Showing posts with label french. Show all posts
Showing posts with label french. Show all posts

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Mistakes beginning-level French Students Make

Number Four: Contractions

Unlike English, where Contractions are optional and not required, in French, they are required. Whenever a short word like je, me, te, le or la are followed by a word that begins with a vowel, the short word drops the the final vowel and replaces it with an apostrophe, to attach itself to the final word ( ie: j’aime, l’ami). Contractions never occur in front of a consonant in French, with the exception H muet.

The author enjoys international travel and learning many different languages.

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Thursday, September 20, 2007

The Next Top Mistake beginning-level French Students Make

Number Three: To Be

Shakespeare once said “ To be or not to be, that is the question.” Perhaps Voltaire once thought “ĂȘtre ou avoir”. The literal equivalent to the English “to be” is ĂȘtre although many French Expressions use avoir (to have) instead. Memorize and practice these expressions and their uses, so you learn their correct usage.

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Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Top 5 Mistakes beginning-level French students Make

Top 5 Mistakes beginning-level French students Make

When you begin learning French, there are a lot of new things to learn and remember. It can be a difficult language, but an enjoyable one if you take your time and learn to do things correctly. Verb conjugations, spellings, pronunciations can be easy things to get wrong. The sooner you learn to do these things correctly, the easier it will be in the long run! This article is going to discuss five of the most common mistakes beginners to French make.

Number One: Gender

In just about every language other than English, all nouns have a gender. If your native language is not English, this might not be as difficult for you as for English speakers, who are unaccustomed to having “male” and “female” words. Some words have different meanings depending on their gender, so learning the word with either a definite or indefinite article will help you learn and remember the gender.

Click here to start learning French the quick and easy way now.

Sunday, September 9, 2007

Reasons Why You Should Learn French!

Reasons Why You Should Learn French!

Many people think of French as the “Language of Love”. It sounds beautiful, is romantic and makes us dream of the Eiffle Tower, The Louvre, and Arc de Triumph. But learning French has just as many practical applications as romantic connotations. Below are some of the most beneficial reasons to learning the French Language. Over 200 million people speak French! Join them!

Many Businesses and industries require knowledge of French to even be considered for employment. Knowing French will give you a leg up in the International business world and communications industries!

Learning a new language, like French, develops your critical and creative thinking skills. Learning French will also increase your problem solving skills and because it is so easy to measure your progress in a second language, it can raise your self-esteem.

French is a primary language in most of Europe. If you are fluent in French, you will have an easier time trying to communicate in many places rather than trying to find someone who speaks English to help you!

As you can see, the benefits of learning French outweigh the time and discipline it will take to offset any difficulties in learning the language. Once you have mastered the basic grammar and verb conjugations, it comes quite easily! But there are even more reasons why learning French is beneficial to you future!


Almost half of English words have French origins. With knowledge of French you will have additional information on word meanings and sentence structure.

Being French Fluent will make French-speaking cities seem all the more beautiful! When you are able to converse in the natural language, you appreciate the beauty of the country more than if you need a translator for everything.

Many international films are spoken in French. Knowledge of this beautiful language will help you appreciate the film without subtitles! Plus, if you ever get the opportunity to go to the Cannes Film Festival, you will enjoy it more!

Communicating with other human Beings is necessary to survive. Speaking French will enable you to speak an additional language, in case there are no English speakers nearby.
In addition to that, the knowledge of a new culture allows you to open your mind to how others think, and gives you a respect for their traditions and culture. When paired with the fact the business world commonly accepts, and often requires employees and management to be fluent in French, adding this skill to your resume will help you advance in your career!

Reasons Why You Should Learn French!

Click here to start learning French.

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Review of Rocket French

Review of Rocket French

One of the best features of Rocket French is that it is available via instant download to your computer! If you are looking for a quality French program, this one is one of the more affordable options, and one that does seem to help many French students! It helps students learn the basics through an intermediate level. I would not recommend it for advanced French lessons, however.

Despite the fact that their homepage looks a little, well to put it bluntly, cheesy – this program delivered on all of their promises and makes an enjoyable experience from learning a foreign language.

You are guided through your lessons with “Paul” who provides a fun sense of humor and keeps your learning light and fun. Used as a teaching tool, the humor helps student stay focused on the lesson at hand, and helps with comprehension and retention of what you have learned.

Visual learners will love the interactive software games that let you see and say the words you have been learning.

Another great feature of the Rocket French system is the customer service experience. Most questions are answered within 24 hours of them receiving it. The only downside is that their Customer Service does not work 24/7, so if you have a question in the middle of the night, it may be awhile until you hear from them. Other than that, their service is friendly, courteous and quick!

For many of us, the most efficient way to learn French is online. You don’t have to worry about attending a class at a certain time, you don’t have to worry about learning “faster” or “slower” than other students, and it’s a great cure or insomnia! Can’t sleep? Conjugate some new verbs and within an hour you’ll be ready for bed! The convenience factor is a major plus when choosing an online language course.

Rocket French is very affordable!

Another considering factor in learning online is the affordability. A private tutor could cost you hundreds of dollars, if not thousands. Most of the courses online are yours once you pay for them. So whether it takes you 3 months or 3 years to complete the course, you are only out your initial purchase price.

One of the most popular online courses available, Rocket French offers a money back guarantee. If you follow the course intently, you can be reasonably proficient in French within 8 weeks. Rocket French sells for $99.


Saturday, August 18, 2007

Selecting a Foreign Langauge

Just before entering high school, most of us are asked to select a
foreign language we'd like to attempt. Considering the fact that you
need at least two years of a foreign language to get into most
respectable colleges, this little choice is quite a commitment. At
most high schools, the languages offered are Spanish, French, and
German; with respectful popularity. To many students, Spanish appears
to be the easiest and German sounds the ugliest; which leaves French
in a category of its own.
Spanish is an easy route for many students because it is familiar.
After a couple weeks of classes, there is no shortage of high school
boys going up and down the halls repeating common Spanish phrases in
the most stereotypical Mexican accent possible. Along with being
nothing short of annoying, it is also not very unique. Those students
don't stand out.
Learning French is almost like getting two for the price of one.
Since Spanish and French are both Latin-based, the languages share
many similarities. However, French is somewhat more complicated.
Consequently, it may be easy for a student of French to pick up
Spanish, but not necessarily in the reverse situation. As Americans,
we are often inundated with Spanish words, but they are heard so often
that we rarely notice. French offers more of a challenge and more of
an opportunity. Trust me. My knowledge of French allowed me to skip
Spanish 1 and Spanish 2 in college.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Daily French Pod


Here is a really cool site that I just discovered that has a daily free podcast French lesson. Also an amazing video vocabulary. Check it out here. Daily French Pod

Thursday, August 9, 2007

Why Learn to Speak French?

Why Learn to Speak French?

French is the second most taught language in the world only after English. French as well as English is the official working language of the International Red Cross, NATO, the United Nations, the International Olympic Committee and many other International Organizations. And France was the United States first ally.

There is no secret to learning a new foreign language. It requires a commitment to daily practice, energy and patience. French is a difficult language to learn because many sounds are very different from English. French pronunciation is very tricky because there are a lot of silent letters and it uses nasal sounds which we do not use in English.

The Best Ways To Learn French

The best way to learn to learn French is to travel to France and study at a language school. That is the total immersion method and the most effective to quickly learn French. When you are in France then you must speak French throughout the course of your day.

Thee next best option to learn French would be to take a class at your local community college. It should be taught by a native speaker and you will make new friends and you will learn to correctly pronounce the new sounds that go along with learning French. Another great option is on line French lessons if you can commit to be tied to your computer for an hour each day. The most flexible way to learn French is an audio course. By having the lessons on CD or in MP3 files you can take them along in your personal CD or MP3 player and practice while driving, working out or walking. The down side to this method is that you still need to find a French speaker to practice with. Some courses mainly focus on vocabulary and grammar. If you want to learn French you really need to start speaking it right away.

Quick Tips On Practicing French

Check if your local community college has a French club then you could have other French speakers to practice with on a weekly basis. You could also see if any members of your church speak French and ask them out for lunch or coffee and practice with them.
Buy or rent French films. By hearing the language you quickly become familiar with the different sounds that you will need to be learning anyway. Listen to French audio lessons daily.

The best method that I have found for learning French is found in this review of a great course in learning Rocket French - The Ultimate Guide To Learning French.