New here! Wanting to learn French!

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Teun
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New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Teun » Sat Jun 18, 2022 7:39 pm

Hi all! :D (I’m 28)

I’ve stumbled upon this forum through the “language learning” Reddit, and I thought why not check it out!

To give you a small back story why I wanne learn French, I’m planning on moving to Belgium and going to school there. And if that all works out probably work aswell. And i know French is like a second mother language there, and they get it since they where 6 years old. So I have some catching up to do.

And my motivation for school was never big, but I’ve even studied for an hour today :D (may not be allot but for me it is!) so I know I’m very serious about this!

So my question, to be short I really don’t know where to start learning…

To be long, I’ve found TONS and TONS of guides resources and tips and tricks online, and now I’m literally drowning in info… I’ve almost read them all, and now I’m really really lost. Don’t know where to start.

Ive started with Duolingo, but that didn’t really hit the spot. And downloaded a flash card app called “Brainscape” wich I practiced for an hour today! (Proud me!) but I’m really missing the bare bone basics of French. You can learn word everywhere, but the basic of grammer and how to use it, (wich I feel is how you start to learn a language) I can’t really find anywhere.

So to round it up… I’m sorry for this rand, but I’m really just looking for a all round French beginner course with like everything from A to Z. But mostly the ground rules for the use of grammer (you can learn words everywhere). I don’t mind paying a small fee each month btw (if I can test it out first!). I prefer apps of sites I can use on my phone.

At the end of all this I would prefer to reach B1, I guess that’s enough to get my way around. But if I enjoy it too much B2 :)

Thank you all for your time and attention, hope you all can help this man out!

Wish you all the best!
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby rdearman » Sat Jun 18, 2022 7:59 pm

You probably don't need a list of even more resources, but you should check out our resource page.
https://forum.language-learners.org/vie ... 19&t=2914/

Personally, I would recommend you purchase the Assimil book:

https://www.assimil.com/en/recherche?or ... erway=desc

I think they have "French with Ease" version in Dutch.
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Lawyer&Mom » Sat Jun 18, 2022 8:26 pm

Don’t forget, French is *the* mother tongue for a third of Belgium!

Assimil is a nice place to start, I also really love the CLE Grammar Progressive series.
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby desafiar » Sat Jun 18, 2022 11:03 pm

While you are reviewing your options and considering approaches, I'd like to point out one that was very helpful to me during the early stages of learning Spanish. I suspect the same value could be had for a French learner.

The site is LingQ. They have many stories that are both read and listened to. All levels from very early to intermediate and beyond. They are topical, so that you chose areas of interest and skill. In particular, I found the Mini Stories, 60 for Spanish, probably similar for French, to be of immense value. They take you though many situations, teaching grammar as you progress throughout the stories.

I've now ended my LingQ membership as I preferred to move on, but if I were to start another language (I won't), without any hesitation, I'd use LingQ again.

Good luck with whatever direction you choose.
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Teun
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Teun » Sun Jun 19, 2022 8:54 am

Thanks for all the helpful reply’s!

(Btw I don’t know how to respond to a specific reply like Reddit does so I’ll just do it like this and hope someone’s notices)

I’m still very tankful for the resources page, thank you for that. And I’m really considering buying the Assimil course the Mod suggested. Thanks for that! But does it have a good structured fountain of the France grammer? I’ve read good this about it tho! And I guess the audio that comes with the big pack is kinda necessary right?

And would the grammer book that combine well with that course, or is it much more of the same?

Can’t wait to buy a decent course tho!

Thanks again for all your replies!

Hope to hear from you all soon
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Le Baron » Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:50 am

Teun wrote:Thanks for that! But does it have a good structured fountain of the France grammer? I’ve read good this about it tho! And I guess the audio that comes with the big pack is kinda necessary right?

And would the grammer book that combine well with that course, or is it much more of the same?

The course feeds you grammar as you go along. As a self-contained course (which is what you wanted, right?) it is offering you some reading, some listening some grammar instruction.

Count on more than an hour a day of, especially, listening in the long-run though; definitely if you plan on being actively functional in listening/speaking and reading within Wallonie (and knowing that some people speak peculiar French).

You know though, as a Dutch speaker you can get on perfectly well in 3/5 of the country speaking Dutch. Or was the plan to specifically go to the French-speaking area?
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby BeaP » Sun Jun 19, 2022 11:52 am

I think it's a good idea to start a new language with a bilingual resource that is based on your mother tongue, Dutch. A lot of resources have sample units (the online courses have previews as well), so I'd google 'French course or textbook' in Dutch and see what comes up. When we search online, we often do it in English to get more hits, but in my experience it's worth it to check things in your native language. After google try Youtube (again in Dutch), and look for videos where people show some pages of the books or tell you in details about applications. You'd get the most useful advice from Dutch natives who know what's available for you.

Assimil doesn't present grammar in a structured or thorough way, it consists of bilingual dialogues with some snippets of explanation and 2-3 basic exercises. The dialogues are recorded on audio. Check some sample pages and listen to the sample audio to see if you like it: https://www.assimil.com/en/with-ease/1321-frans-9782700581034.html
It can be good if you supplements it with a more thorough textbook or at least a grammar book.
Buy things that appeal to you and fit your learning style, needs and goals. Always check the sample pages for everything.
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Le Baron » Sun Jun 19, 2022 12:09 pm

BeaP wrote:Assimil doesn't present grammar in a structured or thorough way, it consists of bilingual dialogues with some snippets of explanation and 2-3 basic exercises. The dialogues are recorded on audio. Check some sample pages and listen to the sample audio to see if you like it: https://www.assimil.com/en/with-ease/1321-frans-9782700581034.html
It can be good if you supplements it with a more thorough textbook or at least a grammar book.
Buy things that appeal to you and fit your learning style, needs and goals. Always check the sample pages for everything.

True, though it gives easily enough basic grammar for someone doing an initial course. For a huge number of people facing a comprehensive grammar from the outset is a recipe for giving up. Most learners hate structured grammar study. And the OP did say this:
I prefer apps of sites I can use on my phone.

Which rather rules out the idea of going through a comprehensive grammar book. Not that I think avoiding some concise grammar is a great idea!
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Teun
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby Teun » Sun Jun 19, 2022 12:20 pm

Well yes I’ve said that on my original post yes.

But now that I’m think about it it may be wise to start with a good course in the form of a book! And preferably something that has all in one. if possible ofcourse!

Any suggestions are welcome still! Looking forward to new ideas
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BeaP
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Re: New here! Wanting to learn French!

Postby BeaP » Sun Jun 19, 2022 12:43 pm

Another thing just came to mind after sending my post. If your main goal is communication abroad, Assimil might not be the best choice. The dialogues are often weird, and they lack some expressions that are needed in everyday communication. The first lesson (the one you see in the preview) is OK, but the later lessons are not so touristy. The goal of the method is to present the system of the French language in a very user-friendly way, so the dialogues are often written in a way that illustrates grammar points. It also tries to be humorous, again not something that usually leads to the most useful, everyday phrases. (I don't even remember when 'hello, I'm ...' appears.)

This resource is monolingual, but online translation tools are becoming more and more reliable. If something is fishy, you can google. Available on several levels.
https://issuu.com/marketingcle/docs/feuilletage_communication_progressive_a2_b1_interm
https://issuu.com/marketingcle/docs/grammaire_progressive_interm__diair
These are my favourite French resources beside French in Action videos (free on youtube, the textbook is overkill)

Le Baron is right, by the way, just like I am. :D A lot of people find the grammar in Assimil enough, but I was irritated by this fragmented style. I also lacked some more exercises, because writing down the answers helps me a lot. Really, do the sample pages and see if you want to continue in this style.

The other two books I've linked also come with a free application if I'm right, but I've only used the books. They have a digital version.

And one more thing: remember the price of these books. Nothing justifies paying 150-300 euros for an online course that doesn't even include tutoring. They can't have much better materials than these books. (I've seen some courses for exorbitant prices recently, that's why I wanted to mention this.)
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