weeks ago, which helps it stick.
- Everyone speaks. A well-run routine gets the whole class talking before anyone has had time to feel self-conscious.
- Predictability. Pupils who find transitions difficult know exactly what to expect.
Written Do Now or spoken routine?
In many UK schools, a Do Now is a silent written task: three or four retrieval questions on the board as pupils come in. In MFL, you can keep that and add what languages need most: speaking.
| Silent written Do Now | Spoken routine | |
|---|---|---|
| What pupils do | answer questions in writing | say the date, the weather, a number, a word aloud |
| Strength | calm entry, every pupil accountable | pronunciation, fluency, confidence |
| Risk | no speaking at all | a few confident pupils do all the talking |
| Best for | settling a lively class, retrieval of written forms | building automatic spoken language |
A hybrid works well: two minutes of silent writing as pupils arrive (write the date, answer two questions), then three minutes of choral and individual speaking on the same content.
A five-minute structure
Don’t do every stage every day: choose three or four and keep the order stable.
| Minute | Stage | Spanish | French |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0–1 | The date | Hoy es martes, 6 de octubre. | Nous sommes le mardi 6 octobre. |
| 1–2 | Weather or feelings | Hace sol en Sevilla. Estoy cansada. | Il pleut à Lyon. Je suis fatigué. |
| 2–3 | A number or the time | Son las nueve y cuarto. | Il est neuf heures et quart. |
| 3–4 | The word of the day | madrugar | la grasse matinée |
| 4–5 | A tongue twister or quick recall | Tres tristes tigres tragaban trigo en un trigal. | Un chasseur sachant chasser doit savoir chasser sans son chien. |
Each stage follows the same pattern: a prompt on the board, a moment to think, the class answers, the answer is revealed. That pattern matters more than the content: once pupils know it, you can change the content every day without explaining anything.
Mistakes to avoid
- Letting it grow. Five minutes becomes ten, then fifteen. Use a timer and stop when it rings.
- Turning it into a test. No marks, no scores, no grades. Mistakes are corrected by modelling the right answer, not recorded.
- Explaining in English. Once the routine is learnt, it needs no English at all: that is its main advantage.
- Changing the format every week. Novelty belongs in the content, not the structure.
- Hands up only. If the same five pupils answer every day, the routine is not doing its job. See our page on getting the whole class speaking.
- Content that never moves on. Raise the level as the year goes on: the year in the date, then yesterday and tomorrow, then the season.
- Skipping it when time is short. The routine is valuable because it happens every lesson.
- Never using it again. Refer back to the routine during the lesson: the weather words, the word of the day, the number.
Choral answers, cold calling and no hands up
The most effective routines combine three ways of answering. The whole class answers together first, so everyone rehearses. Then you cold-call two or three pupils by name, with no hands up, so everyone stays ready. Finally, the answer is revealed and the class repeats the correct version. Choral first, individual second: nobody is caught unprepared, and nobody can hide.
In class: setting it up in the first weeks
- Teach the script explicitly. Show the questions and model answers, and practise them as a lesson in their own right.
- Leave sentence frames on the board: Hoy es…, Hace…; Nous sommes le…, Il fait….
- Lead the routine yourself for the first two or three weeks, always in the same order, with the same gestures and signals.
- Hand one stage to a pupil, then two, then the whole routine.
- Remove the frames one by one as answers become automatic. Put them back for a week when you raise the level.
Rotating the leader role
A pupil at the front asking the questions changes the dynamic: the class answers a peer, and the leader practises asking questions, which pupils rarely do otherwise.
- The leader asks the questions: ¿Qué fecha es hoy?, Quelle est la date aujourd’hui ?
- The checker reveals the answer and reads it aloud.
- The timekeeper keeps the routine within five minutes.
Rotate the roles with the register order or names drawn at random, so everyone takes a turn. Let confident pupils go first to model the role, and let shyer pupils lead in pairs before they lead alone. The leader’s lines never change, so even a hesitant pupil can learn them.
Adapting across the key stages
- A1Date without the year, weather in one word, numbers to 31, a picture word: Hoy es lunes. Il fait beau.
- A2Full date with the year, weather in a city, the time, feelings with a reason
- B1Yesterday and tomorrow, past and future tenses: Ayer llovió; mañana hará sol. Hier, il a plu ; demain, il fera beau.
- B2The season, a short discussion question, a harder tongue twister, pupil-led follow-up questions
At KS2, the routine can be sung, with gestures and a puppet. At KS3, it becomes the backbone of the lesson and the leader role starts. At GCSE, the same routine gets harder: more tenses, more follow-up questions, and more spontaneous talk.
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Frequently asked questions
What is a Do Now activity?
A short task pupils start as soon as they enter the classroom, without instructions. It settles the class and usually revisits earlier learning.
How long should a Do Now last?
Around five minutes. Longer, and it starts to eat into the lesson; a timer helps keep it short.
What makes a good Do Now in MFL?
A fixed structure in the target language, with changing content: the date, weather or feelings, a number, a word of the day. Pupils should be able to start it without English instructions.
Should a Do Now be silent?
It can start silently, with written answers, but in languages it should end with speaking: choral answers first, then individual pupils.
Should I mark the Do Now?
No. It is practice, not assessment. Correct by modelling the right answer and having the class repeat it.
Can pupils lead the start-of-lesson routine?
Yes, once they know it. Rotate a leader, a checker and a timekeeper, and let shyer pupils lead in pairs first.