Hello Everyone!
Welcome to my blog where I will be sharing my journey of learning French as a beginner. I am really excited about this project as I admire the French language. As an individual who grew up in an English-speaking country, I deem it a pleasure to learn a different language all together. Being in Canada has also compelled me to start learning the French language as Canada is a bilingual country thus English and French, as such I think I need to be able to learn French in other to fully enjoy my stay in Canada. In that way, I will be able to travel to French speaking province like Quebec in Canada to have experience with the people by learning more of the unique cultural richness of the language. Although I do not understand French, I get fascinated when I hear of French words and names, and this has finally made me to embark on this new leaning project.
Why French?
Just as the saying goes, French is a language of love, but I believe it is a language of diplomacy, culture and with international relations. Below are some of the reasons why I have decided to learn French:
- International relation: My native country (Ghana) shares boarder to the west with Cote d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso to the North and Togo to the East. Interestingly, all these countries speak French as their official language. Learning French will enable me to visit these neighboring counties and other French speaking countries at large without the though of language barrier. Also, as mentioned earlier, being in Canada has compelled me to learn French as it will broaden my horizon and strengthen my relationship with Canadians especially those who speak French.
- Cultural Appreciation: I want to fully understand the cultural values and norms of the French.
- Personal Goals: Personally, I want to challenge myself with something new as I will be obliged to move from my comfort zone and do something differently.
My project plan:
- Setting clear and achievable goals.
-
- Will be able to achieve basic conversational skills by the end of the semester in April.
- Will be able to do basic introduction of myself, know how to form sentences and read and understand basic French text.
- Daily Practices:
- Morning: I will Spend 15 minutes on vocabulary and pronunciation using the Duolingo app everyday. Notification will be enabled to remind me with this activity.
- Evening: Dedicate 30 minutes on frenchpod101 to have French lessons and watch YouTube videos with Learn with Alexa French lessons.
- Will Listen to French podcasts like Coffee Break French while in bus and in the house.
- Speaking and Writing Practice:
- With practicing of writing, I will use HelloTalk app to connect with people and have conversations with them in French.
As I embark on this journey, I know it will be difficult particularly with the grammar, conjugations and the gendered nature of the French language. However, I am determined to:
- Celebrate every small win either completing a task or saying the right thing in French.
- Regularly reflect on my progress by tracking the activities done and also record short videos in French.
Thank you for sharing your personal thoughts and connection to wanting to learn French! I did not realize that those countries spoke French as their official language, that was quite fascinating to me! Growing up in Canada we had to learn French from Kindergarten all the way to Grade 8, but once in high school it became an elective, although French Immersion school was offered.
I hope that this journey fulfills you and you are able to learn the basics to communicating!
Interesting, I had no idea that French is mandatory to learn in school. Yes, I hope so. Thank you for your kind words Samantha.