French native experienced tutor for all levels: beginners, A1 to C2, DELF, GCSE, A level and IB!

Find out more about Anthony

• 1) Do you speak this language fluently because of your origins or because a teacher inspired you to learn?

  I am a native French speaker. I was born in France, my mum is French and I spent the first 12 years of my life there, in a fully French school. Although I have not learnt the language because of this, I have however deepened my understanding of the beauty of the language and literature when I was in sixth form. The teacher who taught me then made me realise that there can be so much beauty and philosophy to be learnt through the analysis of the language. This was not a given as I was much more interested in the sciences, but I now have a soft spot for it and like to share it with others.

• 2) Can you name a living, historical or fictional character that you think is the emblematic representative of the language's culture?

  Victor Hugo is for me the best representation of France that I can think of, and his reach across French culture would make a lot of people agree. He firstly embodies France's rebellious and revolutionary culture, having played a major role in France's second revolution. He fought for the poor and was at the forefront of the fight for equality and freedom, being part of the "parlement" in France. He was first known because of his engaged writing, which is so emblematic and beautifully written that it still sends ripples through society today and globally, with pieces such as "Les Misérables". He was such an iconic figure who was loved across the French population and through social classes, so much so he was one of the only people to ever have places and streets named after him whilst still alive.

• 3) Is there a typical word, phrase, tradition or behavior in the language that you particularly like?

  "Bon appétit" is to me so emblematic that it has to feature here. It embodies the French culture of meals always being a social gathering that can stretch for hours, particularly with family. It is so irreplaceable that the equivalent does not exist in English.

• 4) Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  This language is part of my identity and is the one I use with many of my friends and family. For a long time it was the language I felt most comfortable in, being able to express myself and my feelings most vividly. Because I live in England and much of my work is in English, French for me remains my language of warmth and family, only spoken with the people I am closest with. The culture that it embodies and the countries it always you to visit are part of the reasons why I want to share it with others, tutoring as best as I can.

• 5) What is the main difficulty in learning this language and what can help the process of learning?

  Reading and writing are quite hard because a lot of the grammar and conjugation rules make no sense, which is what I find most of my students struggle with. As odd and counterproductive as it sounds, it is often helpful to turn off logical thinking and just accept things as they are without too much questioning, as otherwise too much time will be spent trying to make sense of things that are not meant to make sense. Another problem, which is not exclusive to French, is the confidence of speaking it. This comes with time, but it is important to practice taking that shame away, remembering that most people won't judge but will rather be amazed by the effort put in.

• 6) Provide a valuable anecdote related to your language learning or your days at school.

  As I haven't "learnt" French, I will talk about an anecdote of learning Spanish. I had been practicing Spanish about 5 minutes a day every day for about a year which lead to substantial improvements from not knowing anything about the language to being able to have very basic conversations. Even though this was still at the very basic level, it was still a lot more than my parents and my sister. We went on a trip together in Spain and I was therefore the only person in the family that could communicate with other people. My sister was so impressed by how helpful my basic Spanish, and how much it allowed us to have a more immersed experience in the culture, that she started learning every day too. She is still learning to this day and we carry on keeping each other motivated and helping each other.

• 7) How has travel or a specific trip helped you to increase your skill and knowledge of the language?

  Again, I will talk about Spanish as I haven't "learnt" French. This same trip to Alicante made me a lot more confident in expressing myself, rather than just reading and writing. Travelling makes you learn much faster and makes the learning a lot more targeted to what is useful day to day. It made me realise very fast the basic parts of the language I needed to learn immediately, and I also learnt the basic expressions which are not traditionally taught or local to the area.

• 8) What makes you a Superprof in language?

  I have always been surrounded by language education. Both my parents have been English and French teachers and private tutors at some points in their lives and as careers. Because of this I am lucky to have many language learning resources as well as my parents expertise. On top of this, I have been tutoring for a long time, having acquired the skills to give the most personalised and targeted experience to each of my tutees. My deep understanding of the French language and my nativeness in English as well make me easy to understand by my tutees as well as knowledgeable about the language and culture. This allows me to tutor at practically all levels with ease.