French Tutor Glastonbury, Street, Wells, Somerset

Find out more about Annie

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

  I speak French because I am a native French speaker but I was very influenced by Classical French writers such as Flaubert, poets such as Verlaine and philosophers such as Montesquieu who translated to a high level how beautiful the language is. I also studied French literature at University and studied Philosophy for the Baccalauréat so we did study Bergson, Bertrand Russel and other philosophers in French. This does make a difference on how you write French yourself.

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

  For me if I have to name someone it is Victor Hugo, a 19th French century writer. His poetry and novels did help shed some light on the conditions of the working masses such as children working in mines etc.

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

  I like the fact that French is very versatile. To me, spoken French can be relaxed and fun whereas written French can be all about poetry, creativity and imagination and beauty.

• Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  The French language is very synonymous with Poetry to me, it is also a very logical language which is very good for the brain! By speaking French, I hope I transmit my culture to a certain extent, by this I mean French Literature above all.

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

  I find that often British people are not taught Grammar in school at all and this can be a real detriment to learning French properly. French is a very logical and precise language. I find that helping people grasp certain grammatical points in English grammar helps them better understand French grammar. However one does not have to learn complicated grammatical concepts, I use " shortcuts" to help people understand the grammar, this simplifies things for them and they can use these tools in "real life" French language.

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

  If I am to give an anecdote, it would not be for French, it would be regarding when I was so eager to read novels in English and I would spend my time reading in English during Maths classes in school, much to the dislike of one of my Maths teachers. Some years before, I had asked the Maths teacher to teach Maths in English and he did not like that at all and thought I was being rude. He did not see that for me it was just a necessity, if I were to pay attention to Maths, it had to be done in English. If you see that your child is passionate about one school subject in particular, make sure you support your child's learning of that subject.

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

  I found that living in America, England and Wales has helped me a lot to gain insight into the English language and also into the behaviours of the people in the different countries I lived as there are different ways of expressing oneself from one country to the other.

• What makes you a Superprof in language?

  I am patient, observant of my students' needs and I am a non critical creative person. I treat each student as a unique learner. I have 6 years of experience as a full-time French tutor. Prior to this, I always helped people learn French on a part-time basis. I helped people in America, Wales and England. It does appear that my students are really enjoying their sessions with me as they keep coming back sometimes for 2 years or sometimes a little more to improve and polish their skills. I learnt English Literature and History at University and also Spanish. I also learnt Latin in school doing translations from Latin into French so this required a certain amount of rigour and logic. I am absolutely motivated to help people and I am organised too.