It is to the same method as I headed for learning the language of Goethe, and here I can say that the results I obtained are impressive. Before starting my apprenticeship, I knew only two words in German "Null" and "Vier" (for those who know Schalke 04) but a little over 8 months later, I made a trip to Austria and j 'was able to speak with people everywhere, airport, hotel, restaurants and shops in simple language and they understood me very well. I also began to regularly watch shows on German channels and sometimes I get the gist of a documentary or reportage and retain a lot of useful expressions.
I do not claim to be bilingual, of course, it's not doing 100 hours of learning that becomes but having already learned three languages, including French and become bilingual in that language almost before I j 'arrives the first time in France there are 2 and a half years, I can say that after this method Assimil we will have taken a giant step in this direction very, why? Well, when I started to learn French by myself, it took me 3 years to reach the level I reached in German in six months, however, from a country more or less " French "(but whose French is not an official language), French was much more present in my life that was German during my apprenticeship. My method of learning French was rather chaotic, I watched French films subtitled in French, trying to make the links between what is said and what is written while serving my dictionaries to grasp their meaning. It was tiring and slow but in the end I have ever watched a movie and learned a few words and phrases. I also read simple texts, watching cartoons, documentaries, etc to improve my level of oral and written comprehension.
Having a method that offers a bilingual text, the text in the target language pronunciation, detailed grammar explanations and intelligently progressive, interesting vocabulary, idiomatic expressions at will, systematic and regular reviews and in addition to cultural notes and all that in a humorous style was therefore a paradise for me.
I think consistency is essential to make the most of this method, you are not obliged to 100 lessons in 3 months and 10 days (personally I made over a period of more than 5 months) but if you do not have time to make a new lesson, review it in the last two or three is listening again that, in the records.
Speaking of records, this is a key ingredient to your learning, it is essential that you obtain them before you start because you can:
* Understand the spoken language.
- To pronounce correctly.
- You remember a lot easier vocabulary and idiomatic expressions (you will see it is terribly effective).
- Step away from the pleasure of learning (I broke through these records;)).
The level I reached after finishing the book was B1 and B2 not (see Wikipedia for more information knew these level). The publisher is free to put what they want on the cover but IMHO he exaggerates a little. B2 is a truly advanced level which I think is difficult to achieve at the end of this method for the following reasons:
- Records are a few facts of too great way to really be the case in real life, yet I remain totally agree with the fact that they have to be made that way.
- Vocabulary, though significant, is simply not up to the promised level.
However, what deserves to be mentioned is the level that is achieved in grammar and language structures: I've got a C1 by two different tests which is pretty good for languages known for its grammatical complications and many exceptions. With that, I think it will really take off level.
In conclusion, I highly recommend this method. Be regular in your learning, listen extensively records (nowadays it is more difficult to do so in the most unimaginable places;)) and revise regularly and your success is almost guaranteed.
Many thanks to Maria Roemer, the author of this book.
