jvc

Can anyone recommend a reputable and established french tutor online? They do need to speak english too. We cannot find one locally after 2 years of trying. We cannot attend a language school as we work shifts, so cannot attend regular Mon - Fri lessons. We have been using a lady on skype who has here own language school online, but after 8 months we have hit a wall and not finding her lessons very structured. We have been having 45 min lessons with Skype and works well, but need a bit more structure with our lessons.

InVinoVeritas

Hi jvc

My wife's nephew (who is French) does this - he used to work for Berlitz but now teaches French over Skype from his home in Paris.

I'll PM you his details later in the day and you can talk to him about how he structures his lessons.

jvc

Cool thanks!

loy loy

Have you tried the Marie?

That's where I went and they recommended a tutor in the village.

jvc

Yes we have. He has noted our number etc but obviously nothing. We live in an area where there aren't many english, so is hard to find a tutor. There are loads on the internet but too many to know who is good and bad, especially paying per hour for them. I have even tried local schools.

loy loy

My one turned out to be the French and Latin teacher at the local school. Her English is good but we try not to speak it.

You could always just try them out until you find one that you like.

I'm quite lucky, it's expensive at 20e for the hour but she often stays longer and we share a bottle of red.

jvc

A bit of english is good I find, as occasionally you can get really, really stuck, and when you are paying for a lesson you aren't wasting time explaining things you really don't understand!

loy loy

I did say TRY not to

InVinoVeritas

Hi jvc - I've sent you a PM (at last) with some contact details.

jvc

Received thanks

grannybunz

If she is good that is very cheap. Remember that for every hour of lesson she will probably have spent as much time preparing it. Especially if she tailors her lessons to suit the age and ability of her pupil.

My husband helps some local youngsters with their English (he was head of modern languages at a big school in the UK) He doesn't charge but the parents often pay him in kind eg a load of logs, a bit of building work. One neighbour told him that a decent private tutor would charge at least €30.00 an hour possibly more.

loy loy

Ah, my wife helps out some the school kids too, for free. Helps us feel accepted.

I wouldn't say my tutor structures a lesson. I told her I wouldn't really learn that way, with homework etc, I just don't have the time. When we have reached a point where I struggle she gives me some homework. She comes over and we just chat about what has happened during the week etc. Last night we spoke about the upcoming Marie election, someone we know who had an accident, her pupils recent visit to London etc. Just general chat.

grannybunz

Are you just being tutored in spoken French?

My real problem is not speaking, reading or understanding the language but I really struggle with the written bit and I am not brilliant on the phone if I don't know the caller. Well I do in English too, but I have help so I am lazy about improving

Husband's pupils are tackling all 4 elements and at various levels - right up to university level and he really works hard at matching the lesson content to the student. Keeps him out of trouble and cuts down on fuel and repair costs.

loy loy

Yes,for the time being I just want to be able to talk on a social level so we can form a bit of a life. Because I work from home this is the only French I get to speak.

Once I can actually hold a conversation I will move onto written, I do read (try to) L'quipe.

It's not enough, 1 hour a week. My French is still worse than terrible. But when I compare it to a year ago when I started I'm doing ok.

grannybunz

An hour a week is not nearly long enough. You really need to get some conversation every day. Been there got the tee-shirt.

When we came here 20+ years ago my level of French was "O"level failed. I relied solely on a bi-lingual husband but we had lovely neighbours who invited us round and offered help with all manner of things so I just had to get on with it. I pushed myself off on my own to chat with the neighbours, ask their advice, take them home-made food and they in turn gently corrected my French and were very patient as long as I tried.

We then started to have French only days at home and that really helped. Now I speak reasonable French with a Provencal accent that completely baffles people from elswhere in the country.

My advice is to try to speak French with a native every single day and to make the most of all chances outside home to comunicate. Watch French television and listen to the radio (hideous though it mostly is) If you like sports then try watching listening to that - you will understand something of what is going on. I learned a lot from watching football and tennis.