Want to learn French with Youtube?
There are many ways to learn French. But with so many options out there, which one should you pick?
Youtube has been around for a while now, and since its launch, people have been posting videos in all kinds of languages, which makes it perfect for any language learner.
Why learn French with Youtube
It’s free
Language learning is great and all, but nobody wants to spend a lot of money.
Thankfully, Youtube is still free to access for everyone, even if you do have to watch the occasional ad and close that free trial pop-up.
Pick up what you like
One of the best things about Youtube as a platform is that the amount of content on there is limitless. You can find pretty much any language and every genre on there.
Vloggers, make-up tutorials, animation, drawing tutorials, fashion advice, travel videos, true crime stories, movie analysis, gaming streams and even specified language learning channels.
Whatever it is you are into, you can find it on Youtube and you can find it in your target language.
Real speech
Instead of carefully written language learning podcasts or scripted movies, many Youtube channels are a great representation of what native people sound like when they speak freely or interact with each other. This can be daunting at first, but it is great practice and with the visuals accompanying the sound, it can be a great way to get your language skills to the next level.
Closed captions and playback speed
Some channels offer closed captions with their videos, which makes it a perfect way to practice both your speech and reading skills. It can also help if you aren’t sure what they just said.
Beyond that, you can adjust the playback speed to match your level. Start out slower, and slowly work your way up to real-time speech, or even faster to train your ears.
Cultural immersion
The internet has made worlds that were previously hard to get into easily accessible.
Where you used to have to live in the country of your target language in order to get a peek into the daily lives of native speakers, you can now find thousands of vloggers capturing and explaining their every move on camera.
This makes it a brilliant way to immerse yourself into the culture of your target language. Not only that, but following popular Youtubers might give you something to talk about with native speakers when you do meet them.
It’s fun
One of the most underrated language learning strategies is to make something fun! So many people think learning a language is all about late nights grammar studies and vocab drills.
Nothing could be further from the truth!
Language learning works best if you are actually enjoying it. This will make it easier to be consistent and get daily practice. The more you engage with your target language, the more likely you are to succeed in reaching fluency.
There are many people out there today who speak English because beyond their classroom, they interact with it on a daily basis through various sources like Youtube.
They may have had classes in school, but they wouldn’t actually speak it had it not been for the daily practice and interaction with the language.
The best part being, all these interactions didn’t feel like studying but instead felt like entertainment.
How to learn a language with Youtube
Okay, so we’ve gone over the why, now let’s talk about the how.
Beyond the standard “watch videos and learn”, here are a few strategies that might help your language learning process.
1. Let your algorithm know
Find things you like and subscribe to as many channels as you can. This way, you’re Youtube algorithm will notice your new interest and recommend more videos in your target language.
If you choose to receive notifications, you will also receive little reminders to practice when an interesting video comes along.
2. Improve your pronunciation
Use the videos to try and talk along and improve your pronunciation. In vlog like videos, you can often get a good look at how people move their mouths, and try and imitate those movements.
Often we are very used to pronouncing letters a certain way, but the way a “b” or “l” is pronounced in another language might be slightly different. Pay attention, and see what you can learn.
3. Don’t forget the comments
Look at the comments, leave a comment yourself. If you see something you don’t understand, don’t be afraid to leave a comment saying “hey, I am a language learner, could someone explain this to me?” or ask a native speaker what it means.
4. Share your own progress
Why not start your own channel to track your progress? You can join polyglot challenges and ask people for advice on how to improve.
5. Daily practice
If you check in on Youtube every day and make sure to watch at least one video, you can build a solid habit of language practice without feeling like you are putting in a lot of effort. Once a video is clicked, all you have to do is keep watching.
Even though you might miss stuff in the beginning, keeping up a habit like this is definitely going to show results in the long run.
6. Expand the learning
Many Youtube channels have other social media accounts as well. Look in the description and see where else you can add their content to your daily routine.
Maybe there are fan groups you can join, newsletters you can subscribe to, or even podcasts related to your favorite channels. See Youtube as a gateway to the culture of the language you are studying, and try to interact with it accordingly.
3 Channels to follow if you are learning French
1. Cyprien
Level: Advanced
Category: Lifestyle
Cyprien makes videos about studying abroad, he shares his life as a French-Romanian, and his first visit to Romania since he was 15. His videos are all in French but they have subtitles in English. He also has an audio series that will give you the experience of listening to a silly science-fiction radio show in French.
2. Fastgoodcuisine
Level: Advanced
Category: Food
If you love food, this is the best way for you to learn Youtube with French. This channel features recipes, food challenges, restaurant reviews, and more. You’ll get to learn a bit about French fast food (yes, there is such a thing!) and will surely have a good laugh as Charles reviews the “worst” kitchen products. With plenty of subtitles in French, you can easily follow along.
3. Bloques
Level: Advanced
Category: Education & Philosophy
If you want to learn French with Youtube but you are already an advanced learner, listen to these couple of dudes sitting on the couch talking. They talk about different topics, from the philosophical (“if I were rich”) to the most mundane. The actors are two hip-hop stars from Normandy, so you’ll learn a bunch of slang and everyday French from over 100 videos.