If You Know French
Your Offset Month Learning French: A Step-past-Stride Guide
So you want to learn how to speak French? Très bien !
French is one of the well-nigh widely spoken languages in the globe, being official in 29 countries. These include Canada and Republic of haiti in North America, French Guiana in Due south America, more than a dozen African nations, v European countries, and Vanuatu and several French overseas territories in Oceania.
French is cute, popular, and very useful.
Yet, despite what some native French speakers would have you believe, there's one thing that French definitely isn't: difficile.
French might have a reputation for beingness incredibly difficult for non-natives, only I can tell you from experience, this isn't truthful. I really found Spanish to be more difficult. That was mainly considering Spanish was my showtime foreign language – so I made lots of mistakes in how I learned Spanish. But the time I got to French, I'd discovered the best means to acquire a foreign language.
Approach French the right mode, and avoid the mistakes that many first-time language learners make, and you'll find that French isn't nearly as difficult as you lot've been led to believe.
While you certainly won't main it in three months, especially if you lot tin only put a few hours a week into information technology, if you want to take your initial programme of action here's how I'd suggest you learn French.
Let'due south have a expect at what y'all should practise in the offset hour, first solar day, starting time calendar week and first month of learning French. From hither y'all'll accept the start you demand to keep your momentum going and keep learning!
How to Speak French: Equipment and Time
Earlier we begin, you lot volition demand the following:
- Notepad
- Pen
- Computer or tablet with internet connectedness
Optional extras:
- French phrasebook
- $ten – $20 per week to spend on language teachers
To follow this guide, you'll demand to gear up bated around four hours each weekend (I recommend scheduling out Saturday mornings), plus around 45 minutes per 24-hour interval on weekdays.
I also suggest yous start at the weekend to give yourself a "first solar day" boost.
Here'southward where to starting time on that outset solar day…
How to Speak French: The First Hour
Your outset footstep in learning French is to create a personalised French phrasebook.
Why do this? In my approach to learning French, y'all'll focus on learning French that's relevant to y'all, your life, and your reasons for learning French.
Become a fresh notebook, and a pen, and write "My French Phrasebook" on the cover.
This notebook will contain the French phrases that you need to know, rather than the i-size-fits-all phrases found in almost French courses and phrasebooks.
Let's become that first folio filled!
Become to the Omniglot.com French phrases page and search for the phrases yous apply when you see someone for the first fourth dimension. Here are the phrases I'd look up:
- Hello
- My name is…
- What is your proper name?
- Prissy to meet you
- Goodbye
Write down each give-and-take or phrase along with its English translation. Click on each phrase in Omniglot to hear its pronunciation past a French speaker, so speak out loud what yous hear. Echo this until you're comfortable with creating French sounds in your oral fissure.
How to Speak French: The First Day
What should you practice with the rest of your time on day one? Go along using Omniglot to collect French phrases and questions that you lot would use when talking with a native speaker for the first time. These will exist the same phrases that you would use when coming together a speaker of your native linguistic communication for the showtime time:
- Where are you from?
- I'm from [country or urban center of origin]
- What do you practice?
- I'm a [task title]
- What do yous do in your gratis time?
- In my gratis fourth dimension, I like to…
If your task title and hobbies aren't listed on Omniglot, apply Google Translate to translate them.
The phrases you lot collect now don't have to be grammatically perfect. The aim is to be able to say basic things about yourself, using what I phone call "Tarzan speak". For example, I might learn how to say, "Je Benny. Je irlandais." Certain, it's far from perfect. But you get the betoken. And so will your beginning conversation partner.
Write down the phrases with their translations, and then say them out loud.
Exercise your best to commit them to memory – but don't spend too much time on this. Y'all tin can ever proceed your notebook handy when you lot have your outset chat. As well, you'll exist using these phrases nigh every time you see a new person, and so you'll learn them by middle soon enough. Don't be as well fancy. You lot don't desire to overwhelm yourself. Only larn these few phrases and worry about elaborating afterward.
Equally you'll have noticed by now, French pronunciation is very dissimilar from English. It will take time to master. You might feel silly trying to say the above phrases while trying to become the R just correct, or figuring out which letters are silent. Don't sweat it! It's just your first twenty-four hours. Exercise your best, repeat later on the recordings, and worry near the residue later.
How to Speak French: Calendar week 1
Very early in your commencement calendar week (even on your first day!) you should head over to italki and schedule your very get-go conversation with a native French speaker. Schedule information technology to exist 7 days from when you started learning French.
Speaking is by far the best way to learn a language.
At that place's no feeling quite similar the rush you lot get when yous say something to a native speaker using your target language for the very beginning time, and the other person understands y'all. You lot'll experience empowered to continue using your language, knowing that yous can employ it to connect with another person.
I recommend that yous schedule your starting time conversation to be with a French instructor rather than a conversation partner. There are tons of French teachers on italki. Lessons do price money, simply the prices are generally very reasonable. Many teachers and tutors also offer gratuitous trial lessons.
And call up what I said most how global French is! If you restrict your search to only those in France or Europe, it may indeed be more than y'all can afford, only if you look all over the world, then y'all will definitely find someone who fits your personal requirements.
Why a instructor? Teachers will have experience of working with other language learners. When you're a beginner, it'south of import to have a teacher who'due south supportive and patient. Teachers likewise know the best way to help you progress – pushing you hard enough to proceed you learning, but non and then difficult that you feel overwhelmed.
You've scheduled your get-go chat. The rest of your first week should be spent preparing for this conversation.
Review your chat phrases from day i every day this week. If you can say them quickly and easily, and so start calculation some more than phrases. These tin be anything y'all want, just make sure y'all pick phrases that you'll use often.
Considering that you'll be chatting with a native speaker soon, phrases yous'll use a lot will be:
- Delight speak more slowly
- Could you say that again?
- Please write that down
These tin all be found on Omniglot, and will help you keep your first conversation in French going for several minutes. Remember to listen to the Omniglot recordings and then y'all know the right pronunciation.
Nearing the end of your start calendar week and are however also nervous to schedule a conversation with a French speaker? So sign upwardly for my costless Speak in a Week course.
How to Speak French: Week 2
By now you'll have had your start conversation with a native French speaker! (If you haven't, go on italki right now and schedule information technology).
You probably won't take to worry much almost motivation this week after your first conversation. But any time y'all practice experience yourself struggling to stay motivated from at present on, volume some other conversation with a teacher, tutor or linguistic communication partner. Y'all'll come out of it feeling refreshed and ready to keep going. I recommend having a minimum of three conversations a week.
At present you've got a chat under your belt, this week is about making sure that the words and phrases you learn stick in your memory. For this, I recommend using virtual flashcards, which you can create with Anki.
Anki is available for iOS and Android, also as for desktop computers.
Call up the listing of personal phrases you started creating on your first 24-hour interval, then added to throughout your beginning week? Y'all can import it into Anki to make your very ain flashcard deck to exercise French with.
At present y'all tin review these phrases anytime you desire. Anki'south SRS algorithm volition automatically take you spend more time practising the phrases you're less familiar with, and less time on the ones you know well. Practise your flashcards for at least xv minutes per day. When you start to become actually skilful at the phrases, add more. A French phrasebook is a adept reference if yous're having problem thinking of phrases you desire to learn.
It's a good idea this calendar week to starting time learning to read in French, beyond the unproblematic words and phrases you've learned so far. You'll be well-aware by at present that French reading isn't quite as straightforward as other Romance languages you may have studied, or heard of. Until you lot go the hang of it, y'all can't rely on the spelling of French words as an indicator of pronunciation. There are likewise many silent letters, and multiple spellings for a unmarried sound. The sooner y'all master the basics of reading, the sooner you'll exist able to use French literature every bit a study tool.
To start reading French, check out Languageguide.org's Get-go Readings folio. Click on any link to view a brusk French excerpt. A recording volition begin to play and then that you can listen to a native speaker read the text as y'all follow along. Clicking suspension will highlight the word where the recording stopped. Hover your mouse over the punctuation marker at the end of any sentence to see its English translation.
By the end of this week, make certain to have at least 1 more French chat with a native speaker. You'll exist able to see your ain progress in the language, and it will give you the button you demand to motility on to your tertiary week.
How to Speak French: Week three
Week iii is a good time to evaluate what's worked for you lot in learning French, and what hasn't worked so well.
That is, if y'all've kept up your practice. Have yous? Chances are you've had some days when you felt super motivated, and some days when life happened and you didn't exercise any linguistic communication learning.
If you feel similar you've stalled, this week is the time to put things right.
Something I've learned over the years in my many language missions is that information technology's far more constructive to distribute your total weekly study time over every day of the calendar week, than to do all of your studying in 1 or two days. Studying less often ways y'all accept to spend more than time in each written report session reviewing what you learned concluding time. You also risk falling out of your routine and giving upwards on your language mission. So keep upward the daily studying! Even if you can only commit to a few minutes each time.
Your main job this week is to create a study schedule that works for you.
Aim to set aside time every day to report, even if information technology'south just 10 minutes per day during the week, and longer on weekends.
Throughout this week, proceed reading, go along scheduling conversations, and keep edifice your Anki deck. No thing what else might go far the way of your studying, you tin can ever observe a few spare moments to check in with your Anki deck.
Make sure to schedule at least 2 conversations with native speakers this week. If you've only spoken with teachers then far, consider chatting with a chat exchange partner instead.
Chatting with a language substitution partner is a very unlike experience from chatting with a instructor. It's more than relaxed – a bit like hanging out with a friend, and the chat can go anywhere. As an added bonus, it'south gratis!
How to Speak French: Week 4
This week is all about maintaining the salubrious study habits you prepare concluding calendar week. Follow the schedule you gear up for yourself, and see how it works.
What if you detect you lot've been besides ambitious? Tweak your schedule and so that it works for yous. The important thing is that you report every twenty-four hours, even if information technology's just for a few minutes. Fix your sights too high, and you lot'll overwhelm yourself and cease up quitting.
Hither's what to focus on this calendar week:
- Go along adding to your French Anki deck
- Mind to a French podcast or radio show (we've collected some of the Cyberspace'southward best French listening resources). Don't stress nearly understanding what you hear, just treat it as an immersion experience.
- Find a French vocal that yous enjoy. Write out the lyrics then sing along.
- Virtually important of all: aim for four conversations with native speakers this calendar week.
Need more assist finding native speakers? Depending where you alive, there may be a French language Meetup group in your expanse. Take a await on Meetup.com for groups in your town.
Making friends in person with native speakers will let you combine linguistic communication learning with social activities. This will requite you a bigger purpose to your French learning – and a motivational boost.
How to Speak French: Calendar month ii and Beyond
So you've spent a calendar month learning how to speak French? Great job! Now it'due south time to wait back and run into how far you've come in just a few weeks. Even if yous weren't able to written report as much as you wanted, equally long as you studied consistently and didn't requite up, you'll be amazed by your progress. Yous'll detect it difficult to believe that at one fourth dimension, you could barely pronounce Bonjour.
Throughout the past month, if you plant that whatever part of your report routine didn't work for you, so ditch it and find something else. How you study is far less important than studying oftentimes and consistently.
Keep learning every day, and proceed using your French by speaking as often every bit possible, and fluency will come sooner than you retrieve.
Source: https://www.fluentin3months.com/learn-french/
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