Another advantage of raising children bilingually

Encore un avantage! Another benefit to raising our beautiful children bilingually.
When teaching French to children I am always amazed and in awe at how they are able to capture, retain and play with information I offer them.

Bilingual children better at solving problems

What a great way to practise your French listening skills!

RFI offers a news bulletin for French learners - a radio bulletin spoken more slowly, with accompanying transcript.

Highly recommended!  Le Journal en Français Facile

And for extra practise, don't forget that you can book a personal tutor to help you reach your goals of speaking like a Parisien, or Parisienne!

"Je ne veux parler que de cinéma. Pourquoi parler d'autre chose? Avec le cinéma, on parle de tout, on arrive à tout." Jean-Luc Godard

The French Film Festival is back for 2016!

Starting next Wednesday, there are over 40 movies across Melbourne showing new releases to suit the whole family.

Highly recommended to practise French and take an trip to Paris, while staying in Melbourne! VCE students - this is a must-do .... Click to visit the French Film Festival website

Rendez-vous en janvier !

All students past and present are invited to catch up for a fun day with So Frenchy So Chic 2016 this summer for a day of French music and culture! 

Children under 12 free. Bring a picnic and your best French accent!

Let's celebrate the New Year avec de la musique !

Learning a new language can be daunting - Tips to learn a language

I've had a couple of "brand-new", "real-beginner" students starting this year and I thought I'd add this post on learning a new language, because YES it can be daunting.

I've learnt several languages myself, and I know the feeling of starting from scratch, and feeling:

• you just don't know a thing,
• it's all to much, and
• it all becomes soup very quickly on your head.

A bit like that really . . .

yes, I have been there and I use this experience to develop my programs for students.

So, what helps when you are just beginning a language and feel there is just such a large mountain facing you.

First of all, I refer you to my post here where I discussed ways to improve your French (or any other language for that matter).

Second, set yourself small, achievable goals.

No point telling yourself that your goal is to speak French in 1, 3 or 6 months. Unless you're a genius, and I'm not saying you're not, it's very unlikely to be an attainable goal. It's not really specific and measurable either, although I do admit it has a timeframe attached to it.

I am wary of methods and tutors/schools claiming to lead you to proficiency in such timeframes.
what's truly likely to happen?

• You cram too much information at once
• There is little time to digest and practise new information
• You become disheartened when you realise you won't reach your goal
• You drop it and it's another 3 years before you take up the courage to start again

Instead, I would recommend setting yourself meaningful SMART (Specific Measurable Attainable Realistic Timely) goals that will actually give you a sense of achievement early on, and continue to do so as you learn.

Depending on your needs and wants, it could be:

• learning to introduce yourself  and learning everyday greetings
• learning to talk about your tastes and distastes
• asking for directions
• ordering food
• expanding your MAISON vocabulary (if like one of my past students you are lucky enough to own a house in Provence and are renovating it).

A vous de jouer! 

For up-to-date class information, invitation to French events and more please LIKE What the French Tutoring on Facebook

Why learn French?

So have you decided to learn French, get top marks on your VCE French or travel to France?

This brochure from the Victorian Education Department, available  here will convince you to take the next step and book classes!

The bilingual advantage

I stumbled on this article recently on the benefits of speaking another language and I found it quite fascinating, so here it is here .

It is an interview with Dr Bialystok, a research professor at the University of Toronto, who has spent the last 40 years of her distinguished career studying the benefits of bilingualism.

In this article, she discusses some of the findings from her research.

To sum up, she found that learning, and speaking regularly, another language is good for you because:

• It boosts children's cognitive development and gives them an advantage in their learning and logical thinking
• It delays the symptoms of Alzheimer's in older adults
• It enables us to be better at multi-tasking
• It rewires the brain and makes it more efficient at resolving problems

In Dr Bialystok's words, bilingualism is brain exercise.
Now that's good news.

I encourage you to read the article and to see how bilingualism can benefit you and your family.
It is never too early or too late to start your language-learning journey. I offer classes for all ages and levels, starting with tots. Book a class and change your world!

Merci!