Learning a language is a great yet challenging experience.

Indeed, even though motivation definitely is a key factor to success, everyday life sometimes gets in the way and despite you wanting to become fluent (or at least grasping the essential of a language), you might not have time to get out there and sit in a classroom.

So what can you do then?

Giving up?

Of course not!

Our generation is extremely lucky to have that wonderful tool called the Internet. Yes, but how exactly can you learn a language sat behind a desk? Nowadays, you can find fantastic websites hosted by  devoted and very experienced modern foreign languages teachers.

In this article, I will help you find people to practice speaking and writing French online.

Online language exchange

What is online language exchange? Well, just like you want to learn a foreign language (French in your case), some French people want to broaden their knowledge, widen their cultural experience or simply go and see the world so they want to learn another language.

And as it happens, they might want to learn your language. Perfect as you want to learn theirs.

You can therefore help each other and learn from each other! You’ll become a teacher as well as being a student. It’s an experience I have led with my classes and it works a treat! Like the Wall Street Journal said it is “one of the best ways to learn a foreign language”.

Let me explain.

It basically is a modern penpals exchange as instead of writing letters, you communicate either by emails, messages or voice chat. This type of learning practice offers the possibility to speak and write to a native speaker.

Therefore, not only will you make progress in your language learning (grammar, vocabulary and syntax), you will also get an important (and essential) cultural immersion.

You will also get to learn typical slangy phrases which you are unlikely to learn from a school textbook and, believe me, these expressions are crucial to know as more and more French people use them all the time!

Moreover, an important aspect of online language exchange is that the native speaker you are conversing with is in the same boat as you:

1. (s)he wants to learn a foreign language.
2. (S)he therefore knows exactly what you are going through (that sounds a bit dramatic, I’ll admit it, but, yes, learning a language is difficult so we are allowed to sound a bit like drama queens!). (
3. S)he knows all the difficulties you encounter and can put himself/herself in your shoes and give you tips (s)he might have found to overcome these language learning problems.

You will learn from each other and you will grow together by helping each other reaching your own personal goals. It is extremely rewarding and satisfying! And who knows, you might actually become friends!

Okay but where can you actually find a French native speaker who wants to learn your language and what are you going to speak about you might say? Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered as I have found a very useful website!

My language exchange

Indeed https://www.mylanguageexchange.com/learn/french.asp is the website you should visit if you are interested in online language learning.

It provides “free, helpful guidelines and tips on how to do a language exchange, as well as free lesson plans designed by an expert in language exchange learning. The activities are fun so you can easily “break the ice” with your new learning partner and get effective practice”.

Conversation exchange

https://www.conversationexchange.com/ is another great website to help you find people to practice speaking and writing online. The good thing about this website is that you can find local native speakers living in your area.

You could therefore start by writing to each other and end up actually meeting up! If you cannot find any native speaker in your area, this website also has an online community of native speakers from all around the globe so you can organise your online penpals exchange.

Its database gathers people using many different text, voice and video chat such as Hangouts, Skype, Conversation exchange chat, etc.

Interpals

Here’s another website I find interesting for online language learning : https://www.interpals.net/.

On this site, instead of looking for native speakers living near you, you look for French language partners who have similar learning goals at you. You’ll have to create your online profile and specify what you want to achieve.

By precisely explaining what your language level is now and where you want it to be soon, the online search will find you your perfect matching language learner! A person who has the same learning wishes and drive as you.

But no, even though you’ll find your perfect match, it is not a dating website (just so we’re clear!).

Italki

Rather similar to Interpals, Italki also offers online courses for around 10€ / hour. However, if you are not interesting in signing up for an online course, you can stick to finding a language partner and, in that case, it is free.

Just like Interpals, you will have to indicate which language you want to learn (French) and which language you speak. You will also have to give details such as your age and where you come from.

The online search engine and its self-assessment system based on European Framework (levels A1 , A2, B1 , B2, C1 and C2) will do the rest and find you conversation partners with similar level as you.

This site gathers rather a lot of members so you are more or less sure to find native speakers matching your needs and goals. Here’s the website link https://www.italki.com/home.

Speaky

This completely free website is a bit similar to Facebook in the way that you can have a nosy at people’s profile before getting in touch with them. You can check their spoken/studied language, nationality, sex, age, interests, etc.

This is actually useful if you don’t want to start a conversation with someone who doesn’t like the same things as you.

Having said that, I personally think it is interesting to speak to people with different interests as you as you can broaden your knowledge on many different topics but each to their own.

After having quickly register (you can use your Facebook or Google account), you will be able to find conversation partners who are online.

The online chat can correct your mistakes. Sounds good to you? So have a look at their website https://www.speaky.com/.

HelloTalk

Last but not least : HelloTalk https://www.hellotalk.com/. If you rather use your phone or your tablet instead of your computer, this app is perfect for you.

Indeed, you can converse with native speakers over short written and audio messages (a bit like you would on WhatsApp) and if you wish to speak longer you can always go on other app (such as Skype) once you have found your conversation partner.

This app offers a voice, translation and correction system.

Conclusion

I think that all the all useful websites mentioned above will definitely help you find a French conversation partner to improve your speaking and writing skills. Of course, there are plenty more on the web but I’m hoping this list will save you time and allow you to start your learning journey!

For a very long time, the French education system was known as one of the best in Europe, if not worldwide.

However, over the past few years, this affirmation has become rather questionable. Indeed, every three years every French 15 years old pupil undertakes a test in reading, Maths, and Science and so do pupils from other countries.

Their tests’ results are then compared to each other in order to determine rankings of the best education system. It is the PISA (Program for International Student Assessment) test. The latest one dates from 2016. Its data gathers results from over 500, 000 pupils all over the world.

France arrived 26th out of 70 countries. It has lost a place in these rankings as it was 25th in 2012. This makes the French education system average compared to other developed countries. Moreover, France seems to perform really badly and owns the dunce’s cap when it comes to giving students equal opportunities.

Reducing this inequality of opportunities is something the French government is actively working on.

In this blog, I will introduce you to the French education system. More precisely, I will highlight the different French courses and their various levels and I will present you the different type of schools and their diplomas/degrees.

1) Level of French language evaluated in “Le cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues” (CECRL)

Before I start to underline the French education system, let me bring out the “cadre européen commun de référence pour les langues” (CECRL) as it is commonly used in France and actually displayed in languages classrooms.

It is also known as the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The European Union, which is a multilingual group, has for objective to promote communication within Europe.

For this reason, the Europe council, as well as the University of Cambridge, have created the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages. Firstly used in Europe, it is now used worldwide to evaluate students’ levels in any language and plays a central role in language and education policy.

It contains a series of descriptions of abilities, 6 to be exact. They help teachers and students to set clear targets and to know exactly what a pupil is able to do or not, what is his/her language proficiency level. Here are the six descriptors:

1) Level A

This first level is divided into two parts: A1 and A2. A1 corresponds to beginners and A2 to elementary. Learners falling in one of these two groups have usually just started learning a language.

Description of each level of French language proficiency:

French language level A1 beginner

French language level A1 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding everyday words and very basic expressions.

→ Reading:

– Understanding everyday words and very basic expressions (adverts, posters or brochures).

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating in a simple way provided the interlocutor repeats and speaks slowly.
– Asking and answering questions about everyday topics or about yourself.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Using simple expressions and sentences to describe where you live and people you know.

→ Writing:

– Writing a small postcard, when on holiday for example. – Filling in a questionnaire (name, nationality, address).

French language level A2 Advanced beginner French language level A2-1 syllabus

→ Listening:

– Recognising simple texts already read and heard in familiar situations. – Understanding numbers.
– Understanding simple words describing people in a very short story.

→ Reading:

– Understanding written texts already encountered before.
– Understanding the overall of a wording in a personal letter.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Conversing about easy and familiar situations (meetings, asking information) without the interlocutor having any understanding difficulties.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Introducing yourself and your family and friends (identity, job, hobbies…) in a few simple sentences.

→ Writing:

– Transcribing a simple spoken information in a couple of sentences.

French language level A2-2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding simple wordings never heard before but about familiar topics. – Understanding clear and short instructions.
– Understanding numbers said in sentences.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the most important points of very short and easy texts containing only very short amount of new structures and new words.
– Finding information in an informative document dealing with one or several familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– In a short conversation, asking and answering, briefly and without personal opinions, questions about familiar topics

→ Speaking continuously:

– Describing in a few sentences and in a simple way your personal situation.

→ Writing:

– Writing a short and easy note or message to communicate an information using documents and a dictionary. Some mistakes can appear but the overall text stays understandable.

French language level A2-3 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding the main topic of an everyday conversation.
– In a short text, understanding simple sentences and recognising words or groups of words indicating tense changes, as well as the most common link words.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the main points of a text or of a simple and short letter dealing with one or several familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating in a simple and common situation, after having prepared it.

→ Speaking continuously:

– Describing in a few sentences a recent experience (past tense).

→ Writing:

– Writing a personal letter to introduce yourself, thank someone or speak about yourself.
– Writing a short note or message to answer a question.

2) Level B

This second level is also divided into two parts: B1 and B2. B1 is called intermediate level and B2 upper intermediate level. At the end of college, students are usually expected to reach level B2 in their first foreign language (they have to learn two languages in France).

French language level B1 Intermediate

French language level B1-1 syllabus
→ Listening:

– In a brief story, recognising the framework of the events and linking the characters and places to these events.
– In every other type of audible text, understanding the main information.

→ Reading:

– Recognising the structure of a simple and rather short text or letter.
– Understanding the main events and essential ideas in a text or post dealing with familiar topics.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Speaking about your own personal situation (family, hobbies, job, studies).

→ Speaking continuously:

– Coherently describing, in a few sentences, an experience or an event. – Expressing your opinion.

→ Writing:

– Writing a simple and coherent text about a familiar topic. – Writing a personal letter.
– Being able, when proofreading, to correct the most obvious mistakes.

French language level B1-2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– In a less than two minutes long conversation, understanding the opinion of each character. – Noticing and understanding specific information in an informative document.

– In a longer story, understanding the events’ framework (when the topic is familiar).

→ Reading:

– Understanding information about work, family life or about a known topic.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Taking part in a conversation without many difficulties when interlocutors speak about known topics (you might still need to look for some words or to ask your interlocutors to help you express yourself).

→ Speaking:

– Briefly and coherently explaining your opinions or plans.

→ Writing:

– Relating events, giving a report on a course or an experience and describing your thoughts in an at least ten lines text without using a dictionary (at least not too often).

French language level B1-3 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding details of an at least two minutes long story on a known topic. – Understanding technical information about products or services.

– Understanding arguments formulated by different protagonists of a discussion when they are clearly said.

→ Reading:

– Understanding the main points of every text or post which don’t exceed 40 lines and which deal with a known topic.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Being able to speak about the majority of situations you can encounter when traveling in a French-speaking country.
– Being able to speak about everyday life and personal matters without any preparation.

→ Speaking:

– Telling the plot of a film, book… and describing your reactions with the use of connectives.

→ Writing:

– Writing without any difficulties a personal letter or a simple and coherent text about familiar topics and making sure there aren’t many mistakes.

French language level B2 Advanced

French language level B2 syllabus
→ Listening:

– Understanding a speech of a certain length and an argumentation about a known topic.
– Understanding most newspapers, TV programmes and films (spoken in an informal language).

→ Reading:

– Reading articles in which authors express their point of view. – Understanding a literary contemporary text in prose.

→ Taking part in a conversation:

– Communicating rather spontaneously which makes a discussion with a French native person possible.

→ Speaking:

– Expressing yourself clearly about many topics.
– Developing an opinion about currents events.

→ Writing:

– Writing detailed texts about most topics related to things you like.

3) Level C
French language level C1 and C2 Expert

This last level is, like the first two, divided into two parts: C1 and C2. When students get to these levels, they are more or less bilingual (level C2) or at least understand long and difficult spoken and written texts and are able to speak clearly and with a wide range of vocabulary (level C1).

II) The different type of schools and their diplomas/degrees

1) The years before entering school

Nursery, “la crèche”, doesn’t actually belong to the French education system but I thought it could be interesting mentioning it as a lot of children go there before entering school. Indeed, many mums have to go back to work quickly after having had their baby.

Ten weeks to be precise which is rather depressing I must admit (well it was for me…). Parents have the choice between different types of childcare. There is “la crèche” which is a nursery.

These are daycare centers which keep babies from two months to three years old. It is very complicated to get a slot in a nursery as they are so popular (mainly because mums have to go back to work when their baby turns two months old). In fact, parents are advised to try and book a slot as soon as they are pregnant! Other options are available such as “les assistantes maternelles”. These are qualified women who can look after three or four babies at their house. They are officially recognized by the French state.

It is a better solution in my view as they are more flexible than a nursery. Moreover, they meet up with other “assistantes maternelles” to organize activities for children so they can develop great social skills too.

2) “La maternelle” (preschool/kindergarten)

In France, children start school rather early at the age of three years old and sometimes at two and half years old.

Even though most children attend “la maternelle” at that age, school is actually compulsory from 6 years old when pupils start “l’école élémentaire” (primary school/elementary school). There are three classes in the French preschool system: “la petite section”, “la moyenne section” et “la grande section”.

Over the past couple of years, a new level has appeared: “la toute petite section”. This class is for children aged 2. It is primarily developed in deprived areas, mainly to help children developing their speaking.

Unlike preschool in many other countries, “la maternelle” is not just a place for children to develop their social skills. Indeed, its curriculum contains specific knowledge to be worked on such as reading (letters and phonemes), writing and numeracy.

A foreign language is also offered in French preschools. Everything is based on games. Artistic activities are also very present as they help children developing their creativity and imagination while playing.

3) “L’école élémentaire”

Children go to this school for five years from 6 to 11 years old. There are therefore five levels: CP (cours préparatoire), CE1, CE2 (cours élémentaire 1 and 2), CM1 and CM2 (cours moyen 1 and 2).

They spend about 24 hours in class Monday to Friday. It is up to the local town hall to decide whether children have to attend school on Wednesday morning or not and therefore split the 24 weekly hours over four or five days.

Like in most countries, the French curriculum includes literacy, numeracy, a foreign language (mainly English, even though teachers don’t seem to put a big emphasis on that subject…), PE, History, Geography…

4) “Le collège” (secondary school)

Every child, aged 11 to 15, go to secondary school in France. The four classes, corresponding to grades 6 to 9, are called “sixième”, “cinquième”, “quatrième” and “troisième”.

Pupils receive a very general learning as it is only at the end of secondary school that children are oriented and that they can therefore slightly specialize in a certain learning area.

The curriculum includes French, Maths, PE, two foreign languages (mainly English and Spanish/German/Italian), Arts, Music, History, Geography, Civil Education, Technical Education, Science, Physics, and Chemistry.

In their last year, pupils undertake an exam, “le brevet des collèges”. This exam has totally lost its value as it is so easily obtained…

5) Le lycée (sixth form/college)

Students go to college from 15 to 18 years old. The classes correspond to grades 10 to 12 and are called “seconde”, “première” and “terminale”.

There are three types of college they can be oriented towards, mainly depending on their school results and their professional wishes: “lycée général”, “lycée professionel” and “lycée technique”.

During their “lycée” years, pupils prepare to sit for their final exam: “le baccalauréat”, very often shorten to “le bac”.

Supposedly, every “lycée” in France offers the same educational standard and the same chance to their students.

However, each year a sort of survey highlights the results of the “bac” for each college in France, basically showing which schools are the best. The same ones come back to the top of the list every year. They are the Lycée Louis-le-Grand or Lycée Henri-IV in Paris, the Lycée Fermat in Toulouse, and a handful of other famous public lycées.

6) Le lycée professsionel

Students who wish to learn a manual or clerical job may choose to study in a “lycée professionnel”.

Their academic syllabus is rather reduced as they principally focus on learning usefull skills for their chosen career but they do have to study French, Maths and a foreign language.

At the end of their three years in a “lycée professionnel”, students also take “le baccalauréat” but it is called “baccalauréat professionel”.

Some extra knowledge:

The success rate of the “baccalauréat” in June 2017 was 87.9% which is a bit less than the previous year. With less than 13 percent failure, it is considered by many French people as a far too easy exam… Some even go as far as saying that it is actually given to students… Nonetheless, it is a rather rigorous exam with oral, speaking and written parts and students are evaluated in many subjects. It lasts up to six days.

Every year, in June, media discuss the subjects in Philosophy which always is, as some sort of ritual, the first exam that students have to take. To obtain his/her “baccalauréat”, a student must have at least 10/20 (average mark).

If (s)he gets between 8 and 10/20, (s)he goes to the “rattrapages”. They can basically resit the exam. There are three distinctions (“mention” in French) when passing the “baccalauréat” :

“Bac with mention assez bien” (rather good): between 12 and 14/20 “Bac with mention bien” (good): between 14 and 16/20
“Bac with mention très bien” (very good): 16/20 and more

7) Higher education

In most countries, going to university is considered as the pinnacle of education. Not so much in France. Indeed, anyone can go to uni as long as they have their “baccalauréat”. Moreover, universities are underfunded compared to international standards.

Having said that, French universities actually do a remarkably great job in terms of productivity (ratio between investment per student, quality, and the results obtained). At university, students take their “licence” (three years degree).

Once they pass their bachelor’s degree, they can take a “maîtrise” also called “master” (an extra two years studying). Finally, they can take, if they pass their Master’s degree, a “doctorat” which is a Ph.D. However, the crème de la crème in higher education in France is the “Grandes Ecoles” which teach to tomorrow’s “haut fonctionnaires” (senior civil servants), leaders of industry, top military brass, top politicians, engineers, physicists and others.

After having obtained their “baccalauréat”, students have to take a competitive exam to enter those very elitist schools. They prepare this exam in the “classes préparatoires” which are also very selective.

Two of France’s Grandes Ecoles (ENS and Polytechnique), but no universities, are listed in the 2018 QS world’s top 100 universities listing. L’ENS (école nationale supérieure) of Paris comes 43rd and the Ecole Polytechnique 59th.

So here you have it: the French education system and its various courses and levels.

Conclusion

Please do share your in which level are you in the comment section on your experience/difficulty in learning each levels to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

French Homophones are words that are pronounced the same but spelt differently.

They also have a different meaning.

Affirming that French is the language with the most homophones would be risky and I could be totally wrong as I do not know every single language spoken in our Earth’s vast lands.

However, I can definitely confirmed, as a French native speaker, that yes French intrinsically has quite a lot of homophones !

They are all French children worse nightmare during spelling tests !

Let’s take a closer look at the most common ones.

First, we can mention verbs endings.

Indeed, with the second person singular, “tu” (“you” in English), one has to add an “s” at the end of the verb. However, you do not pronounce this added “s”. Same difficulty appears when it comes to the third person plural, “ils” ou “elles” (“they” in English).

You must add -nt at the end of the verb but again, you do not pronounce it.

Why make things easy eh? Thus, if we wanted to conjugate “manger” (“to eat”) in the present tense, we would say:

Je mange / I eat

Tu manges / You eat (informal you) Il, elle, on mange / He, she, it eats
Nous mangeons / We eat
Vous mangez / You eat (formal you)
Ils, elles mangent / They eat

“mange”, “manges” and “mangent” are spelt differently, refer to different persons but are pronounced exactly the same.

Most of the time, the last consonnant isn’t pronounced in French which can make things rather complicated! Indeed, we can think about the following words : Sans / s’en / c’en / sens / sent / sang / cent or quand / quant / qu’en / camp / khan.

These are just examples among so many others!!

Not always easy to understand what someone is speaking about without seeing the words written down. This possible meaning confusion led to the lovely story of Cinderella. The beautiful princess wore, in the Honore de Balzac version, the once fashionable pantoufles de vair (slippers made with squirrel’s fur).

However, Charles Perrault mentioned some pantoufles de verre (glass slippers).

This difference between both stories versions has, ever since, created a big debate: what type of slippers did Cinderella wear?!

In 2016, the French government wanted to institute a new reform about word spelling. They wanted to get rid of the circumflex accent. You know the little hat “^” on top of either the letter “i”, “o” or “u” in some French words?

The government wanted to make French spelling easier. Well… that did not go down very well with the French population. And quite rightly so. You will understand why with the following couple of examples!

Please excuse the very familiar expressions!

“Salut, je suis sûr, ta femme, elle est heureuse !” (Hey, I’m sure, your wife, she’s happy!)

« Salut, je suis sur ta femme, elle est heureuse ! » (Hey, I’m on top of your wife, she’s happy!)

« Salut ma belle ! Je vais me faire un jeûne demain ! » (Hey beautiful, I’m going to abstain myself from eating tomorrow!)

« Salut ma belle ! Je vais me faire un jeune demain ! » (Hey beautiful, I’m going to sleep with a young lad tomorrow ! »)

Not quite the same meanings…

Sometimes, it can even get more tricky than this !!

Some expressions can be only made with homophones such as « un vieil armagnac » (« an old Armagnac/Brandy ») and « un vieillard manique » (« a fussy old man »). They are called « holorimes ».

Let’s look on the bright side though : yes, the French language has some asperities but it does allow us to play with words and have some fun !!

Conclusion

Please do share your story in the comment section on your experience to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners

When you learn French online you set your own pace to best suits your busy lifestyle.

Learning a language is extremely demanding.

Going to classes, visiting a tutor, going out and buying books take a lot of time.

And I know that as a parent, as a partner and with your everyday job and life, it’s not always possible.

Well, in fact, it can sometimes be totally impossible.

However, this should not mean that you should give up on your will, on your dream to learn French. How can you juggle everything then you might ask?

Your best option is to lean French online from the comfort of your own home.

Peacefully in your pyjamas on your sofa with a coffee.

Sounds perfect?

That’s because it is not only would it make your life easier and stop you from running around to be here, there and everywhere trying to squeeze everything in, it would also provide a familiar and reassuring environment.

In these conditions, you would feel much more relaxed and mentally more ready to learn. Your brain would memorize information so much better and quicker if you simply feel mellow rather than stressed out!

A peaceful mind maximizes your learning capacities. Moreover, learn French online from home would make you a self-directed learner.

You would take responsibilities of your own learning and be in charge of your learning program!

So how can you do this then?

Where should you start?

Your starting point should definitely be the Internet!

It is a wonderful source of information which contains so many useful and interesting resources. So many though, that’s often the problem!

You could easily get lost in the amount of information available on the web. In this blog, I will guide you towards some apps, podcasts, PDF, YouTube videos and websites I find particularly good and helpful.

1) Learn French fast with these apps

Learning a language used to be synonym of carrying loads of textbooks and very heavy dictionaries … and pay for them obviously!

Well not anymore!

Like most people, you more than likely own a smartphone.

This little technological wonder is all you need and it will get you to speak the language of love in no time!

All you have to do is to download an app.

Before I tell you about a few apps I like, let me list some benefits of studying French with apps rather than with a more traditional method using books or going to classes.

First of all, you can learn whenever you want and wherever you want!

Going to work using public transport?

Make the most of this dull journey!

Click on your app and start learning.

Not only would this save you from being bored, it would also stop you from wasting your time. Why do nothing when you can pass the time doing something useful such as studying?

Our phones are always with us so it seems normal to use them intelligently, doesn’t it? A lot of people (including me…) tend to go on their phone before going to sleep (yes we are so addicted to our phones it can sometimes be worrying…).

Why not revise some French vocabulary or grammar structures just before bed?

Another advantage is that you are not constrained to attend a course on such a day at such a time. Instead, you can learn French on your own pace whenever your mind and body feel the readiest for it.

Traditional methods seem, for most of us, boring and therefore not very effective. Methods using new technology, pictures, videos and sounds are however a lot more fun and consequently much more motivating.

Let’s now see a few good apps.

1. Apps for Android

• “Memrise: Learn Languages” has been awarded the best 2017 app. Download it and you’ll understand exactly why. It does make studying and learning very fun and will more than likely help you progress in no time!
• “Learn French” is a free app mainly aimed at beginners and travelers. It contains about 800 commonly used French words and expressions. It also allows you to work on your pronunciation as you can listen to these terms in an authentic pronunciation and repeat them. You can store your favorite sentences too.
• “Learn Languages: Rosetta Stone” is another free application for Android. Its method is based on first language learning. Its creators help you to learn French the way you learnt your native tongue: without translation. You start speaking French straight away. You also get feedback on your pronunciation.
• “Learn French 6,000 Words” is a free and easy app to learn new vocabulary. It contains illustrated words, phonetic transcriptions and pronunciation recordings by native speakers as well as games which makes it very fun!
• “Learn French with Babbel” is a free innovative app which includes a wide variety of courses designed by experts and a speech recognition. It is made for all students so whether you’re a beginner or a more advanced learner, this app should help you to acquire an even better level in French!

2. Apps for iPhone

• “French 101, by 24/7 Tutor” includes interesting interactive programs. As part of its various features, it contains puzzle games, flash cards, multiple choice quizzes and write-in tests. It also lists vocabulary in categories such as family, friends, travel, home and more.
• “French Audio Flashcards” by Declan Software. This app is amazing to work on your pronunciation as it has over 4,400 words and phrases said by native speakers. It also helps you to develop some memorization techniques thanks to its many flashcard reviews and exercises.

• “Lingopal French-talking phrasebook” by Lingopal. The first advantage of this app: you access it without an Internet connection. It is specially designed for those who need phrases to get by. It includes audio files.

• “AccelaStudy French”, by Renkara Media Group, Inc. One of the best features of this app is that you can keep track of your learning thanks to its automatic statistics so you know exactly how well you’re progressing which is very motivating!Furthermore, it includes audio files made by native speakers (great to work on your pronunciation), over 2,400 words (all levels, from beginners to more advanced ones), quizzes, flashcards and a dictionary.

• “iSpeak French”, by Future Apps. This iPhone app basically is a speaking dictionary. Type any word or phrase and it will translate them and tell them out loud in French.This is great to learn how to pronounce perfectly and very handy when traveling as you can just write what you need to know and simply repeat correctly the translation you’ve just heard or even cheat a little and just ask the person you’re speaking to to listen to the translation…

2) Learn French fast with these Podcasts

Before I start, let me very briefly define what a podcast is.

Basically, a podcast is an Internet radio on demand. It allows you to listen to it whenever you want which is perfect when you have a very busy schedule!

That way, you can study and revise when it suits you best, when you’re the most inclined to learn in a relaxed and calm environment or when you’re on the go headphones in!

Why exactly should you study with podcasts though?

Listening to French, to a lot of French even, is a fantastic way to memorize new vocab and grammar structures. Thus using podcasts is considered as being one of the most efficient ways to learn French. So now let’s have a look at some very helpful ones.

• “Coffee Break French” by Radio Lingua Network is one, if not the one, most appreciated podcast by learners. If you’re a total beginner in French, this podcast is made for you! However, it also suits more advanced learners as the difficulty of each lesson increases.Each lesson focuses on what you actually need to know to be understood by a French person. They last about 15 minutes which is great if you don’t have much time. Its content is divided into seasons. Season 1 is the easiest one and it gradually increases in difficulty as the seasons progress.

• “Frenchpod101” is a must! Made for all levels from beginner to advanced, this podcast is hosted by two persons, a French native speaker and an English one. Their lessons include realistic conversations (which is obviously very useful as you want to learn things you’ll actually need! No time for messing around!). They also contain slow speed recordings, translations and various explanations about the language itself and the French culture. All this is divided into topics.

My next three chosen podcasts are rather aimed at intermediate and advanced learners as they contain more French language. Don’t worry though, they also have transcriptions and translations!

• “Français authentique”. Like most learners, you might understand (if not master? If not, you will soon!) written French but might find it difficult to actually grasp spoken French. If that’s the case, this podcast would be perfect for you. Indeed, its host speaks slowly about French expressions, motivation and lots of interesting topics.

• “One thing in a French day”. This podcast deals with everyday life. The host tells you about her daily life in France which is good to learn about vocabulary as well as the French culture.

• “Learn French with daily lessons” by FrenchVoila. Last but not least, this podcast is very interesting as it enables you to brush up on your French thanks to the news. The host speaks about recent events and explains it all in slow French.
•  Loads of examples and synomyms are used to help you understand better

3) Learn French fast with these websites

Whether you’re a beginner learner needing to start from scratch or a more advanced one who just needs to refresh on a few French grammar points, websites are a great place to learn. However, you can easily get trapped in the thousands and thousands of existing links! Luckily, I got you covered and chose a few good ones for you!

• https://simplefrenchwords.com/learn-french-pdf-free/ This website is fab as it contains many printable PDF on many useful topics. Great to get you started!

• http://www.bonjourdefrance.co.uk/learn-french-online/grammar/choose-level I really do like that one! Before starting on this website, you have to choose which level of the European scale of French level you want to study at (A1, A2, B1, B2, C1 and C2). Knowing your level is a necessity if you want to carry on your studies in France (or in most European countries) as specific levels are required to enter university (at least level B2). It contains grammar lessons and exercises to practice what you’ve learnt.

• https://www.fluentu.com/ This is another great website as it offers real-world French videos (music, videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks turned into French lessons). Perfect to learn French in a total immersion. And not only will you learn the ins and outs of the language itself, you will also learn so much about the French culture. Indeed, these videos were originally created for French native speakers. They are therefore filled with a lot of informal everyday French speech and many cultural aspects of the French society.

• http://www.wordreference.com/enfr/ One of my all-time favorite website! Yes, I know, I sound a bit (a lot) geeky but this online dictionary is so useful. So much so I, in fact, recommend it to my students, from beginners to more advanced ones, every single year. This website doesn’t only just translate words. It goes a lot further than that. You type a word and it will give you its translation as well as all the expressions containing that particular word. And if you can’t find the phrase you need, there is a forum on which you can ask any related question you want!

4) Learn French fast with these YouTube videos

As I said previously, listening to French is a great way to learn it but listening to it and watching videos at the same time can add a bit of fun to your learning journey.

While there are a lot of videos on YouTube, many contain far too much English which, yes, it can make things easier to understand but what’s the actual point in listening to English when you want to learn French?

I have selected some helpful videos to stop you browsing the net for hours and therefore concentrate on what matters the most: you learning French! I have divided my selection into two parts: channels for beginners and channels for intermediate and advanced learners.

1. Channels for beginners

• “ Frenchpod101” In the podcasts’ section, I told you about Frenchpod101. It is also a YouTube channel which will teach you everyday words and sentences and will help you to improve thanks to listening exercises.
• “Comme une française” is based on the same principle. However, the French host, Géraldine, will also teach you French cultural habits and the related vocabulary.

2.Channels for intermediate and advanced learners 

• “Français avec Pierre”. In his videos, Pierre chooses common French idioms and explains them. Then, he interviews French native speakers to discuss these expressions as well as other topics (cultural, grammatical…). Great channel if you already speak a bit of French and want to dig further inside the ins and outs of the language and if you want to learn how French people think.

• “Easy Languages” is rather similar to the previous one as the host also interviews French people about all sorts of topics. It’s interesting (if not funny) watching how wound up some French people can get when debating! It’s a great channel if you want to learn more about giving your opinion.

There are tons of great resources to learn French online but I hope my selected ones will help you on your online learning journey!

Conclusion

Please do share your story in the comment section on your experience to study French

Side Note: Want a light introduction to French Courses Online? Check Out Our French Courses Online for Beginners