At the end of each week, we ask departing students to critique us. Following is just some of the recent feedback from students.

• "The combination of situations, activities and teaching made this a very special experience." -- B.M., retired
   
• "The school was everything I hoped it would be and more. Not only did my French improve dramatically in just a week, I had a wonderful cultural experience as well. I hope to see you again (next time around I'll bring my wife)."
  -- P.F., engineer 
   
• "All of the teachers were extremely friendly and helpful. They chatted during coffee breaks with us and generally helped encourage conversation between students, I cannot rate them highly enough. Their encouragement increased my confidence greatly. Our teacher was extremely effective and patient who also made our lessons relaxing and fun. As a teacher myself, it is not often that I can put 10/10 but she surpasses all one could expect. All staff are extremely professional, helpful and friendly. We cannot speak too highly of the school and will definitely recommend you to friends and will hopefully return (again)!" -- E.G., teacher
   
• "Everyone was so friendly and patient. Coeur de France is wonderful in so many ways -- from the moment you walk through the door you know you are going to experience something very special here." -- C.M., doctor
   
•  "J'ai passé des très bonnes vacances à Sancerre et je vous remercie pour un expérience memorable. En plus j'ai profité bien de cours de français - je parle maintenant français au travail. Donc, j'ai atteint mon objective de mon séjour." -- V.L, scientist
   
•  "There is a buzz about the place that was infectious -- my children and I cannot recommend it highly enough." -- C.M., mother
   
•  "Coeur de France and Sancerre? I'm in love! The teachers and locals are amazing -- friendly and patient! -- S.B., psychologist.
   
•  "Our teacher quickly gauged my family's levels of competence and adjusted the programme to suit us. I was surprised how much I learnt from the joint sessions with my children, but above all, how much fun was to be had!" -- P.M., teacher
   
•  "The teachers make learning fun with games and outings around town. Teachers are very enthusiastic and are always willing to help!" -- C.M., 12 years-old
   
•  "We absolutely adored the week at Coeur de France, and have recommended it to all our friends back here at home.  Sophie gained her first school commendation in French the first day back at school, she was the only one out of 74 girls, to get A+ and a commendation in her French test.  Olly got 10/10 in her French vocab test -- which stunned her teacher, as she usually gets poor grades. Please tell Valérie how well the girls have done in their French lessons back here in UK since her lessons. I think we learnt as much in 1 hour as you would in 1 week at school, so 20 hours = 2 weeks worth!!  Excellent value!! "-- C.C., small business owner
   
•  "Overall, an absolutely brilliant experience and so much more than I imagined it would be. I now have reviewed the basics and need to return to practice, brush up and tighten my skills every year or so (I should be so lucky!). Many, many thanks to the highly skilled teachers. Carine and Marianne were really and truly fantastic. It's not just the teaching, but the ways it's done with expression, enthusiasm and patience. I would recommend this experience to anyone with a passion to learn and enjoy life!"-- G.C., senior executive
   
•  "The entire package works -- Marianne and Gérard -- perfect hosts. Marianne is the best instructor I've ever had. The apartment was great." -- J.L., doctor
   
•  "We tried a number of other options but I wanted something that both mother and daughter could do together. None of the other schools helped my daughter though we paid dearly! Your programme is in its own class -- OUTSTANDING!" -- M.K., editor
   
•  "Beth has an amazing ability to keep all 4 of us in our family (5, 12 and 2 adults) engaged. She can change up as necessary. Great dramatic and imaginative flair. We enjoyed all of the activities, especially cooking with Marianne. We appreciated the quality of instruction, beautiful setting and region, great family program, friendly people, motivated staff and owners! Very engaging." -- C.L., journalist
   
•  "Meets all it's promises, i.e., website to reality. Much greater understanding of the language than we thought possible. Marianne's style is both nurturing and challenging. We had an excellent week." -- J.B, retired
   

•  "The pronunciation sessions were fantastic, especially the one on 'un' and 'en' which was one of the most useful and practical French lessons I have every had! "-- J.S., attorney

•  "The quality of instruction is extraordinary. Valérie and Marion are absolutely first rate teachers. They were sharply focused on figuring out what I needed and it was clear every day that they had given thought over night to specific issues we should address. And on top of that, they are wonderful people who make me wish I could stay here and have them as my friends.
  I would also note the professionalism of the younger teachers. They were always ready to answer my questions and engage in patient conversation with me, helping and correcting in a very professional and impressive manner.
  As you can tell, I just love this place!" -- S.J., attorney

•  "The entire experience exceeded my expectations. Sancerre is picturesque and the lessons were challenging yet accommodating." -- J.B., counselor

•  "Hilary gained so much confidence that she skipped an entire grade in French. Her teacher says her accent is quite good (thanks to you) and though now she has to work doubly hard to keep up with the other students, she's doing very well. Coeur de France was a great investment! " -- K. M., mother
   
•  "I came to Coeur de France without a word of French and I leave with a base in the language to build on. I very much appreciated Marianne's expertise in making our family program enjoyable for both my daughter and I. Marianne is an expert teacher!"-- J.C., businesswoman
   
•  "I chose Coeur de France because it included children -- other places were only for older students. It allowed my girls to work together 1:1 with the teacher. Other programs put them in a group with strangers and at their age that wasn't appealing. We loved it here and very much hope to return -- next time with Papa!" -- P.M., teacher
   
•  "It exceeded my expectation! Too bad we can't stay another few weeks! All the teachers are fantastic." -- L.M., doctor
   
• "The environment is warm and inviting, the outings were fun, and I learn a LOT!" -- O.D., student
   
•  "I inquired and Gérard answered immediately, sent newsletters, etc. It had a warm, comfortable yet professional feel to the site and all correspondence. I did not know it would be possible to increase my confidence here but it has been fabulous. I had no idea it would be this well-rounded, but I now know that I have further to go than I realized." -- K.H., university professor
   
•  "The quality of the instruction, set in a village where most of the residents speak little or no English, you get many chances to practice!"-- B.L., executive
   
•  "Gérard was very knowledgeable. The "Mission Possible" was fun. Marianne is an excellent French teacher. She's very organized, knowledgeable, focused and very professional. She explained grammar and concepts clearly and made my experience here very worthwhile. I have been studying French for 2 years. I learned more here in 1 week than I did in the last 2 years." -- M.L., writer
   
•   "I am truly impressed with CDF. Not only from the learning-French, but also as an example of how good businesses can positively influence so many people's lives. Creating employment, providing excellent services to the clients/students, having a tremendous influence on the local community, bringing people together and providing them with unusual experiences -- and I hope creating a good profit too! My congratulations to you for your wonderful enterprise." -- A.Z., accountant
   
•  "Great teachers and instruction. Intimate and personal. Sancerre is pretty but very small. Free wireless internet computers in the school are a big plus. Valérie was fantastic and the accommodations were nice." -- G.F., teacher
   
•  "Good location from Paris, easy to get to without another flight. I enjoyed the excursions (walking tour, wine tasting, goat cheese farm, and château tour). It's a very personal experience here. Great teachers, great location and a great group of people (both students and staff)." -- G.K., sales manager
   
•  "As professional journalists, we've had the experience of language training in several countries -- this was the best thus far. Carine was an excellent professor who managed very well to balance our Couple program even though we were on slightly different levels. We can't praise her enough. She was patient, yet pushed us as far as we could go. She was terrific at incorporating our  day-to-day needs of living in France with classroom training and visits in the field (auto mechanic, doctor, and dentist) as well as trips to the bakery and market. In addition to the language, she provided us with invaluable insights into living in France. The school was flexible in tailoring both programs and costs to our needs and budgets. We also liked the idea of living in a small town where we would not be hearing a lot of English all around us. The teachers are of exceptional quality; the directors very accommodating and the school set up was very student-friendly. The residents of the town are very patient with the students. Sancerre is great for language learning because you don't hear a lot of English spoken."-- J.A & M.M., journalists
   
•  "My favourite activities were the winetasting (thanks Gérard, I've always been too shy to learn), the cooking class and the painting class. I enjoyed the quality and intensity of the lessons and the warmth of the staff. Beyond my hopes -- you are all amazing, wonderful people. I observed you with difficult people and was so impressed. I observed you with scatterbrained me and you were so patient!"-- A.K., flight attendant
   
•  "Thanks for another great week. Again, I loved my time in Sancerre with you and the school. Carine is a wonderful teacher and the class time was a great help to me in my language growth. The dinners were very enjoyable. You really have something good at Coeur de France. I'll be back. God Bless You." -- J.M., retired
   
•  "I had a very interesting and satisfying time at Coeur de France, and I truly think Marianne is amazing. The whole faculty was lovely." -- T.T., mother
   
•  "I chose Coeur de France because I wanted the opportunity to have a custom made programme. Staff are very helpful and clearly communicate with each other between classes. It felt like we were being looked after as individuals rather than as people all being given a pre-set programme. A very good experience that I would recommend to others." -- J.B., manager
   
• "We enjoyed out rime and definitely benefited from the concentrated attention to French. The atmosphere was excellent -- just the right balance of humour and quite pressure to keep moving and do better. I'm sure that the atmosphere is a great tribute to you and Marianne and to the staff you chose who all seemed good humoured and professional." -- S.F., civil servant
   
• "My son now says that he now knows '6 times more French' than he did at the start of the week. A week well spent! Thank you all for a fascinating week." -- J.B., mother
   
• "A dynamic feel to the place. The aperitif together on the first day set the tone for friendly, relaxed yet hard working week. Lovely having adults and children at the school." -- J.F., horticulturist