Checklist

French study checklist

A French learning checklist targeting the language's real friction points: gendered nouns, the liaison and silent-letter rules that make spoken French hard to parse, and speaking nerves.

Built for French · Learners preparing for travel or academic fluency.

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Gender and agreement

Build the noun-gender instinct early, since French grammar cascades agreement through articles, adjectives, and past participles.

Learn every noun with its article, never bareStore 'le livre' / 'la table', not 'livre'. Gender is largely unpredictable, so the article must be encoded as part of the word itself.~20 minUse ending-based gender heuristicsMost -tion, -té, -ette nouns are feminine; -age, -ment, -eau mostly masculine. The patterns aren't perfect but cut guessing significantly.~15 minDrill adjective and participle agreementPractice 'une grande maison' and 'elle est allée'. Agreement is often silent but visible in writing, so train both.~18 min

Pronunciation and liaison

Crack the gap between French spelling and sound, where silent letters and liaison make written and spoken French feel like two languages.

Practice liaison rules with minimal pairs'les amis' links the silent -s into a /z/. Practice obligatory liaisons so speech flows and you can hear word boundaries.~15 minDrill nasal vowels and the French RThe four nasal vowels (on/an/in/un) and the uvular R have no English equivalent; isolate and repeat them with audio until consistent.~15 minTrain silent-ending recognition by earFinal consonants are usually silent ('petit' = /pəti/). Listen-and-transcribe short clips so you map sound back to spelling.~15 min

Speaking practice

Generate spoken output and dissolve the anxiety common among French learners.

Shadow native audio for prosodyEcho speakers to internalize French's even syllable stress and rising-then-falling intonation, very different from English stress-timing.~15 minHold a short conversation with a partner or tutorSpeak only French for 10 minutes. Tutors on italki or a language exchange give the regular low-stakes reps confidence needs.~15 minRecord and review a spoken monologueDescribe a routine aloud, listen back, and check liaison and gender agreement. Self-review catches errors live partners let slide.~10 min

Consolidation

Lock in vocabulary, gender, and grammar across sessions.

Clear your spaced-repetition deckKeep noun+article and verb cards in Anki and review daily. Encode the gender colour-coded so it sticks with the word.~15 minWrite five sentences with today's structureForce new grammar (e.g. passé composé with être) into your own sentences; production cements agreement rules recognition can't.~12 minLog recurring gender and agreement errorsNote which nouns you keep mis-gendering; concentrated misses reveal words to re-encode with a stronger article cue.~6 min

Common mistakes

Learning nouns without their gender, then guessing articles and adjective endings wrong every time the word reappears
Pronouncing words letter by letter from spelling, ignoring that final consonants are usually silent and liaison links words together
Treating the four nasal vowels as ordinary vowels, which flattens your accent and obscures meaning (on vs an vs un)
Avoiding speaking because the pronunciation feels intimidating, so listening comprehension and confidence both stall
Forgetting that some verbs take être (not avoir) in the passé composé and require participle agreement with the subject

Pro tips

Colour-code masculine and feminine nouns in your notes and flashcards; the visual cue cements gender far better than rote repetition
Learn the être-verbs (the 'DR & MRS VANDERTRAMP' set) as a fixed list since they break the default avoid auxiliary pattern
Lean on the huge English-French shared vocabulary, but watch false friends like 'actuellement' (currently) and 'librairie' (bookshop)
Practice dictation (la dictée): transcribing audio is the fastest way to connect French's spelling to its sound system
Speak in full breath groups rather than word by word; French rhythm groups syllables, so chunking smooths both flow and liaison

FAQ

How should I start the French study checklist?

Start with the first phase, then run one timed Study Spaces sprint before adding more tasks. The goal is execution, not a perfect plan.

What should I do if I fall behind?

Copy the remaining tasks, pick the highest-score or highest-deadline item, and restart with one focused block.

How often should I review progress?

Review after each sprint and once at the end of the week so the next session starts with a clear first task.

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Turn this page into a live sprint

Start the matching room for French, then use the sprint plan as the first task and recap script.

French study checklist
Focus target: French
Block 1 (25 min): closed-book recall or one timed practice set.
Break (5 min): mark confusing items without opening a new task.
Block 2 (25 min): correct misses and write the next first step.
Done: one score/error note plus one queued task for tomorrow.

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