Les aventures de Tintin: Les Cigares du pharaon

Rating: 9/10
Publisher: Casterman (French ed.)

Tintin's world voyage by ship is interrupted when he is invited to join an absent-minded professor to track down the mysterious tomb of an Egyptian Pharaoh. Previous adventurers have disappeared after starting this quest. Tintin and his faithful dog Milou (Snowy in English editions) find themselves hunted by angry locals, drafted into a war with between local tribes, tied up aboard a boat due to explode, and chased by police. This rollicking tale is a great page-turner and a sensational way to learn French. It's an intermediate level of French, full of useful phrases and everyday vocabulary.

As the comic strip format is almost completely filled with dialogue, it's a sensational way of learning spoken language. The illustrations are superb, easily supporting the text to enable fluent understanding, even if some of the vocabulary remains obscure. Great fun to read with young family, too, of course!

To help you guage the level of this book, I've included a list of language structures found in the text, although this is probably not exhaustive. Some of the language is a little dated, due to the original publication date of 1934, but this adds a nostalgic element to the works.

You can purchase Les Aventures de Tintin: Les Cigares du pharoan from Amazon here.

Language Structures and Grammar present:

Present
Immediate Future
Future
Future Perfect
Imperfect
Perfect
Past Perfect
Conditional
Subjunctive
Imperative
Possessive + Possessive Pronoun
Emphatic
Negatives including
ne... pas
ne... rien
ne... jamais
ne... jamais rien
ne... plus
ne... plus personne
ne... plus rien
Direct and Indirect Object Pronoun
Superlative
Demonstrative
Partitive

Speak in a Week French for You

Rating: 8/10
Publisher: Penton Overseas

Pros
Great range of learning strategies including games, puzzles and writing
Use of removable markers means the activities can be played over and over
Good Glossary is provided
Surprising range of vocabulary

Cons
None

Conclusion
A great introductory activity kit that can be reused over again. My daughter really liked the puzzles and games, and played them repeatedly. Stories and songs on the CD are engaging and the children wanted to sing along. Vocabulary covers the useful basics, including colours, parts of the body, animals etc. Some of vocabulary lists used in these sections are a little short, but when you include all the vocab used in the songs, and other activities, there is a surprising range covered. Games were a winner with my children. The active learning was the most engaging aspects of this book. Highly Recommended first start.

Have you tried Speak in a Week! French for You!? What did you think?

You can purchase Speak in a Week! French for You! at Amazon.

Further comments
This book has a very small format (roughly 20cm square) which makes it useful for carrying around, say in the car, and learning on the go. There are travel games, too, included in the book, great for entertaining on long trips. The smaller format limits the vocabulary, however, and some sections are a little thin. I like the connections made to English, especially in the first section, as this gives confidence to children starting out. The reusability is a winner, however, as being able to play the games and activities over and over encourages further learning.


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Collins French Club Book 1

by Rosi McNab
Rating: 9/10
Publisher: HarperCollins

Pros
Highly produced, colourful
Various activities including singing, stickers, puzzles, games
Tips for parents to help their children make the most of the sections
Fun songs that are quite catchy and use great vocabulary

Cons
None

Conclusion
A great excuse for doing puzzles, games and singing with the children in French. Great design values means there are really engaging visual activities, and diverse strategies for learning are used.
I liked the tips for parents, too, although the book and songs are designed for children to use on their own. Activities in the book bolster and advance learning made from the audio songs. Charts are included, to learn the alphabet and numbers. Covers a great range of vocabulary for a first book, including animals, numbers, letters, colours, appearances and parts of the body, using gender, clothes and personal possessions. I also liked the way links were created between French and English, to allow children to learn in a more intelligent way. Very Highly Recommended.

What did you think of Collins French Club?

You can purchase Collins French Club Book 1 from Amazon.

Further comments
Quite a sophisticated package, which includes an online dictionary at www.collinslanguage.com to consult in learning vocabulary and extending the child's education. Stickers aren't my favourite learning tool as they can only be stuck down once and become a passive tool, but they use vibrant and cute designs, which are attractive to kids. An answer key is provided so completed questions can easily be checked, by child or adult.


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Let's Sing and Learn in French

Rating: 8/10
by Matt Maxwell
Published by Passport Books

Pros
Great production values
Original and tradition songs with contemporary arrangements
Clear musical sheet music for playing along
Wide range of engaging styles of songs to inspire the children to sing along
Covers great French vocabulary and expressions
Great for tonal and pronunciation practice

Cons
Not many.
May be hard for children to follow the book without musical experience.

Conclusions
This is a great collection of 12 songs, including original and traditional songs arranged with a contemporary flair. Vocabulary and expressions covered vary greatly and are quite extensive. I was impressed with the depth of learning available in these songs. Children will learn basic greetings, parts of the body, names of animals, forms of transportation, with a great sense of fun.
The music is highly professional, with great arrangements and good use of different instruments in the production. The style of songs ranges from 'folk' to rock n'roll. Someone who is a complete beginner may struggle to pick up all of the songs at once, as some are quite quick with unfamiliar phrases, especially the original pieces. However, following the book, children could pick up most of the songs really easily. Translations for all the French text are available. Highly recommended

If you've tried Let's Sing and Learn in French, why not let us know what you thought?

You can purchase Let's Sing and Learn in French at Amazon.

Further comments
Sheet music is included in the book with piano layout and vocal line, for those who wish to play the music themselves. The book includes a useful and clear chart of guitar chords used in the songs. Overall, a complete package, although my children and I find some of the songs difficult to learn when just listening to the CD. Using the book is essential to pickup the more unfamiliar and faster material. As the singers have great French accents, this is an easy way for children to learn the proper sounds of the language, along with rhythms of phrases etc.


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Teach me even more... French

Rating: 8/10
by Judy Mahoney
Published by: Teach Me Tapes

Pros
Great catchy songs, with some songs similar to English versions
Good introduction to written/spoken French using pen pal storyline
Easy to read French following the voice reading on CD
Great for pronunciation and tonal practice
Learn French national anthem

Cons
A bit American in focus, with some American accents.

Conclusion
A great progression from the first books. This book has 21 new songs, including traditional/original French songs, along with songs translated from English into French.
It's important for new learners to use the book to gain knowledge of the spoken text. Songs are easy enough to learn on their own, though, with some great music to engage children. The format is similar to earlier books in the series, so those children who have used the earlier ones won't have trouble following along. Again, useful translations are provided at the back of the book, although they are not always literal.

Have you tried Teach me even more... French? What did you think?

You can purchase Teach me even more... French from Amazon


Further comments
The text proceeds at quite a pace, so the book is essential for new learners of French. There is no repetitive grammar learning, just fun information from the child character Marie, followed by letters to and from her pen pal, Anne. The songs teach children useful phrases for around the home, as well as just plain fun songs, that have kids singing along really quickly. My children love them. The author has added in some fun touches, like a recipe for Chocolate Cake, and instructions for making friendship bracelets. Colouring-in illustrations are similar to the first books, with lots of cute animals and kids. Highly recommended.
(I noticed the Marseillaise is not translated. This is not unexpected due to the grave, warlike imagery involved).



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Literal translation is the best?

Beware the literal translation
I've been reading some reviews of language learning tools, and quite often come across comments bemoaning the translations found in the text. Some readers seem to despise translations that are not literal to the original, or styles that seem to move from literal to less literal translations. Literal translations are useful in certain contexts, such as academic study where nuance and layers of meaning are essential to interpreting a piece. However, stuffy academic translation is not appropriate for exciting, energising language learning, especially with children.

Better to read well than academically accurate
I feel it's more important to write a translation that reads well, uses language properly and has a great rhythm and pace. Literal translations can be useful at times, but are much too academic in the real world of learning to speak a new language. Readers who bemoan non-literal translations seem to be more interested in showing off their own language prowess, rather than promoting good language learning tools. Reading well involves using your listening skills to interpret the whole sentence, or flow of a piece or conversation, rather than knowing the meaning or nuance of every single word.

Catching the gist is the priority
Especially with young children, it's much more important that they have fun with language, rather than insist on technically correct reading or interpretation. Catching the gist of a sentence is a better way to learn than stopping to correct literal meanings or learn the meaning of every word. Flow, understanding and communication are much more important than having to correct every word or subtle error that does not undermine the communicative process.

Teach me... French

Rating: 8/10
Publisher: Teach Me Tapes

Pros
Catchy tunes, most are familiar to English speakers.
Kids pick up songs really quickly, even if they know hardly any French
Text is placed between songs and is easy to learn.
Plenty of good music to learn and sing with children

Cons
Text is pretty basic

Conclusion
A great introduction to French for young children. My kids picked up the songs really quickly, without knowing much French at all. They were entertained by the music and wanted to keep listening and singing along. Quite addictive, really. My children haven't really made use of the colouring-in pictures in the book, though. Translations at the back of the book are very useful, especially for parents who cannot speak French, but want to encourage their children. Recommended for early beginners.

Have you tried Teach me... French? What did you think?

You can purchase Teach Me French bundled with Teach Me More French at Amazon


Further comments
I first bought these books before my children had experienced any French at all. After a number of months, they still love to listen and sing along with the music. I've been impressed with the music and although it can be quite monotonous for adult ears, the kids really enjoy it. There are a series of books by this same publisher in various languages. There is also a Teaching Guide for using Teach me... French.

You can purchase the Teaching Guide on Amazon.

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Oxford French Cartoon-Strip Vocabulary Builder

Rating: 8/10
Published by Oxford University Press

Pros
Active speaking voice is great for learning spoken French
Fun comic strip format
Useful vocab lists for extended learning
Covers wide range of key structures
Verb tables

Cons
Not many. A little formal, with lists of words to be memorised.

Conclusions
A great way to extend vocabulary, especially for lovers of the comic-strip. Such a popular medium in France, this format is very useful for learning active spoken French, using dialogues between characters. Humour is a great way to learn and the simple line illustrations by Claire Bretécher are clear and engaging. Glossaries are provided, both in each page section, as well as at the back of the book for easy reference. Learning key structures is reinforced with explanations on each page. Further vocabulary is provided, although these are basically lists to memorise. Highly Recommended for comic fans, and those not scared of rote learning.

Have you tried Oxford French Cartoon-Strip Vocabulary Builder? What was it like?

You can purchase Oxford French Cartoon-Strip Vocabulary Builder at Amazon.


Further comments
There is lots of vocabulary to digest in this narrow volume. Each page has a separate cartoon-strip, with attached glossary and extended vocabulary to learn. I found the lists a little dry, personally, and probably wouldn't use them extensively for that reason. The cartoons are witty and clever, and it's a great learning strategy to read active dialogue between characters to pick up spoken French.
Other books are available for German and Spanish.


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