Intensive French

French and English have  much in common, especially on the level of vocabulary.  They are more distant when it comes to pronunciation.  English is fundamentally a Germanic language, and its sound system reflects it.  French comes almost completely from Latin, though, on the level of pronunciation, it was also influenced by the Germanic tribes which invaded Gaul (France) in the early Middle Ages.  (Remember that the Franks who gave France its name came from Germany.)   The famous French "R", "EU and "U" are really Germanic sounds.

So how can you maximally improve your pronunciation in French?  The following ideas are meant for beginners, but they can really be applied at any level.

1. Immerse yourself in the sound and sounds of the language.  Listen to French

Once you are past the tasks of learning basic French sounds, as well as some basic vocabulary and grammar, two new tasks appear before you in a French Intensive course.  The first is to speak, the second is to understand.  They are both challenging and call on completely different skills.  Comprehension, our topic here, lies at the very core of acquiring a new language.   What then, are the steps which can facilitate and accelerate your progress in understanding French natives?   It is useful to recognize the various levels we go through as we move from absolute non-understanding to full knowledge and command of a language.  First you hear a wall of unfamiliar and absolutely incomprehensible sounds.  As your familiarity