Learn French in NYC :: Williamsburg

More about Level 1

Taught in English. Level 1 is for those who want to start at the very beginning with French or for those who took a little bit of French in high school…but let’s be honest, you were passing notes. If you can struggle through saying things like: I am American, I study French, I like football, and I have a dog, then you should check the Level 2 descriptions to be sure a Level 2 class isn't more appropriate for you.

Part of the time in most of our Level 1 classes is spent on how to learn a language in general. If you are "good at languages" or took a college-level French class before (even if it was a while ago) you might want to consider going straight into a Level 2 class. If you choose to skip Level 1 and have not previously studied the language, we highly recommend 2 to 4 hours of private lessons and a Bridge to Level 2 Workshop to get caught up and be ready to dive in (even if you have another romance language under your belt).

If you are more advanced than some of the absolute beginners in your Level 1 class, but not ready for Level 2 yet, please be aware that our Level 1 classes start at the very beginning. While you can take advantage of brushing up on some of the fundamental concepts and still benefit from the class overall, please be patient while the others are learning the language from the absolute beginning for the first time.

More about Level 2

Level 2 is for those who have studied French before, even if they aren't confident with what they learned because it's been a while. Either way, you should sign up for a Level 2 class even if you need to review the extreme basics as the first session or two does just that.

Level 2 is right for you if you feel even a little bit comfortable saying a few things about yourself in French, even if only at a very basic level in the present tense with a very limited vocabulary. If you can struggle through saying some of these phrases, then Level 2 is right for you:

I live in Brooklyn.
My friend (or brother/sister) does not live in Brooklyn.
I am American.
I study French.

and could struggle through asking someone else:
Do you have a dog? (or, if you don't know the word for dog, how about "car" or "apartment"?)

Some questions to help determine if Level 2 (vs Level 1) is right for you are:

Are you somewhat familiar with the idea of conjugation? As in how to turn parler, which means "to talk", into Je parle, tu parles, il parle (I speak, you speak, he speaks...) by simply removing the "-er" from the infinitive and adding back an "e" for je, an "es" for tu, and an "e" for il?

Are you somewhat familiar with the idea of nouns having a gender and having to choose between un, une, and des for "a" vs le, la, and les for "the"?

Are you familiar with the idea of regular vs. irregular verbs? Do you get that parler is conjugated above in exactly the same way that lots of other verbs are, such as marcher, rester, and trouver, but that verbs like être (to be) are conjugated completely irregularly (je suis, tu es, il est...)?

"Familiarity" here refers to having been introduced to the main idea before, even if you need a quick review/reminder of how it all works.

If you answered yes to at least two of those three questions (what is this, an informercial?) and you can struggle through more than half of the phrases/questions above, then Level 2 is right for you. If you are feeling pretty confident about all of this, be sure to check the Level 3 description to be sure that Level 2 isn't, in fact, not advanced ENOUGH for you.

For students who think they may be Level 2 or higher, choose the level that sounds most appropriate for you based on these descriptions and go ahead and sign up for a specific class. We try to do an informal placement phone call with all new incoming Level 2 and above students for both you and us to be sure that the level you choose isn’t either too advanced or not advanced enough. If your level choice doesn't make sense when we talk with you on the phone (or once you start class), we'll work with you to make a game plan to transfer you into a different class at that time. We prefer to make this placement call after you sign up online because about 70-80% of students place themselves accurately without our help.

More about Level 3

Level 3 is for those who can confidently say a few sentences in the present tense and are a little bit familiar with how the main past tense works (j'ai mangé, tu as pris, etc.) and are ready to be introduced for the first time to more verb tenses such as the conditional (je voudrais, il travaillerait, etc.), the futur simple (tu mangeras vs. tu vas manger) and how these verb tenses are used in everyday conversation.

You should sign up for a Level 3 class even if you need to review the basics of the present tense and the main past tense as the first class or two does just that.

Here are some questions to help figure out if Level 3 is right for you:

Can you use many of the most basic verbs (to eat, to talk, to walk, to be, to have, etc.) in present tense sentences fairly confidently? Can you say things like:

I speak French
My friend does not speak French
I walk to my friend's house every day

or ask someone else: Do you have an apartment in Brooklyn?

without too much hesitation?

Do you understand the fundamental structure of the main past tense (passé composé)? Do you get how you use être or avoir in the present tense plus a past participle, as in j'ai mangé for "I ate" and tu as dit for "You said"? 

If the answer to both of these questions is yes, you belong in Level 3.

For students who think they may be Level 2 or higher, choose the level that sounds most appropriate for you based on these descriptions and go ahead and sign up for a specific class. We try to do an informal placement phone call with all new incoming Level 2 and above students for both you and us to be sure that the level you choose isn’t either too advanced or not advanced enough. If your level choice doesn't make sense when we talk with you on the phone, we'll make a game plan to transfer you into a different class at that time. We prefer to make this placement call after you sign up online because about 70-80% of students do place themselves accurately.

More about Level 4

Level 4 students are starting to understand how the major verb tenses work, are adding to their growing vocabulary, and are ready to gain confidence when speaking and using several different verb tenses...

In Level 4, you will start to understand some of the more complex relationships between verb tenses (If I was/were rich, I would buy a yacht, etc.) and to tackle the harder verb tenses like the subjunctive ("il faut que je fasse", for example) and the past conditional (j'aurais appelé) as well as relative pronouns like "ce que" and "dont".

Here are some questions to help figure out if Level 4 is right for you:

Can you use some of the most basic verbs (to eat, to talk, to walk, to be, to have, etc.) in both the present tense, the two main past tenses (the passé composé and the imparfait), the conditional, and the future tenses? Can you say things like:

I ate at McDonalds yesterday
You took the train to work today
He was 18 when he went to college

and be able to struggle through asking someone: Would you like to go to Paris with me this summer?

without too much hesitation?

Are you familiar with the y in J'y suis allé as being there as in "I went there" and that for "I'm talking to him" it's je lui parle, not je le parle?

If the answer to both of these questions is yes, you belong in Level 4.

For students who think they may be Level 2 or higher, choose the level that sounds most appropriate for you based on these descriptions and go ahead and sign up for a specific class. We try to do an informal placement phone call with all new incoming Level 2 and above students for both you and us to be sure that the level you choose isn’t either too advanced or not advanced enough. If your level choice doesn't make sense when we talk with you on the phone, we'll make a game plan to transfer you into a different class at that time. We prefer to make this placement call after you sign up online because about 70-80% of students do place themselves accurately.

More about Level 5

Level 5 is meant to give you time to practice and solidify everything that you were introduced to in Level 4:

More about Intermediate French

Intermediate students might need a quick grammar refresher here and there, but are comfortable having a simple and basic conversation in French. They can speak with some fluidity, even if they are still making a lot of mistakes. Increasing listening comprehension is a major component of an Intermediate class with the goal in mind of moving towards being able to listen to the radio and watch television or full-length movies with no subtitles. 

More about Advanced French

Advanced French students are AWESOME, but maybe not as awesome as they hope to be. Your speaking is very fluid and you are "extremely conversational", but your vocabulary could be a little better and let’s face it, sometimes you still aren't using the subjunctive correctly. But, not being a native speaker doesn’t mean you can’t sound like one soon! This class is intended for advanced and near-fluent students to keep their French alive while improving their vocabulary and solidifying listening comprehension.