Liz Matthews French & German Tutor

20/03/2025

Why not give your child some last minute speaking exam practice for their forthcoming French or German exams by booking a tuition session with me?
Sessions available for after school and daytime

18/03/2024

In need of extra speaking exam practice before GCSES or A levels in French or German?
Why not book in some practice with Liz?
Grab a slot now. Limited availability. Convenient online sessions

23/11/2015

The real value of reading - If you want to become fluent in a language, you’re going to have to be able to read it. Whether you’re looking at a restaurant menu, perusing the newspaper, or following directions on a map, reading is fundamental to living in the target language. Whilst texts in the foreign language can seem really scary, it’s worth persevering as reading offers some serious language learning benefits;

Depending on the content, reading can provide a chance to get more attuned to the way native speakers really talk and write (i.e. not just the version of the language you read in your school textbook!).

Reading can let you get to the real ‘meat and potatoes ‘of a language. It allows you to ingest the grammar conventions naturally.

Reading allows you to dig deeper and challenge yourself. Much like an impromptu conversation, we are often thrown into the deep end while reading, forced to learn complex words or phrases that we might normally shy away from.

It’s well worth taking control of your foreign language reading by deciding for yourself what you’d like to read. Why not seek out some magazines or newspapers in the target language and read the articles that interest you. Or how about getting hold of your favourite book translated into the foreign language? Above all, find reading material that you enjoy!

14/11/2015

Feeling uncomfortable (or even pretty silly!) speaking a foreign language is not unusual. Many students dread having to express themselves using the unfamiliar sounds of a new language. It really is true, however, that the more you do it, the easier it gets. Why not try practising short conversations (or some of the trickier sounds) out loud with a friend or family member? Or think about recording yourself speaking and then get used to hearing it. If you're lucky enough to have a language conversation club running at your school, give it a go - after all, everyone is there for the same reason and so you're all in the same boat!

04/11/2015

Learning new vocab can be daunting; most learners of a foreign language have the same complaint: “I’m just not good at memorising.” If that sounds familiar, take heart, however, because there are several straightforward techniques you can use that can really help. Different learning methods work for different people – have you experimented with the ‘Look, Cover, Write, Check’ method, practised with a friend or made regular use of the vocab games and practice sections of your school’s interactive language tools? Once you learn which technique works best for you, you can start to tackle vocab in bite-size, manageable chunks and that whole vocab learning task doesn’t seem nearly so huge.

29/10/2015

Most students find listening the trickiest of the four skills involved in learning languages. Fair enough really - after all, every language sounds strange the first time you hear it, but the more you expose yourself to it the more familiar it becomes, and the easier it is to make sense of what you're hearing! You can help yourself by listening to radio and TV programmes in the language you're learning or even having a go at some of the listening exercises available on exam board websites. It's also worth finding out about strategies you can use when you're listening to help you listen more actively - rather than simply 'drowning' in what seems like an incomprehensible 'sea' of foreign words!

20/10/2015

As Term 1 draws to a close and mock exams loom on the post-Christmas horizon, now is a great time to review the languages topics covered so far this academic year and start thinking about your revision schedule for the next couple of months. Planning ahead (what you will revise and when) and breaking your revision into bite-size chunks makes it so much less daunting!

15/10/2015

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/08/14/how-to-choose-a-tutor-for-your-child_n_7370580.html

You've decided to take the plunge and find a tutor for your child. It's a considerable expense and a commitment for many parents. So how do you get the best out of tutoring? And how do you avoid be

15/10/2015

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/secondaryeducation/9942791/Private-tutoring-time-well-invested.html

A tutor can provide the help your child needs to progress, says Nick Morrison.