Dec 16, 2012 - 02:18 PM
Mitchell - I have a subscription to News in Slow French, and for me it has been extremely useful in improving my understanding of spoken French. The News recordings are available in two selectable speeds, "slow" (the default) and "normal" French. I am just a beginning French student, but I am now able to read the text along with the recordings at the default slow speed; and sometimes I can even read the text aloud while the recording is playing, which makes me truly feel like I'm finally making progress in speaking French as well as just reading and typing it. I particularly enjoy learning French using the four "current" News stories, which expands my vocabulary well past the vocabulary used for eating, buying goods, and finding hotels. For instance, this week's News covers Syria, the British royal family media hoax, the plane crash of Jenni Rivera, and the passing of Ravi Shankar. The recordings can be downloaded in mp3 format, the "flashcards" for each week can be downloaded as a table in PDF format, and podcasts are also available. There are also lessons in Grammar and French Expressions (both in recording and text format), as well as Quizzes, and the ability to record your own voice if you have access to Flash. Fluenz provides a wonderful base for beginners, especially in learning how to write French; and I really like practicing with their Flashcards (I wish they would add "verbal" flashcards along with the "text" flashcards). News in Slow French is a nice addition beyond the Fluenz basics, especially in the understanding of spoken French. The latter, unfortunately, is the one area in Fluenz in which I have struggled.