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contributed by Christopher Byrnes Before the days of the Internet, learning a language free was not an easy thing to set up, or achieve, but with the Internet at your disposal, a whole new world of learning French has opened up. I am going to show you 5 ways in which you can learn French free. 1, Go to a French speaking country and hope for the best. This might seem like the most efficient option, because it seems to be closest to the way you learned your native language, but it isn't quite as simple as that. Just going into a French speaking environment will not ensure that you learn French. What's needed is a special kind of impetus. If you are lucky enough to hook up with a native speaker who would be willing to take you under their wing and teach you French, patiently, you have probably found one of the most efficient and pleasant ways to learn French. It can happen, but it is rare, especially if you want t learn French free. 2, Immersion in a French speaking country may not be an option for most people, but you can still learn French free, as long as you're willing to seek out some essential resources both online and offline. Your first stop will probably be the Internet, where you will find a mixed bag of sites and free courses, some with sound files, to choose from. The standard of these resources varies, but if you're willing to dedicate a little time and effort to Internet searches, you can learn French free online, to a certain degree. 3, Visit your public library and see if you can hire out a language course with tapes or CDs. This is a far better prospect than trying to cobble together a French course yourself from what you find on the Internet. There is an offline world too, and language courses that are produced by established publishing houses, such as Hodder or Routledge tend to be of the highest quality, something you can't always be sure of when using resources published on the Internet. 4, Take part in what is known as a ‘language exchange' with a French speaker who wants to learn English. Language exchange is just that: you will team up with a French speaker either online, or offline, and offer one another your native language speaking skills for equal time periods. This is great in theory, but in practice, it is only really efficient when you both have a certain amount of language under your belts. Being a native speaker of a language doesn't always indicate that your partner will be an effective teacher. In this way, it can be a less than efficient way to learn French free from scratch. Do a search for language exchange and you'll see several sites on which you can sign up for a language exchange partner, if you don't have access to native speakers of French in your vicinity. 5, Seek out online forums and discussion groups for learners of French. On such forums you will find not only beginners in French, but also learners with more advanced skills and even French teachers, both native and foreign, who will be willing to help you learn French free. Participate in online forums on topics that interest you. Again, this is more suited to the slightly advanced learner, but it is there as a resource to learn French free, and all you need is an Internet connection to gain access to it. If you hobby is ice fishing, for example, find out what that term is in French and do a search for an online francophone community talking about ice fishing. There you have it: 5 ways in which you can learn French free. |
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