Veritaserum Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 My 12yo (7th grade) has wanted to learn French for awhile now. This year I have registered her for two different French classes, and they have both been canceled a few days before they were set to start. (We just got the message this morning that the class that was supposed to start this Thursday has been canceled.) :-/ She has hated online/computer options (Rosetta Stone, Duolingo). She wants a class so that she can speak French with others. It's looking like I may need to just get a homeschool French program and do it with her. I don't speak French, but I am good with languages. She would prefer something that very explicitly lays out grammar and pronunciation. What has worked in your family? Help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 We used Galore Park's So You Really Want to Learn French 1. I really like the program. Dd tolerated it (she wasn't invested in learning French). I have the student book, the answer book, the cd w printable assessments, and the audio cd. The material covered in book 1 is the same that older dd studied in French 1 at her high school. I really need to get some of these old things listed for sale. What a bummer about two cancelled classes! That stinks :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinivanMom Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 For a traditional style text we have really liked Galore Park's So You Really Want to Learn French. It systematically covers vocabulary and grammar, and there is an audio cd for help with pronunciation. There is a supplemental text that focuses just on grammar called Skeleton French. Whatever text you choose, would it be possible to hire a French tutor until you can find a workable French class? That would help with the conversation aspect. Do you know anyone who served in a French-speaking mission who could get together with her once a week as a conversation partner? It would probably be less expensive than a standard tutor and would give her the opportunity to speak with someone who is fluent. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space station Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 Memoria Press has a "First Start French" program for middle school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jen500 Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 Our favorite was Galore Park with the audio cd. The audio is good and starts out slowly IMO, which is good for a beginner. We did need extra practice and studying (of course). I do not recommend First Start French. Not enough instruction or practice and the audio was terrible. You might also look at Breaking the Barrier. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momling Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 I have a 12 yr old Francophile too. We did SYRWL French last year, but her tutor quit mid year and I don't know French. She finished the year with duo lingo, but I don't think she felt she learned much. Over the summer she went to concordia language village for immersion French. It was pretty awesome, but just two weeks. She learned the most there. Now she's trying her first online class at online g3. I am skeptical that the one hour per week (plus homework) is enough to make much progress. I add in extra work, but not enough. She needs conversation practice. At the rate she's going, I'd anticipate a few more years in first year French! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollyhock Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 My kids are really enjoying Nallenart's L'Art de Lire; way more than I thought they would. I'm doing it with multiple ages but my 12yo likes it just as much as the younger ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wabi Sabi Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 Have you tried putting together your own class? My son was interested in a language I couldn't even dream of teaching (Japanese), but we were able to put together a very affordable class. We found a tutor with experience teaching children (and young children of her own) who agreed to a weekly one hour class. She's charging slightly more than she would normally charge for tutoring, but we asked around amongst friends with similarly aged kids until we got five children to commit. It wasn't difficult at all to find kids. We pay upfront at the beginning of each month for the number of classes scheduled, but it's quite reasonable since the fee is being split five ways. We're only about 6 weeks in so it's still quite new, but seems to be working out very well so far. One thing that I think helped is making sure that the instructor and the other families involved were all on board with expectations and goals. In our case, that means a textbook, homework assignments, worksheets, and daily practice. My ds gets time with a native speaking instructor, gets to learn how to manage work assigned to him in an academic setting outside of home, and he has real classmates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madteaparty Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 We also used Galore Park mentioned above and highly recommend. Currently he is doing a class with AIM Academy (he's in French 2 but there are I think two French 1 sessions). We like it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted September 23, 2014 Author Share Posted September 23, 2014 Thanks for the ideas. I've got my hopes up for a third French class (private teacher in home with homeschool students), but we've been disappointed twice in the past three weeks. Poor dd. :-( If this third class fizzles, too, I'll order something to work on at home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reefgazer Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 My DD hates those online programs too. We have a private French tutor 2 days a week, but it's getting expensive. Are there local private schools that will take your DD on a "pay per class" basis? We are considering that for DD. My 12yo (7th grade) has wanted to learn French for awhile now. This year I have registered her for two different French classes, and they have both been canceled a few days before they were set to start. (We just got the message this morning that the class that was supposed to start this Thursday has been canceled.) :-/ She has hated online/computer options (Rosetta Stone, Duolingo). She wants a class so that she can speak French with others.It's looking like I may need to just get a homeschool French program and do it with her. I don't speak French, but I am good with languages. She would prefer something that very explicitly lays out grammar and pronunciation.What has worked in your family? Help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 The material covered in book 1 is the same that older dd studied in French 1 at her high school.Which program? Another vote for using the Galore program as a spine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grantmom Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 There are some very affordable tutors on italki. There are also some private tutors that teach online that, when you work it out, are not any more expensive than signing up for a group online class. I like the immersion method as an introduction to a language, and explaining the grammar later, but that is my personal bias. Rosetta Stone now has online studio classes with their online version of the program. You get a studio session with every two lessons you complete in the software, live with a native speaker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TKDmom Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 Maybe you could hire a local college student and hire them to work through a program like Galore Park (or something else they may like better). You can try calling the French dept. and see if they have a list of tutors. When I was in college, our department had a list of students who were willing to tutor. They suggested we charge $8/hour, which seemed exorbitant to me at the time (this was 15 years ago). One of the guys I tutored told me I should charge more and I thought he was crazy ;) but now I think $10/hr would be a total bargain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helena Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 We tried at home study, tutors, audio, and finally settled on Mr. G's French class that's offered through CurrClick. She's now in her second year and loving it. It's been a positive experience for everyone and it's awesome that he's not flaky. :) hth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted September 23, 2014 Author Share Posted September 23, 2014 I'll look into Mr. G for next year. I did see that as an option a few weeks ago, but she really wanted an in person class. I don't see it on the site now. I guess they take classes down after they've started? Even if we do some French this year, I think French 1 would be appropriate. She generally tends to do better with more review. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitestavern Posted September 23, 2014 Share Posted September 23, 2014 I thought L'art de Lire was weak and best for littles. We really liked SYRWTLF so much that we're now using the Spanish.(DS enjoys learning languages.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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