Five Free French Resources for Homeschool Language Learning
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Around these parts, I tend to share a lot of homeschool Spanish resources, especially given our family’s own bilingual homeschool, but I also know that there are many homeschool families in the Language Learning At Home community who are studying French, and if that’s you, I want to ensure that you don't feel left out! So today, I’m recommending a few high quality, FREE resources (listed alphabetically) that are available for homeschool French learners. These include materials for all ages and levels of language proficiency, from true beginner to the more advanced French homeschool student. And while none of these resources qualifies as a complete French curriculum, based on my experience with them, I can personally guarantee that they are effective and convenient tools for homeschool language learning.
BBC Kids Primary Languages (French)
Target Age: Elementary school and up (requires reading in French)
Target Level: Beginner and up
The BBC Primary Languages site is a comprehensive website that offers basic instruction in French—including vocabulary and grammar—and offers free games, videos, and other activities to reinforce French language skills. The site is kid-friendly and easy-to-navigate, and I think that it’s perfect for introducing French study to elementary-aged students, and perhaps even those a bit younger, with parental support. Through this site, kids can choose to learn about French food, families, the French calendar, and other thematic units. I especially like the cultural learning tidbits included in each of these units, which gives students insight into daily life in France and helps show them the broader purpose of language learning.
Conjugeuemos
Target Age: Elementary school and up (requires reading in French)
Target Level: Beginner and up
Conjuguemos is a language learning website packed with French language games that your homeschool student can use to practice verb conjugations, new vocabulary, and tricky grammar rules like “savior versus connaitre.” It is easy to navigate and helps students retain what they learn by reviewing their mistakes and providing explanations for the correct answers—and the games are just plain fun, even for older students! When I was teaching at UVA, my undergraduates often used Conjuguemos to practice before exams, and always found it very helpful. For students needing additional instruction, Conjuguemos also provides a reference section with clear, straightforward explanations of French verb tenses and how they function. If you’re looking for an easy way to help your French language learner schedule deliberate practice, planning for ten minutes a day of Conjuguemos.com review is a good way to start.
Duolingo
Target Age: Middle school and up
Target Level: Beginner and up
Duolingo is a gameified language learning app that can help your homeschool student learn French on-the-go through short, daily practice sessions. Duolingo is based on a communicative model of language teaching, so it focuses on getting your child to use French from the start and skips the long, technical grammar lessons. It’s fun to use and its game-based structure provides plenty of motivation for French learners, so I recommend it as a great way to sneak in French practice throughout your homeschool day. If you’d like to learn more, I’ve written an extensive review of Duolingo for homeschool language learning, which fully outlines what I love (and what I don’t like) about the app as both a homeschooling mom and a language educator.
French Baby Flashcards
Target Age: Toddler and up
Target level: Beginner and up
Finally, a free app to help you with homeschool language learning for littles! French Baby Flashcards, available for both Android and iOS devices, will help your child learn 450 key French vocabulary words, giving them a solid foundation for their language learning journey! The words are clearly organized by category—ABCs, numbers, vehicles, animals, etc.—and pronunciation is provided by a native French speaker, which makes these a VERY convenient tool for homeschooling parents who don’t speak French! If you prefer physical flashcards for your young children, I highly recommend Linguacious visual flashcards, which also provide audio integration (and are perfect to use for these fun, no-prep language learning games).
Mango Languages
Target Age: Middle school and up
Target Level: Beginner and up
Mango Languages is a popular language learning program that is available for free through many public libraries. Through its innovative multimedia platform, Mango Languages helps homeschool students build proficiency in reading, writing, listening and even speaking in Spanish. I like Mango for it’s mix of communicative practice and direct instruction—which it includes to teach homeschool students the basic grammar rules of the Spanish language. If you’d like ideas on how to use this software most effectively in your homeschool, see my complete review of Mango Languages for homeschool language learning here.
If you have more free resources to recommend, please let me know—I’m always looking for more French learning resources to recommend to homeschool families!
