Have to learn french in a year - Help!

  1. Grunt
    Grunt
    I have to learn french (reading, speaking) in a year.

    Any tips. Recommendations for good books,
    CD's, mp3 etc. ?

    Merci!
  2. butterfly
    My friend had to learn English in a very short period of time, and English is often considered one of the most difficult languages to master.
    He just immersed himself in films and became quite the expert in a very short period of time.
    There are some great French film's, if you can find a good library
  3. Grunt
    Grunt
    My friend had to learn English in a very short period of time, and English is often considered one of the most difficult languages to master.
    He just immersed himself in films and became quite the expert in a very short period of time.
    There are some great French film's, if you can find a good library
    Thanks for the tip!
  4. butterfly
    De rien, it's nothing
  5. Grunt
    Grunt
    Merci beaucoup, camarade!
  6. Rascolnikova
    Rascolnikova
    The movies bit is a great idea.

    Pimsleur is widely recognized as the best speaking-listening only system out there, and one of the best in general.

    The little prince, if you aren't too allergic to christianity, is a very charming place to start reading. Also, Persipolis was originally published in French, very interesting, and as a graphic novel it's something of an easier read than most. Also, online news-reading in French is reasonably low level, and there are lots of tools about to help you figure out the words you don't know.

    If you google "french radio" an array of way too fast listening options will magically appear.

    Good luck.

    Edit: Also, if you're desperate or spend a lot of time watching small children, a lot of american films come with canadian dubs. . . significantly sub-optimal, but still helps get the job done.
  7. Vincent P.
    Vincent P.
    French is my first language, so we may chat on MSN. If you have a basic knowledge, training is what is needed. I learnt english with forums too.

    Right now I'm learning spanish and chinese with the Michel Thomas method. Try to download it, that's really powerful stuff.
  8. Vincent P.
    Vincent P.
    And butterfly, english is FAR from being the hardest language to master. Aside of Latin (and other "elitist" crap), French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese are much harder.
    It took me a year to be able to read a book without an english-to-french dictionnary, and now I make more mistakes when I write in French (which is my first language...) than when I write in english.
    And right now I can testify: Spanish is MUCH harder to learn than english, and French is very close to Spanish (the way grammar and verb works).
  9. Poison
    Poison
    Some of the things I used/am using:
    -Go to http://last.fm and register, and start listening to french music. Easy as hell. Or just try youtube. Some good artists: Noir DesÃ*r, Dionysos, Les Wampas, Deportivo
    -Yea, watching movies is great. I would suggest watching movies you already know by heart with french subtitles or dubs, as well as native french movies with english subs. Not one or the other.
    -A program called BYKI (before you know it) is a nice little advanced flashcard program. It can be a little frustrating sometimes (as it requires you to type in the exact other side of the card, which can sometimes be misleading) but is great. It will drill in the ones you're having trouble with, help you refresh on old ones, and you can download a lot of lists for free. Far better than buying very expensive programs.
    -Edit: Forgot to mention, french.about.com is surprisingly awesome for all levels.

    If you ever need practice or anything just bug me. I could use some too. :]
  10. Atrus
    Atrus
    I'm a French A level student here in England, I can second the recommendation for BYKI, that's very useful indeed.
    Also, some more French music: I love a band named "Luke" and can recommend their album "La Tête En Arrière". Also, I am ashamed to admit it, but enjoy a bit of Raphael from time to time [he's been compared to Jame Blunt] and Caravane is his best album I think. Good luck with the learning!
  11. Orcris
    Orcris
    I suggest that you try to think in French. It will feel awkward at the beginning, but it gets easier after a few days. When you don't know a word, just substitute in the English word and look it up later.

    Like other people said, watch French films. I'd recommend watching them without subtitles, but if you need subtitles, use them.