Free Language - learn french

FrenchPod.com FrenchPod Praxis French Lessons Podcast with Free Educational Resources and MP3 Audio

travelinguist — Tue, 20 May 2008 04:09:40 +0000

Summary

FrenchPod represents the beginning of a new era for all the folks on the Praxis Language team. Things are cooking in Shanghai! The success of ChinesePod and SpanishPod, Praxis's podcast-driven, socially enhanced, user backed language-learning phenomenon is maturing elegantly. Be sure to check out the free resources available to visitors. You can sign up for an account today to start making real progress. Word on the street is that ArabicPod, GermanPod, ItalianPod and JapanesePod will follow...

From Website

FrenchPod is a language training service designed around your needs, rather than the traditional constraints of language schools and publishers. Technology solves these problems and can make the learning of a new language easier. We take the best pedagogical approaches of the classroom, layer in the community features of the social web and tailor a customized learning pathway for each student. Use FrenchPod as a replacement to classroom-study or to make better use of classroom time. At the core of our service are four main study activities:

Listen
There are many ways to listen to FrenchPod lessons, making learning French as flexible and convenient as possible. If you like to study at your computer, you can listen to the lesson via the built-in Flash player on the site. Click the “Play” button, slip on your headphones or turn up your speakers, and learn. To learn on the go, download the MP3 – either from the download links on the site or via your personalized RSS feed – and listen to it on any MP3-compatible software or device (in iTunes, on your iPod, etc.). You can even burn the MP3 to a CD and listen to it in a regular CD player.
Review
Once you’ve listened to each lesson, you need to review to ensure that the material is firmly cemented in your head. First, download the Lesson PDF, which contains the dialogue, a translation, and both key and supplementary vocabulary, and read along with the podcast. After that, come to FrenchPod.com and take advantage of the myriad of online review tools available. Pour over each line of the dialogue, looking up unfamiliar words and listening to line-by-line audio. Dig deeper into key vocabulary with expansion sentences, which put important words into varied context to get you a better idea of how they are used. Finally, complete the lesson exercises to ensure that you really know what you’ve learned.
Practice
Language is about communication, and once you’ve learned something new you need to practice using it in real communication. Guided and Executive users have individual teachers that provide critical insight into the language and opportunities to practice French with a native French speaker. In each practice session, you can expand and broaden your French in a friendly, stress-free way with a counselor that is familiar with you and your learning goals. Your counselor will help you identify and eliminate problem areas, and let you strengthen your French communication skills.
Reinforce
At the end of your learning cycle each day, you should come back and reinforce the material you’ve learned both from today’s lesson and previous lessons. Each period of reinforcement will create a stronger foundation upon which future learning will be built. Use the flashcards and concentration game to make sure that you remember the vocabulary you’ve learned from previous lessons. Review your vocabulary list, identify words you’re not sure about, and look them up in the FrenchPod dictionary. Skim through the Grammar Guide to identify structures with which you’re unfamiliar and find lessons that cover those points. Finally, take the Listening Test occasionally to see the improvement that your hard work has earned you.

Visit FrenchPod.com

Languages of Europe and Open-Content Textbooks Collection to Learn and Teach European Languages at Wikibooks.org

polyglot — Sun, 19 Apr 2009 11:10:59 +0000

Summary

Wikibooks.org is a community for creating a free library of educational textbooks that anyone can edit. The Wikibook's Languages of Europe category can serve, for the language learner, educator and enthusiast, as an enormous doorway into the many European languages, both living and historical.

The European subcontinent has birthed and/or attracted an enormous variety of languages from many sub-branches of what linguists call the Indo-European languages.

Below you'll find direct links to a wide variety of European language open-content textbooks. These are free and open source, for everyone to use and benefit from. And collaborate on - especially language educators who have the knowledge to share with all through this open medium.

To boot, Wikibooks.org itself is available in a wide range of world languages!

From Wikibooks.org

Wikibooks Category: Languages of Europe

From Wikibooks, the open-content textbooks collection

These language books concern Languages of Europe. See also Subject:Languages of Europe.

European Languages with Books or Pages

Albanian, Aragonese, Armenian, Austrian, Basque, Belarusian, Breton, Bulgarian, Catalan, Chechen, Croatian, Danish, Galician, Gothic, Greenlandic, High Icelandic, Hungarian, Høgnorsk, Icelandic, Insubric, Irish, Italian, Latvian, Leonese, Lowland Scots, Macedonian, Manx, Neapolitan, Norwegian, Old Church Slavonic, Polish, Provençal, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Sicilian, Silesian, Slovene, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Welsh

This may be incomplete when you read this. Please check the Languages of Europe page for the latest content.

European Language Wikibooks Subcategories

Dutch language
English language
Finnish language
French language
German language
Greek language
Latin language
Lithuanian language
Portuguese language
Scottish Gaelic language
Spanish language
Yiddish language

Visit Wikibooks.org on Languages of Europe.
Wikipedia.org also has a category on Languages of Europe.

A Round-Up of 45 Mac OSX Language Software Apps: GPL Software, Freeware, Shareware and Demos from Apple's Download Center

polyglot — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 01:58:32 +0000

Summary

This (lengthy) article brings together a pile of Free Software (GNU GPL'd as Public Domain), freeware and shareware for language learning and reference for Mac OS X.

Software descriptions are taken from Apple Downloads. We will be adding more GPL applications soon.

Polyglot Culture: Quick Wikipedia Tip for Multilingual Language Surfing Goodness

polyglot — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 00:01:55 +0000

Summary

The now-ubiquitious Wikipedia.org has some multilingual gems tucked away in its folds. This article serves to point out one of the most powerful polyglot culture feaures that Wikipedia offers: the myriad articles in a multitude of languages at a single click away.

For instance, while browsing the topic "Language" on Wikipedia in English, down the left navigation bar you will find entries for the same topic in literally dozens of languages:

Afrikaans, Alemannisch, العربية, Aragonés, Arpetan, Asturianu, Avañe'ẽ, Aymar aru, Azərbaycan, Bamanankan, Bân-lâm-gú, Basa Banyumasan, Башҡорт, Беларуская, Беларуская (тарашкевіца), Boarisch, Brezhoneg, Български, Català, Чăвашла, Cebuano, Česky, Cymraeg, Dansk, Deitsch, Deutsch, Diné bizaad, Eesti, Ελληνικά, Español, Esperanto, Euskara, فارسی, Français, Frysk, Furlan, Gaeilge, Gàidhlig, Galego, ગુજરાતી, 한국어, हिन्दी, Hrvatski, Ido, Ilokano, Bahasa Indonesia, Interlingua, isiXhosa, Íslenska, Italiano, עברית, Basa Jawa, ქართული, Kernewek, Кыргызча, Kiswahili, Коми, Kongo, Kreyòl ayisyen, Kurdî / كوردی, Latina, Latviešu, Lëtzebuergesch, Lietuvių, Limburgs, Lingála, Lojban, Magyar, Македонски, Malagasy, मराठी, مَزِروني, Bahasa Melayu, Nederlands, 日本語, Нохчийн, Norfuk / Pitkern, Norsk (bokmål), Norsk (nynorsk), Nouormand, Occitan, پښتو, Polski, Português, Ripoarisch, Română, Romani, Runa Simi, Русский, Саха тыла, Sámegiella, Sardu, Scots, Seeltersk, Sicilianu, Simple English, Slovenčina, Slovenščina, Српски / Srpski, Suomi, Svenska, Tagalog, தமிழ், Tatarça/Татарча, ไทย, Tiếng Việt, Тоҷикӣ, Türkçe, Türkmen, Українська, Volapük, Võro, Walon, Winaray, ייִדיש, 粵語,Zazaki, Žemaitėška, 中文

This list discludes several languages for which this particular computer does not have fonts installed. Many of you will see font-related issues for some of the languages above. Find out more here if you do.

How to find the links.

This image shows how to find what other languages are available for a given topic on Wikipedia:

These are not translations.

Each entry is an organically-written encyclopedia article on the topic of "Language" in a language. The time and space for language and culture persists!

It's quite intriguing surfing Wikipedia for multilingual goodness. If you'd like to hear more on this topic or have something of value to share, please comment on this article!

Use these to learn!

This feature of Wikipedia can be used to learn and teach languages. Find a topic of interest and study up on the vocabulary in your target language, build a linguistic knowledge of specific interests, get materials for educating, compare entries in different languages to bring out cultural nuances and more. There are many ways to twist and tweak this vast maze of plurilingual content!

From Website

A language is a dynamic set of visual, auditory, or tactile symbols of communication and the elements used to manipulate them. Language can also refer to the use of such systems as a general phenomenon. Strictly speaking, language is considered to be an exclusively human mode of communication. Although other animals make use of quite sophisticated communicative systems, sometimes casually referred to as animal language, none of these are known to make use of all of the properties that linguists use to define language.

In Western Philosophy, language has long been closely associated with reason, which is also a uniquely human way of using symbols. In Ancient Greek philosophical terminology, the same word, logos, was used as a term for both language or speech and reason, and the philosopher Thomas Hobbes used the English word "speech" so that it similarly could refer to reason, as will be discussed below. More commonly though, the English word "language", derived ultimately from lingua, Latin for tongue, typically refers only to expressions of reason which can be understood by other people, most obviously by speaking.

Visit "Language" on Wikipedia in English and look at all the languages on the left navigation bar. Those are the languages for which the article you are viewing has equivalents.

New iTunes U: Download Educational Podcast Courses to Learn Language with Audio and Video on your iPod for Mobile Learning

polyglot — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 03:45:14 +0000

Summary

Apple recently released a new section of the wildly popular iTunes Store available through their iTunes software. This new section is called iTunes U, and collects podcasts from numerous universities and colleges to make them available for free download to your iPod or other mp3 player, mobile/cell phone, etc.

One of the sub-sections of iTunes U is (note: you need iTunes for this link to work) specifically for languages and language education - yay!

Currently there are 60 podcasts (probably more by the time you read this) available regarding both learning foreign languages as well as general topics regarding language in general. Many of these podcasts are called OpenCourseWare, considered Open Learning materials released in the Public Domain. This means they can be used truly freely by teachers and educators without worries about copyright issues - a big plus! Be sure to look at the license for each podcast to make sure of the licensing.

The podcast-based current courses available through iTunes U are English (Medieval and ESL), French, German, Greek, Japanese, Hebrew (various), Italian (Language and Theater), Romanian, Spanish (various) plus Language Technology and Lectures, Interviews, Clubs, Lectionary at Lunch and Storytelling Colombian Style. There are many more, too.

This is really exciting to see at this professional education level. Of couse, add this to the 982 language podcasts in the "regular" (non-iTunes U) iTunes store and that makes over a whopping 1,000 language-related podcasts for download through iTunes - all free. :)

Watch the iTunes U intro video below to learn more about this new feature:

From iTunes U

iTunes U puts the power of the iTunes Store to work for colleges and universities, so users can easily search, download, and play course content just like they do music, movies, and TV shows.

Always in session.

iTunes U delivers easy, 24/7 access to educational content from hundreds of top colleges, universities, and educationally focused organizations across the country. And it’s accessible to anyone with a Mac or PC.

Learning to go.

Students can sync iTunes U content with any iPod or iPhone, so they can go right on learning while they grab a meal, walk to class, or work out at the gym.

Keeps them motivated.

Engaging students on their home turf, iTunes U offers audio and video that make subjects more vivid than any printed page ever could.

Open-minded.

iTunes U lets schools open all or part of their content to the public, from parents to alumni to anyone with a love of learning.

Find out more about iTunes U.

eurolanguages.com Find and Reserve a French Study Abroad Program or Language School Free Online: Paris, France, Provence, Nice..

polyglot — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 13:02:53 +0000

Summary

At last, a study abroad school reservation website that just plain rocks hands down: eurolanguages. Not only is it quick and simple to find French language schools all over France, it's also free to use! Naturally the courses aren't free, but you are not charged a euro cent extra than what you'd pay directly to the school. Plus you get to use their slick, user-friendly and eye-candy-rich Web reservation interface that allows you to compare instantly and make the best choice for your particular needs.

Currently for the French language, you can find study abroad programs and language schools in France. Regions include Savoie/Savoy, Rhône-Alpes, "The Alps", "The Mediterranean", northern and southern France, Provence, Côte d'Azur (French Riviera) and Normandy. Cities include Annecy, Chambéry, Nice, Rouen and Vichy.

Depending on the language school you choose, different options for facilities and extra-curricular activities exist. These include such goodies as audio learning labs, computer access, free wifi (wireless internet), eating/dining area, tea/coffee, television room, wheelchair/handicap accessiblity (elevator), cultural trips, pub trips, snack machines, printing and fax services, bookshop/bookstore, study area and library. It is surprisingly quick and easy to see which of these features a given school offers, providing you with a snapshot of what the school has going for it.

Of course, you'll need a place to stay while studying abroad, and eurolanguages makes that quite simple as well. You can either choose to find your own accommodation or select between several options including homestays with half or full board.

Eurolanguages encourages transparency by allowing users to rate and review language schools right on their site. These reviews are accessible while viewing information about a school, and can provide additional insight into what individual learning experiences have been. Currently you can rate on teaching, location, features and fun.

All in all, eurolanguages is providing an amazing service to anyone interested in studying French in Europe - with no extra fees! They are definitely worth checking out. Thanks to the whole team for this much-needed free Web service.

Eurolanguages is also available for English, German, Italian, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish, including programs that combine surfing with Spanish instruction and skiing with Italian lessons! Let the fun begin :)

From Website

Finding and confirming a place on an international language course is difficult, and searching online isn’t always helpful. There are 1,000’s of results for every destination, without any indication as to which one is best. So how can anyone decide on which city? which school? and at what price? And who do you contact?, and who can you trust?

You can trust us. We offer you more choice than ever before, with up to date information on all available schools and courses, and the insight and tools to compare them. We even offer fellow student reviews and ratings for reassurance. It’s like asking a friend for advice, except with eurolanguages, you can read the advice of 1,000’s of fellow students just like you. And when you’ve found your favourite, just pay a 20% deposit online to confirm your place.

Even though we think the schools we work with are great, we know you don’t necessarily care what we think. That’s why we don’t give you our opinions on the school; we let other students tell you theirs. And when you’ve finished your course we’ll ask you yours. Simple really.

On top of that, we’ve made it simple to actually book your place. We’ve taken care of the contractual side of things between you and the school so you don’t have to deal with endless paperwork in a language you are trying to learn. We’ve also given schools a management tool, so that when you buy a course with us, it’s guaranteed.

Over the last few decades the majority of language students have chosen to stay with a host family during their time at an international language school. For many, this is a great opportunity to practice the language, experience the culture, and above all an economical way to stay. To book a bed with a local host, which will be organised and confirmed by your school, simply select the available options on the booking screen.

Visit www.eurolanguages.com

RocketLanguages.com Rocket French Language Audio and Software Course from Rocket Languages

travelinguist — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:33:44 +0000

Summary

The Rocket French product from Rocket Languages has proved to be a highly successful, fun! and fast method for beginners to learn the French language. The Rocket Languages team has designed a multi-faceted course including extensive audio lessons, software and learning games, grammar lessons with audio clips and a member's forum for help on demand.

I have personally been using Rocket Languages Japanese now as a total beginner with next to no knowledge of the Japanese language and the results have been excellent. I have used a lot of different language-learning methods (as you can tell from this website!) and the Rocket method is both quick and interesting, and I always find myself looking forward to the next lesson.

Don't just take my word for it. Try it out and if you don't like the results, you can get all your cash back for 60 days after you place an order. No risk there!

Free 6-Day French Course

From Website

Rocket French is designed to be the easiest to follow system for learning how to speak French available. It is an interactive course that makes you want to study. Also, it's practical. You'll discover exactly what to say in virtually all situations.

With Rocket French, you are going to learn French rapidly, effectively, and easily. You are going to be able to speak at a restaurant, at an airport, with new friends...

With the Rocket Languages French Program you get:

A Rocket Languages Interactive Audio Course that prompts you to speak French in a conversational and friendly way so that the words just stick in your mind! Learn a language the easy way!

Mega Software Learning Games that are specifically designed to increase your vocabulary and understanding of French and allow you to have fun in the process!

Fully illustrated and easy-to-follow Grammar Lessons, for those of you who love to know how French works. Most of these come with embedded audio clips in the lessons so that you can hear exactly how the words are pronounced!

If you have any questions, you can either email us or post a message on our Members Only Learners Forums, where our team of language experts and fellow enthusiasts will respond to your needs. With every Premium order you get unlimited and full access to our Forum - imagine having a teacher, virtually "on call" 24 hours a day!

And of course all Rocket Languages products are backed by a 60 Day 100% Money Back Guarantee. We're that confident, and it's that simple.

Rocket Languages will teach you how to speak French naturally, so you can read, write, speak, and understand the language as though you have lived there all your life - these are truly cutting-edge multimedia courses!

Find out more about Rocket French.

Learn That Language Now! ebook with Quick, Easy and Efficient Method for Learning Any Foreign Language

travelinguist — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 13:37:33 +0000

Summary

Learn That Language Now! is a truly excellent, highly useful e-book for learners of any language - available for instant download to get you learning better right away. The study approach presented in the book is refreshing, exciting and even intoxicating, because it works so well once you start using it! Having personally learned six languages to varying degrees myself, I was pleasantly surprised to find many new tips and tricks that I'd never come across in over 15 years of studying and practicing foreign languages.

The author offers language learners perspective (earned through years of learning multiple languages) as well as practical methods you can start using right away to improve your language study flow and achieve fluency many times faster than with standardized methods.

This ebook provides essential information that will save you time and energy, helping you reach your goals faster and with more confidence. And with a low price tag of $19.99 USD - and instant delivery to your email - you will have a hard time finding a more valuable investment in your foreign language learning endeavors.

Finally, teachers will also benefit greatly from this book as it will give them insight into creating better study programs and stronger learning tools for their students.

Find out more about "Learn That Language Now!"

From Website

Learn That Language Now

What if I told you that you can become fluent in a foreign language in a matter of months, learn thousands of words without worrying about forgetting them, master grammar and do all of this in an enjoyable, painless manner. Sound too good to be true? Well, prepare to have your language learning experiences turned upside down. Read on to learn more...

What is “Learn That Language Now”?

Learn That Language Now is a comprehensive manual that will teach you the tips, tricks, techniques and method to achieve fluency in a foreign language with the goal of learning as quickly and fluently as possible with the least amount of effort.

Learn That Language Now was written because all other traditional methods of language learning, including classes, textbooks, audio courses and software programs, were slow, costly, inefficient and used language learning philosophies that were out-dated. Most language resources teach language along the same lines as languages were studied hundreds of years ago: endless grammar, syntactical rules and vocabulary lists.

Visit Learn That Language Now.

french.about.com French Learning+Teaching Resources, French Verb Conjugator, Proficiency Tests, French Grammar Help

polyglot — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 09:27:57 +0000

Summary

french.about.com is packed full of information for beginner to intermediate French learners as well as teachers of those levels. In fact, there is so much content there that listing it here would take too much time! Instead, this article will highlight some of the things you can find on the site, and leave the rest for you to find on the site.

Of special note are the start learning section, practice materials, teacher resources, audio lab, grammar section, vocabulary section, proficiency tests, verb conjugator and the quizzes and tests area.

There is a lot more there, and it's all accessible for free. :)

From Website

Learning French is an ongoing and involved process. You can't learn French overnight, and you probably can't learn on your own, no matter how many books and tapes you buy.

What you can do is use this free website to supplement your learning: to get another explanation of something you didn't understand, to get extra practice between classes, and to brush up on what you once learned but have now all but forgotten.

Learn French at About offers hundreds of lessons and thousands of sound files to help you learn French.

Visit french.about.com

Verbix.com Verbix Free Verb Conjugation Website (WebVerbix), Verb Wiki and Windows Freeware (FreeVerbix) for 100+ Languages

travelinguist — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 08:16:10 +0000

Summary

Verbix is "an independent non-profit organization that aims to promote and protect linguistic diversity." The tools on their site "contain verb conjugations for hundreds of languages, ranging from national and international languages to regional and even extinct languages."

There are four main things to bring your attention to in this article:

1) WebVerbix, a great free online verb conjugator for over eighty languages.

2) WikiVerb, a wiki site dedicated to languages, verbs, and verb conjugation.

3) FreeVerbix, a freeware version of the Verbix Windows software which bumps the number of available languages to above one hundred.

4) The Verbix website, where all three of the above and more (including the $40 paid version of Verbix 2008 for Windows) are available. Your purchase will support the non-profit group and expand the Verbix non-profit organization and web presence.

Also of import is the list of supported languages for the above-mentioned free and commercial products and online services.

The free Verbix stuff (WebVerbix, FreeVerbix and WikiVerb) provides plenty to work with for language learners and educators alike. The free online version works great for conjugating an enormous amount of verbs instantly.

From Website

UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Verbix is an independent non-profit organization that aims to promote and protect linguistic diversity [UNESCO Observatory: Multilingualism]. This site contains verb conjugations for hundreds of languages, ranging from national and international languages to regional and even extinct languages.

FreeVerbix 7.3 is a universal Verb Conjugator that shows verb inflections in 100+ languages. It is based on Verbix language extension technology, so after installation of Verbix you can easily install any language extension to add more languages in Verbix.

WebVerbix is a free on-line verb conjugator. It contains a subset of Verbix for Windows features.

WikiVerb is a site dedicated to languages, verbs, and verb conjugation. It's not going to be a copy of information available in WikiPedia, but it will focus in verb conjugation. It won't replace www.verbix.com either, but it includes information and languages that are not available there.

Visit Verbix.com

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