Tips to improve your French

 

I’ve reached a plateau, I’m frustrated

How do I improve my French?

You’re frustrated with your speaking

• If you want to improve your speaking, you have to speak regularly even to… yourself. Sing French songs, find or write the lyrics (listening practice) and then sing!

• Speak French to your family and friends, even if they don’t understand everything, you  practice and develop habits, create automatisms and reinforce your vocabulary with the repetition.

• Repetition and regularity is everything

Liste de mots et phrases utiles (to carry with you at all times in your pocket/phone/ipad to revise in the tube/train/bus)

• C’est pas grave: it doesn’t matter

• Je lui ai dit: I told him

• Je suis perdu, où est…? I’m lost, where is…?

• Vous avez le même en rouge? Do you have the same in red?

• 70: soixante-dix, 71: soixante-et-onze…

• 80: quatre-vingt, 81: quatre-vingt-un…

90: quatre-vingt-dix, 91: quatre-vingt-onze…

How to practice the 4 skills of listening, writing, reading and speaking?

• Find friends on websites such as: conversationexchange.com and polyglotclub.com and start talking either with tools such as Skype or in writing, exchanging messages. Ideally both, writing is likely to become boring in time and live conversation are fun and don’t have to last too long.

Immersion in the UK

• To be immersed and speak French, go to Franglish events, (www.london.franglish.eu), Euroclub, French exhibitions, French events for Bastille day (14 juillet), Fête de la musique (21 juin) or Galette des rois (janvier). You will be exposed to French traditions, people, sounds, music, food. One learns better when learning is linked to pleasure, such as enjoying your food and wine!

Things to do on a regular basis

• Go on holiday to a French-speaking country: France, the French speaking part of Belgium, Luxembourg, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Senegal, Mauritius, Guyana, Togo, Ivory Coast, Québec.

• Visit places where you will hear, see, listen to French in London:

• The French bookshops in South Kensington, the French Institute, become a member of its médiathèque, borrow books, DVDs, CDs, attend conferences, go to the Cinéma Lumière’s Q&As.

Practice: Don’t be scared - What’s the worst that can happen? A funny mistake…

• Make mistakes, this is how we improve

• Ask to be corrected

• It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand everything you read and hear, you will understand more and more in time. There will be some ‘Eureka’ moments. Never hesitate to ask what something means, people are happy to help and will be delighted you’re making an effort to speak to themJ

Things to do regularly

• Listen and talk to French people in the tube

• Read the news

• Listen to the French radio: France Inter, Europe 1, French radio London, France Culture, RFI www.rfi.fr.

• For fun and practice, repeat what the presenter says. And if you listen to podcasts, you can go back several times to try to understand what the person said, this is a typical language lab exercise at university.

• Find an excuse to speak French in the UK, ask the time, directions, there are 500,000 French people in London, and that’s without counting the other francophones!

The key to progression and fun: mix learning with pleasure

• Taste and learn more about food and drink

 

                        

 

Read about what you like in French

• Vous aimez cuisiner? Faites des recettes françaises

Vous aimez jardiner?

• Read about gardening in French

Vous aimez le cinéma?

• Lisez des articles sur vos acteurs préférés

• www.lexpress.fr/culture/cinema/

Vous adorez les biographies?

• Lisez-les en français

For listening practice

• Youtube channels to follow:

• Cynthia Dulude, for beauty/make-up tips in québécois French

• Jardinjardinier, to discover famous and non-famous French gardens

• A video about cuisine with subtitles (sous-titres)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFewlpelaxE

A few more tips

• Try to read bilingual books, with the page translated in English on the left.

• You can write French words/expressions you want to remember on post-its you place in strategic positions in your house (www.flash-sticks.com).

• Some phone apps are great to learn new vocabulary (Duolingo).

Never underestimate grammar

• It’s the skeleton of a language

• And the clothes are the vocabulary.

• You might get by without grammar and verbs for simple things such as shopping, but it will be more difficult for a conversation with the police, customs, plumber or doctor.

French TV

• Watch the news, it’s easier as you will know some of the world’s news already in your native language

• Some channels:

• TF1

• France 2

• France 3 (all the local news at lunch time and 6pm GMT)

• M6

• W8

• W9

A few websites :

Cinema:

• allocine.fr

• lexpress.fr/culture/cinema

http://www.institut-francais.org.uk/cine-lumiere/ French cinema in South Kensington

Travel:

• lostandfoundinlondon.wordpress.com

News:

• marianne.fr

• lefigaro.fr

• rue89.fr

http://www.huffingtonpost.fr/

Events:

www.londonmacadam.com

www.ici-londres.com/fr

www.franceinlondon.com francophone events, search by genre

www.cercles.alliancefrançaise.org.uk Local events organized by the Alliance française in 34 UK towns

www.ifecosse.org.uk the Edinburg branch of the French Institute

Blogs in French

Journalism

http://www.marianne.net/Les-Blogs-Marianne_r1531.html

Beauty:

• afrenchbeautyaddictinlondon.com

• Babillages.net

Cuisine:

· papillesetpupilles.fr

· solinecuisine.unblog.fr/    Facebook: Soline cuisine

Private tuition

• If you can, it’s useful to have a teacher to encourage you and remind you of doing these things we have talked about.

• Tips if you have a tutor:

• Don’t be scared to say what you want to do/change in the lessons, if you feel you do too much of one activity and not enough of another.

More on tuition

• Ask for books, methods, music, event recommendations. Some tutors might lend you films, magazines, books, bring you food from France.

Learning in a group is cheaper, very social, but the risk is that the level will be too advanced or too basic. And if you’re shy, you’ll never speak.

How to stay in touch?

• Facebook: Voulez-vous parler

• Twitter: Voulezvousparle

• Email: sophie@voulezvousparler.com

• Website: www.voulezvousparler.com

• If you want to subscribe to our newsletter, please send us an email. (No more than 1 email a month).

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Joyeuse Saint Valentin!

 

Happy Saint Valentine’s day! If you haven’t bought anything to your loved one, there is still time. Why not buy 1, 2 or 10 French, English, Spanish or Italian lessons? Call us and we’ll prepare a voucher we can email you or your Valentine. We can even text him/her to tell her the news.

Useful phrases in French:

Je t’aime:  I love you

Joyeuse Saint Valentin: Happy St Valentine’s day

On sort ce soir: I’m taking you out tonight

Tu veux aller boire un verre avec moi? Do you want to go for a drink with me?

Je t’emmène dîner: I’m taking you out for a meal

Je suis amoureux/amoureuse de toi: I’m in love with you

Veux-tu m’épouser? Do you want to marry me?

Je suis fiancé(e): I’m engaged

He proposed: il m’a demandé(e) en mariage

She proposed: elle m’a demandé(e) en mariage

Things to do in Paris today:

http://www.sortiraparis.com/loisirs/guides/48559-la-saint-valentin-a-paris-le-guide-des-bons-plans-2014

10 good reasons to book language lessons in January

 

1. It’s a new year, we all have this January motivation and energy which can go a long way.

2. Something new is always exciting, you buy new books/apps for your studying like you would buy new clothes if take up yoga. Learning a language is a good excuse to buy new DVDs in this language, or borrow some at the French Institute if you’re learning French.

3. Knowing a new language will not only impress your friends and entourage but also yourself. You’ll be amazed at what you can do and the positive consequences it has.

4. You’ll meet new friends. London is full of events where you can meet native speakers whilst, at the same time make new business contacts or meet a new girlfriend/boyfriend (Internations, Franglish: www.london.franglish.eu/en/home)

5. It’s good for your brain. Learning a language is challenging but rewarding. You’ll practice the gymnastics of verbs and your memory by learning new vocabulary. It doesn’t have to be boring. Your teacher can show you apps and website that you’ll be able to use on your own.

6. If you were stuck for ideas for your next holiday, the solution is here: why not go to Québec or Morocco to speak French and Japan for your Japanese? Different and not necessarily expensive. The Yen is down, or so I’ve heard.

7. You’ll be surrounded by other motivated people as everyone is taking up something new in January. And of course, you’ll be the one who carries on beyond February, because you’re not a quitter!

8. Be original, it doesn’t have to be French. I took up Greek a few years ago and never looked back. It really helps when you go to Greece and gets you a certain kind of respect and better service.

9. Never underestimate the power of a new language. You’ll understand conversations in the train, will have new work opportunities, will understand food labels, songs, articles your foreign friends post on social media, and last but not least, will discover new things in your native language (weird but true). It’s a new life experience as you will broaden your horizons on so many levels.

10. It usually snows in January so what could be better than watching a foreign DVD or drink a glass of vin whilst practising your new vocabulary with your encouraging other half?

Christmas presents–stuck?

 

Are you stuck with ideas? Christmas is only a few days away. You can book language lessons for a loved one. You decide the number of hours according to your budget and you have the whole of 2014 to use the hours. A lot of languages are available. Our most popular are French, English, Italian, Spanish, German, Greek and Latin lessons.

For books to learn languages or books in French, Spanish, Italian, German, visit The European bookshop near Picadilly Circus or Foyles.

Joyeux Noël/Merry Christmas!

Language show 18–20 October 2013

Today, Sophie, Claire and Paola from Voulez-vous parler visited the Language show. It is at Olympia in Kensington until Sunday 20 October. Free tickets are available online.

Why do we recommend visiting?

Lots of stands offer a wide range of material and resources for teachers and learners. I particularly liked these stands: Eurotalk: methods to learn lots of languages, 50% off during the show, The European Bookshop - 15% discount during the show - with the lovely CLE representative from Paris, FIL (Français Immersion Loisirs) who organizes French immersion holidays in France for teenagers near the Spanish border, The Japan bookshop JP Books, The Japanese Foundation, Grant and Cutler at Foyles and Idioma, who sells T-shirts and bags displaying words or sentences in French or Spanish, Linguascope (dice, rulers etc with verbs, vocabulary), French in the Dordogne, French immersion courses for adults. Enjoy!

Words I wish I knew before going on holiday

By Paola Bassanese

Holidays. Take a deep breath, close your eyes and see yourself lying on a beach or walking up a mountain in the fresh air. Reminder: open your eyes.

So far, so good.

But then, while you are on holiday, you will need to engage in conversation with the locals, at one point or another. As long as you can order a beer and some food you'll be fine, right?

That's what I thought too a few years ago before going on holiday to Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries. I took a beginners' course in both Spanish and Portuguese in a group setting and off I went.

Little did I know that those phrase books you take with you on holiday display all those case scenarios that apply to other people but not to you.

To give you a bit of background: I am a massage therapist and when I go on holiday, I like to reward myself to a few massage treatments.

If only I knew how to communicate my preferences to a therapist in Portugal who was wrapping me in warm mud! Don't worry, I did request that treatment. I just did not know how to explain I was getting a bit too warm. I could not wave my arms around miming “I am too hot” as I was mummified with bandages.

Or that other time when, in Spain, I had a haircut followed by a massage and I had no idea how to explain what hair style I wanted or the type of pressure I needed during the massage. I ended up with a super short haircut and a wishy-washy massage.

Worse still, that time in Brazil when I really needed a strong massage but because I did not understand the spa's massage menu, I ended up having some crystals applied to my body and then the therapist left me alone in the room to “soak up the energy”. Probably the most disappointing spa treatment I ever had, but then again at least the venue was beautiful and the customer service excellent. I just wanted to kick myself for not knowing enough vocabulary to explain I really needed a deep tissue massage.

Those group classes I took years ago were quite useful but I now realise that I needed extra tuition to get more familiar with different terminology. In an ideal world, next time I am planning a holiday, I will have one-to-one language tuition to make sure I know how to explain that my shoulders are tight and that I hold a lot of tension in my calves. Hopefully the local massage therapist will not bring me a couple of baby cows.

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