Tips to learn more French

How do you further your French lesson. Here are Tips to learn more French.

Many of you take a weekly French lesson, or listen to a weekly French podcast. However, as you know, it’s better to learn every day for 10 minutes than 1 day a week for an hour. So, what do you do in between your class or your podcast?

This worksheet gives you tips on how to further your French lesson – including all of Anne’s podcasts – enough to keep you busy for the week, until the next episode comes out. It’s all a bit repetitive, but I thought it might be useful to have it written down for each type of exercise.

What to do with a mot du jour, a French expression

French idiomatic expressions are fun, they are often full of imagery. They are very funny when you translate them literally. I would study them as follow:

1.listen and repeat the 'mot du jour' you picked out loud

2.make sure you understand its context as well

3.study several 'mot du jour' following steps 1. and 2.

4.write all of the sentences down all with a blank where the 'mot du jour' should go

5.fill in the blanks

6.check your answers, making sure the blanks are correctly filled

What to do with TEL QUEL or a French video

French videos are really hard to understand. Start this exercise with Anne's TEL QUEL worksheets, shorten the listening time if you need to. Even 30 seconds of transcription is good. The purpose of a TEL QUEL exercise is to listen to the excerpt as many times as you need to transcribe it.

Then, pick your own, one that is at your level. It should not be longer than two minutes. Note that watching a news broadcast is easier to understand than a regular French person talk (slang, regional accent, speed, mumbling).

Day 1.Watch to the video several times and repeat what you’re hearing OUT LOUD. Record yourself if you can.

Day 2.Write down the difficult terms and look them up in a dictionary. Write them down in your running list so you can review them later.

Day 3.Translate the video into English – or your own language – without looking at your notes if you can.

Day 4.Isolate one grammar point and practice exercises on it to check your level.

Day 5.Look for 10 more words in the dictionary relating to the video topic.

Day 6.Write down a summary of the video or a 100 to 150-word paragraph about it, integrating all your new French terms and the grammar studied.

What to do with a French movie

Day 1.Watch the movie one time with the subtitles

Day 2-5.Watch the movie four times without the subtitles.

Day 6.Write down – in English or in French – a list of words relating to the movie. This list can be pretty long if you want.

Day 7.Write down a summary of the movie integrating your brand-new French terms.

What to do with a read along exercise

Day 1.Read and listen

Day 2.Listen again, stop and repeat

Day 3.Translate with the help of a dictionary. Add all the new words to your running vocabulary list.

Day 4.Memorize all the new words OUT LOUD. Put them in writing in context in sentences or in a paragraph form.

Day 5.Use your translation to put back into French, one sentence at a time. Check with the AUDIO after each sentence. Readjust your pronunciation if needed.

What to do with a French newspaper article

Pick one that is at your level. It should not be too long. Note that reading Le Monde is harder than let’s say, Le Parisien.

Day 1.Read the article at least three times. Record yourself reading it if you can.

Day 2.Write down the difficult terms and look them up in a dictionary. Write them down in your running list so you can review them later.

Day 3.Translate the article into English – or your own language – without looking at your notes if you can.

Day 4.Isolate one grammar point and practice exercises on it to check your level.

Day 5.Look for 10 more words in the dictionary relating to the video topic.

Day 6.Write down a summary of the article or a 100 to 150-word paragraph about it, integrating all your new French terms and the grammar studied.

What to do with a French dictée

Day 1.Do the dictée

Day 2.Write down the new terms

Day 3.Isolate one grammar point and practice exercises on it to check your level.

Day 4.Look for 10 more words in the dictionary relating to the video topic.

Day 5.Write down a 100 to 150-word paragraph about the dictée topic, integrating all your new French terms and the grammar studied.

What to do with a French song or a poem

Day 1.If you found a audio version, listen to the song or poem several times and sing or repeat OUT LOUD. Record yourself if you can.

Day 2.Find the lyrics. They’re often readily available online. Write down the difficult terms and look them up in a dictionary. Write them down in your running list so you can review them later.

Day 3.Translate the song or poem into English – or your own language – without looking at your notes if you can.

Day 4.Isolate one grammar point and practice exercises on it to check your level.

Day 5.Look for 10 more words in the dictionary relating to the song or poem.

Day 6.Write down a 100 to 150-word paragraph about the song or poem, integrating all your new French terms and the grammar studied.

Related: Why learn French . Useful links to learn more French . First French words . French words in English . English words in French .

. French podcast, French vocabulary, French grammar, French culture, about French about France .

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