Practice makes perfect when studying French; however, sometimes textbooks, reading passages and redundant grammar exercises get tiring. You still want to put your skills to practice, you just need to find new, entertaining ways to perfect your French. We’ve listed five unconventional ways below that will keep you entertained and allow you to progress further in your language studies.
Sing in the shower to improve your French …
or in a park, your friend’s house, even on a stage if that helps you. By listening to and repeating lyrics sung in French, you allow yourself to practice the accent – and add to your music collection. Usually, you’ll find songs full of grammar lessons: love songs abound with subjunctive verbs; rock-and-roll lyrics commanding the listener in the imperative; hip-hop music providing a chorus full of street slang.
Online Games to improve your French
With interest and necessity rising in learning a foreign language, more and more internet resources are developing to aid students. With everything from fun infographics to language tests that help assess your skill levels, there are many options. The best part? Most of them are free!
Watch TV to improve your French
If you are just beginning your studies, add French subtitles to your favorite TV show and read along as the characters play out the scene. As you advance, change the spoken language to the one you are studying. However, keep the subtitles: this way, you’ll be able to reference them should you need to at any point. Eventually, as you work your way to the advanced stages, you’ll be able to drop the subtitles completely and enjoy your regular program in your new second language!
Graphic Novels to improve your French
Sometimes, reading a book completely in French can be quite a feat. Language textbooks are often dense, and even novels can seem overbearing at first. But what if you had a book dominated by pictures? Instead of little thumbnails accompanying the writing, the writing accompanies the photos? Welcome to the world of graphic novels. As you progress through one of these modern comics, the pictures provide context clues as to what you’re about to read, before you have the opportunity to get lost in a jumble of foreign words.
Change your “Settings”
And by this, I don’t mean your surroundings. I mean log on to your computer, click the “settings” tab, and change your computer’s settings from your native language to French. Not only will this be a constant lesson with every click of the mouse, but it will most likely cover necessary vocabulary that will prove useful in the future. Phrases like: turn on, turn off, pictures, volume, download, etc. Repeat this method on your cell phone, and other electronic devices, and you’ll be having fluent conversations with your gadgets and native French speakers in no time!
A few fun, easy changes and you’re on your way to parlez-vous-ing your way to français in no time! Who knew singing in the shower, watching TV, texting, and reading comics could prove so effective?
by Rachael Brandt
