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What's the easiest way to Learn French?


Kenesha
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I am interested in learning how to speak French, I have a few audio recordings but I find that after the first 15 minutes I stop listening.

Do you think it is best to learn the language with someone or what is the best learning software or audio that you would recommend that I try?

Thanks in advance.

Kenesha

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Kenesha - the best way is to go there and just get on with it. Honest. Or try to go on a course in France or other French speaking country, and totally immerse yourself for as long as you can possibly afford.  Bonne chance.

Tried to delete first post - but timed out after 1 second, sorry.

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[quote user="5-element"][quote user="woolybanana"] GET A LOVER, WORKS A TREAT! [/quote]

Your reply is incomplete, WB. It should say, "Get a lover who does NOT speak any English!" [/quote]

Bien Sur! then after that get a french lover who doesn't speak english[:D]

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[quote user="Kenesha"]I am interested in learning how to speak French, I have a few audio recordings but I find that after the first 15 minutes I stop listening.
Do you think it is best to learn the language with someone or what is the best learning software or audio that you would recommend that I try?
Thanks in advance.

Kenesha
[/quote]

Audio recordings are like listening to the radio, after a while it just becomes an auditive blur. Whilst learning french et al by direct one on one conversation is an essential factor in attaining fluency; it has the distinct disadvantage of being unstructured and will do little to develop the equally essential gramatical and syntactical skills. I would recommend that you obtain a french course which includes one or several CD-roms; these installed on your computer will impose by their exercises your participation and concentration, reinforcing your rate of linguistic acquisition. Some of the better courses include software with voice recognition permitting you to engage in pseudo conversations and practise your pronunciation.

There are courses on line including participative exercises the University of Hong Kong and the University of Texas are good examples.

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Kenesha, welcome to the forum. I do hope you weren't offended by some of our joky comments- and I wish you Bonne Chance. How long have you been studying French? And have you been to France?    Meilleures salutations   Odile

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  • 2 months later...

Was in a rerstaurant a little while back and there was a couple with two children. The man spoke in French and the woman in English.

I thought this was great for the kids as they knew which language was which from who was speaking.

Back to the subject - I have found CDs etc difficult to concentrate on. Did try evening classes. Frist year had a great techer but the second she was totally and utterly useless. Our Dutch neighbours in France, who live there permanently had excellent English but no French to start with. One of them has gone for classes and their Ferench is now very good - no doubt by actually being where it is spoken.

Paul

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The question IS a bit misleading, though. In short, there probably isn't ANY "easy" way to learn another language. If there was, we'd all be multilingual!! It's also a very individual thing. Some people prefer to learn by speaking, listening and making mistakes/being corrected, some like to learn from books, reading and studying grammar, writing things down....In reality, even if you prefer one or the other, you'll almost certainly end up having to do both.

It all depends on your personal learning style and preferences. One thing is for certain. It's like finding an "easy" way to lose weight. There isn't one (that works). It requires self-discipline and quite a lot of hard work.

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[quote user="Kenesha"]I am interested in learning how to speak French, I have a few audio recordings but I find that after the first 15 minutes I stop listening.

Kenesha

[/quote]

I find that if I listen to, say, the radio, for more than 15 minutes, I too "turn off".  Likewise, with French conversation around a table.

A French friend told me that repetition is the best way - so she recommended listening to a [web] TV/ radio broadcast, and then repeat it, several times.

So rather than trying to take in a "whole" recording at once, perhaps it is best to do one of the exercises (or whatever it is you are listening to) and then repeat it. 

One year, when I was still in the UK, before I came over for holidays I would put on one of the language learning tapes I had, or put French radio on, but after a little while, I'd get on with something else, but leave the tape or the radio running.  You do not, as such, "hear" the words or even understand them, but the rhythm of French seems to get into your mind set and I always began to think and talk to myself in French as I moved around once I'd done that.

If you are in France, get out and listen and talk (ie do the best you can), if not leave the radio on in the background (France Inter was a good one and can be received in the south of England) - but also the web radios these days give you much more choice.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Hi, I have just finished an Open University Course (Intermediate), but they have a Beginners' Course - I think it's called French Portal, and they also have week long courses in Caen (and other places I believe). The beauty of these courses for me is that although expensive you learn to a pace, with assessments to make sure

you keep on track. And of course, finally, the points awarded can be put towards undergraduate studies etc.
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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 2 months later...
All of the suggestions about learning a foreign language provided by other users are valid and you should definitely look into enrolling at a language school in your country OR do a 2-3 week immersion course in France. I own a language institute in Montpellier if you are interested (Montpellier International Language Institute)....but this is not advertising for my school as I am interested in providing you my own personal opinion on things that will help you learn faster. See the following list of things that you should keep in mind:

- Take a course(s) to get the basic vocabulary and grammar if you have never done this.

- Try to find a pen pal (tons of sites out there that can help you) where you can practice your writing skills. There are some services that allow you to connect to people via SKYPE and thus allow you to practice your speaking skills as well. Both of these options are great and FREE.

- You have to get your ear accustomed to the French accent and I don't think there is a better way than listen to Podcasts. What do you like to do or listen to in your native language? Politics? News? Sports? There are podcast for all of them in French. I highly recommend this option in parallel with the rest of my suggestions as it will allow you to hear real people speak the language in subjects that you find of interest. HOWEVER, I don't believe this is a good option if you have not mastered the basics. Otherwise, you will become frustrated at the speed and sometimes difference French accents you will hear on the podcasts.

- Use the Internet. As an educator I use it a lot as there are tons of great material available to learn a language, many of them quite interactive. You can even read French newspapers online as wells as see the news using French version of some search engines such as Yahoo and Google

- Music is also a great way to learn a language. I love music and with the internet, it is easy today to find the lyrics to follow the sons of our choice.

I hope this helps. You don't have to do all of them as it can become quite overwhelming but I suggest you start with a few and track your progress and later on you can add others.

Best of luck. French is a beautiful language

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