Chapter 18

Ten Ways to Pick Up

French Quickly

Whether you took French in high school or college and neglected it since then, or you came to love this wonderful language “later in life” and are

anxious to speak it, there are several ways you can broaden your exposure to French in order to learn it more quickly. This chapter offers a few fun suggestions that can help you memorize French words, get used to the cadence of the French language, and get into the swing of speaking French.

Label the Things in Your House

If you are interested in picking up a lot of everyday words fast, cut up a bunch of paper into little pieces (or use sticky pads), get out your EnglishFrench dictionary, and do the following: Look up the French word for everything you can touch in your house, such as le mur (luh mewr) (the wall), la porte (lah pohrt) (the door), le sofa (luh soh-fah) (the couch), le réfrigérateur

(luh rey-free-zhey-rah-tuhr) (the refrigerator), une tasse (ewn tahs) (a cup), le robinet (luh roh-bee-neh) (the faucet), and so on. Then write each word on one of those pieces of paper and tape it, stick it, or pin it to whatever it describes. Then every time you pass by that object, say the word aloud. By employing this strategy, you can’t help but memorize these words quickly!

Write Your Shopping Lists in French

When you make out your grocery list, do it in French. Write the English equivalents after the French, though, so that you don’t get annoyed in the store when you can’t remember that de l’ail (duh lahy) means garlic or des pommes (dey pohm) means apples.

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Listen to French Music

You can buy French CDs — preferably with the text printed in a companion booklet, which gives you an idea of what the musicians are singing about — or download French songs. Also consider searching for the lyrics of your favorite songs on the Internet. Listening to the French and trying to imitate the sounds can help you not only learn the vocabulary but also improve your pronunciation.

Watch French Movies

A fun way to pick up expressions, accent, cultural habits, and the like is by watching French films, preferably as they were originally released. (If you get a movie with subtitles, try your best to ignore them; otherwise, you’ll end up enjoying the movie but not learning any French!) You can get French movies online or through a film service such as Netflix.

If you can, watch the same film a few times and try to imitate the intonation and sounds of phrases and sentences that you hear.

Tune in to TV5

TV5 is a 24-hours-a-day, 7-days-a-week French language channel that you can access if you have cable or satellite. This station airs programs from France, Switzerland, Belgium, Canada, and French-speaking Africa. The programs include news broadcasts, films, cultural and entertainment programs, documentaries, sports, and so on. To see what providers in your area offer TV5, go to www.tv5. org/cms/USA and enter your zip code in the available box. Remember that the more you listen to French, the more your comprehension improves.

Read French Publications

Reading French newspapers and magazines is a great way to keep up with current events and fashion trends and, at the same time, pick up some catchy phrases from headlines and ads. Reading the ads is a guaranteed eye-opener! In addition, you can read children’s books. The photographs and artwork in these publications can help you follow along, even when the words are unfamiliar. If you are a little more adventurous, you can try out short stories

in French.

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Take a Class

Many local community colleges and adult education programs offer language classes. The advantage of being in a classroom is that you’re in an interactive environment and have a live person who can answer any specific questions you may have. You will also have the benefit of being able to hear and practice speaking the French language with your instructor and other students.

Join a French Association

You can find French associations throughout the United States and Canada. One of the most famous is the Alliance Française, which is a non-profit association whose mission is to promote the French language and the French and Francophone cultures. The Alliance Française offers classes, film series, lectures, and much more. Find out what and where the nearest French association is in your area and join. You’ll meet interesting people and perhaps even find someone with whom you can converse and practice your French. To find out more about this organization and locate chapters near you, go to www.afusa.org

Surf the ’Net for Topics That

Interest You — in French

The Internet has many opportunities for you to learn French, from basic vocabulary to in-depth articles. Get on your favorite search engine and type in .fr, instead of .com, and you’ll have the francophone world at your finger tips. Select whatever interests you: culture, hobbies, economy, food and cooking, media, business, or any other area. Browse around in English or in French and pick out words you know.

Join an Online Chat or Pen Pal Forum

Go to a French chat room just to listen, if you’d like. You may be surprised how much you can pick up by listening to informal conversations. You can also join a pen pal forum. Just search the Internet and find one you feel comfortable with, such as www.french.about.com or www.french-chat.com. You can have your questions answered and share your language successes and concerns with others. Note: As with any interactive site on the Internet, be extra cautious and don’t provide any personal information.

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