Amazon.com: French is probably the only language in the world that can make the most trivial idea sound grandiloquent. Imagine what it can do when the poetic Romance language is set to children's songs. It entertains and educates, bien sûr (of course)! UniVerse of Song: French is the fun and informative follow-up to UniVerse of Song: Spanish, and seems an ideal tool for starting second-language learning with elementary phrases and basic songs. Jean Rene and his versatile backing combo help make a handful of bilingual kids into lively teachers. It doesn't matter if your native tongue is English or French--the record playfully teaches kids both languages by using common French and English nursery songs such as "Frère Jacques," "Alouette," the ever-delightful "Sur le Pont d'Avignon," "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," "Wheels on the Bus," "London Bridge," and others. Along the way, listeners can also pick up useful expressions in French that sound, well, almost diplomatic. Now, bring on the Chinese and Russian versions of UniVerse of Song, and soon we can send kids to the UN Security Council. --Martin Keller
Almost perfect! This CD instantly became my two-year-old's favourite. He would stand, mesmerized, listening intently. It became quite easy to get him to ask in French to listen to the disk--he was very motivated.
Almost all the songs are good arrangements, though a few are spoiled a bit by corny voices and such--like people barking like dogs to the tune of Happy Birthday and one of the female singers putting on a hick accent for her part in Old MacDonald. Otherwise, the arrangements are quite musical and pleasant for a parent to hear eight gazillion times.
I heartily recommend this recording!
uni verse of song Very cute cd, our childhood favorites with a French twist! Perfect for the child who is learning English and French!
Among my favorite kid's albums! I think that this CD is so cute! The songs are well chosen favorites and for the most part (Happy Birthday excepted:) really very nicely performed. They alternate between French and English to teach French vocab. They use kids for alot of it and my 17 month old breaks out in a smile when she hears their little voices. It seems to be one of her favorites too.
Useful I found this CD useful for learning French myself and trying to teach my 1 year old son. The English translation is very handy when you are starting out in French and useful for instance while driving or when you are busy and can't refer to the written translations. The music is mostly very nice and some of the tracks are beautiful like "its raining its pouring" and "clair de lune"
As my French progresses I find the constant intrusions in English annoying and I prefer to CDs now that are all in French. Some of the English speaking in the CD is also very cheesy.
Okay, but not that good. This CD is okay for parents who want to teach their children French. But Jean Rene's voice sounds like that of Chuck E Cheese. Mr. Rene probably dressed up in the costume to record this album, so I am not a fan of it. I do not recommend this album to parents who do not like taking their kids to Chuck E Cheese's.
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