Enroll Now
Posts by

Amelie Hurford

Home / Blog Archive
Yes, you really CAN learn French easily
French Online Courses, French Vocabulary

Yes, you really CAN learn French easily

by Amelie Hurford
December 27, 2016

French is a difficult language, but once you get to know the most common and useful verbs, it becomes a real piece of cake to master the basics!

You can Learn French Quickly and Easily. One of these verbs is the verb… POUVOIR.

The verb ”POUVOIR” is used a lot in French and can be translated in English by:

  • to be able to
  • to can
  • to be allowed to
  • to manage to

The particularity with this verb is that is it an irregular (which means tricky conjugation), but above all: it is a powerful verb!

It will make you able to say what you can do and to ask someone to do something for you!

Asking someone to do something:

Peux-tu faire les courses? -> Can you do the grocery shopping?

Pouvez-vous me donner le pain? -> Can you give me the bread?

Saying what you can/cannot do:

Je peux vous aider. -> I can help you.

Ma soeur peut t’apprendre le francais. -> My

sister can learn to you French.

Ma fille ne peut pas sortir ce soir. -> My daugher cannot go out tonight.

Then, the verb POUVOIR is also present in a few French expressions, check these ones:

Je n’en peux plus. -> I can’t do it anymore.

Je n’y peux rien. -> It’s not my fault.

Once you get the verb POUVOIR in mind, it becomes really easy to build basic but powerful sentences! Leave us a comment using this verb 🙂

If you want to know more about how to create easy and useful French sentences? We have a

large range of options for you available at French Lessons Australia!

To learn LEARN FRENCH easily contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com to get more information or enroll now online or at one of our classes!

French Online Courses

What do you WANT to do tonight to improve your French?

by Amelie Hurford
December 22, 2016

Today, at French Lessons Australia, we are teaching you the verb

”VOULOIR”, meaning ”to want” to improve your French!

Uses of ”vouloir”

Vouloir indicates a strong will or command: “to want” or “to wish”.

Vouloir often precede an infinitive.

Eg. Nous voulons aller au restaurant. -> We want to go to the restaurant.

There is also a famous French expression which is: en vouloir à , meaning ”to be angry at”.

Eg. J’en veux à ma soeur de m’avoir pris mes chaussures. -> I am angry at my sister for having taken my shoes.

 

Conjugation of ”vouloir”

Vouloir is an irregular verb, so study it well as it will be really useful in your conversations!

Invite someone!

In English, when you want to invite someone you usually use the conditional: ”Would you like to…go to the restaurant tonight?”

In French, no need to use the conditional (such a relief, right?), you will use the present: ”Tu veux…aller au restaurant ce soir?”

Learning French at French Lessons Australia is a good way to start a new language in a fun and result-based environment! Contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com or check our available courses: online or in a course, you will always find what is right for you!

 

Travel like a local and see the wonderful Rocamadour's beauties!
Learning New Language

Travel like a local and see the wonderful Rocamadour’s beauties!

by Amelie Hurford
December 22, 2016

Why Visit Rocamadour?

France is a beautiful country with endless possibilities and opportunities for travellers. Anyone with a love for travelling will definitely want to explore France and the numerous gems within. While Paris is a must visit, there are numerous other spectacular cities and communes within France that are worth exploring and discovering for an exquisite experience of France.

Rocamandour is one such commune in France that will leave every traveller spellbound! Over the years, it has attracted numerous travellers for the natural beauty and numerous travel opportunities it offers. The Commune is set in a gorge above a tributary of the River Dordogne. It is home to several historic monuments and several other breathtaking sites. The town lies below the high monastic buildings and churches that are thonged by pilgrims and travellers from all over the world.

5 reasons why you must travel to Rocamadour:

  1. Rocamadour Castle

The castle is at the very top of the town and thus a place for beautiful views over the town. As far as you can see, you will be greeted by breathtaking views! The walls of the castle date back to the 13th and 14th century. The castle holds a lot of history and many fascinating stories!

  1. Notre Dame Church

A pilgrim church around which the city flourished in the middle ages. You can access the church from the higher part of the city or climb up the 100 steps like the pilgrims do! It’s the house to the Black Madonna: another fascinating story that compels travellers to visit this place.

  1. Sword of Roldan

The stories and legends of the Sword of Roldan are enough to lure any traveller to the place. It’s at the Norte Dame Church and you will want to spare a few hours to learn and know about the legends and stories.

  1. Figuier Gate

Figuier Gate or the Gateway to Rocamadour is a major tourist attraction as it is the only gate of the town. This gated town is guarded by the door made of limestone. An architectural marvel and an historically significant monument.

  1. Santuario de Nuestra Senor

The sanctuary, is the holy city dedicated to the pilgrims of Black Madonna. It’s a small plaza with seven churches and chapels. The peaceful and mystical surroundings make this a must visit!

These are just 5 of the many beautiful sites and places within this beautiful town! You can spend days and weeks just basking in the natural beauty of Rocamadour. To really get a true local experience, learn French before you visit this place. French Lessons will prepare you to enrich your travel experience and understand the numerous legends and stories, as it is. Translations always miss out on the essence and true beauty of any story – don’t miss out! Check our online course for travellers here: Travellers Course !

Enrol with French Lessons Australia and take your first step to an unmatched travel experience. We are a French language school with a passion for learning and love for travelling!

The passé composé with the verb “être”
French Grammar, French Vocabulary

The passé composé with the verb “être”

by Amelie Hurford
December 22, 2016

The ”passé composé” is the present perfect tense. This tense is used a lot in French to describe a situation that happened in the past at a definite time but that still has a meaning for today…

Seems very theoretical, but really, it is not as you will see soon with French Lessons Australia!

 

When to use it?

The passé composé is the usual tense for events and incidents that happened in a close past. Unlike the English present perfect, the passé composé is used very often by French people.

Sometime indicators can be used in addition to strengthen this relation between past and present! For instance: hier (yesterday), l’autre jour (the other day), samedi passé (last Saturday), plusieurs fois (several times), l’année passée (last year), … As you can see, it is not necessary to be very recent to use the passé composé. As soon as the information is still relevant with today, the passé composé is appropriate.

Obviously, the passé composé is not the only past tense used in French. The imperfect tense and the past simple tense are also used as we will see in another post on French Lessons Sydney. However, the passé composé is one of the predominant tense in everyday’s language!

How to use it?

The passé composé is, as its name suggests, a compound tense. Which means that it can be compounded with either the auxiliary  ‘être’ or ‘avoir’, followed by the past participle of the verb. The passé composé of a limited group of verbs is formed with the auxiliary ‘être’, and usually express a change of position.

The passé composé with the verb “être”

The conjugation of the auxiliary ‘être’ looks like this:

Je suis

Tu es

Il/Elle est

Nous sommes

Vous êtes

Ils/Elles sont         

Once you have put your auxiliary with your past participle, there is a rule you need to know: the past participle always agrees with the subject in gender and number.

That seems a bit complicated but basically it means that if the subject of your sentence is feminine you add an ‘e’ at the end of the past participle. If your subject is plural (more than one subject), you add an ‘s’.

Example: You are a group of girls and explain to your friend that you went to the beach yesterday. You will say “Nous sommes allées a la mer hier”. If you were a group of men, you would say “Nous sommes allés a la mer hier”.

If you want to learn more about French tenses, or just to know more about French in general and what we do at French Lessons Australia, don’t hesitate to contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com

THE PASSÉ COMPOSÉ WITH THE VERB “AVOIR”
French Grammar

The passé composé with the verb “avoir”

by Amelie Hurford
December 21, 2016

 

The ”passé composé” is the present perfect tense. This tense is used a lot in French to describe a situation that happened in the past at a definite time but that still has a meaning for today… Seems very theoretical, but really, it is not as you will see soon with French Lessons Australia!

 

When to use it?

The passé composé is the usual tense for events and incidents that happened in a close past. Unlike the English present perfect, the passé composé is used very often by French people.

Some time indicators can be used in addition to strengthen this relation between past and present! For instance: hier (yesterday), l’autre jour (the other day), samedi passé (last Saturday), plusieurs fois (several times), l’année passée (last year),

As you can see, it is not necessary to be very recent to use the passé composé. As soon as the information is still relevant with today, the passé composé is appropriate.

Obviously, the passé composé is not the only past tense used in French. The imperfect tense and the past simple tense are also used as we will see in another post on French Lessons Brisbane. However, the passé composé is one of the predominant tense in everyday’s language!

 

How to use it?

The passé composé is, as its name suggests, a compound tense. Which means that it can be compounded with either the auxiliary ‘être’ or ‘avoir’, followed by the past participle of the verb.

The passé composé of most of the French verbs is used with the ‘avoir’.

Let’s take the action of eating. To say that you ate some bread this morning, you will say in French ”j’ai mangé du pain ce matin”. In fact, in English, you could have said either ”I ate some bread”, or ”I have eaten”, or even ”I did eat”. In French, you will only use the passé composé and say ”J’ai mangé”.

The only things you need to know to form the passé composé is the conjugation of the verb ‘avoir’ to the present tense.

J’ai

Tu as

Il/Elle a

Nous avons

Vous avez

Ils/Elles ont

 

To that, you will need to add the past participle of the verb you want to conjugate. If the verb is regular, its past participle will mostly be regular. Which means you can guess it without having to know it by heart.

For instance, regular verbs ending by ER will have see their ER displaced by a ‘e’. Therefore, acheter (to buy) will be acheté (bought), manger (to eat) will be mangé (eaten), commencer (to start) will be commencé (started).

Regular verbs ending by IR will have their IR displaced by a ‘i’. Therefore, finir (to finish) will be fini (finished), choisir (to choose) will be choisi (chosen).

And finally, regular verbs ending by RE will have their RE displaced by a ‘u’. Therefore, perdre (to lose) will be perdu (lost), attendre (to wait) will be attendu (waited).

Easy, right?

Well, now, as in English, there are a few irregular verbs which will see their past participle changing differently.

For example, etre (to be) will be été (been), pouvoir (to can) will be pu (could), voir (to see) will be vu (seen), apprendre (to learn) will be appris (learnt), rire (to laugh) will be ri (laughed), etc…

 

If you want to learn more about French tenses, or just to know more about French in general and what we do at French Lessons Australia, don’t hesitate to contact us at  info@french-lessons-australia.com

The old secrets of authentic Colmar and Strasbourg
French Online Courses, French Vocabulary

The old secrets of authentic Colmar and Strasbourg

by Amelie Hurford
December 21, 2016

Colmar is probably not the most known city in France, but it is for sure one of the loveliest!

What does this place look like? And why should you definitely see it?

Besides this city, another, bigger, called Strasbourg is also a must-see for its similar medieval architecture, but also for its European importance… At French Lessons Brisbane, we will give you 5 good reasons to visit these 2 beautiful places!

Colmar Medieval towns

Colmar is situated in the Alsace region, in the North East of France, close to the German border. Well-known for its wines and its lovely streets that makes you feel like you were walking 500 years ago, Colmar is one of these cities that remain in your memory.

There are still houses that have been built during the Middles Ages, and many places such as a monastery make Colmar a cultural and historical town to visit.

A good climate

Colmar is also known for its charming climate. Indeed, it is one of the driest cities in France, and its weather in summer is mild and Clement. During the winter, it rarely snows, which is quite surprising regarding its localization on the map!

A long history

Colmar is as you may have understood a pretty old town. The first time we heard about it was during the 9th century. Obviously, multiple wars left traces on the town, but is also what makes its charm… Colmar was the last city to be freed after the Nazi occupation.

Since then, Colmar has focused on its historical beauties. A large part of its historic centre has become a protected sector, and its local musee: the Musee Unterlinden is the most visited provincial one in France!

half-timbered-houses-in-Colmar

 

Siege of the European Parliament

Strasbourg is located in the same region as Colmar but is bigger and popular for political matters as well as it is the official seat of the European Parliament since 1952! Strasbourg is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe (with its European Court of Human Rights) and the Eurocorps. The city is also the seat of the International Institute of Human Rights. This political importance for the EU can be explained by its geographical position between the two first European leaders: France and Germany. In fact, Strasbourg has been for centuries the witness of the rivalry (and enmity) opposing these two great powers. Becoming a strategic city for the EU is therefore symbolic as well.

cathedrale strasbourg

 

A World heritage site

Strasbourg’s historic city centre is classed by the UNESCO as a world heritage site! The city’s gothic sandstone cathedral and its astronomic clock does have something magical, and medieval sights are all around the city centre.

Did you enjoy Colmar and Strasbourg? Or would you like to visit them but you would like to first start French? Don’t hesitate anymore longer and contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com  🙂

The Mont Saint-Michel
French Culture, French Online Courses

Visiting Mont Saint Michel in France

by Amelie Hurford
December 21, 2016

The Mont Saint-Michel (Mount St Michael) is located at around one kilometre off the north-western French coast, in the region called Normandie (Normandy). 

The building of the monastic establishment started in the 8th century and is, therefore, a typical representation of the feudal system with on top of the island the abbey and monastery (God), below the great halls, then the stores and middle-class housing, and then, outside the walls, the fishermen and farmers houses.

The legend says that the Archangel Michael appeared in 708 on the island to the bishop of Avranches, and demanded him to build a church there. Yet, the bishop ignored the archangel, and this latter then burned a hole in the bishop’s skull. The kind of story that gives you thrills and brings even more mystery to this mythic island.

The status of island of the Mont Saint-Michel has changed several times over the centuries.

Until the 19th century, the Mont was a semi-island: when the rising tide, the path connecting the Mont to the mainland was covered by the sea. It was a great advantage for the island’s defense, making it an impenetrable fortress. In fact, the Mont Saint Michel remained unconquered until the Hundred Years of war opposing the Great-Britain to France. After that, the Mont has also been used as a jail under Louis XI, valuing the geographical benefits of the island.

However, in 1879, the water was drained and the coastal flats converted into pasture land. The Mont became silted up and in 2006, a project started with the objectives to remove the silt and to make the Mont an island again.

Today, the Mont Saint-Michel is therefore officially an island, connected to the continent by a light bridge!

Did you like that post about the Mont Saint-Michel? Would you start Learning French, or just asking us more details about our personalised classes? Contact us at info@french-lessons-australia.com !

 

Schools Of Future Change The World
Learning New Language

Schools Of Future Change The World

by Amelie Hurford
December 20, 2016

French lessons Australia keeping a continuous watch on more innovative solutions of learning and always trying to contribute towards transforming the education system and changing the way people think about the education delivery system.

Is it time for major change in the school, system?

What will schools of future look like after 30 years or 40 years? What practices will be common among next generation schools that prepare students for college, careers, and citizenship?

The majority of educationalist agrees that the future school will go electronic very soon. Technology has the immense power to transform how people learn – but walk into some classrooms and you could be forgiven for thinking you were entering a time warp.

No more Boring Traditional lectures

There is no reason to believe that making students   wake up early, sit in a room, and listen to someone talk for an hour. The new computer and laptop technology for learning will transform schools of the future.

Plenty of research shows that interactivity and education by example is one of the most important factors in educating. And the new technology will help to interact and communicate in a much faster way.

Classroom studies & lessons will be spruce up with gaming, as it proven to engage children. It is considered as more a behaviour management and motivation tool. Children learn chess game in teams that encourages them to work together.

Encourage innovations & effective teaching approaches

The next generation schools will be ultra modern and will become the key of successful career growth by using the most updated modern technology of education system.

  1. Children will be using computers, laptops or tablets in the classrooms for study
  2. Students send voicemail & Teachers check voicemail and return students’ calls on a special telephone system.
  3. Students will be in the new world’s full of imagination, creativity, innovation and digital wisdom.
  4. Instructions will be delivered Online, outside the classrooms

Following things, schools of the future will surely do

  1. Leverage the super talent of teachers: The future schools will recruit the highly talented educators and leverage their great talent. The roles of master teachers will be differentiated roles from assistant.
  1. Set intellectual mission & goals: The Next-gen Schools will have common set Goals and missions such as global preparedness, growth of all, excellent communication skills, adopting super powerful learning techniques, more focus on eLearning to spread the best education everywhere and anytime.
  1. Efficient learning experiences and Environment: The schools of future pay more attention on technology oriented roles for deeper learning. Next gen schools create relevance, value application, encourage integration, and push critical thinking. They prepare global citizens.
  1. Community Based Learning: Upcoming education system and schools generation will focus more on innovative ideas and its execution as well. The Building community, make strong connections with talented youth, involve parents and family services will be the big part of it.  These schools will value occupation and community based education, learning and outreach service.
  1. More Focus on Online Education: eLearning is a need of everyone busy person, who is passionate to learn something new for the business growth prospects, BUT unable to find time. Next-gen schedules will include a shift to an online delivery for a portion of the day to make students, teachers, and schools more productive using rotation and flex models

Summary

French lessons Australia have started the journey of Future from Today, by providing the well organized and competent knowledge of French learning for everyone. It’s very exciting time for our students. In fact, it’s exciting for the entire field of education as a whole. Undoubtedly there are so many hindrances to conquer. Cost vs. benefits, Lack of knowledge, fear and more are common. They shouldn’t prevent anyone from experimenting and meeting student needs.

This is an increasingly tech-cantered world. Technology as a tool can help us appreciate the natural world and all its inhabitants. As long as we go forth from here wisely, we’ll overcome these challenges together. The students of today and the future will be glad we did. We all will.

For more Information please visit Frenchlessonsaustralia.com.au  | Contact us : info@french-lessons-australia.com

Learn French The French word for fitness is Aptitude. French always stay fit and healthy, as they do Exercise for pleasure, do Healthy relaxation and there is No age limit ever to learn anything new.
French Grammar, French Vocabulary

Learn French with Fitness Vocabulary

by Amelie Hurford
December 19, 2016

The French word for fitness is Aptitude. French always stay fit and healthy, as  they do Exercise for pleasure, do Healthy relaxation and there is No age limit ever to learn anything new.

 

This is a country where on one corner, you find a boulangerie with mouth-watering pastries, and on the next, a café where Parisians linger for hours. It’s a place known for rich desserts, baguettes made from refined flour, foie gras, fatty meats, and wine. Yet most inhabitants seem to have little trouble maintaining a healthy weight.

“French women refuse to accept being overweight”

We know how hard it can be to do workout,  when you are learning French.  It’s tricky how words can fail you when you try to tell your personal trainer to “turn off the treadmill.” So, to make your regular visits to the gym that little bit easier we’ve pulled together a few choice words and phrases. Enjoy French Lessons Australia’s vocabulary for workout.

 

  • The body – le corps
  • Flat stomach – un ventre plat
  • Health – la santé
  • Lose weight – perdre du poids
  • Shape – la forme
  • Figure – la silhouette
  • Slimming – minceur
  • Tone up – tonifier
  • Classes – les cours
  • Bums and tums – les abdos-fessiers
  • Personal training – les cours particuliers
  • Dance – la danse
  • Swimming – la notation
  • Weights area – la salle de musculation
  • Weight bench – un banc de musculation
  • Weights – les haltères
  • Cardio theatre – la salle cardio

Get registered to Learn French with our new Courses!!! Starting on Monday 11th july 2 hours a week

Conversation Group Classes: Every Monday 10 am to 11 am (for 5 weeks)

Every Wednesday 6pm to 7pm (for 5 weeks)

Beginner Course:  Every Monday 6pm to 8pm (for 10 weeks)

Learn French for a culturally amazing Paris experience
French Vocabulary

Learn French for a Culturally Amazing Paris Experience

by Amelie Hurford
December 19, 2016

5 Reasons to Visit Museum D’Orsay

Paris is a beautiful city, thronged by millions of tourists and travelers every year.

The place is full of beautiful experiences that make for a perfect holiday! Numerous historically significant sites, delectable food and wine, adventure, shopping and so much more… Paris offers it all! There are several museums in Paris: each unique and significant! The museum cultural in Paris is very strong and a visit to Paris is incomplete without ‘Museum Hopping’.

The Museum D’Orsay is one such gem of a museum that is an absolute must-see for every traveller in Paris. It is a museum dedicated to impressionism. The building in itself is a masterpiece and housed within are sone of the most particular pieces of art you will ever see! It is home to some of finest works by French and European artists from the 19th and early 20th centuries.

5 reasons that make Museum D’Orsay a must see:

  • Paintings

The Museum houses some of the most beautiful and fascinating paintings by artists from the 19th and early 20th century. Whether you have an eye for art or not, each painting has the power to hold your interest. The paintings represent different and varying subjects, some that were horrifying in those times and some that depict life back then. The surreal use of colours mixed with detailed depiction of objects and people, make these paintings breathtakingly beautiful!

  • Sculptures and Artefacts 

There are numerous sculptures and artefacts by famous artists housed within the museum. These are made using a variety of materials and styles. The sculptures and artefacts have significance in history or social settings of their time. Some of the sculptures are so beautiful and life that one cannot marvel at the artists amazing work.

  • History of Orsay

Orsay was originally a train station and the museum building has gone through many changes. The building and the history behind it are a fascinating element that add to the charm of the place.

  • Impressionism

Impressionism is an age of some of the most beautiful art and art forms that we see today. Art, literature or theatre, the impressionism age has significant elements that draw one’s attention.

  • Architecture

The museum building is fascinating and displays impeccable architecture. A visit to the museum becomes beautiful from the very first moment you lay your eyes on the building. An architectural wonder-inside and out!

Paris is a must on every travellers list and the Museum D’Orsay must be on the itinerary too! When traveling to Paris, taking French lessons may be an added value to your experience. Knowing the local language always helps in understanding things better, easier to travel around the city and one can also read and understand the local fervor better. Check our Online Course for travellers now HERE !

At French Lessons Australia, we offer French lessons that are easy to follow and guarantee great results. Many people have come to us to learn French and mastered the language in a very short span of time.

1 2 … 8 9 10 11 12
Recent Posts
Most Popular French Learning Articles
French Online Courses for Everyone

Free Consultation

We will contact you shortly

    BOOK A TOUR