Learn French: Quand est-ce que tu ouvres les cadeaux ?

Ouvrir (to open) is a special irregular verb. Even though its infinitive ends in -ir, it conjugates exactly like a regular -er verb in the present tense. So instead of taking an -is ending, the tu form takes -es (tu ouvres). The same rule applies to offrir (to offer).

Can I say Quand ouvres-tu les cadeaux ? instead of using est-ce que?

Yes, you absolutely can! Quand ouvres-tu... uses inversion and sounds a bit more formal. Using Quand est-ce que tu ouvres... is the standard way to ask questions in everyday spoken French. In very casual speech, you might even hear Tu ouvres les cadeaux quand ?.

Why does cadeaux end in an -x instead of an -s?

In French, nouns that end in -eau in the singular (like un cadeau, a gift) form their plural by adding an -x rather than an -s. The pronunciation stays exactly the same as the singular.

Is there a special pronunciation for Quand est-ce que?