Newsletter 
As every year, we’re excited to launch our Reading Aloud Contest for students learning French in Finnish schools — and the 2026 edition is now underway!
This year, there are two key changes to note:
- Exceptionally, the contest will be organized solely by the French Institute of Finland.
- It will be open to all grade levels, from first year of elementary school to the final year of upper secondary school. (For this edition, we’ve merged “Les voix de demain” with the Franco-German reading competition.)
Despite a few changes, the challenge for students remains the same: to bring their reading to life through a wide variety of texts. The final and awards ceremony will take place in person on Wednesday, May 6, 2025, at the French Institute of Finland (Tehtaankatu 27–29 D, Helsinki).
The Reading Aloud Contest is much more than just a classroom exercise — it’s a unique opportunity for students to improve their foreign language skills, gain confidence in speaking, and explore the richness of French literature. It’s also a wonderful occasion to meet other learners from across Finland, in a spirit of sharing and friendly competition centered around reading.
Process and registration
- Registration (until January 30, 2026): Register your students via this form by January 30, 2026, at the latest. Please specify the number of students and their category (beginner/intermediate). Once your students are registered for the first round, we will send you a selection of texts tailored to their grade level and proficiency (only for students from grade 4 and up).
- First Round (until February 11, 2026): Please send your students’ video submissions as a link to cooperation@france.fi by February 11, 2026 at the latest. The video must clearly show and hear the participant reading aloud. Students should also clearly state their full name, class, and school.
The video should be uploaded on a platform such as WeTransfer, Google Drive, OneDrive, etc. — please do not send the video as an email attachment. - Announcement of the finalists on February 27, 2026: If your student is selected as a finalist, please confirm their participation by March 20, 2026, at the latest.
- Final on May 6, 2026: The final will bring together the 36 finalists at the Institute for the second round of the competition and for the awards ceremony (3 winners per category: beginner and intermediate/advanced). Train tickets for the selected finalists will be covered by the French Institute of Finland.
Who can participate?
The contest is open to all students from grades 1 to 12, whether beginners or advanced in French. The different contest categories and their corresponding guidelines are:
1st Grade – Free choice for the first round, maximum 2 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
2nd Grade – Free choice for the first round, maximum 2 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
3rd Grade – Free choice for the first round, maximum 2 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
Grades 4 – 6 – First round: text chosen from a given selection, maximum 3 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
Grades 7 – 9 – First round: text chosen from a given selection, maximum 3 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
Grades 10 – 12 – First round: text chosen from a given selection, maximum 3 minutes 30 seconds reading
- Beginner
- Intermediate-Advanced
FINALS: Free choice of text for all categories (maximum 4 minutes)
Other instructions and details
- Registration: Only French teachers in Finland can register their classes or individual students for the contest.
- Texts to read: After registration, teachers will receive the texts by email for their students to prepare for the first round. This applies to students starting from the 4th grade up – younger students can read the text of their choice during the first round. The texts will be available as soon as your registration is processed. Among the proposed texts, students can choose the one that suits them best from a variety of styles and genres. For the final, finalists have complete freedom to choose the text they want to read.
- Travel expenses: For classes coming from outside Helsinki, travel costs will be covered for the finalists and one accompanying adult, either a teacher or a parent, traveling with the students to Helsinki for the final. Parents and friends are welcome to attend, but their travel expenses will be at their own cost.
- Prize: Each finalist will receive one or two books as a gift, generously provided by our partners.
This reading aloud contest is organized in collaboration with
