Customer Reviews

SmartFrench: Beginner Level - Learn French from Real French People

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

With an impending vacation to Paris, I wanted to become familiar with the French language, having never studied it before. I've read and listened to nearly every major French language program out there, including Barron's, Berlitz, Michel Thomas, Living Language French, Teach Yourself French and Instant Immersion. Smart French is by far the best, both in value and in what it teaches. I couldn't understand why after studying these other methods, when I watched a French film, I could understand little to nothing of what was being said. After purchasing Smart French and working each of the interactive lessons, I finally get it. What is taught in the textbooks is not the way the French actually speak. They contract so much that the written French is quite different from the spoken French!

A child learns a language first by hearing it spoken and mimicking the sounds, then by attaching meaning to the words. This is what Smart French does. It teaches you to hear first, repeat the sounds that you hear and translate later. First you learn to hear, then speak and finally to understand. All the other methods teach basically the same way and method, while Smart French is very different. I wholeheartedly recommend Smart French!!!

First of all, if/when you go to France, the whole experience is completely different if you attempt to speak their language versus if you expect them to speak yours (which they all can!). They really appreciate your attempt to speak the language that they are so proud of and consider an art, and they make every effort to help you to learn more and improve. It really, really opens so many doors to try to speak French. It's the difference between being treated like family versus being practically shunned. So do try to speak it. But the catch is that they hate it if you "bastardize" their language, meaning really rip up the pronunciation badly. It makes them wince. When I went to Lyon a few years ago I made every effort to speak French the whole time and was shocked how incredibly accomodating, sweet, and warm the French were to me, teaching me new words, helping me with my pronunciation, drawing me pictures, everything! Nothing like the rude treatment other Americans told me to expect from the French. One thing I noticed, though, was that while most of the time they could understand what I was saying pretty well, I most often could NOT understand most of what they were saying. This is because they spoke faster than I was used to listening to French and also because the French link their words together. Having being taught from text books and slow-speaking French teachers, I was over my head. I bought the beginner and the intermediate/advanced versions of this CD set because it's been a while since I practiced French and I originally leaned by the textbook method so I wasn't sure which I fit under. (I discovered that I fit under "beginner" in some aspects and under "intermediate/advanced" with other aspects.) Since I have a long drive to work and back every day, I play these and (when I'm awake enough) I do the recitations with him. I have to say that it's helped a lot. Both versions have. And the more times you listen the better you get and the easier it gets to understand. He says on the CD that you shouldn't or don't need to read the translations in the book that come with it, but I found that it helped me to read them before listening or I was distracted by my plausible ideas of what is really going on in the conversations. The content of the conversations is actually pretty interesting too: he interviews people, for example, who have had long diplomatic careers or knew Salvadore Dali as a child (both examples are in the intermediate/advanced version). For the first time since studying a language I've actually learned from the syntax AND the content of the lessons. I found it to be a wise purchase. Both of them. The reason I didn't give it 5 stars was simply because the tips he gives throughout the CDs can be a little repetitive, but then with some things you do need that consistent reminder.

This is the first learning program that made me laugh! Thanks to SmartFrench for creating such a good product. The method is much like that by which kids learn. It introduces the patterns of the spoken language, not just grammar and vocabulary; so it's possible, in short order, to begin constructing sentences that sound French. It's a real confidence-builder. And it's fun. The speakers have personalities that keep the learner engaged. There's nothing boring about SmartFrench.

This is an excellent tutorial in spoken French, but falls a little short in one or two regards. For example, it could *really* benefit from a vocabulary list. The French and English are placed side by side, but there are numerous occasions wherein the English translation fails to include entire words from the French, leaving the user to figure out what the French words mean from context, which words mean what, or running to a dictionary (which are notoriously short on idiomatic expressions). While language is certainly learned in this manner by children, it can be frustrating for the student of French who wants to learn quickly. A vocabulary list would solve this problem. Also, because the CD-ROM is set up in a non-linear fashion, while listening to the CDs one has to hear the same phrases repeated over and over ("we suggest you follow our approach" and "this is called liasion" come to mind), which becomes tiring. Having said that, I highly recommend this series for anyone who is studying/has studied French and wants to know how to *speak* French. I use it in conjunction with Learn in Your Car series (a terrific vocabulary builder), and a free resource online, "Chloe ou Les aventures d'une Parisienne." But if you are a beginner, you will certainly need something in addition to this series.

This product is not bad if all you want to do is learn how to pronounce French more like the French people do. But if you're expecting to actually learn any of the language beyond its conversational pronunciation, you would be much better off buying a different product.

The whole package consists of 3 CD's -- a total of seven 1-minute long conversations that are repeated multiple times. You are expected to pick up pronunciation from listening and repeating after you hear each phrase. [...]If you already know French pretty well and just want to learn how to listen/speak more authentically, this would be okay for you.

I've searched and searched, read reviews of products after products. I then tried SmartFrench and it was exactly what I needed! Just amazing.

I spent a little over 2 years learning French as a hobby (to kill time during my commute). I had tried Pimsleur, FrenchInBoston, LivingLanguage, a couple of books, and internet sites like french.about.com. I then watched a kid's DVD movie by switching the audio to French. I was a little ticked off that I could barely understand the conversations. Once I turned on the subtitle in French, I could then understand most of it. Obviously, I was lacking listening skills.

SmartFrench, unlike other popular teaching methods, it teaches how to listen to the spoken French just as it is used in real conversations. Many other audio programs, you have someone reading a script in French. The sounds are quite different when someone is talking French compared to someone who is reading French.

After going through the beginner and intermediate lessons, I watched the DVD movie in French again. WOW, what a difference! I could understand so much more ... of course, I still have to increase my vocabulary to understand the full movie. I then went back to the Pimsleur Volume III. You see, Pimsleur, as many have noted, they don't teach the written French. The ending lessons of Pimsleur contain French dialogues at full speed. In many occasions, I could not figure out the divisions of the words if I were to write down the conversation. And now, thanks to SmartFrench, they are all very clear.

I no longer need to be buying more French audio lessons to improve my listening skills. I will be fine as long as I learn a few new words a day in order to fully understand a movie or conversation in French. Thank you, SmartFrench!!!

In the course of seeking a CDrom-based program to learn French with, I read many descriptions and reviews on the various products out there: SmartFrench made the most sense, even before I purchased it. After using it for awhile, it still does. One doesn't just want to learn how to "speak" a language: the goal is to communicate, to converse. Memorization technique has its place, but what happens when the other person actually responds? (Worse, what if the person happens to be French?!) The truth is, we don't really speak even our native languages like it's taught in those books! SmartFrench attempts to deal with that, and succeeds admirably. It's hard to describe how, but in a way, you learn without really being aware of it. At some point, you notice that you're picking out and understanding words & phrases, say, while watching a French film. As the instructor says on the SmartFrench CD: "listening is the key to your future progress": This is really true. So, while it's fine to increase your vocabulary through other means, I think SmartFrench is the more crucial learning method, and one that will ultimately yield real results.

As a teacher - and student - of foreign languages, I found the 'total immersion' program presented by Christian Aubert simply brilliant. Not necessarily for those who expect to learn a foreign language overnight, but definitely an excellent medium for beginners, intermediate and advanced students. Mastering a foreign language takes more than just memorizing vocabulary and grammar rules; without being exposed to realistic settings of every day life in those countries in question, one's learning of foreign languages will always be limited and rather useless. So, if you are not among those patiently waiting for someone to develop 'The French Pill' - take it before going to bed and wake up the next day speaking perfect French - I strongly recommend you purchase this program and use over and over until you notice your understanding of the French language has considerably increased. It may not teach you how to spell correctly, but it will surely bail you out when you are trying to negotiate prices or avoiding being taken for a ride by those who normally pray on visitors who have learned their Bonjours through French for Dummies or other very appropriately named product. Two big thumbs up!!

With all the glowing reviews I thought this cd-rom would be a good tool for learning French. It is NOT. There is no vocabulary, no grammar. All you do is listen to dialogues several times in varying speeds. The "helpful" commmentary is the same in every lesson. Spoken French is different from written French and while we are told over and over that certain words are not used in spoken French (like "ne" in "ne..pas") there is no commentary as to spoken French idiosyncrasies -for ex: in "tabac" the "c" is not pronounced but this is never pointed out. Yes I know you have to listen and read at the same time. My suggestion to make the program better: the "c" (in "tabac")and, in fact, all consonants, vowels that are not pronounced should be printed in "red" to help faciliate pronounciation for the beginner.

All you will get from this cd-rom (it's NOT a DVD) is the correct pronounciation but no basics. Let me repeat this. You will be able to parrot correct French pronounciation, liaisons and all, but nothing else. You may not know what a word means but you will know how to pronounce it. On this level it fails miserably.

I think the program is wonderful. Listening to "real" people speaking the way they actually pronounce words is very helpful. And I like the way the lessons are laid out - step by step.
I took French in high school, nearly 50 years ago. But I really didn't "know" French. THis program is wonderful!