"My French lessons are going very well. I am enjoying learning with Rod. He is a great teacher."
Chetan Chawla
French course in Online.
French Lessons in Oxford
Among the more than 120 languages you can hear around the beautiful city of Oxford, French is one of the most commonly used. In fact, according to the 2011 census, there are at least 1230 native French speakers living in Oxford, which makes it the fourth-most popular non-official language after Polish, Chinese and German. This makes the city a great place to practise the language, as you’ll find many natives from France, Canada, Belgium and many other francophone countries who study or work here who can help you boost your skills.
No matter why you’ve decided to start learning this fascinating language, you’ll find that speaking French is one of the smartest ways to improve your life in Oxford and also abroad. Because it’s such a widespread language, if you can communicate fluently in French you’ll have many job opportunities open up for you in the more than 29 countries where French is spoken, and also in the local job market. On top of that, you’ll get the chance to meet some of the 321 million French speakers that live all around the globe, explore the many cultures where it’s spoken and expand your knowledge of the world while doing so, so what are you waiting to get started?
Why Study French in Oxford?
Learn French for Work and Travel
Do you want to increase your chances to get a great corporate job in the city or even abroad? If so, learning French is the best way to achieve that goal. Many great local companies like BMW Manufacturing Ltd, Unipart Group of Companies and Oxford Biomedica, are constantly looking to hire bilingual applicants who can help them expand and build better business relationships all around the world. This means that if you learn French, you’ll be able to apply for great positions in Oxford like French-speaking Marketing Executive, French-speaking Project Manager and French-speaking Business Development Executive. What’s more, learning French will make getting a job in countries like Switzerland, Luxembourg and of course, France, much easier and completely change the way you experience the local culture and people, so whether you want a better job in Oxford or to access the international job market, learning French is the way to go.
Learn French for Social
There are many ways of experiencing French culture in the city. If you’re interested in exploring French cuisine, one of the best places you can visit is Pierre Victoire. Located at the heart of the city at 9 Little Clarendon Street, this wonderful restaurant offers traditional French food that’s cooked properly by skilled native chefs. Their menu follows the seasons, so depending on when in the year you visit, you’ll enjoy different French dishes made with fresh, locally-sourced ingredients. Some of the most popular dishes you can enjoy here include the Fondue Savoyarde, a mouth-watering Swiss cheese and Kirsch fondue with bread, mushrooms, potatoes, gherkins and garlic sausage, Risotto d’Asperges, which is asparagus risotto served with a wild rocket and pecorino salad and Poulet Frites au Fromage de Chèvre, a delicious butter-fried chicken breast grilled with goat cheese and bacon. On the other hand, if you are looking for local events that celebrate French culture, the Alliance Française d’Oxford, located at 30 Polstead Road, organizes different activities like French film screenings, French book clubs and different workshops and open talks where you can learn more about the French culture and language.
Learn French for Culture
If you have been learning French for a while but feel that you’re not making much progress, a fun way to work on your skills while socializing is to attend the local meetups held by different language groups. The Oxford French Language Meetup Group, for example, organizes different events where you can meet native speakers and other learners who can help you improve your conversational skills and expand your vocabulary. All ages and language levels are welcome, so you don’t need to be fluent to attend, being passionate about the French language and culture is enough. Although they meet at several different locations, most of their events take place at the Jam Factory Restaurant and Gallery, located at 27 Park End Street. Another great place to meet like-minded people to have regular soirées in French are the meetings held by Central Oxford French Banter. This friendly group meets every month at The Jam Factory, located at 4 Hollybush Road, to enjoy all sorts of conversations in French at different levels. Although this event is open to all, you do need to register before attending, as they have a limited capacity of 15 people per meeting.
Where to learn French in and around Oxford?
No matter what your language level is, at the Oxfordshire Public Library located on Queen Street, you’ll find a wide range of audio and online learning courses in French, as well as books in the language and other great resources like films and music albums. If you’re just starting learning the language, you should check out Basic French, by Berlitz Publishing, a beginner-level French course which focuses on authentic everyday situations to help users acquire basic language skills with confidence and ease. Alternatively, if you are an intermediate or advanced learner, you might want to go for Confident French by Muriel Placet-Kouassi, a self-study course that will help you master French conversation, grammar and vocabulary. However, there are many drawbacks to studying a language on your own, like limited speaking opportunities and the fact that developing your own educational programme is pretty hard and can lead to wasting a lot of time not making any progress. Instead, why don’t you start a French language course? At Listen & Learn, you’ll find fun, entertaining lessons taught by native tutors that are completely tailored to your language goals and interests. All you have to do to start learning with us is send us a quick enquiry so that one of our team members can get in contact with you and find out what you are looking for so that we can create the perfect French course just for you!
The type of courses we offer:
Face-to-Face 1-to-1 (Individual) General French
French lessons of this type are broader and are aimed towards students with a variety of requirements. While all beginner level students will cover survival French—needed for short visits to countries where English isn't widely spoken, or if you wish to 'go local'—those studying French usually go in different directions at this point, depending on what they need. Those who have benefited from these French classes have been those investing in or buying property overseas, those married to overseas nationals, people setting off on a round-the-world trip, enthusiasts for French culture and those hoping to pass a specific exam in French. Enquire now about our French Courses or Take A Free French Level Test
Face-to-Face 1-to-1 (Individual) Business French
These French Lessons are intended for people who really need to learn French to help make that difference in their work. For beginners, it will be useful to learn greetings and basic business etiquette; at higher levels, reading and then writing become more important. Typical students include those involved in import/export, international negotiations and acquisitions, jobseekers in multinational companies where an additional language is required, and those working with international colleagues, academia and government. Even in our most basic lesson for Beginners, students should expect to end the lesson with basic telephone French and French e-mail skills for communication as well as survival French required for short visits to a country. Enquire now about our French Courses or Take A Free French Level Test
Face-to-Face Closed (Private) Group General or Business French
The French lessons are also available for 2 or more people studying together (Two-to-One French Lessons or Small Group In-Company French Lessons). All participants must have the same level, the same business or general language needs and be able to study at the same time in the same location. The booking must be made for all participants at the same time. Listen & Learn does not recommend group classes of more than 6-8 people though In-Company Taster French Lessons can be run with up to 12 people. Enquire now about our French Courses or Take A Free French Level Test
Skype, Google Meet or Zoom Online 1-to-1 (Individual) General or Business French
You and your colleagues can be trained by our native-speaking fully-qualified French tutors at a time and location to suit you. Classes can take place any day, even weekends, and can happen in the morning, afternoon or evening. If the case may be that your home or office is not convenient, there is always the option to take your classes at the office of your teacher. Study books for the lesson are provided. Enquire now about our French Courses or Take A Free French Level Test
Skype, Google Meet or Zoom Online Group (Closed or Open) General or Business French
Two or more people can benefit studying French together as these French lessons are also offered to groups (Two-to-One French Lessons or Small Group In-Company French Lessons). Every student must have the same degree of knowledge of the language, the same business or language needs and the ability to study at the same time and place as everybody else. The booking has to be made for all students simultaneously. Listen & Learn does not advocate group sessions of more than 6-8 people, though Taster French Lessons can be experienced by up to 12 people. Enquire now about our French Courses or Take A Free French Level Test
Top Tips For…
french Apps
Memrise
Memrise is one of the most well-known apps in language learning today and you can use it for free as a handy tool on your mobile to expand your vocabulary and strengthen your listening skills. With the app, you’ll have access to an array of resources that include vocabulary exercises, grammar explanations and even video clips with words and key phrases uttered by native speakers (to improve your pronunciation). You will also find quiz-type games, so you can challenge a friend, family member or roommate to learn new words with you and keep on improving your French while having some fun! Click here to get started!french Apps
Busuu
Looking for an app that helps you improve your vocabulary and language skills in French? Bussu is a great option for you! The mobile app offers guidance for 12 different languages, including French, and features activities about grammar, vocabulary and listening skills. Also, it uses speech recognition technology, so you can upload your French audio recordings to get some feedback on your pronunciation. Furthermore, it has a forum where you can socialise with other learners and share experiences while using your French in real-life conversations. Most of Busuu’s content is free, so take advantage of this opportunity to practise your French in a fun, interactive manner. Click here to start practising!Nemo Program
The Nemo Program has recently developed a free app for 34 different languages, including French, so it’s a great opportunity for you to practise everything you have learned in your course with Listen & Learn. The best thing about this is that you can use the app whenever you have some spare time, as lessons are very short and interactive and users learn the basic words, concepts and phrases that will help them to get by when using French for communication in real-world circumstances. The app even allows you to record yourself and compare your pronunciation to that of a native speaker. Click here to start practising!french Youtube Channels
Joueur du Grenier
Joueur du Grenier is a French YouTuber who specialises in old video games and consoles. He enjoys playing classic games, like Pacman or The Legend of Zelda. While recording these walkthroughs, this YouTuber also talks about the history of the game and makes comments about their stories. The vocabulary he uses might be a bit hard to understand unless you’re a gamer yourself, so make sure you turn on the subtitles, especially if you are a beginner in French. Each episode lasts 5-8 minutes, so you can take a break from work and have a laugh with his videos! Watch his content here!french Youtube Channels
Squeezie
Lucas Hauchard is a 21-year-old with over 10 million subscribers on YouTube, making him one of the youngest millionaire YouTubers in France. His channel is called Squeezie and features reaction videos to famous series, comical shorts, and walkthroughs of well-known games. One of the most viewed, with over 7 million comments, is a hilarious guide to the all-time famous Nintendo game Mario Bros. He speaks quite slowly while playing, so those who like gaming and the French language can combine both interests and improve their skills while watching entertaining, funny videos. Watch his content here!Remi Gaillard
Are you looking to have a good time while putting your new French skills into practice? Then, you should follow Remi Gaillard, a famous prankster who impersonates famous athletes and celebrities, with most of his videos hitting over a million views. He gained attention from the French media in 2010, when he disguised himself as a football player at a match and was even greeted by the president of the Republic. Watching his videos is a good idea for those who’re looking to improve their listening comprehension at an advanced level while acquiring some conversational phrases and slang. Watch hilarious content here!french News
LCP
With our increasingly developed means of global communication, you don’t need to be in France to know what is going on there or to watch French content. Furthermore, watching and reading the news in your target language is one of the best ways to strengthen your reading, listening and vocabulary skills while also improving your cultural understanding. If you are learning French, La Chaîne Parlementaire is a TV channel that broadcasts activity from the National Assembly and Senate of France. You can watch it online anywhere you are and the channel also features news broadcasts you can download. The newscasters speak slowly and clearly, so you’ll be able to improve your French skills, even if you are a beginner. Click here to be informed.french News
France TV
Thanks to the Internet, you can access the news from anywhere in the world, at any time. All it takes is a few clicks of your mouse and you have hours of language learning material at your disposal. So, if you are learning French, you’ll be glad to know that France TV allows you to watch public TV channels online a few hours after they aired. Some options for what to watch to improve your language skills include the news, soap operas and programmes for children (which are great for those of you who are just starting out and would like to pick up some new, simple words). Click here to be informed by France TV.France Télévisions
News is a predominantly helpful tool for those of you wanting to improve either your listening or reading skills (or both!), even if you are just starting your language course. Sure, you might not understand everything the journalists are saying, but you will pick up words over time and start training your ear. After all, the more you practise, the better you’ll get. So, why not tune into France Télévisions to improve your French skills? This is the public national television station of France, a state-owned company that provides users with interactive news, sports and weather services, together with social media sharing features. Click here to be informed by France Televisions.french For Kids
Hello World
Games are great instruments to help children acquire a new language while having fun. Luckily, the internet is full of websites that offer language games for free, such as Hello World. This site is full of interactive activities and songs that help kids learn basic French vocabulary, such as the alphabet, numbers, shapes and colours. Most of the games are classical ones, like tic tac toe, listen and match, etc. There is also a section that features expressions, like greetings, thanking others or asking for food, where children can listen to recordings of real conversations and repeat them while completing exercises.
Check out the page here!french For Kids
Babar
Looking for children’s books in French with a great message to read to your kids? Histoire de Babar is a famous children’s book that tells the story of Babar, a young elephant whose mother is killed by a hunter. The baby escapes and visits different places looking for a new home. So, your kid will learn vocabulary related to the different places and people Babar visits, like the jungle (arbre: tree, feauille: leaf), the city (rue: street, bâtiment: building) and other families (mère: mother, père: father, fils: son, fille: daughter)!
Click here to know more about the books.Rolie Polie Olie
Looking for a great animated series for your children to watch and acquire French vocabulary and structures? Rolie Polie Olie is a Canadian television series produced by the Disney Channel that follows the adventures of Olie, a little robot and his friends on the moon. The robot is composed of several geometric shapes, so it's a great opportunity for your children to learn new words, such as circle (cercle), sphere (sphère) or square (carré). Also, it is spoken using the Canadian accent, so the series is also helpful to become acquainted with French Canadian.
Learn more about the cartoon here!Testimonials
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Client case studies
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Nick Sage
French in London
My Listen & Learn tutor, Yann, made a huge effort to help me understand how the grammar works, and how to say things properly – these aren’t things you can learn from a book
Our Clients Include
From our clients all over the world
Group NBT plc
Language learned: French in London.
Nettletons & Porters Ltd.
Language learned: English in Wakefield.
