Why Learn French? It is one of the most critical questions that come to mind when learning a foreign language.
Approximately 300 million people on the five continents speak French and it is estimated that around 29 countries use it as an official language.
After English and German, French is the most widely spoken dialect in the European Union.
"The genius of the French language, descended from its single Latin stock, has triumphed most in the contrary direction - in simplicity, in unity, in clarity, and in restraint."
- Lytton Strachey
In a world that is more connected than ever before speaking just your native language is not just enough, you must have knowledge of other languages to make your personal and professional life better. With the ability to speak a foreign language, you can find the best job for you anywhere in this world.
Listening to French songs will introduce you to how French words are pronounced as well as the general tempo of spoken French.
Can I Learn French as a Busy Professional?
It might feel like you're setting yourself an impossible task, but whether you're a student or a business professional, you can learn French.
A lot of people travel for work, you never know when you might find yourself in a beautiful french city like Paris or Monaco.
Here are 3 tips to help you quickly increase your business French vocabulary and have you confidently discuss daily topics in French in no time:
1 Watch the Headlines Online at France 24
On weekdays, France24.com features a daily video report in French you can watch online with articles underneath.
While watching the report online, don’t worry about understanding every single word, but do listen carefully and make note of the words that come up most often. Write them down and look them up in the dictionary to check if you got the spelling right.
Write down the meanings in your notebook, adding them to the other words you’ve learned in tip #1 above. Again, review the new vocabulary words before watching the next day’s video report.
2 Give Yourself a Target of Learning 5 New Words a Day
Review the words you’ve learned in tips #1 and 2 above, and underline the five words you think you’ll have the hardest time remembering.
Write out each word by hand in your notebook, followed by its meaning, ten times each. Repetition is key when it comes to remembering new vocabulary, so the act of writing it down repetitively will help you commit it to memory easily.
If you learn five new words a day, five days a week, you’ll be learning 25 new words a week, or a minimum of 100 words a month!
3 Read Aloud in French Every Day
Reading a paragraph of an article out loud every day not only helps you get your tongue around difficult pronunciations, but it also jogs your memory. You can choose one of the articles on the La Tribune website or read from a french book you may have purchased.
If you come across a certain word whose exact pronunciation you’re not sure about, use an online resource like Forvo to hear the correct way of pronouncing the word in question.
Learning French with the Babbel App
What is Babbel?
Babbel is the new way to learn a foreign language, the APP is built by language experts, to help you learn and practice a new language at your own pace.
Is it free?
No.
However, even though you do have to pay for Babbel it is not too expensive. See the breakdown as of 2023 below:
1 month 9,95€/month (monthly billing)
3 months 6,65€/month (19.95€ quarterly billing)
6 months 5,55€/month (33.30€ half-yearly billing)
12 months 4,95€/month (59.40€ annual billing)
Meaning if you pay for a whole year upfront you save almost half the price, so less than the cost of one SubWay a month you can become fluent in Spanish.
The Babbel core lessons take about 10 to 15 minutes to complete each, and generally speaking, go by super fast. This is largely because each lesson is made up of several quick-hit, interactive drills and exercises.
For the first couple minutes, you might be tasked with listening to new words or phrases and then repeating them. Then the lesson will quickly transition into a digital flashcards drill for a few minutes, before shifting again into a short grammatical or conjugation lesson. From there, you might be asked to type in words or phrases on your keyboard or complete a fill-in-the-blank exercise by following a mock conversation.
You never get bored, the lessons are short but memorable. Overall, it's clear Babbel’s aim is to keep their APP easy to use, engaging and effective.
I have actually used this app to try and pick up a few phrases before travelling to different countries, and I have found it gives you basic knowledge which will help you get from A to B.
Actual French Lessons with a Tutor
These days when you decide to go looking for French lessons there are almost too many to choose from!
When I learned my first extra language I decided to take lessons at the local community college.
It felt a lot like being back in school, we went ALL THE WAY BACK! I mean, alphabet, numbers and so on, at the end of the 6 weeks I was no more confident saying Gracias or Mucho gusto!
Luckily for me, I got in touch with a private tutor who suggested I start off with Babbel and then when it came time to practice my conversational skills I booked a few lessons with her.
My tutor taught me that the benefits of a conversation partner to practice my vocab and grammar with included an increased grasp of my listening comprehension and a better understanding of the overall language and vocabulary.
At the end of the day, in comparison to some other languages, French is relatively easy and dare I say fun to learn why not sign up for a Superprof French Tutor for a few lessons before your next trip? Most of our Tutors give the first lesson free of charge!
All you have to do is type in the lesson you are looking for and the area then search so it will look something like French lessons in Dublin.
Bonne chance dans votre apprentissage!
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