If you’ve tried any of the best learn French software packages, and want to brush up on your skills, vocabulary is a good place to start. While TeachMe! French covers some of the learning content we looked for, other factors make it a weak option. Practically speaking, it’s a good program to brush up on any French you already know, but it’s not a good start for beginners. There’s little commonality between lessons and content, making this program feel more like an interactive French-English dictionary than a whole French course. For these reasons, TeachMe! French does not make our list of the top French software programs.
TeachMe! French covers several different types of lessons such as vocabulary, grammar, stories and pronunciation. You can adjust settings to change the difficulty of the program during the exercises. The program sets to the easier Auto Word Mode by default, which only requires you to type the first letter of the vocabulary word. This setting isn’t challenging once you learn the vocabulary. If you want to write out the whole word, you have to switch to Normal Mode.
The vocabulary and grammar sections are extremely similar. Both sections prompt you with a series of words or phrases. The grammar section covers topics like plurals or gendered nouns, and the prompts are usually phrases rather than the single words given in the vocabulary section. The program explains grammatical rules only briefly, and the given words aren’t always related. Through these exercises, TeachMe French builds your vocabulary and demonstrates the rules of French grammar. While these skills are useful, the program does not teach you how to carry on a conversation. For more conversational instruction, we recommend Rosetta Stone French because it teaches you all aspects of the language. If you need to learn business vocabulary, we recommend Instant Immersion French because it has an entire section focused on business language.
The pronunciation section follows a simple listen, record and rate formula. As we tested the program, there were several times the spoken word did not match the written prompt, and the accuracy meter is inconsistent throughout. Translations to words only appear if you hover over them, and the words listed have little to do with other chapters or activities.
TeachMe is the only program with a designated reading section. Other programs challenge your reading skills in other ways, but TeachMe provides a whole story to read. Once you select a story written in French, you must fill in the blanks with a series of French words. This activity develops your reading comprehension and allows you to see vocabulary in context. However, many of the words in the reading section aren’t included in the vocabulary section, making it this activity a guessing game at first because the words aren’t familiar.
TeachMe French is an adequate language learning program that builds vocabulary and teaches basic grammar rules. However, you cannot truly master French using this program alone. Not only does it lack advanced features – it doesn’t even cover all the basics. For instance, there is no conversation practice in the program. It can be quite useful for getting a basic grasp of the language, but TeachMe can't carry you as far as many other learn French programs can.
