So I've been wanting to learning French for awhile now. I did well in it in school but didn't really have any interest in learning it so I stopped in grade 10. Now, I work for a company where we have French brokers and all the high up people in the company speak French so it would be an asset. Plus it always helps with getting a job.

Obviously immersion is the easiest way to learn a new language, but that isn't really an option for me right now. I know a few people who speak French that I could have conversations with but I need to get to that point.

So, what is the best way to learn French? I was thinking about using Daniel Tammett's program, Optimnem but one program is that it is France-French and I need Québécois, although I think for learning the basics I'd be okay, especially if I have other materials like books and movies in the proper dialect and people to talk to.

Any pointers on learning a new language?

Have you looked at Pimsleur?

Don't know if they have Québécois though.

Seems to me that the failing of most language programs is the failing of most language students -- they give it up if they aren't fluent within the week. I think in that respect, which language program you choose isn't very different from choosing an exercise program; sticking with the worst ones will get you further than the best one you drop out of.

I would recommend home study with any one of the dozen or so personal courses, plus night school if you have the time and money for it. Better (for your ends) if you can find one that emphasizes business French, but I don't know how common those are outside of Ottawa.

Finding quebecois sounds kinda preposterously hard, but how about French Pod?

Everyday use is a tremendous teaching aid. Let's use this thread to practice. Only French allowed from now on. The best part is none of us will be fluent enough to know whe we get it all wrong, so we can look forward to making a trip to France and being regarded as ******s--err, I mean Americans.

You Canadian guys should just throw those frenchy Quebec types out. Or let them secede. Having multiple languages is so divisive, really bad for a country, nothing but trouble.

I should probably start a thread about US language issues. I really feel strongly about that.

Si.

Vous le faites mal.

I... I love you too

So today at work there was a BBQ and the PRESIDENT OF THE FREAKING COMPANY comes and sits next to me. He is from Quebec and the table started talking about the french language at one point and then one person said she spoke french and they proceeded to have a whole conversation in french...I have never wanted to learn more than I did right then...

I don't think it is Quebec but I'm downloading their program now. I have plenty of time to listen to it to and from work, I'll keep you guys posted as to how it goes.

Any french program will do you just fine. It doesn't have to be the canadian version of french.

I wonder if a Frenchman would have been able to understand what they were talking about.

In one of these forums recently, a few people were talking about how Canada's French is LOLterribad.

Im French, went to Québec last year.
Educated people is not a big deal, they have an accent and a few different ways of saying things but you get used to it really fast. They also adjust fairly quickly to you being French, probably.
It is probably the same difference between Spanish and the Spanish which is spoken in Mexico.

People you meet at subway or at Chicoutimi are another piece of cake though. Had to call on English a few times. But I mean the French they speak in the south of France is very poor/has a lot of different words too. It is just more extreme in Québec.

classic : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ibgkLNN7q9c

WTF was that????

Well, langue d'oc and langue d'oil have a lot of differences. Langue d'oc may be seen as bad French, but not-French might be more accurate. The two are at least as different as, say, Danish and Swedish are.

No he isn't...

Emmemere, immersion is the best, sure.

It's also important if you do lessons that they be conducted in French as much as possible, even if you don't understand every word. It allows you to get a feel for sounds, and I found that I could link words to meanings/context surprisingly fast.

Hope it helps.

www.wordreference.com <-- Dictionary/online language forum = the nutz

hi, emmemere, I have my own way of learning, so perhaps my way is useless. First thing ois buy a small $2 French/English book. Go through it and you will see how many words are similar to English. As you cross them out, write rules down as you go along. Find an easy book (newspaper is probably better) to read and grind through it. After a few pages, you'll have a list of new words. Look them up and memorize them.

http://french.about.com/cs/listening...mpselysees.htm

Too bad they recently went under. This was an awesome asset when I was learning the language.

I think he was referring to the colloquial French spoken there, which is influenced by Langue d'oc/Catalan/Spanish but still definitely French.


Kinda like the difference between Portuguese and Brazilian Portuguese. Lot of differences, but still the same language.

Saw this years ago, but now i watch it again, it's still so funny.
Thx for the link.

How can you qualify the level of French spoken in different areas ?
I am French and don't forget our language come from a mix of different languages : the Francs brought the main structure from Latin and was enriched by words from different culture.

There is sure thing as a prefect French language, they all differ (I would classify Belgian French as the best one). The differences are mostly due to the different accents and some local words (mostly from "patois").

I guess it must be the same in large countries.

During my youth in Lorraine we used to pick up "schnecks" in July, here in Charente they serve "cagouilles" on the menu but all French know what are "escargots" (snails). This example is just to say there is the academic French we all speak and variations in different areas.

The hardest Ememere is to learn the grammar which is common to all French worldwide, the rest is just different words and adjectives that differs but it's not a big deal once you got the grammar and the spelling right.

So for grammar, any French Book will do it ; as for spelling and local words used in Quebec you have to go with a learning material from there.

For those who wants a good joke made by French to imitate French Canadians, here is a good one :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xgwd5kLiDY

Jacobinism, ldo. I do consider the French spoken in say Toulon or Calais as vastly inferior to "Parisian" French, both syntactically and in terms of vocabulary. But it is more a question of social background/education than one of geography, obviously (and I am from the South too, I just do not have an accent and consciously avoided having one).
but lets no hijack the thread with franco-french considerations.

OP my advice to you (I know it worked for me for Spanish but I am pretty sure its highly dependent of your type of memory/learning techniques) : try to follow an intensive course to get your underpinnings back and get a feel for how the language as a system works, pickup a solid book of grammar/conjugation and then just read newspapers after reading the news in English so that you get the context/story right off the bet (www.lemonde.fr / www.courrierinternational.com ).
Watch dvds with french subtitles on (should not be hard to find in Canada) even if its an English-language movie so you can pick up a few words/idioms now and then and create "automatisms", and then just start watching French movies (possibly with French subtitles on). One of the few things we have left in this country is an history of great directors, so I'd be inclined to do that provided that you cannot live in QC/France which would obviously be the easiest/fastest way.