Coffee Break French
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Course Outline
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Title: |
Coffee Break French
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| Level: | Beginners / False beginners through to Intermediate | ||
| Presenter: | Presented by teacher Mark and student Anna | ||
| Number of episodes: | 80 lessons of 15-20 minutes each | ||
| Links: | Step by Step Guide | Lesson library | Subscribe in iTunes | RSS | ||
| Active or Archive? | Archive: broadcast between October 2007 and May 2010 | ||
| Coffee Break French is our flagship French language course, aimed at beginners, and continuing through to intermediate learners. Coffee Break French is delivered in 15-20 minute lessons, perfect for a coffee break! Weekly lessons guide listeners through the French language, building confidence, excellent pronunciation and accuracy. | |||
Join hundreds of thousands of French learners from all around the world and learn French with Coffee Break French. Teacher Mark brings his experience of teaching the language to each show, and listeners can learn alongside student Anna. Visit our lesson library where you can access free audio files to get a taste of the course. Comprehensive support materials are available in our bonus season passes.
Bonus materials and pricing
While it is possible to learn a significant amount of French from our free audio materials, the full Coffee Break French course is made up of a variety of support materials forming Season Passes. Each Season Pass can include different types of support materials:
- Lesson guides: printable lesson guides in pdf format which explain the words and phrases covered in each lesson, provide transcripts of any dialogues and list bonus vocabulary. You can download sample lesson guides for lesson 1 and lesson 2.
- Enhanced podcasts: perhaps you are a visual learner and you’d like to be able to see the words and phrases as you listen. The enhanced podcasts provide synchronised ‘flashcards’ which can be viewed on iPods, iPhones, iTunes and QuickTime Player on both Macs and PCs. Download a sample enhanced podcast for lesson 1 here. Please note that you require iTunes or QuickTime Player to view the enhanced podcast.
- Bonus listening materials: every single lesson of Coffee Break French comes with an extra podcast which provides further practice of the language covered in the main lesson. Normally lasting around 8-10 minutes, this additional listening material helps you to consolidate the words and phrases you’ve learned in each lesson and in later episodes it provides an excellent method of checking your understanding through an interactive translation test. You can download a sample of the bonus listening materials for lesson 1 here.
- Abridged versions: with Coffee Break French we present each episode with an introduction and ending, often providing news about developments among the Radio Lingua learning community. If you prefer, you can use the abridged version of the materials which skip straight to the learning content.
- Wordlists: sometimes you simply need a handy list of words and phrases to help you practise when you’re away from your computer or iPod. We provide alphabetical lists of the vocabulary covered in groups of lessons, eg. lessons 1-5, 6-10, etc. in English-French and French-English versions. We also provide a ‘dictionary’ of all the phrases from the entire level, eg. lessons 1-40, an excellent reference for learners. All word lists are in pdf format and are easily printable.
- Exercises: when learning a language it’s important to check your understanding. Our worksheet pack provides a range of exercises which test your understanding. Full answers are provided.
- No ads: in some areas our podcasts feature carefully chosen adverts which we feel are appropriate for an educational podcast. The premium versions of our materials never carry adverts.
Coffee Break French Premium Products:
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Level 1 Platinum Pass: £57 GBP (+ 17.5% VAT for EU customers)This bundle pack covers lessons 1-40 and each lesson contains the following materials:
Choose this option if you’re planning a visit to a French-speaking country and want to learn how to communicate in French in a variety of travel situations including making friends, eating and drinking, accommodation, shopping, tourism, and more. Proceed to our store now and purchase Coffee Break French 1 or if you already have a Radio Lingua membership, access your Control Panel to add this Pass to your membership. |
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Level 2A + 2B Bundle Gold Pass: £84 GBP (+ 17.5% VAT for EU customers)This bundle pack covers lessons 41-80* and each lesson contains the following materials:
Level 2 materials will help you learn much more of the language, and you’ll be able to “say what you want”, in addition to learning the words and phrases included in level 1. You’ll learn how to speak about the past and the future, and you’ll become confident in describing people and things. Proceed to our store now and purchase Coffee Break French 2A + 2B or if you already have a Radio Lingua membership, access your Control Panel to add this Pass to your membership. |
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Level 2B Gold Pass: £47 GBP (+ 17.5% VAT for EU customers)If you’ve been following Coffee Break French and would like the premium materials for lessons 61-80, this pass is for you. It covers lessons 61-80* and each lesson contains the following materials:
Choose this option if you’ve been following Coffee Break French for some time and are have already purchased level 2A.Proceed to our store now and purchase Coffee Break French 2B or access your Control Panel to add this Pass to your membership. |
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The Complete course: levels 1, 2A and 2B bundle: £99 GBP (+17.5% VAT for EU customers)This bundle pack covers lessons 1-80* and each lesson contains the following materials:
Choose this option if you’re serious about learning French and want to make a real difference to your experience visiting the country. Lessons 1-40 will introduce you gradually to the words and phrases you need to know and will provide the opportunity for you to become more familiar with the language through authentic conversations. Lessons 41-80 will help you understand the language much more by teaching you the patterns and the grammar in a very straightforward way. You’ll learn how to speak about the past and the future, and you’ll become confident in describing people and things. Proceed to our store now and purchase Coffee Break French 1+2 or access your Control Panel to add this Pass to your membership. |
We also offer passes at bronze and silver levels if you’d like to sample our content. Once you’re a member, you can upgrade to the gold or platinum passes at any time through your Control Panel. There are options to suit every budget and the Level 1 Season Pass (lessons 1-40) starts at just £27 GBP. Full details of what each Season Pass provides can be found in the table below. To purchase any of our Season Passes, please click on the link in the “Cost” column below. Please note that all products are sold in £GBP and that 17.5% VAT is added for EU customers. For an approximate equivalent in your own currency, please use our currency convertor.
| Season Pass Level 1: lessons 1-40 | |||||||||
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| Cost | Audio files | Lesson guide | Enhanced podcast | Bonus listening | Abridged | Wordlists | Exercises | Buy | |
| Free version | Free |
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| Bronze | £27 GBP |
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| Silver | £37 GBP | |
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| Gold | £47 GBP | |
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| Platinum | £57 GBP | |
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Level 2A covers lessons 41-60.
| Season Pass Level 2A: lessons 41-60 | |||||||||
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| Cost | Audio files | Lesson guide | Enhanced podcast | Bonus listening | Abridged | Wordlists | Exercises | Buy | |
| Free version | Free |
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| Silver | £37 GBP | |
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| Gold | £47 GBP | |
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Level 2B covers lessons 61-80. These lessons are being published weekly between July and December 2009. Note that if you purchase this Season Pass, you will gain access to the lessons which have been published at the date of purchase and all other lessons will be delivered automatically through the podcast feed until lesson 80, due to be published in December 2009.
| Season Pass Level 2B: lessons 61-80 | |||||||||
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| Cost | Audio files | Lesson guide | Enhanced podcast | Bonus listening | Abridged | Wordlists | Exercises | ||
| Free version | Free |
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| Bronze | £27 GBP |
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| Silver | £37 GBP | |
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| Gold | £47 GBP | |
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Having problems? Just click on the price in one of the tables above and this will take you to our secure payment page where you can purchase your Season Pass by credit card or through Paypal. If you have any further questions about purchasing our Season Passes, don’t hesitate to contact us. |
Also Available: Coffee Break French Express
For additional listening practice we also have the Coffee Break French Express mini-series which features a collection of recordings between Mark and Mélanie from Strasbourg. These recordings are aimed a listeners who have completed level 1 of Coffee Break French and are similar in style and level to the conversations in lessons 31-40 of Coffee Break French. You can purchase Coffee Break French Express here, or log in to your Control Panel and add the product there.
Listeners’ testimonials
Don’t take our word for it – read what Coffee Break French listeners have to say about the show. All reviews are taken from iTunes UK and US. If you’ve been watching the series, perhaps you would consider writing a review in iTunes yourself.
Like its sister podcast, Coffee Break Spanish, this French version proves to be another hit for Radio Lingua and rightfully so! The enhanced podcasts are really helpful and all the extra bonus materials really enhance the learning experience. Mark paces his lessons well, audio quality of the podcast is excellent, he keeps things clear and simple and his voice is quite soothing. Anna is great too and I do like the concept of someone else learning with you. All in all a very well-rounded podcast. It takes the pressure off being in a real class because it can be quite daunting for some especially when learning a foreign language. I get to learn French in the comforts of my own home at my own pace before attending courses or on holiday in a French-speaking country. deaddisco, iTunes UK, October 07
I tried a couple of other French podcasts before this one but found that they moved too fast for me or expected my learning ability to be intermediate plus. I haven’t studied French since GCSEs (10 years ago), and so my knowledge was very basic. CBF’s pace gave me the confidence to build up my skills and the lessons are all really applicable to the real world. Hanabat, iTunes UK, July 08
A fun and thorough way to learn. I started Coffee Break French as an absolute beginner, albeit for a few random holiday phrases, and in just a few months I am surprised at how much I can say. A French friend recently complemented me on having a good range of phrases and on my excellent prounciation. All thanks to this podcast. jackregancatholicyouthworker, iTunes UK, January 09
The best language-learning tool on the market. Forget those expensive CDs and books until you’ve exhausted this podcast series. This is simply the best language-learning tool available on the market and what’s more it’s free for the basic podcast download. What have you got to lose? TheBobbites, iTunes UK, January 09
I’ve been using this series to recall my old high school French. It is not an immersion class, so that means I can listen without struggling while walking or exercising, and still focus on the concepts, vocabulary and grammar. The topics are well chosen, and beautifully presented by our two delightful hosts whose French accents are very good – another thing I’m looking for. Not too much, not too little, not too long, not too short – like a good cup of coffee, it’s just right! soozie, iTunes US, January 09
Really Awesome Podcast. I just discovered podcasts last week and have been addicted to the Coffee Break French podcast ever since. I’ve listened to 11 lessons in the past week. I love Mark and Anna. The dynamic between them both is so charming and professional and the fact that Anna is also learning makes me feel more comfortable in my difficulties learning pronunciation. They are so much fun to listen to, with those adorable Scottish accents, and their French accents are amazing. This podcast is great for beginners and the pace is perfect. SDIana, iTunes US, March 08
As an experienced teacher of EFL and an experienced learner of Spanish I am impressed by how this podcast integrates the principles of communicative language teaching with the realistic needs of beginners, especially those with time constraints. While most research show that total immersion is the most effective way to learn a language, in my experience many beginners are overwhelmed and confused by courses conducted entirely in their L2 causing them to despair and quit. albarto, iTunes US, Mar 08