10 Basic French pronunciation tips for travel

Have  you ever found yourself  trying to ask the basic questions in French and not be able to be understood? I agree with you that it can get frustrating so i decide to put together a list of some useful and basic French phrases with pronunciation audio which will help you communicate with locals when travelling to France or other French countries. Being able to say some basic vocabulary will be appreciated when chatting with the locals. The locals really like when tourist make an effort to try to speak French.

1. Je voudrais une baguette s'il vous plait

I would like a baguette please

2. Où est la tour Eiffel?

Where is the Eiffel tower?

3. Je voudrais l'addition s'il vous plait

I would like the bill please

4. Pouvez vous répétez s'il vous plait

Could you repeat please?

5. Je voudrais un billet aller-retour pour Paris s'il vous plait. C'est combien?

I would like a return ticket for Paris please. How much is it?

un billet aller simple

a single ticket

6. A quelle heure part le train pour Bordeaux?

At what time is the train for Bordeaux?

7.Bonjour - hello    Bonsoir - good evening

Salut - hi           Au revoir - good bye

8. S'il vous plait - please

 Merci - Thank you

9. Je voudrais acheter un cadeau de Noël

Où est le magasin le plus proche?

I would like to buy a Christmas present where is the closest shop?

10. les villes -The cities in France- Lille - Paris- Strasbourg- Lyon -Nice- Montpellier Marseille- Toulouse- Rennes- Nantes

“The limits of my language means the limit of my world
Ludwig Wittgenstein”

Do you Fear speaking French?

I wanted to discuss this topic as this issue I believe is quite frequent when students are learning a new language. The fear is quite real for many students learning a language.

I have been Teaching French for several years and I have been able to observe adults and children learning French. I have seen students trying to repeat words and try to make phrases and simply having a go. I have also seen several students telling me that they will try to repeat the words only when they know how to pronounce the words. The fear of speaking the language is often due to the fact that those students worry about what other people might think or say. Overcoming that fear is very important in the acquisition of a language.

I do believe that when a student tries to  say the words in a foreign language out loud they get a mental memory of the sounds of the words. The sound of vowels that you will say might not be exactly like a French native speaker but as long as you are able to say the words and being understood that is the first step to be able to communicate. The student does not need to learn the correct spelling at first but should try to hear and repeat the sound. You will learn to speak French in trying to speak French. This article is written based  on my own personal experiences as a French teacher.

Learning a langage opens so many doors 

French Immersion week end 25-27 August 2017

The week end will take place at Flaxton near Montville on the Sunshine coast. From Friday night until Sunday morning.Saturday program will include lessons ,games, role play.Listening to French songs, conversation, French movie.The weekend accommodation is in two houses located near each other.The lessons will take place in the main house called Casa di Natura.The group is limited to 10 students. The students will experience a dinner at the local French restaurant.The breakfast are included in the cost and the French lessons.

 

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French holiday Lessons

If you looking for something to do during the school holidays .I will be running some French lessons for children's at Holland Park from the 3rd to the 5th April. Adult lessons will also be available for adults over the school holidays. The children's lesson will include stories, songs, craft all running in French. The adults lessons will still be running in cafes or another suitable location.Why not get a group of people together to have French lessons ?

contact Let's Speak French for more info 

The 10 Best Websites to help you Speak French

Have you been trying to find sites to learn French and find yourself clicking over and over just to realize you wasted you time as the site is not providing you with any tips or ways to learn French ?

You are not alone !! The internet is an electronic jungle where it is easy to get lost.Choosing the right website depends on your needs and your level of French.

To learn French you will need to listen to audio video, French films or even some small film trailers. You need to speak French to improve it. If you can be immersed in a French speaking country it will help you improve your French quicker. Several apps and sites can help you learn how to pronounce words and learn basic structure of phrases so you are able to be understood. Several websites will help you achieve those goals and below I listed some of my favourites.

1. Apprendre le français avec TV5MONDE

A great site with plenty of resources for teachers and students.You will be able to do grammar exercises on-line, watch films or video trailers with transcript. The site is divided in different levels from beginners to advanced.

2. Le Point du FLE

This great website offers many on-line exercises. A mine of resources for teachers and students learning French. This site covers grammar topics as well as culture topic and songs .

3. Podcast Français Facile

I love this site for dialogue and videos with transcript .The videos are made for different levels of French learning. The video topics varies from dialogue at the restaurant to job interview dialogues.

4. Learn French with French today

You will be learning so much visiting this site. This site covers grammar  topics, audio, common expressions in French, French culture and places to visit in France.

5. BBC site MaFrance

Great videos which are set in different parts of France. Lots of repetitions and dialogues written under each videos.

6. Duolingo

This app has been recommended to me over and over again. The students love it as they can listen to the audio and types the correct phrase and the app won't let you move further until you pass the level. 

7. News in slow French

If you find it difficult to listen to the news in French this site is broadcast with slower phrases to help student learners listen to the news.

8. Learn French with Alexa

 This youtube video is so easy to listen and learn French. Alexa is so funny and engaging and makes French easy to learn . 

9. Le toboggan bookstore

This is a book shop that offer multilingual engaging books for  children from so many cultures. This site has a great  variety of books for children in different languages.It is well worth a visit .It enables you to order some great books on-line.

10. Le forum bookstore

This book store provides great variety of books, magazines, games and music for adults and children in French . The books and magazines and all different products can be ordered on-line.