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Whats the best method to learn French?


Rob Bullet
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Hi all, first time on here - great forum!. I 'm looking for a little advice. Parents retired near Limoge 5 years ago and I'm looking at moving at some point in the future. However, my french isn't great and i want to learn but don't know which is the best option - CD/ Linguaphone..?

Got a free CD in the Independant a few months back but no book , any help would be greatly received.

 

Rob Rig.

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I learnt most of my French from a Linguaphone course and found it a

good way of learning because of the structure (but this was some years

back and may have changed). There were 30 lessons, all broken into 3

parts, and formed a whole story. This takes away the boring look, read

and remember method that some adopt. The first part was one of the

characters speaking, the second part included their part of the story

and the third was a very short humourous piece. Each chapter had

follow-up oral and written exercises, sometimes word games. Because all

of the language is taught in a practical way, I found it easier to

remember what a character said, rather than what a book says should be

said in a certain circumstance. Expensive, but very practical. Good

luck.

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It doesn't suit all but I think that the Michel Thomas range is a really good starter and you feel like you are making progress from the word go.

It doesn't get bogged down in grammar too soon and second hand ones come quite cheap on ebay.

 

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Hi Rob

I would whole-heartedly recommend a book from "Teach yourself" range by Gaelle Graham.  Its main purpose is to give you an all-round confidence in speaking, understanding and writing French. My language learning was rather erratic before - every time I was going on holidays to France I resolved to learn the language, so ended up with a pile of not very useful or interesting books and still not speaking much of French.  The book I have mentioned above, however, did seem to make a difference and within a year I progressed from basic to upper intermediate.  I now supplement the knowledge gained from this book with a very useful website (www.french.about.com), and - of course - by weekly classes. 

Bonne chance!

Anna

 

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Hi Rob,

I have tried a number of different courses but my favourite is French in 3 months by Hugo (which is a bit of a laugh!) but it takes you right back to basics and comes with a cd.  It includes written exercises and listening skills and come in basic and intermediate and advanced levels.  About £25.00 each new.

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I too would recommend the Michel Thomas course, both the initial 8 CD set and the Advanced Course.  I progressed through these last year and was able to converse quite well with our french neighbours who remarked on ho much my french had improved in a short time.    I have supplemented this with reading as much as possible, Paris Match etc and also watching TV5 on sky tv which helps with listening skills.  I also have the Independant free CD and the book and it's quite good but not as good when you just want to learn whilst driving or in other free time, unlike the Michel Thomas which you can listen to at any time.


Good luck

Kim

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  • 2 weeks later...
[quote user="Rob Rig"]

Hi all, first time on here - great forum!. I 'm looking for a little advice. Parents retired near Limoge 5 years ago and I'm looking at moving at some point in the future. However, my french isn't great and i want to learn but don't know which is the best option - CD/ Linguaphone..?

Got a free CD in the Independant a few months back but no book , any help would be greatly received.

 

Rob Rig.

[/quote]

 

A few years back I used to teach Welsh farmers! french... for whatever reason they all had an interest in french farming. For that I used the BBC method. The BBC had (back in 1995) a very good book with audio-tapes available to the public at large. My farming pupils all found it very useful to master simple every day situation with simple grammar, vocabulary and to train their ears to the sound of a french person. Also my parents (french) used to send lots of stuff for their grand-children which I used as materiel. I just added scenarios which involved the farming world.  I don't know if the BBC still produces this book and tape package but consider asking your local library if they have a copy of it.

Then when in France try to be as gregarious as possible with your family. It's called immersion method! Just plungein head first and do not be afraid to make a fool of yourself sometime, possibly buy a little 'dutch' courage at the local café to help you along... The English need to get rid of their stiff upper lips, just as the French need to get rid of their shrugg-shoulder arrogance...

Your parents should/would be able to advise you. How have they managed/coped after 5 years in the area.... Have a nice time learning...

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If you want a grammar book, I can thoroughly recommend 'La Grammaire en Clair' by Jeremy Long and Paul Rogers (Nelson, ISBN 0174444206). It's a workbook with explanations and cartoons, lots of humour which is a thing I have never come across in other grammar books. It does help! I imagine it would be a good accompaniment to Michel Thomas CDs, which focus on spoken language.
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My son has been looking at brushing up on his French for when he visits and sent the following information:

If you already have iTunes, then go to the Music Store and click on Podcasts. You should be able to find the French Podclasses on there quite easily and download them. You can then play and listen to them through iTunes. There is a whole range of interesting stuff in the podcast section - and its all free to download!

 

I have already downloading a couple of the lessons to my computer, so they can be listened to whenever you wish, as I want to revise a bit and they appear very useful. ITunes can be downloaded for free on your computer.

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I studied french at University which is fine if you have a spare four years!, but I have a friend who is learning on-line with a french tutor. I think the website is Language Learners?? He logs on and uses Skype to talk with the tutor, she sends the work through the day before and they have one hour talking and going over things a week - he seems to be gettin on really well.

I have been learning Italian, tried with tapes etc, but found a tutor was easier although a pain to drive to every week!!

 

Good Luck, Bonne Chance!

 

 

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