French is a popular language to learn in Singapore. If you want to learn French in Singapore, there are several language schools at which you can join a French course:

- French Toast at Thomson

- Spring College at Bishan and Jurong East

- Globibo at Bugis

- InLingua at Orchard

- Agape at Novena

While French language may not be very prominent in English speaking Singapore or in Asia as a whole, don't underestimate the significance of French language. Once the sole language of intellectuals and diplomacy, it still holds an important place in international politics right next to English. Wherever you go, you will always find a community that speaks French as a second language, and that definitely holds true for Singapore.

Some tips for learning French
I learnt French in Dutch high school for 4 years. I can't say I ever got fluent, but I'm still able to read and understand quite a bit of French. You'll find that I'm not quite in favour of the very 'scholarly' learning method that was adopted in school, since it can be much more fun to learn French when you start to apply it right away.

French pronunciation
When you start to learn French, spend enough time on getting your pronunciation right. This is the most difficult part, because things are not quite what they seem. Some letters are usually dropped and French is a very auditory language (it has to sound nice), making the French connect words all across the sentence, quite unlike German or Spanish. Record yourself if needed, and compare yourself to audio recordings of native speakers, such as through FrenchPod. Download some French songs ("chansons") among which you'll find some jewels, search for the text on internet and try to sing along.

French grammar
To learn French, you'll have to somehow get through the grammar. My own memories aren't so pleasant, though it may be because of the teaching method that highly emphasised grammatical correctness rather than being able to express oneself in spoken and written French.

The verb inflections come to mind as well as the large number of exceptions to any rule there is. French has a male and female article and adjectives are also affected by this. Take note of whether a word is masculin ('le' or 'un' as an article) or feminine ('la' or 'une') when you learn the words. Make a sentence with each new word you learn. Then just trust on your feelings. Even if you use the wrong article you will be understood. And whether you use the wrong or the right one, people will know anyway that you are not a native. That said, do try to use the correct article and ask people around you (and your teacher) to correct you if you make a mistake.

Check out the currently available French courses in Singapore!

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