French news: uncover the legend of the Pont d’Avignon (and join me live!)

Coucou les membres de la communauté,

Today, during my Monday live class, I shared the legend of the Pont d’Avignon. This legendary tale captivated everyone and sparked a lot of interest in learning more about this iconic piece of French history.

New Resource: The Bridge of Avignon

[read more…]

accountable197 acquirefrench76 active listener94 activelistener54 activelistening78 advanced294 advanced beginner472 advanced french93 amusing47 beginner318 classesdefrançais40 conversation311 feedback56 feelgood30 frenchclass99 frenchclasses70 frenchculture295 frenchhistory88 frenchnews27 frenchsong14 guidance35 infolettre35 interact212 interaction47 interactive43 intermediate736 lessons36 live session100 liveclass98 motivation230 novice168 novicehigh355 observe25 online teaching29 progress130 pronounciation43 silence7 silent10 speak85 speakfrench208 stayontrack35 stepstospeaking58 teaching42 train29 training56 upper beginner449 warmup43 zoomclass83

French the natural way: discover the joy of reading in French!

Coucou les French learners,

Are you eager to read a book in French but unsure which one to choose? You’re not alone! This is a common challenge for language learners at all levels.

When I first started to acquire Portuguese, I was eager to dive into classic literature.

[read more…]

abisproduction230 accountable197 advanced beginner472 autonomouslearner231 becomeamember228 beginnerplus161 boost213 booster208 classes39 comprehensiblefrench270 comprehensibleinput260 comprehension279 consistency165 consistent166 dailyfrench219 determined161 discipline157 disciplined172 engage179 engaged167 enjoytheride175 event79 fle298 french for fun44 frenchbeginner164 frenchcommunity256 frenchforall222 fun442 inputaloneissufficient252 intensive176 interact212 intermediate736 journey195 keepmotivated202 language acquisition258 learner246 lefrancaisensemble235 lisenfrançais211 listen312 live62 live event55 liveclass98 motivate180 motivated172 motivation230 motivationbreak177 natural194 novice high270 novicehigh355 online learner216 partnership52 pleasure153 pleasurereading139 reading281 reboot99 reward36 slow french340 speakfrench208 upper beginner449

French news: feel energized, join me this week!

Coucou les membres de la communauté,

Every Monday, I spend 30 minutes with Suqing, my Chinese tutor, and it’s something I always look forward to. Our interactions leave me feeling energized and accomplished because I can understand her, ask questions when I’m confused, and use new words I’ve picked up from watching Chinese videos during the week.

[read more…]

accountable197 acquirefrench76 active listener94 activelistener54 activelistening78 advanced294 advanced beginner472 advanced french93 beginner318 classesdefrançais40 conversation311 feedback56 feelgood30 frenchclass99 frenchclasses70 frenchnews27 guidance35 infolettre35 interact212 interaction47 interactive43 intermediate736 lessons36 live session100 liveclass98 motivation230 novice168 novicehigh355 observe25 online teaching29 progress130 pronounciation43 silence7 silent10 speak85 speakfrench208 stayontrack35 stepstospeaking58 teaching42 train29 training56 upper beginner449 warmup43 zoomclass83

French the natural way: it’s OK not to understand!

Coucou les French learners,

Today, I want to touch base on a common concern that many of you might encounter: the feeling of being lost when you don’t understand a story… Or even its gist!

Have you ever found yourself in this situation?

[read more…]

abisproduction230 accountable197 advanced beginner472 autonomouslearner231 becomeamember228 beginnerplus161 boost213 booster208 cicommunity110 comprehensiblefrench270 comprehensibleinput260 comprehension279 consistency165 consistent166 dailyfrench219 determined161 engage179 engaged167 fle298 focus36 french for fun44 french immersion23 frenchbeginner164 frenchcommunity256 frenchforall222 frenchreader46 fun442 inputaloneissufficient252 intensive176 interact212 intermediate736 journey195 keepmotivated202 language acquisition258 learner246 lefrancaisensemble235 lisenfrançais211 listen312 livre63 moments15 motivate180 motivated172 motivation230 motivationbreak177 natural194 new year22 novice high270 novicehigh355 objective21 online learner216 progress130 reading281 reboot99 reward36 slow french340 speakfrench208 total physical response14 tpr19 understandfrench35 upper beginner449

French news: embracing the silent phase

Coucou les membres de la communauté,

Last week, I shared with you my evolving perspective on pronunciation in French, emphasizing the importance of training our mouths and tongues to speak with confidence. (In case you missed it, read about my recent ephihany here!)

[read more…]

accountable197 acquirefrench76 active listener94 activelistener54 activelistening78 advanced294 advanced beginner472 advanced french93 beginner318 classesdefrançais40 feedback56 frenchclass99 frenchclasses70 frenchnews27 guidance35 infolettre35 intermediate736 lessons36 live session100 liveclass98 motivation230 novice168 novicehigh355 observe25 online teaching29 period3 phase3 progress130 pronounciation43 silence7 silent10 speak85 speakfrench208 stayontrack35 stepstospeaking58 teaching42 train29 training56 upper beginner449 warmup43 zoomclass83

French the natural way: how to make sure you understand it!

Coucou les French learners,

As language learners, we often wonder how well we’ve understood a video, a story or a text. We find ourselves asking:

Did I understand the message? Did I grasp the main idea? Did I really get the gist of it?

[read more…]

abisproduction230 accountable197 advanced beginner472 autonomouslearner231 becomeamember228 beginnerplus161 boost213 booster208 cicommunity110 comprehensiblefrench270 comprehensibleinput260 comprehension279 consistency165 consistent166 dailyfrench219 determined161 engage179 engaged167 fle298 focus36 french for fun44 french immersion23 frenchbeginner164 frenchcommunity256 frenchforall222 frenchreader46 fun442 inputaloneissufficient252 intensive176 interact212 intermediate736 journey195 keepmotivated202 language acquisition258 learner246 lefrancaisensemble235 lisenfrançais211 listen312 livre63 moments15 motivate180 motivated172 motivation230 motivationbreak177 natural194 new year22 novice high270 novicehigh355 objective21 online learner216 progress130 reading281 reboot99 reward36 slow french340 speakfrench208 total physical response14 tpr19 understandfrench35 upper beginner449

French news: train your mouth, tongue and tone of voice!

Coucou les membres de la communauté,

I want to share a personal revelation I’ve had regarding the role of pronunciation in language acquisition.

In the past, I held a strong belief that listening and reading were sufficient for language acquisition. While I still believe that comprehensible input is crucial for retaining vocabulary and structures,

[read more…]

accountable197 acquirefrench76 advanced294 advanced beginner472 advanced french93 beginner318 classesdefrançais40 feedback56 frenchclass99 frenchclasses70 frenchnews27 guidance35 infolettre35 intermediate736 lessons36 live session100 liveclass98 motivation230 novice168 novicehigh355 online teaching29 progress130 pronounciation43 senior9 speak85 speakfrench208 stayontrack35 stepstospeaking58 teaching42 train29 training56 upper beginner449 warmup43 zoomclass83