Learning French

They really do try to understand! Maybe they're as frightened of speaking to you as you are to them. They're always much better at understanding english and pidgin french than they admit - and they always say they can't speak english!

1 Speak it!

Just get on with it! A small dictionary and TRY. At least that will encourage you to increase your vocabulary. Have fun with the Point Scoring system

2 Michel Thomas

I've looked at the BBC, Linguaphone and the various web sites. This guy is brilliant. Within an hour you know 2000 words. Did you know that over 60% of words are the same in French as in English? Don't say 'le' or 'la' so clearly - if you don't know which it is say 'l' like they do. Oh so many simple tips. All words ending in 'ion' are the same in both languages, and so on. Couldn't recommend it more highly. He taught a group of youth club drop outs to speak it in a week for a TV program. He's taught all the top celebrities. He's good. Buy it from Amazon with huge discounts and free delivery from the link in the right column.

During the break - see what Amazon have to offer!

Plenty of books are on offer, including audiobooks (on CD - rip them to your mp3 player for the trip!). Here's some software to make it even more fun!

3 Practise!

Being there is best, but if you can't be there as much as you'd like then you need to join a class just to practise. Make sure it's a class that chats in French sometimes, too not just a boring one that chants words! Even if you're useless, you'll learn more in a class that's ahead of you than in one that's too easy.

4 Ebay might have a French bargain!

5 Try this!

Courtesy of Lucie Soublin.

Do you want Do we really have Do you know how
Is it be possible Will I manage

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to sleep with to find to eat to buy to show me
to look like to stand to get in

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Gerard Depardieu perfume a pair of frog legs
good cheese the Eiffel Tower
a genuine Parisian my wife my pants

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in your widest dreams? to cover the smell? while drinking red wine? without speaking French? right after breakfast? without being too arrogant? when my mother-in-law is around? after eating 300 croissants? ? (nothing)

Have fun!