Learn French the dirty way – Dirty French by Adrien Clautrier & Henry Rowe

Dirty French book cover cropped

Let’s face it, when you are trying to learn French, most formal French language learning tools (the excellent Paul Noble (which I reviewed here) or Michel Thomas audio CD courses, for example), while providing both beginner and intermediate learners with plenty to get stuck in to, don’t often go very far into the more colloquial ways of expressing yourself in your favourite second language. In short, they don’t teach you everyday slang or how to swear. I spent my formative years living … [Read more...]

Learn French for kids – French language books from b small publishing

b small logo website v1

If you browse any of the mainstream ‘move to France’ websites or forums you will see regular comments to the effect that younger children find it easier to learn French than older children or adults. However, that doesn’t mean that primary school age children have to be just left to get on with it or that they can not benefit from some support. While there are lots of DIY French language courses that are available that are suitable for adults (or even suitably motivated teenagers), there … [Read more...]

Move To France blog review – iTranslate VOICE app review

iTranslate VOICE logo

Regular readers of this blog will know that, while thinking about a move to France, I’m keen to improve my French language skills. However, I’m also honest enough to know that there are still occasions when I need a crutch to get me through a conversation and, as such I’m a big fan of the various computer-based translation products that are available. I’ve looked at a couple of these previously (try here and here, for example). If you are a users of one of Apple’s iOS devices such … [Read more...]

Move to France for a ‘starter for ten’: the structure of the education system in France

young children in classroom

One of the most significant reservations I have about a move to France is the disruption it will cause to my children’s education. I say ‘will’ rather than ‘might’ because I think some disruption is inevitable and, while for our younger son (currently 7) this is something that I expect would be difficult but manageable, for our older child (currently 14), the potential for things to go horribly wrong is probably greater. That’s not so say it can’t be done – it can – and the … [Read more...]

The big issues – reasons why I’d like to move to France

field of sun flowers at sunset

A little while ago I posted a ‘top ten why not’ list describing what – for me at least – represent the main issues that would concern me about a move to France. While these negatives might be holding me back, there are lots of positive reasons for making the move so, in this post, I thought I’d make a start on documenting these. When I came to drafting this piece and actually writing these down, I found myself with what seemed like two lists; one set of items that seemed to fall into a … [Read more...]