FAQ

•  How do French lessons work on Skype*?
Once you have downloaded www.skype.com on your computer, and have exchanged usernames with your teacher, on the day and time of your lesson, you just need to be logged in to Skype and the teacher will call you; you'll hear the ring of a telephone and you just need to click on the green button in order to respond. You will then hear your teacher speak. You can either use a headset with a microphone attached, but if you own a recent computer with a built-in microphone, the sound quality should be good enough. At the beginning of the lesson, the teacher will open the Skype chat board option and will type any new vocabulary, corrections, grammar points, etc… so that you can have some visual, textual feedback to complement the audio. The teacher will use the chat board like a black board in a classroom!

At the end of the lesson, you will decide with the teacher directly about the next lesson date.

If you sign up with regular lessons or light lessons, the teacher will send your homework attached in a Word file via email within 24 hours after the lesson.

*Skype is a software application which ables us to make voice calls over the internet. It is free and very easy to use.

•  Do you use the webcam for the lessons?
We don't typically use a webcam unless a child or an adult beginner is taking the lesson. We have noticed that students often have the tendency to focus more on the sounds of the language without the webcam. With the chat board, you will have some visual aid. It is more effective to concentrate on listening comprehension and gain a comfort level with recognising the sounds. Nevertheless, if a student prefers to use the webcam, the teacher will be happy to turn it on.

•  Will I follow a textbook during the lesson time?
Not usually but it depends on the language programme. If you sign up for the DELF/DALF programme, you will have a book assigned and the teacher will choose particular exercises to work from the book during the class time.
With the other programmes (Regular, Light, Conversation, Intensive), we usually work with you on helping you gain better verbal expression and comprehension during the lesson time. Any new grammar point will also be taught during the lesson time and followed with immediate verbal practice. For homework, the teacher will provide you with practical work on the grammatical constructions and vocabulary that you've recently gone over in the lesson. Most students' objective is to gain a comfortable level of speaking and understanding. Nevertheless, we customize each programme to the student's objective, so a book might be needed during the lesson time.

•  How do I get more information and sign up for a programme?
You need to fill out the following contact form: Contact form
Once we've received the form, one of the main teachers will send you an email to set up a Skype or telephone appointment. During this short conversation, you and the teacher will define your objectives and your current level of French, and the teacher will suggest a programme that will best help you meet your objectives.
If you then decide to move forward with the programme, Learn French at Home will send an email to you with an invoice attached along with the payment links. Then a second email will be sent to you including the teacher's details and the confirmation date for the first lesson.

The different payment options are as following:

•  If you reside in France , you can send a cheque.

•  A bank transfer.

•  Credit Card or Paypal.

•  When registering for classes, what is the minimum commitment?
4 lessons.

•  Do I have to have the lesson on the same day and time every week?
No, we try to be as flexible as possible. At the end of each lesson, you will decide directly with the teacher on the next lesson date and time. If you need to skip a week or more because of your work, vacation time, etc., that's no problem; you just need to let the teacher know in advance.

•  What is the difference between the Regular programme and the Intensive programme?
The Intensive programme needs to be taken within a week's time: 5 consecutive days. Each lesson is followed with 1 hour of homework.
With the Regular lesson, you can take the lessons at your pace (1 or more lessons per week, skip a week if needed...) and there is a bit more homework assigned (usually 1h30).

•  Is it possible to do a combination of Regular lessons and Conversation Sessions?
Absolutely! The student may book a programme with 2 types of lessons and take them alternatively...The minimum number of lessons to book is 4; therefore it is possible to sign up for 2 Regular lessons and 2 Conversation sessions.

•  I'm a complete beginner; can I book one of your programmes?
Yes, we've had many beginners at Learn French at Home. At this point, you will need to start with the Regular programme as it will be important to do some homework in between the lessons.

•  What material do I need to purchase for the homework?
With the Regular lessons and Light lessons, we will ask you to order 2 e-books (‘Say it with a French Accent e-book' + ‘Live like a French person' e-book). These 2 e-books include many scenarios with audio links. The teacher will assign some specific scenarios for you to listen to in order to practice your listening and comprehension skills. This is focused listening. The total cost for the 2 e-books is 20 euros. Depending on your level and on your needs, we might also ask you to purchase a grammar book called ‘Grammaire Progressive du Français' from Clé International. This book can be purchased on Amazon.

For more information on the e-books:, please click here
We offer a lower price for our students.

•  The connexion on Skype can be a bit unstable at times? What can I do?
If the connexion is unstable, we suggest that, if possible, you use a wired connection to your modem with an Ethernet cable, rather than using the Wi-Fi system. With the cable, you should experience excellent stability.

•  I don't have a French keyboard, how can I type the accents?
We can suggest a couple of alternatives. You can either:

•  Download the following software and application - With the Avisoft Accentype2 toolbar you simply click the relevant character on the toolbar and it is automatically inserted into your document: http://www.avisoft.co.uk/Accentype2/Accentype2.htm

•  Use the following keyboard with the letters and accents to type your homework, your letters or your texts; then copy the text onto a Word file: http://french.typeit.org/

•  What is the cancellation policy for scheduled lessons?
If you need to postpone an already scheduled lesson, you need to send a message to your teacher at least 24 hours before the scheduled lesson. The class can then be postponed to a latter date.

•  How can I renew for more lessons?
Please send a message to your advisor and she will send to you a new invoice via email for the number of lessons you wish to renew for.

•  Outside of the lessons, do you have any useful tips on learning French?
Yes – please read the following article: http://www.learnfrenchathome.com/tips.htm

•  Can I take the DELF/DALF exam at your school?
We prepare the student to pass the exam but you will have to take it at one of the registered exam centres – to find the nearest one to you, click on the following link: http://www.ciep.fr/en/delfdalf/annuaire_centres.php

•  What is the ‘Question du Jour' on your forum? How can I join?
As a student of Learn French at Home, you will be able to join the forum and respond to a Question du Jour posted by a different teacher Monday thru Friday. The purpose of the Question du Jour is to give students extra exposure to the language and to provide the opportunity to learn from his or her mistakes as well as from the other student's mistakes! For more information, click here: http://learnfrenchathome.alldiscussion.net/index.htm

• Can I choose my teacher?
We usually appoint a teacher who will be most suitable to help you reach your objectives and according to your availability to take the lesson. If you wish a particular teacher for any reason, we will see if he or she available according to your schedule.
If you reside in the US , we will most likely appoint a French native teacher living in Canada or in the US .

•  Do you teach other languages?
We have teachers who also teach German, Spanish and English. The same conditions apply as the French programmes.

•  How were the French teachers at Learn French at Home selected?
The teachers are selected based on their past teaching experience, their university degree, their ability to speak and understand English very well, their patience, their flexibility and adaptable teaching style, their positive attitude, their gentle personality, their communication skills, and their overall cultural knowledge of the world.

•  What if I am not comfortable with my teacher's style of teaching? Or what if we don't seem to get along well during the lesson time?
For any issues or any discomfort of any kind, please send us an email and the main teacher, Céline, will get back to you very shortly in order to discuss the situation.
The conclusion might be that we will need to appoint you a new teacher.

•  Do you offer some certificate or evaluation after a certain number of lessons?
After every 12th lesson, the teacher will write up an evaluation on your French level: what you have learned so far, your strength in the language and the path to follow in order to continue to progress.

•  What makes you different from the other services that offer French lessons via Skype?
The following strong points make Learn French at Home a serious and devoted French learning school:

1.We are a serious and caring institution where the teachers work in a team with constant access to advice and in-house resources.
2. The teachers are carefully selected and are trained to truly personalise their lessons to the students' objectives and pace of learning.
3. We truly understand the challenges in learning another language – every teacher has gone through the process of becoming fluent in another language. We know what it takes and have the patience needed.
4. The management of Learn French at Home follows up directly with the students to make sure that they are constantly progressing.
5. The teachers respond quickly to any questions the student may have in between the lessons.
6. Most schools don't offer homework follow up, but we do! We find it important to encourage the students to complete the assigned homework and each assignment is also corrected by the teacher and promptly returned to the student.
7. We also offer extra work for the student via the Question du Jour which is a unique service!
8. Learn French at Home also has an in-house magazine in order to continue to help expatriates adapt in French life and give another resource to practice French. For more info about French Accent Magazine , click here: http://www.frenchaccentmagazine.com

•  Can I get a refund for any reasons?
We offer a refund if the student has a sudden health issue which makes it too difficult for the student to continue taking any further lessons. If there is any another important issue which makes the continuation impossible, then you need to send us a message and we will get back to you to see what we can do.