How to use The Complete French Course

The Complete French Course contains everything learners need to advance from A1 (beginner) to C2 (proficiency) of the CEFR. With video lessons, verb & vocabulary lists, support guides, quizzes and assessment tests, plus access to Alexa's monthly live lessons, it’s a truly exhaustive resource. So it can help to have some guidance about how to find and use the different materials.

If you’re wondering where to begin, or simply trying to find your way around the different components of the course, this guide will show you how to navigate the different areas and make efficient use of the materials.

The beauty of The Complete French Course is that you can jump in wherever you please. There’s no requirement to complete earlier lessons in order to unlock later ones. This means that if you’re starting the course as a B1 level learner, for instance, you can start Lesson 20 immediately.

If you’re not sure what level you are, you can take a short placement test to determine where you fall on the CEFR.

Let’s take a look at the different parts of The Complete French Course.

The lessons

The Complete French Course contains 40 core lessons. Each lesson contains the following:

• A description, showing what topics are covered in the lesson
• A video, in which Alexa walks you through each of the lesson points, with interactive features. This is the main part of the lesson; think of it like a classroom lesson, with Alexa as the teacher, and you as the student
• A support guide, which reiterates and expands on the lesson topics
• Exercise videos, which allow you to put your new skills to the test with listening comprehension, dictation and gap-fill exercises
• Supplementary videos, which provide additional learning on key points, complete with quizzes and audio guides
• Quizzes, which are a great way to practise everything you’ve learned

On the sidebar of each lesson you'll also find the option to download an audio version of the lesson and to bookmark your progress.

If you're having difficulty with anything, click the ? icon to open up the Knowledge Base, where you'll find short articles and FAQs on a range of topics, as well as the option to contact support.

Verb lists

The Verbs section of The Complete French Course contains a complete set of conjugations across eleven tenses for 93 of the most common verbs you’ll encounter in French. Each list is provided in a flash card format to help you memorise the conjugations, and is accompanied by a quiz, support guide and audio tracks to aid with pronunciation.

Vocabulary lists

The Vocabulary sections of The Complete French Course contains 53 lists of words, grouped by category, with accompanying translations, pictures and audio tracks, as well as quizzes and support guides. Each of the lists is ranked by CEFR level, so it’s a good idea to learn the lists for each level as you advance through the course, as this will help to expand your vocabulary.

A quick tip: Try using the verb and vocabulary lists to pick a few words and phrases each day or week to focus on. If you want an effective way to improve your vocabulary consistently, for instance, you could try writing them on post-it notes and sticking them somewhere where you're likely to see them regularly, such as your mirror, fridge or desk.

Account area

In the Account Area you can view your progress through the course, as well as your bookmarks and scores for each of the quizzes and assessments. You can also update your password and check your subscription status.

Here you'll find The Complete French Course Study Guide, which gives you a helpful overview of the course and its methodology.

The assessments

At the end of each module of the Complete French Course, you will have the option to take an End of Module Assessment.

On the assessment page there are two tests. The first is the assessment test. Think of this like a mock exam. It can be taken as many times as you want, but its purpose is to help you familiarise yourself with the exam. It will not result in certification.

The second test is the Examination. If you pass this, you will be presented with a certificate in your account area.

The examination is CPD-certified, and the certificate can be shown as proof that you have attained a level of the CEFR in French. Unlike the assessment test, if you fail the examination, you will have to pay to retake it, so make sure you’re ready first.

Note that you do not need to have completed the lessons prior to the assessment tests. They can be taken whenever you feel ready.

As a subscriber, you have access to exclusive monthly live lessons hosted by Alexa on YouTube. Each month, Alexa holds two live sessions on the same day, typically on a Tuesday between 10am - 2pm UK time. The exact schedule varies monthly and can be viewed on the website when you’re logged in.

These live lessons are a fantastic way to improve your French while interacting with Alexa and learning from her directly. Each lesson is recorded, meaning that if you miss it, you can watch it back whenever. There are currently over 200 recordings of past live lessons available.

We also have an FAQ page filled with customer service videos. These are recorded walkthroughs which show you exactly how to use the website.

This year, we launched Onboarding Webinars for new (and returning!) students who want tips and tricks on The Complete French Course, including where to find everything and how to get started. Attendees also receive extra resources, including study guides, printable checklists and cheat sheets, as well as a recording of the webinar if they'd like to rewatch it. These sessions are a chance to ask questions about the course (they're not French lessons!), and they've proven incredibly helpful for getting students off to a confident start.

We host one webinar per month, usually around 2pm UK time. You can view our calendar here.

If you want to put your speaking skills to the test, we recommend signing up to our Speaking Practice Classes. Taking place weekly over the course of ten weeks, these are small group sessions designed for each level of the CEFR and led by a native French speaker. Each class features speaking activities centred on a specific theme, allowing every participant to get involved and develop their speaking skills.

While these classes are not included in the course, the material covered in them complements the lessons in the Complete French Course. They are a great way to build confidence and gain practice in speaking French alongside other learners.

Learn more here.