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For any native English speaking person considering learning a second language, French can be an irresistible option. To begin with, the two languages have much in common. For instance, many words in French and English are spelled the same and have the same meaning. This gives the English speaker an immediate advantage when learning French. And you may even learn new things about the English language too.

You will be able to speak to many people if you speak French as it is spoken in some form throughout the world. It is viewed as a world language and this is seen by the number of world organizations like the UN and IOC that recognize it as an official language. Thus fluency in French can enrich your personal life and even stand you in good stead for career opportunities. So if you are decided that French is the language for you then you probably want to learn it as fast as possible. Being able to speak to people is the best part of learning a new language so it's easy to understand why people want to be conversant as quickly as possible.

Communicating with other people can serve to motivate the student and improve their learning. Other elements of language learning like understanding grammar or verb conjugation can be a tad boring but are still vital to getting a rounded education of the language. So how can you accent the good stuff and minimize the boring stuff and still learn successfully ? This article will deal with the best way to learn conversational French.

The general consensus is that the best way to learn conversational French is to do an immersion course. Doing a language course in the country where that language is spoken is the essence of an immersion course. So taking a course in France is ideal but you could also go to Canada, Switzerland, Belgium or any other places where French is spoken.

However, doing a language course in another country is often not an alternative for many people. Firstly, you need a fair amount of time set aside. Many people might do something like this in a gap year in between school and college. Thus you have to be free of responsibility, so many people may contemplate this option as part of annual leave or in between jobs. It also adds up in financial terms as you have to travel and live in the country and pay for the course. 

But the benefits are certainly there. I think there are two reasons why French immersion learning is good. The immediate reason is that you have to talk French. Nobody will speak your language so this focuses your mind on learning and speaking the language. You get out of the habit of thinking in English. You stop being worried about sounding silly or even being initially misunderstood. All the excuses that you may make when learning a second language in your native country seem trivial when you have to communicate simply to get by.

The 2nd reason is that all the effort you put in seems to have a focal point. You can use what you learn. This continues to motivate you and makes the pain of potentially tedious learning worthwhile. So interacting with real people in real situations like in a restaurant will keep you going. And all the real smells, sounds and sights make your classroom learning come to life and help you understand more. Speaking to real people will also give you more confidence too.

Taking a French immersion course is probably the best way to be successful if you want to attain French fluency but it is not an impulsive action. It will add up in terms of price and free time. This may not be practical for many people that have busy lives. Other ways to learn French include doing a night course or a home study course. Indeed, some people will take a home study course before an immersion course to get their feet wet, so to speak, and give them more confidence when they take an immersion course.

There are many self study courses available for French, Rocket French 2 gives you an in depth review of this popular course. It covers the French language cd component and with compare Rocket French to Michel Thomas compares it to another popular course.

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