I teach full-time intensive French courses to adults. It's absolutely shocking to me that we spend money on Rosetta Stone in our computer lab for "independent learners". If it costs something ridiculous like 400 dollars for an individual license, I can't imagine how much it costs to have it in a language lab. I'm currently working on compiling some of my favourite free online French resources so that beginner and intermediate students can use something OTHER than Rosetta Stone after their course is over. What are your favourites? I like the resources on BBC and - of course - French in Action. The grammar explanations on About French are pretty good - although the site itself is plastered with ads. Duolingo is decent in conjunction with other resources, if only because it's gamified and a bit addictive. Of course, FSI basic is a *great* free course, but the fact is that only the most motivated of students will do it on their own. All of my students already know about anki, since I strongly encourage them to use it throughout the course. I'd really love to find something like Notes in Spanish - except in French. Does anyone know about any free, conversational French podcasts that cover a variety of topics? Thanks for any suggestions!
7 jours sur la planète - News oriented toward French learners. Usable by upper beginners and intermediates I think. France Bienvenue - Real conversations with transcripts. Probably better for intermediates. Often consists of an interview with a single person about their profession or hobby. Fluent French Now - Blog about learning French with an eye toward intermediate and advanced topics. Sometimes has audio with transcripts.
I forgot about 7 jours sur la planète! Thanks for the reminder! I really like that second link. Thanks for sharing. This one's also new to me…thanks for the link! Some promising stuff there...
