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When I first moved to Paris, my greatest anxiety was about learning French. Three years of high school French with an American teacher of Italian descent and a heavy New Orleans accent (known as "yat" because the salutation for any respectable New Orleanian is "whaaa ya' aaat, daahlin") only prepared me for ordering in restaurants and asking someone on the street "quelle heure est-il?" (until I discovered that mostly the French say "avez-vous l'heure?" – and boy was I surprised!). The truth is you can EXIST in Paris without a whole lot of French, now that so many of the French speak English. With cable TV, you can watch CNN or BBC for the news and Canal Jimmy for American sit-coms. You can read the Herald Tribune and visit the English-language bookstores for premium priced magazines and books. You can have French friends, but only if they speak English. And that's about it. The moment you have to interact with the Parisians in non-tourist situations (like a conference with your kid's teacher or seeking an obscure little piece of hardware in the "sous-sol" [basement] of the "BHV") you're in big trouble without the language. So, if you want to do more than just EXIST in Paris, I suggest you think through the best, fastest and easiest ways to learn the language. There is a maze of information out there about learning French in France. Available free in Paris, the France-USA Contacts and the Paris Free Voice magazines, run ads from all the language schools in town, classified listings from private teachers (both accredited and non-accredited) and offer a list of conversation exchanges. Of course, if you don't have access to this information, then the Web is there (and with even more information!).  How to you come up with a coherent plan? Good question. Ask yourself a few questions before you begin the decision making process:

. Poster from the newspaper "Le Courrier Francais".1897 Adrian Leeds grew up in New Orleans, attended university in New York City, spent a year on a kibbutz in Israel before settling into a career and family life, first in Knoxville then in Los Angeles. In 1994, she brought with her to Paris more than 20 years experience in marketing and public relations, not to mention a daughter. Her U.S. company, Western Web Works, provides Web marketing consultation to Web developers and businesses doing E-commerce, most particularly to WebFrance International. She is the author of The Leeds Good Value Guide to Paris Restaurants http://www.wfi.fr/leeds/, the result of her insatiable desire for great food at bargain prices, and hosts the popular Parler Parlor Conversation Group in Paris http://www.parlerparlor.com where members from 40 different countries meet to practice speaking French and English.

What is my current level of French? Débutant? Faux Débutant? Pré-Intermédiaire? Post-Intermédiaire, Avancé? Every school will have a different system of determining your level, usually by testing you with written and/or oral exams.

Am I learning French for business or pleasure? If you need to use French in business, then an immersion course will get you speaking and understanding most quickly. Of course, that means devoting most of your time to language learning. If learning French is more of a pleasure for you, then you might consider taking more casual courses, so that you'll have time for all the other things Paris (and France) have to offer.

Am I more motivated in a classroom setting or self-motivated to work with a private teacher? I find that some people need the pressure from a teacher or peers to complete homework and assigned tasks yet others perform better when in a one-to-one situation. Between the two types of learning environments, there are also learning groups of six or less with one teacher to consider. One thing for sure, according to Marie-Elisabeth Crochard, language school director of 27 years and co-coordinator of Parler Parlor French/English Conversation Group, "the larger the class, the slower the learning for all." She added, "Listening will not teach you how to speak. You must make time to practice speaking."

With answers to these questions, you can begin your research on the Web. Start with the largest Web site of English and French Language Resources in Paris and France:

Volterre-Fr English & French Language Resources
http://www.wfi.fr/volterre/
This is an award-winning site written and developed by Linda Thalman, language teacher and webmaster of WebFrance International. You will find over 110 html files especially for teachers, learners, trainers, administrators, language companies and services involved in English or French as a foreign language. For learning French, jump right to http://www.wfi.fr/volterre/francophone.html

Here are two language schools in Paris I recommend you can contact directly by email:

Accord Language School 
http://www.accord-langues.com/ 
Email them at: accordel@easynet.fr
Located in the district of the "Grands Boulevards," Accord was founded in 1988 and offers high-quality French, English and other language courses. Classrooms in a typical Parisian building are bright, spacious and are all equipped with audio-visual materials and other language courses. 

Cetradel Language Center
http://www.cetradel-france-langue.com/
Email them at: cetradel@wanadoo.fr
The Parler Parlor French/English Conversation Group is held at Cetradel on the Champs Elysées four times a week, a perfect compliment to your language course. It has centers all over France including Paris, Bordeaux, Massy, Châtenay, Angers, Tours, Nantes, Lyon and Toulouse. If you are a manager, an employee, a student, a senior citizen or if you are looking for language training for your company, school, children or for yourself, Cetradel will get you speaking in French, Spanish, Italian, German, English, or any other foreign language. You may also contact Elisabeth Crochard directly for information on courses of French at her email address: mecrochard@compuserve.com.

Schools that belong to a professional organization of language schools and universities in France for teaching English as a foreign language:

SOUFFLE – Learn French in France: Schools and Universities
http://www.souffle.asso.fr/home-english.html
There are 19 SOUFFLE schools and universities throughout France offering
French language programs that comply to the SOUFFLE quality control standards. You will find intensive and semi-intensive courses, training for teachers of French, summer camps, one-to-one training, business French, preparation for exams and more. 

The best bookstore for language learning and teaching in all of Europe:

Attica Bookstore
http://www.attica-langues.com/
Attica is the largest language learning bookseller in Paris and is Europe's leader in language learning materials with over 200,000 titles and 320 languages: books, videos, CD-roms, audio casettes. Once you get to Paris, be sure to visit its store, but on-line you can order your books and have them sent to you in advance to get a jump start.

There are summer study programs if what you want is a "séjour linguisitque":

Paris Club 
http://www.paris-club.com/
This is a high-quality summer French language program located in the heart of Paris organized by Accord – Language School and the Centre International d’Antibes. Paris-Club is open to adults over 18 years old. 

Paris Junior 
http://www.paris-junior.com/
This is a summer French language program located in France for students aged 12 to 16 at "Le Rocheton" French summer camp, summer soccer camp and French language program. 

Conversation Groups:

Parler Parlor French/English Conversation Group
http://www.parlerparlor.com/
Known as the most popular conversation group in Paris, Parler Parlor is hosted by Adrian Leeds (that's me, of course), Elisabeth Crochard and WebFrance International at Cetradel Language Center on the Champs Elysées. This is a perfect compliment to any language course -- practice speaking, make friends, discuss interesting topics, learn about other cultures, progress in understanding and speaking, naturally and easily, in groups of six to eight, each in its own acoustically sound private room. 

Now, get started on the road to learning French, watching the news, weather and programs on French TV, reading Le Monde, Libération,s Le Parisien or Nouvel Observateur and having French friends who don't speak English. Have that conference with your kid's teacher or go on a search for some obscure little piece of hardware. Feel satisfied that you took the right route to becoming a francophone and comfortable with French as your new second language. You'll never regret it.