5 Easy Ways To Become Fluent In French

Hey Au Pairs!

As you embark on your au pair journey you may be at differing stages of the language learning process for whatever country you’ll be working in. Perhaps you’re a total beginner (as I was when I got to France!), an intermediate speaker or even on the advance level. In any case, there are always easy ways to develop language skills and head towards the path of fluency!

Here are 5 ways to become fluent in any language:

1. Listen To Podcasts/Audiobooks

One of the easiest and most importantly free ways to improve your listening skills is to listen to podcasts in the language you’re learning. You probably won’t be able to fully understand everything at full speed, but that’s okay because you can begin by listening in half the speed and work your way up to full speed!

There are a plethora of podcasts made specifically for language learners such as Coffee Break French and Slow News In French where you can develop your listening skills little by little! When it comes to audio books, I recommend going for an audio book of a story you’re already familiar with, so you can more or less follow along with the plot.

2.Make Friends With Locals

This one is obvious and already probably one of your goals during your au pair year; make friends with the locals! I understand it can sometimes seem impossible and intimidating to befriend native speaker friends because you might be insecure of your language level, but it’s no big deal! More often than not native speakers will be grateful you’re attempting to learn their language and be happy to help you learn in a more informal manner!

One of the highlights of living in the 21st century is that we have an array of different apps to help us befriend people! As mentioned in my 4 Ways To Make Friends As An Au Pair, you have a number of wonderful apps such as Bumble BFF to help you make friends with people in close proximity to you!

3.Read Books

When I first got to France I befriend a fellow Italian au pair living in my Parisian suburb and I recall being absolutely amazed by how magnificent her French was! Intrigued, I immediately asked her how she got to be so good and her number one recommendation was reading! Having already had a few books on hand that were gifted to me, I decided to finally start reading them. To my surprise I actually picked up on a lot of new vocabulary and phrases through reading!

Reading helped me remember French words better because most of the time I would have to look up the definition of certain words and after that they were stuck with me! To this day I try to read as much as I can in French whenever I have the time. If possible, I recommend reading out loud to yourself or with someone who’s reading the same book. My French boyfriend (click here to find out how we met) reads out loud with me over the phone and I love it because he correct me whenever I mess up on pronunciation!

4.Watch TV and Film In French

We are now living in the age of streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu where almost everyone has an account! The beauty of the streaming service age is that in most cases, we can change the language and subtitles of what we are watching to any language! Meaning, we can further develop our listening skills by watching some of our favorite shows and movies in French!

I’ve met many people during my time abroad who have told me they learned to speak English by watching series like Friends and Full House. I even met a 4 year old Spanish boy whose parents told me he had learned to speak English by watching Blippi YouTube videos! So, It’s definitely possible to learn French the same way!

5.Hit Up Your Local Language Exchange

I cannot stress this enough, visit a language exchange! Language exchanges are by far one of the most fun and relaxed ways to learn a language. One of the best things about language exchanges is that everyone there is trying to learn a language, meaning you’re not alone because you’re all in the same boat! Another great thing is that the locals at these language exchange events are interested in helping foreigners learn their language and in exchange you can help them learn your language! Everyone is almost always friendly at these events and more than willing to strike up a conversation with you and being that you’re a foreigner that makes you instantly interesting to people!

Have you ever tried any of these tips for learning French or any other language? Let me know in the comments down below!