Liaisons: An Introduction to French - Tapa dura

"I am very impressed by the LIAISONS program. The grammar sections are outstanding; the way that vocabulary is presented is engaging and pedagogically sound; the readings are relevant; the film looks interesting, and students are led to think critically and express themselves creatively. I am excited about this book." "A well-integrated program that provides a detailed and entertaining introduction to the study of French in a novel and creative manner "A rich and modern textbook trying to address present-day students with intercultural activities and questions that speak to them." "The vocabulary and grammar presentations are excellent. They provide students with rich resources for skills development" "[The] activities are engaging because the focus is on meaning. This in my opinion is the best part of this textbook. Students are engaged in a real task where they are trying to find information, compare it, organize it, share it, they are observing, deciphering, drawing conclusions, etc. I think the activities are well paced, there is a good flow."

LIAISONS is an innovative beginning-level French program firmly grounded in principles of communicative language teaching and research in second language acquisition. Components of the program are carefully linked together, showing students how they can make connections with their classmates, their instructor, their community, and the French-speaking world. With an engaging mystery film shot on location in Montreal, Quebec, and Paris, the program provides a rich array of communicative activities designed to stimulate interaction inside and outside the classroom. The underlying pedagogical framework in LIAISONS asks students to first discover new vocabulary and grammar through different mediums, then connect form and meaning through a set of confidence-building activities, and finally, actively create language.