---
title: "Learning French (efficiently) 🇫🇷"
description: "My progress, methods and timelines of learn French efficiently."
datePublished: 2022-05-14T15:30:00.000Z
slug: "learning-french-efficiently"
previewImage: "/preview/learning-french-efficiently.jpeg"
permalink: "/blog/learning-french-efficiently"
---
import Image from "../../components/OptimizedImage.astro";
import Anki2 from "../../assets/images/french-anki-2.jpeg";
import Pokemon from "../../assets/images/french-pokemon-1.jpeg";
import FrenchNewsletters from "../../assets/images/french-newsletters.jpeg";
import Anki1 from "../../assets/images/french-anki-1.jpeg";
import ChampsElyssesCover from "../../assets/audio/champs-elysses-cover.mp3";
import FrenchCorrection from "../../assets/images/french-correction-1.jpeg";

With this document, I plan to record my progress in learning French. I began my studies sometime in July in 2021. My purpose and motivation of learning is to achieve a minimum level of **B2** proficiency in speaking, listening, reading and writing.

#### Currently Reading: Harry Potter et le Prisonnier d'Azkaban

#### Last Watched: Dix pour cent (Call My Agent!)

## 10 Month Update:

- Dealing with both university and work has been a bit difficult. My French studies had to take a back-seat for a little while (though not a complete halt). The good news is, I'm done with university (🥳).

- My Anki streak is the longest it has ever been. I'm reviewing my flashcards regularly and slowly (but surely) getting a strong grasp on tenses and conjugations.

<figure>
	<Image src={Anki2} alt="Anki Screenshot" />
	<figcaption>New streak!</figcaption>
</figure>

- I've managed to get a great deal of immersion done by playing the new [**Pokemon Legends: Arceus**](https://legends.pokemon.com/en-us/) completely in French. This game has a **LOT** of un-skippable dialogue.

<figure>
	<Image src={Pokemon} alt="Pokemon Arceus in French" />
	<figcaption>I'm being forced into reading a LOT of French.</figcaption>
</figure>

<div class="flex flex-row flex-wrap md:flex-nowrap space-x-6 items-start">
	<p>
		<ul>
			<li>
				Apart from that, I’m very nearly finished reading{" "}
				<em>Le Tour du monde en quatre-vingts jours</em> by Jules Verne. My reading speed is now
				fairly rapid. I’m able to understand the content well enough (even the tenses!) without
				needing to consult a dictionary too often.
			</li>
			<li>
				To supplement my reading on days when I don’t get time to read any novels, I’ve subscribed
				to a few French newsletters. One of them is delivered daily, while the rest are weekly. They
				talk about a variety of topics, from food to politics. It has been a joy to read these.
			</li>
			<li>
				I’m having regular conversations with my French tutor twice a week. I also hop onto Discord
				where I’ve made some friends (French and Canadian), who I try to talk to often while playing
				some Rocket League. Over on IRC, I occasionally talk in the #français channel on Libera. One
				of my friends regularly sends over French music they enjoy (Hi jvoisin!), which I then
				attempt to understand (and occasionally sing a cover of).
			</li>
			<li>At this stage, all my devices have their language preferences set to French.</li>
			<li>
				I more or less exclusively listen to French music nowadays (though still struggle to
				understand hearing it the first time).
			</li>
		</ul>
	</p>
	<figure class="mx-auto">
		<Image src={FrenchNewsletters} alt="French Newsletters" class="h-96 w-full md:h-1/2" />
		<figcaption>Perhaps a bit too much...</figcaption>
	</figure>
</div>

## 5 Month Update:

- Had to take an extended break from my French studies for a while. Paused for about 3 weeks or so but I was able to get through my backlog fairly rapidly.

<figure>
	<Image src={Anki1} alt="Anki" />
	<figcaption>Broke my 62 day streak. Back at it now.</figcaption>
</figure>

- Surprisingly enough, my comprehension _feels_ a lot better than before. Even without constant consumption of French media or active studies (apart from my Duolingo streak).
- I feel I'm ready to begin consumption of French literature and media again. I'll try to finish _Dix pour cent_ before the end of January.
- I also managed to record a cover of one of my favorite French songs, _Les Champs-Élysées_ by _Joe Dassin_:

<audio controls src={ChampsElyssesCover} type="audio/mpeg" class="mx-auto" />

## 3 Month Update:

- My reading speed is fairly rapid at this point. I'm able to "read" without pausing too much to think about the meaning of a sentence/word. I say "read" in quotes because I tend to neglect the tenses but I'm able to get the general idea understood.
- I still need to work a lot on generation. I have the words present in my head but joining them together is still a bit difficult. I think I'll start regularly posting on /r/WriteStreak now.

<figure>
	<Image src={FrenchCorrection} alt="Corrections" />
	<figcaption>Corrections</figcaption>
</figure>

Need a lot of work on using the correct tense, as well as keeping in mind the 16 être verbs.

- My French tutor conducted a reading comprehension test, along with quizzes about the content. I was able to read and understand it fairly comfortably, without needing too many hints. He later told me that's a B1 level comprehension test.

## Current Study Plan

- Study 20 new flashcards a day in Anki to build my vocabulary:  
  I use a pre-made deck called [“5000 most frequently used French words”](https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/893324022) which has served me well so far.
- At least 30 minutes of immersion a day (be it passive or active)
- I've started using Linguno.com every day for their excellent conjugation drills.
- One module of Michel Thomas’ French audio course
- A few cards of "[Assimil New French with Ease](https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/1845574460)"
- 2 hours of French conversation per week with a native speaker (I found a great tutor from [https://www.italki.com/](https://www.italki.com/))

## Potential Improvements

- Using the pre-made deck has been great for kick-starting my vocabulary, but I believe I’m at the point of diminishing returns. I’m going to slowly transition from using a bilingual pre-made deck to a strictly monolingual deck of cards that I make myself. I’ll be using a technique called “sentence mining”. Essentially, I immerse myself in French media, writing and conversations and everything I don’t understand, I make a flashcard for.
- Duolingo is of very little help, but I keep using it to maintain my streak (and also see at a glance how many days I’ve been studying for).