Meet Steven, A Devoted French Student

FOR ME, THE PROCESS OF LEARNING has centered on repetition and exposure to the language. I try to space out my lessons so that they are every other day, or every third day, on the days I don’t have a lesson I am working independently, but I always try to have some French activity per day. Even while traveling, I try to maintain the pace of the lessons and studying. Most hotels have TV5Monde as a TV channel, which I find to be an excellent resource.
Each week I listen to News in Slow French, as well as try to watch at least one French movie. I prefer older, classic movies,
and most of these have subtitles. At first, I used English subtitles, but I tried to quickly move to French subtitles. I hope to
move away from using subtitles soon, to really focus on verbal language comprehension, which I have found challenging. Because the language is spoken slower in older movies, I spend a lot of time with movie reviews and reading ones I have found on French language film review sites.

“I always look up for words by myself during the lessons”

For each Learn French at Home lesson, I have a process that works well for me. I always review the materials from the last few lessons before, and then I spend time preparing for the lesson by having a French dictionary available, as well as a verb conjugation book. I also have a handwritten conjugation table for the common tenses of these verbs: être, avoir, aller, faire, and devoir. I am thinking of adding devenir.
During the lesson, if I don’t know or can’t remember a verb conjugation, I always look it up myself, because that reinforces learning. I always look up a word I don’t know in the dictionary for the same reason. I keep a website open during a lesson (Lawless French — subjunctivisor*) for on the go determination if a phrase requires the subjunctive, because I will remember better if I have to look it up myself.

“I review the words I had trouble pronouncing”

For the lesson, I come with a plan of things going on in my life that I would like to talk about, work, friends etc. For some
lessons I will prepare a little presentation — anything that relates French to things important to me. After the lesson, I review the words I had trouble pronouncing, and any new vocabulary. I find reviewing it in the immediate time frame really helps with future accurate pronunciation.
I listen to News in Slow French once per week. I receive France-Amérique magazine, and I spend time reading the articles and working on the translation of the words I don’t know. I also sent up TV5 Monde alerts on my Facebook feed, so I receive a few of these during the day, and I practice my immediate comprehension abilities.

Steven Sorenson, M.D.
Diagnostic radiology specialist
Los Angeles, California, USA

You can learn to be fluid in French with determination, discipline, and frequent study. All you have to do is believe in yourself, set goals, and stay on track. To read more French Students inspiring stories, download our ebook “Learning French? How to Make it Happen” from our online store for just $17.99/15.90 €/£14.90.