Posts Tagged ‘french vocabulary’

Not feeling so good about your French lessons? Here’s an idea! At your next fast food binge to cheer up your language blues, instead of super sizing your order of burgers and fries, why not decide to forego the delicious tasting fat and grease and opt for a healthier order of 4 easy ways to maximize your French vocabulary? Increasing your French vocabulary with these simple techniques will ease the vocabulary-type mental indigestion and mental bloating that irritate and discourage students as they learn French vocabulary. And most importantly, an increased knowledge of vocabulary will boost your confidence and fluency as you learn how to speak French.

The first activity to quickly learn French vocabulary is great for students at any level, and it is a simple way to increase vocabulary without creating too much extra work. Find some old magazines or newspapers that can be used for cutting and find pictures of things that you do not know the words for. Cut the pictures out and paste them on a piece of paper and then put them anywhere noticeable at home or work. On the back, you simply write the word and a sentence using the word. And if you really want to annoy, educate or impress your colleagues, friends and family, you can even do “show and tell” with your pictures. It is an excellent method to review and test yourself, because when you teach it, you know it. You can accumulate these pictures and even build a picture dictionary as you learn French fluently.

The second easy activity you can do to learn French fast is all about the Magic. You can make a Magic Calendar by downloading it for free or by buying a magnetized, erasable reusable calendar. At the start of your day, you must pick one new word that you have learned in your French course or French reading material and want to remember that day. Write that word on your calendar and draw a picture of the word and/or write a definition of the word in your own French. As each day passes jot down that word-of -the -day on a piece of paper and put it into your pocket for future reference throughout your day. Once the month is finished, you should have had the chance of recording up to 30 words. This is a good opportunity for you to learn how to take notes in French, and to reflect about each word and what you have learned. It also helps you increase your vocabulary one day at a time. The Magic Calendar is a fun way to document your learning, and you can proudly say, “Wow, I learned all of those words, just like magic!” If you see it, think it, and write it, you will remember it.

Fridge magnets are not just for decoration anymore. The third fun activity you can do to learn French the easy way, is to put several packages of alphabet refrigerator magnets in a box. You can practice your alphabet pronunciation by pulling a letter out of the box. You can also see how many French words you can recall and/or create using the letters. Put your list of new words on the fridge as colorful reminders for you to recognize and remember French vocabulary. Also, you can write these words on your Magic Calendar.

The fourth activity that will increase your vocabulary is by simply reading more French books (Ces Enfants de Ma Vie), magazines (Le Paris Match) or newspapers (Le Monde). Find a good cafe where you can relax and read away. Make sure you record the words you do not understand in order to look them up in the dictionary and (this is optional) you can put these words on your Magic Calendar and/or refrigerator . You should focus on the meaning and context of these words and eventually try to incorporate these words into your speech.

With an excellent French course, these four activities are very effective ways at complementing your learning by getting you to remember French words thereby increasing your vocabulary. Whether you use some or all of these activities, your learning of French will surely improve in leaps and bounds. Your French vocabulary blues will be a thing of the past and the blue skies of Paris will be a thing in your future.

Author: Suzanne M Brown
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital Camera Information

Tags: bloating, burgers and fries, fluency, food binge, french course, french lessons, french vocabulary, magic calendar, old magazines, reading material

Overview

Here at Mon Beau Sapin we are definitely Francophiles; bona fide lover of all things French.  Even when I was a little girl, I would daydream about visiting the magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower, and wandering the romantic streets of Paris.  When I finally had the opportunity to take some French classes in high school, I was so excited!  The only problem was, well, I couldn’t seem to get the hang of the language.  What a disappointment!  I barely passed.

My close friend Camille, born and raised in France, told me about Rocket French a few years ago, which rekindled my interest in learning French.  She had taught some French classes on-and-off, and thought the Rocket French curriculum was really top-notch, as well as much more affordable than the most popular course on the market.  The program is designed to encourage users to speak and improve their French during each and every lesson, doing so naturally, while building a useful French vocabulary.  Plus, there are plenty of interactive quizzes and self-tests to monitor improvement as you proceed through the lessons.  I was definitely intrigued, and decided to give it a try.

Review

Forget those boring textbooks from your high school French class; Rocket French is definitely a step up from dry, old-fashioned classroom curricula.  Rocket French has a host of great features and a solid underlying French curriculum, but its real appeal is in how it manages to be so fun to use.

Learn Where and When You Want

Rocket French contains 33 full lessons, which are comprised of interactive activities accessible from anywhere.  I listened on my mp3 player, but other options included on the computer, in the car, or even at the gym.  Rocket French goes with you, which makes practicing your newfound language skills convenient and easy.

Audio courses are essential, in my opinion, for learning a new language.  Tuning the ear to the new language and hearing the pronunciations of native speakers allows for a better command of the language.  Rocket French, of course, has this audio angle covered, but also helpfully includes the written transcripts of each audio clip.  Being able to see the French written words helps you become fluent in speaking and reading the language.

Tips on Understanding the French Culture

Rocket French includes interesting forays into the culture of France.  For those preparing for a future trip to France, this is especially useful.  Those who haven’t had the chance to travel in France may be surprised that there are different cultural norms for eating out, traveling, celebrations, and etiquette.  Rocket French will prepare you for all these situations, giving you insight into the French way of life.

Vocabulary Building Software

Download the MegaFrench software to help you build your French vocabulary and to test your ability to recognize spoken French.  It’s also especially useful for learning French verbs, which can be a daunting task for some.  I found that if I couldn’t get it right the first time, I could just repeat the games as many times as I needed to really reinforce the learning.  I found that revisiting games every few weeks helped me to retain the information and access it from my memory more and more quickly.

A Few Drawbacks

Rocket French does claim that users can become fluent in French in three months, which is probably true for those who have a natural affinity for learning languages.  I didn’t find that after three months I was necessarily ready to hop a plane to France and start chatting with handsome Frenchmen.  However, I can definitely say that I had come further in three months with Rocket French than I had in two torturous years of high school French.

Another minor complaint is that the explanation of grammar rules could be more complete.  Grammar isn’t something you should be too worried about when just starting out, but if you intend to get serious about French, it will definitely be something you’ll need to understand eventually.

If you’re still not sure if Rocket French is for you, they do offer 6 free lessons on their site, complete with audio, lessons, and activities to give you a taste of the course.

The Bottom Line

My old friend Camille was right when she recommended Rocket French to me.  Rocket French is a solid and enjoyable course for those looking for an affordable and accessible French language course that also happens to be fun.  Even if you’ve had trouble with traditional methods of language learning, Rocket French can help you overcome past failures with an innovative teaching method.  The integrated approach combines learning French culture with the French language, resulting in a truly comprehensive language-learning package.

Tags: classroom curricula, eiffel tower, french classes, french curriculum, french vocabulary, interactive quizzes, notre dame cathedral, romantic streets, streets of paris, top notch