Michel Thomas Method French Vocabulary Course

Rating: 9/10
Publisher: Hodder Education

Pros:
Easy to listen to with great French native speakers.
Teacher is very clear and the structure reinforces previous learning.
Builds on Michel Thomas method of building language naturally without lists or rote memorisation.

Cons:
None.

Conclusion
This course adds what was missing from the previous Michel Thomas courses. It was always going to be a bit of a chore to learn vocabulary, but this course is relatively easy to engage with. The teacher is very clear, French native speakers speak clearly and the content is built in a way that is quite light and you find yourself progressing rapidly. It is important to engage with the audio like the previous Michel Thomas courses, pausing and speaking aloud clearly to answer the question before the speakers do. This is highly recommended.


Have you tried French Vocabulary Course from Michel Thomas Method? What did you think?


You can purchase Michel Thomas Method: French Vocabulary Course at Amazon here.

Further comments
It is important to engage with the audio like the previous Michel Thomas courses, pausing and speaking aloud clearly to answer the question before the speakers do. This encourages you to take the time to think about the answer, answer correctly, and then have your answer reinforced by the audio answer. This is essential to the Michel Thomas method, and makes progression really easy. Although the teacher is English, the native speakers on the audio offer fabulous pronunciation, and this is followed up by the teacher repeating the French a little more slowly. This way any words you missed are picked up.

I really enjoyed this course. There are 5 CDs in this vocabulary course. It is definitely needed in the Michel Thomas method, and along with the Michel Thomas method Language Builder (look out for my review at a later date) offer a truly comprehensive package of language learning. I'm attracted to the style of education, too, as it is relatively painless to follow and progress.

I'd highly recommend this vocabulary course.

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HUGO Advanced French

Rating: 9/10
Publisher: Dorling Kindersley

Pros:
Great native accents.
Focuses on everyday life in France.
Sophisticated texts that develop vocabulary and verbal dexterity.
Good range of learning styles and exercises.

Cons:
None really. There is some emphasis on rote learning lists of vocabulary.

Conclusion
This is truly an Advanced language course. It soon outstripped my limited knowledge of French and forced me to work quite diligently to understand the comprehensive texts spoken throughout the course. Topics chosen to cover are useful for living in France and cover shopping, leisure, education, politics, travel etc. I particularly liked the range of activities used to reinforce the teaching in each lesson. Use of slang, popular phrases and idiomatic expressions are used as well, offering the opportunity to put an everyday style into your language. This is highly recommended.

Have you tried Hugo Advanced French? What did you think?

You can purchase Hugo Advanced French CD Language Course at Amazon here

Further comments
The Hugo Advanced French course is designed for those who have studied French before. I would not recommend it for someone new to the language. Hugo French in 3 Months is their own self-study course. The course is designed to broaden your vocabulary as well as improve your knowledge of grammar and everyday usage. An extensive manual is given, along with the CDs, and the book contains transcriptions of the audio text and exercises, along with further exercises that are not reproduced on the audio, as they are targeted at written understanding. You really need to follow the exercises in the book along with the CD in order to get the most out of this course.

Without being encyclopedic, very useful appendices are given, along with answers to all exercises in the book and a mini-dictionary from French to English. Being an advanced book, discretion is encouraged, as you may answer questions in a range of ways, including the particular answer given in the book. Students may choose to answer appropriately in other ways.

I was really impressed with this course, more so than their beginner course. It's been put together really well and I'd highly recommend it.

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