I have been having one to one French lessons every Monday morning for the past eight years and I find myself going round and round in circles.
I get to grips with one small piece of the huge French grammar jigsaw move on to the next and within four months I have forgotten everything that I originally learnt. I dread to think how many times I have revisited
My French teacher once told me to talk as fast as possible and to ignore the tenses – that way the flow of the conversation could continue without hesitation and anyone realising that the tense and grammar were inaccurate.
Good luck
Whilst (re)learning French as an adult in evening class the subjunctive was my big problem too. I don’t think I will ever really get it, but most of the time (at least when speaking rather than writing French, and in the present tense) it sounds the same as the indicative – so you can often get away with it.
My big problem, which is really preventing me from progressing, is the fact that I tend to just use what I already know. In fact, I overuse it really, bending sentences to suit my strengths rather than working out more varied and interesting (to the listener) ways to express myself.
Reading this post has prompted me to look at my Bescherelle for the first time in a few years though! 12,000 French verbs, each with a dozen or more tenses, different verb groups, agreement of the past participle. Aargh, better put the book away again quickly…
Many thanks for your advice. I have tried talking quickly but I just get bewildered looks. I think there is maybe TOO much I am trying to cover up !!.
I seem to have developed a new French word ( not that there aren’t enough already !!), a cross between un and une which I use frequently when I’m not sure if a word is masculin or feminine !!