French Conversation Group

By Gabriele Schuermann (DE)

French is a Romance language with Germanic influence, while English is a German language with Latin and French influence. You are correct in deciphering that French and English have a lot in common!

The French Conversation group meets once a week, usually at a French café, such as Café Amandine in Prague. For some time the group met at the Institut Francais, but it was always a bit too crowded and noisy.

The intime group of 5-8 ladies, have either lived in French-speaking countries, are bilingual or studied française at school. We are fortunate to have a native speaker joining us weekly, currently it is Caroline Lehmann.

The French Group offers much in variety through dedicated planning by the group leader, Gabriele Schürmann. The planning for the group was inspired by the previous leader, Valerie Binza and Gabriele when she joined the group. A variety of levels of speakers will greet you at each meeting. A structured conversational period, where each person takes a few minutes to chat about a topic of interest, such as an event they attended. A reading session, where each member of the group reads part of a text and any questions about word meanings or usage are answered. Example topics: children’s book – Petit Nicholas, Goscinny – writer of Asterix comic, galettes françaises – typical pastry, places to visit in Paris, the French and the art of hunting. A Noël – Christmas party is always celebrated with lots of singing and trivia. Yet, most importantly, the group fosters a positive atmosphere among women who are très agréable.