Fun French With Julia

At the beginning of 2015 I decided to double down on my commitment to speak French because I wanted to be able to communicate with my French girlfriend in her native language. I had spent about a year working through the Pimsleur program every day on my commute to work, and I had learned some basics and had decent pronunciation, but I didn’t feel closer to having an actual conversation. After watching this video (
) I decided that I needed a «Language Parent.» As explained in the video, it is probably best if this person is not your partner.
This is when I started working with Julia. She is an awesome teacher, patient, funny, and easy to work with. She started me on a workbook, but she also works in pertinent fun exercises from the internet.
As other reviewers have mentioned, learning a new language is mostly based on how much effort you put into it. Julia will help you find your way down this path.

I took lessons with Julia for a few months to polish up my French before visiting France on my honeymoon. She is such a fun, patient teacher! The sessions always flew by and she was very professional and well-​prepared. I felt very comfortable speaking when I got to France, thanks to Julia’s efforts! I recommend Julia to anyone who is looking to improve their French or learn the language!

I’ve been meeting with Julia for more than a year now with the goal of improving my conversational French. While that goal requires a commitment and some homework outside of our weekly sessions, I would say that the word «fun» in the name «Fun French with Julia» definitely applies when it comes to her tutoring.
Julia works hard to mix up the instruction so that you don’t get bored. We started out with a French workbook accompanied by videos, and these were entertaining enough in their own right, but we’ve graduated to much more. Julia continually searches for interesting material online to match my skill level and keep me engaged. She’s found some great YouTube videos that show that learning a language need not come at the expense of humor and variety.
As our work has progressed, Julia and I have met occasionally at a French restaurant or two to get a change of pace and to learn from a different environment. We have even been to see the popular Belgian singer Stromae in concert here in the Bay Area. These sorts of French cultural diversions have definitely put the fun in French for me.
Again, you will get out of the French instruction by Julia what you put into it. My homework assignments initially revolved around grammar and writing as a means to refresh the French instruction that I had in high school and college, but we have focused more of our attention of late on comprehension of the spoken word and my ability to express myself better in conversation. A big help to me has been to use the Quizlet tool that Julia set me up with to learn hundreds of new vocabulary words in flash-​card style.
It’s not always easy after a hard day’s work to switch gears and start speaking French, but Julia goes a long way to making this pleasurable by being affable and easy to talk to with a sense of humor and colorful commentary about life in the Bay Area. She has a casual approach, yet is serious about what she does. She will draw you in by sharing her life so that you are eager to share yours. She enunciates very clearly, of course, and has an excellent grasp of both French and English.
Julia is willing to meet you at your particular level of French and help you reach your special goals. She will correct your errors but never in a disapproving way. Slowly but surely over the past year or so, I have found myself improving in my ability to converse in French, and I have found the mental activity to be stimulating and satisfying. It’s been great getting to know Julia as a person and to have her as an instructor.

Julia is a fantastic French teacher! I needed to learn a lot of conversational french before going to Montréal, and after ten sessions I feel way more confident in my vocabulary and grammar and ability to understand others. She’s thorough, methodical, consistent, friendly and helpful. I can’t recommend her enough!

I’ve been taking French lessons with Julia for 8 months now (and still going), and I have learned so much more with her than I ever did in any language class I’ve ever taken (eight years combined between Spanish and German)! We started from the beginning with French, and already I am more comfortable speaking and writing than I ever was with another language. Part of it is motivation on my part, but a large part of it is Julia’s way of teaching too. I’m a full-​time student who works part-​time, but lessons with Julia don’t feel like another class. She really does make learning French fun and is encouraging for me to keep working on it (so much so I’d rather put off all my other work in lieu of French usually)!
Lessons with Julia are far better than any classroom setting for a few reasons. First, it’s personal, so we’ve gotten to know each other and it’s a really relaxed learning environment, while still remaining structured. Second, she tailors the lessons to your speed and level, so if you’re having a busy week or struggling with a concept, it’s OK. Third, she incorporates fun assignments on the side (some videos, stories on the culture, and my favorite — French rap), so you can start to understand how the language flows. That’s especially been helpful with grammar and syntax, because honestly that gets so dry on its own, but she keeps it interesting. It hasn’t just been a bunch of memorization and regurgitation; she’s teaching me useful skills and helping me to build a solid foundation for French. Most importantly, though, she just got me speaking and writing, so I started thinking in French, and little by little I’ve gotten more comfortable and confident with the language.
After the first four months of lessons, I went and stayed with a friend in Paris for a month, and I was comfortable enough getting around on my own and making myself understood for basic things — I even impressed their family with having learned some French, and improving during my stay! Mind you, I was far from perfect, but who cares when you are trying and can actually communicate with people in their language in their country? I am moving to Paris in a couple months now and I feel (excited and nervous, of course, but) confident enough to land on my feet and immerse myself in the language and culture!

I recently started taking French lessons with Julia and I have to say she is the most well-​organized, efficient, and professional language teacher I’ve had.
1) She keeps track of lessons through Evernote so that you can see what you’ve covered and includes links to resources/​homework. This is incredibly helpful for me since I can see everything that I am supposed to do and access all resources in one place. She will also record her reading aloud parts of the book so you know how it should sound.
2) She uses a very engaging mix of coursebook material, online flashcards, and media resources. I don’t have an infinite amount of time on my hands to learn French and thanks to Julia, I can maximize the time I do have effectively. It’s really thoughtful that Julia has already found good existing resources to save students time — like Quizlet flashcards on book vocabulary.
3) Her lessons are structured in very concrete sections without feeling stale. They consist of reviewing old material, listening comprehension, reading aloud, and new grammar. It’s logical and builds really nicely. And the book she uses to begin with (EZ French) is probably my favorite language workbook I’ve ever used.
And most importantly, she is really encouraging and makes me not feel like an idiot when I try to pronounce French. I am a beginner and even though I have studied other romance languages, I get self-​conscious trying to pronounce French because of how incredibly hard and seemingly non-​phonetic it is. But practicing with Julia makes me feel much braver and excited for my upcoming trip to France!

Julia is awesome! Julia is easy going and has laid back approach that makes you feel confident and secure. She was always patient and gave me positive feed back. If you take her class you will learn French through different types of mediums for all types of learners. Julia was willing to work with my scheduling needs. I love her and I’m sure you will too.

I love my French lessons with Julia! I’m a complete beginner with some knowledge of Spanish, nearing the end of my 10-​lessons. I’m amazed at how much I have already learned, and will for sure be buying more lessons to continue the process.
Learning a new language has truly been such a great stress relief. It is a complete departure from my daily routine at work and uses my brain in such a different way. The private tutor structure of these lessons has been the perfect way for me to pick up on the French language. It works for me because I can go at my own pace (and Julia is very good about slowing down or speeding up if you need it), and if I travel I don’t miss any classes as I would if I had enrolled at a normal class with a rigid schedule.
Most of all, Julia is really fun. We laugh a lot and have really enjoyable classes. She doesn’t make you feel bad if you do not remember something learned in previous lessons. She is there to help and make sure you are progressing at your own pace.
Highly recommend!

Julia is terrific. I signed up for a 10-​class series with my partner to prep for our vacation to France. Julia really is fun — witty, engaged, and patient. She took us through basic conversational vocab and grammar. She uses a lot of different resources, so you can pick what works best for you. No matter what your level, she’ll work with you and make learning French enjoyable.

Julia is formidable! I hold her very dear in my heart as she was an essential piece to my wedding. I am French and recently got married to my american husband. I asked Julia to be my official translator during the nuptial ceremony, and she did a fantastic job as I could not have hoped for better. She rightfully translated the words that the officiant selected and even made them sound better in French! My family and I were delighted by her work. I would recommend Julia to anyone who is looking for a faithful translation of French documents into English, and truthfully for an awesome translation of any kind of event you might plan.
I can only imagine how fun her French lessons actually are! I love her personality and will recommend her to anyone who is looking to do anything French related, that being translation work related or learning the French language!
Merci Julia!

Julia est tres magnifique! She starts with the basics, even if you have a background. And this is for good reason. If you’re like me, with 5 years of French classes from an American who spent a few summers in France, it pays to start from the beginning, with Julia. She wants you to know the intricacies of the language.
And she’s fun! Julia’s got a great sense of humor, fantastic English and she will cater your lessons to what you really want to learn. She’s got a variety of curriculum that creates a diverse schedule — keeping you engaged and entertained.
Lessons are in two locations. One in the Sunset and one in the Mission. I meet her at a café so it’s cozy with snacks and quiet enough that we dont have to worry about disturbing others (or feeling self-​conscious about fluency).
I’ve take 10 lessons and just booked 10 more.

Julia is great! I’ve been taking classes with her once a week for a few months now. I’m applying to teach English in France, and she was very helpful with the whole application process. She gives me lots of different things to do each lesson, such as some grammar, listening to music, and even watching a little comedy routine. She’s very nice and friendly and is accommodating of my schedule.

I am beginning a masters program in Paris, France and having had no previous French language experience, I decided to take an intensive course during the summer before leaving for Paris. I found Julia’s contact information online and left her a message.
She called back within a couple of days and we agreed upon 20 classes during the course of about 2 ½ months. In that time, Julia not only taught me basic French language skills, she also improved my confidence and helped to prepare me for my arrival to Paris.
Julia is extremely flexible in terms of her schedule, and she responds quickly to any questions or concerns. Her teaching style is both relaxed and efficient, and she can make an hour lesson go by very quickly.
In addition to being easy to talk to, Julia adapted our classes to my specific needs. She brought helpful materials from various sources — including the internet — and she knew how to identify and then work with me to improve upon the areas in which I had difficulty.
If you want individual attention with someone who is experienced, entertaining, reliable, affordable and fun, call Julia.

I’ve been taking classes with her for a little less than a year now and I couldn’t be more pleased. I had taken french in high school, but I had always been eager to learn more and get a level good enough that I could have a conversation with someone. I looked at language schools, but I didn’t think that any of them could really adapt to my needs, so I looked for a private tutor and I came across Julia, and I am so glad I did!!! In very little time, I could feel that I was getting better in grammar, listening, speaking, everything! She works around your schedule, and adapts to whatever level you find yourself in by customizing her lessons to your needs and what you want to learn. I also love her style of teaching, it’s really fun, and she’s a really nice person! I would totally recommend her to anyone, you won’t regret it ;)

For over a year now, I have been taking private French lessons with Julia for 2 – 3 hours a week. She is a very patient teacher and does a great job of customizing the curriculum to my learning style. We often meet by my office during lunch hours or closer to my home, and she always tries to accommodate my schedule and location. I highly recommend Julia over other learning institutions because she really provides the attention I need while staying competitive in cost to other private instructors. There is no language barrier between us at all, and she is really great at explaining the tricky differences in grammar rules for French versus English. In just one year, I have gained a much better understanding of the French language, my grammar has significantly improved, and I’m less intimidated to speak. Overall, Julia is the best private French instructor I’ve ever had, and I refuse to go back to learning this beautiful language in a stuffy classroom environment!

I’ve been taking weekly lessons with Julia for about 10 months and she has been a pleasure to work with. I’m an intermediate French speaker who mostly needs the conversational practice with a little bit of grammar and vocabulary help. Julia is great at this and our one hour conversations always seem to fly by quickly. She is friendly, helpful and wants to see her students improve each week. Whatever your level of French is, Julia will help you speak better!

Julia gave me private weekly lesson for several weeks this year before I spent an extended stay in France this summer. She was incredibly flexible and accommodating and let me set the schedule and the pace so I could fit her lessons into my busy schedule. We had fun, relaxed conversational for an hour a week, and slowly I felt my comprehension and speed improving.
She gives advice and helpful tips interspersed throughout a conversation, so it is just fun chatting with a friend, and not the drudgery of a lesson. She naturally sets the speed and level of her conversation of her listener to the level you need. I’d taken a group conversation class with her the year before, and even though there were different levels of speakers in the class, I was very impressed that she easily shifted her speed and vocabulary to accommodate and challenge each student individually. She has a real knack for assessing your level, and is a gifted teacher.
I was thrilled when I got off the plane outside Paris, hailed a cab, and then chatted with the cab driver easily for the whole 45 minute drive into the city — about his family, his life in Paris, the traffic, the weather, and even a bit of politics, for the whole trip! My husband was very impressed :)
My French is the best it has ever been, even better than when I was a student in Paris 20 years ago, and there is no way I could have gotten it polished up without the kind, friendly help of Julia.

I met with Julia for an hourly French conversation lesson once a week for several months before a planned trip to France. She was delightful and very helpful in developing my conversational skills. I recommend her highly.

Julia was professional but friendly and fun to talk to, and prepared me for a work trip to Paris. i am so pleased with the progress i made in only a few lessons. i would highly recommend her.

Julia is helpful, fun, and a really sweet girl. She’s straightforward, explains things well, and all around just fun to be with!
Her english is good, so you can ask tons of questions and you’ll fully understand the answers.
I would recommend her to anyone who is looking for private French lessons.