Press play before reading this post. (Vintage Girls Aloud, you can thank me later.)
Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a total Francophile.
I think it began when I was 12. I told my mum very assuredly that I would marry a Frenchman, live in a châteaux and eat lots of cheese.
Taken in the summer of 2012
Okay so my boyfriend is half French and we don't have enough money for a castle but I do eat more than my fair share of cheese when I get the chance so I've almost achieved my tween dream.
However, one thing I have yet to manage is the language. Me no parle the langue. And I've tried, believe me. I've struggled through CDs and textbooks but I always get bored, fed up and frustrated.
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On the ferris wheel by Jardin de Tuileries
I realised I had a problem whilst staying in Paris in 2012. Other than ordering 'une crêpe avec beaucoup Nutella' (and believe me I did say that a lot) I had zéro confidence speaking French with other Frenchies. I knew I had to take action but it needed to be a way that would fit in with my life anndddd actually help me remember my être from my avoir.
Enter Duolingo. The app which will save your petite derrière when it comes to learning another language. I first found this app through Buzzfeed, something like 20 ways to improve your life skills and about half way through I'm thinking: 'Oh god, I'll just stick to being bog standard' when I stumbled upon Duolingo.
After promising to deliver the same results as Rosetta Stone minus the hefty price tag (£379) I immediately headed to the App Store and downloaded it for nada, rein, nichts, niente, NOTHING. Yep. It was completely freeeeeeee.
Huzzah!
It works by starting with the basics and building it from there. As you complete each level you are left with a power bar that will decrease over time. To get it back to full power you have to complete a little refresher course. Easy peasy.
It has really similar features to Rosetta Stone, such as voice recognition, listening tests and using images to help things along nicely.
Of course this alone isn't going to make you fluent. You have to make the time to practise but it does help that they use a cartoon owl as your coach. You can even win new costumes for him/her.
It's the little things!
Download the app here
Now, I've got a weekend trip to Italy coming up, I reckon I could do with brushing up on all things Italiano before we go.
"Un sacco di formaggio sulla mia pizza, per favore!"
*FYI this wasn't a sponsored post, all opinions are my own*
It works by starting with the basics and building it from there. As you complete each level you are left with a power bar that will decrease over time. To get it back to full power you have to complete a little refresher course. Easy peasy.
It has really similar features to Rosetta Stone, such as voice recognition, listening tests and using images to help things along nicely.
I really want a sandwich now
Of course this alone isn't going to make you fluent. You have to make the time to practise but it does help that they use a cartoon owl as your coach. You can even win new costumes for him/her.
It's the little things!
Download the app here
Now, I've got a weekend trip to Italy coming up, I reckon I could do with brushing up on all things Italiano before we go.
"Un sacco di formaggio sulla mia pizza, per favore!"
*FYI this wasn't a sponsored post, all opinions are my own*
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