Who We Are: Students

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Here are some of our current and former students, including video introductions to students Ryan, Jacques, and Ashley!

French 1 & Spanish 2

Fluent City Crush of the Week: Ryan! from Fluent City on Vimeo.

French, Arabic, & Mandarin (Phew!)

Fluent City Crush of the Week: Jacques! from Fluent City on Vimeo.

French Levels 1-4 & Paris Trip

Fluent City Crush of the Week: Ashley! from Fluent City on Vimeo.

French Levels 1 & 2

After having finished studying at NYU, where I received a minor in Spanish language, I was constantly debating whether or not to continue learning different languages. I figured that I probably couldn't afford it and simply wouldn't have enough time to incorporate it into my schedule, but sure enough Fluent City answered my "prayers." For what would've only paid for the books at NYU, I was able to get into a Level 1 French course and begin my studies with a group of like-minded individuals and an enthusiastic teacher to boot.

The options in class times were great. I went for Thursday nights which were right after the normal work day but before the "going out" time, so it was easy to squeeze in some learning between my normal life.

When you're in an entry-level language course in a university setting, it's almost always a complete joke. Everyone is just there to fulfill some arbitrary requirement for their major, and spending several thousand dollars to do it. At Fluent City, everyone is there because they honestly want to be there and try to pick up another language.

I thoroughly enjoyed French Level 1 and went on to Level 2 to find some even more Francophile peers and an even more intimate learning environment. My Level 1 course was about 16 students while Level 2 was only 6 students and very quickly felt like a private lesson, where each meeting resulted in a solid amount of comprehension and learning.

Fluent City is extremely affordable...I almost felt as if I should've been paying more at times. Also, the occasional glass of wine after class made for yet another reason to want to come back for more.

I also want to expand my repertoire and attempt learning Portuguese. The affordable and non-intimidating learning environment make me want to go back to FluentBrooklyn for more. I just wish my University language-learning experience had been more like Fluent City!

French 1 & Spanish 3

I love Fluent City. Love. It. I am very happy that as an adult I can take a language class at an affordable price, in my own neighborhood, from people who genuinely want to teach. I am a big believer that part of our duty as human beings is to try to understand the "plight" of other human beings and that the first step to that is speaking their language.

That being said, here is my experience:

I started French 1 with Jordan and now have Ricardo, in addition to having had contact with the owner Sam by email. The two teachers have very different teaching styles (Jordan more laid back and Ricardo more regimented) but it is clear they both know what they are doing and I am happy to have worked with them both.

I know that as a student, it is MY job to pull what I want from my experience, no matter the teacher's style. Therefore, I'm learning French.

There are only about 10 people in the class, and the teachers and owner are available to chat whenever I need them. That includes answering emails and questions outside of class time.

They also offer Spanish, Italian, German, et al, (I plan on taking as many classes as my brain can handle). You will not regret your experience if you are open to doing your part as the student, i.e. learning. In addition, it is cheaper and a more comfortable environment than a traditional language class. I would sign up if I were you.

French Levels 1-4

I'm a little obsessed with Fluent City. I studied French a bit in high school but retained very little. This go-round, I feel like I’m finally catching on.

Another pleasant surprise is that learning French has gotten me excited about polishing up my English grammar!

Fluent City has tons of gifted teachers who recognize your strengths and weaknesses and encourages you to learn from both.

French Levels 1 & 2

Bonjour! My new wife and I just went to Paris for our honeymoon, and it’s been so much fun putting our French classes to work. All the little interactions that we normally take for granted – chatting with old ladies in line at the supermarket, explaining to waiters in Cassis that we just got married – become some of the real highlights of the trip. If you’re considering learning another language for travel purposes, you really should. It’ll be tons of fun. I like the small class size at Fluent City, I like that the teachers are so personally invested in the French language and culture, and I like that they are local.

Level 1 was a great starting point for someone like me with no previous experience. Afterwards, I felt like I have a good understanding of the basics — pronunciation, verb conjugation, sentence structure, the “big 4″ verbs (to be, to have, to do/make, to go), possessives, adverbs, etc. Also interesting to me: your Level 1 teacher isn’t a native French speaker. Having learned French as a second language themselves, they have a lot of good advice about learning French as an English speaker.

It's worth mentioning that the Level 1 class is pretty aggressive. You really have to do your homework to keep up. But again, this is both good and bad. The good is that you feel the pressure to keep up, and this is great motivation. The bad is that there is the risk of getting overwhelmed if you’re just taking French for fun. However, if you’re getting behind, the professors are happy to give you some extra tutoring (this has been very helpful for me).