Learn To Speak French

Is the Michel Thomas French Course the Right Choice For You?

Posted by on May 20th, 2010 | no comments home title

Have you become frustrated with your efforts to learn French? Have you invested in text books, online courses or even classroom-based French lessons but not achieved the results you were looking for? I know exactly how you feel as I was in the same situation but I’ve found a solution in the Michel Thomas French Course. However, the Michel Thomas Method is quite unconventional and may not be for everybody…but is it right for you?

Read on to find out.

The Michel Thomas French Foundation course consists of 8 hours of audio on CD or in downloadable audiobook format. The course features the world renowned language teacher and psychologist Michel Thomas teaching French to two students. You become the third student in the classroom. The theory behind Michel Thomas’s method is to help you to learn French as you learnt your native language.

1. You’ll love it if you’re lazy like me!

Think back to when you were learning French in school. Did you enjoy the lessons or did you find them to be boring and repetitive? I didn’t enjoy them at all but I found the Michel Thomas French course completely different. One of Michel’s rules is that you do not memorise anything (so no parrot-style repetition here!), you do not write anything down and you do not use textbooks. Just relax, listen to the course and speak aloud in French. Trust me, you will rediscover how enjoyable learning can be this way!

2. I highly recommend it if you’re about to go to France on holiday or on a business trip

Now, of course you are not going to be fluent after only listening to 8 hours of audio material but what the Michel Thomas French course gives you is the confidence to speak. In my opinion Michel is an excellent teacher and he really takes the fear and complication out of learning French. After completing the course, you will want to approach French natives in order to test out and practice your new language skills.

3. Reasons it may not be the right choice for you

The Michel Thomas French course may not be right for you if you prefer more conventional language learning methods such as textbooks, slideshows, repetition, note-taking, etc. The methods used are nothing like you would have been taught in school so if you’re not open to trying something different it may not be suitable for you.

Also, if you’re looking for an audio course that you can listen to whilst driving in the car then this is not suitable due to the need to pause the recording at regular intervals whilst you think through and speak aloud your answers.

To conclude, I love this course. For me it’s made learning French fun, something which I never thought was possible. I actually find it quite addictive and have since moved on to the advanced course and am continuing to practice and improve my French. I hope it works for you too!