You’re looking to learn French fast ? Obviously, you won’t become bilingual in only two weeks. But if you have a Paris trip planned in one month, you might be able to learn how to have a short conversation with a local. With these tips and tricks, learn French fast and impress your friends!
How To Learn French Fast?
It’s difficult to really pinpoint what is the quickest way to learn French. There isn’t a perfect recipe to learn French in only one month, because everyone learns in a different way. But here are some tips on how to learn French fast.
- Keep a notebook of useful sentences
- Write, read and talk
- Try different learning techniques
- Immerse yourself in French
- Learn French through TV shows and movies
- Have conversations with French speakers
Write Your Own Notebook
Learning a new language is something complicated, because there are so many words, sentences and verbs to remember. If you want to be efficient, you have to start your learning with the most useful sentences. Take a notebook, and write down all the things you need to learn : how you can present yourself, ask something, speak about your work and your family… You can even classify all these sentences depending on when you’ll use them.
This is a good way to retain words more easily, no matter if you’re a visual person or someone who learns when listening. If you learn quicker by writing something down, go ahead. If you remember things that you hear, just read your notebook aloud. You can even record yourself!
Write and Read Aloud Everything You Learn
If you’re learning French by doing some exercises in a French textbook, it will be more difficult for you to improve your pronunciation. So it’s important to read aloud everything that you write down or read in an exercise. You will become familiar with all sorts of sounds and tones, and teach your tongue to pronounce French the right way. It’s also a good way to distinguish some homonymes!
Conversely, it’s important to read and write in French, since it will allow you to really visualize the spelling. Writing, reading and speaking are complementing each other in a learning environment.
Try the Spaced Repetition System (SRS)
The best way to learn a new language is to find the most efficient technique for you. We are not all equal when it comes to learning. But the Spaced Repetition System is a great method to start with, especially if you feel like you’re always learning the same vocabulary all over again. What is the Spaced Repetition System or SRS? The answer is in the “repetition”. SRS is a method of learning by which you review information at increasingly long intervals. Since some words are more difficult to learn, you have to read them often, until you can space the repetitions…
Most of the time, when you’re learning French words, you learn them over and over again, which can be useless. With the SRS, you will need to learn the difficult words every two days (for example), while you will only need to review the easiest words in one week or two. If you’re writing your vocabulary words in a textbook, you can use a color system. Underline the difficult words in red : you will read them and memorize them again in two days. Underline the easy words in yellow : you will have to read them again in two weeks, just to see if you still know them.
But there are also some mobile apps to help you learn French using a specific algorithm. With AnkiMobile, you can write your own flashcards and choose at what time you want to memorize some words again. You can also use CleverDeck.
And don’t forget about the Babbel app, which is a great way to study your target language between two online courses. With just 15 minutes per day, you will be able to learn French through various exercises. If you want to learn French fast, you will have to be consistent: use an app to study every day during your breaks.
Immerse Yourself in French
You want to learn French, but your day-to-day activities are still in English? It’s not the most effective way to learn a second language. In order to learn French fast, you have to live in it. If you can’t immerse yourself by visiting a French-speaking country, try to surround yourself with the French language. Turn your mobile language to French, read the news in French, write all your appointments in French…
You can also watch some Ted Talks in French or find a French podcast that will entertain you when you take breaks. The ultimate goal is to never spend a day without reading or listening to something in French.
Learn French When You’re Watching TV
And if you’re going to immerse yourself in French, you should at least be able to enjoy it! There are many French movies that you can watch (with French subtitles or English subtitles depending on your level) and pause to write some new vocabulary. If you’re looking for something shorter to watch, try some French TV shows like 10 Pour Cent or a French-Canadian show like Les Simone. You will laugh, learn new slang and expressions, while discovering more about the French culture.
Have Real Conversations With French Speakers
The most efficient way to learn a new language is to use it while speaking with natives. You can learn all the vocabulary in the world and do plenty of exercises, but you will never reach the same level as people who were able to speak with natives.
When you feel ready (or even when you don’t), find French natives to speak with you. You can use social media to find the perfect match, look in your city for “language lovers” meetings, or take online courses with a teacher. It’s useful to have a study buddy! You might be scared at first, but your quick progress should encourage you to talk more.
If you want to learn French fast, you have to remember these 6 tricks but also think about your ultimate goal. Do you want to have a new job, travel to France or meet French people? If your goal is clear, it will be easier to feel motivated.
