DELF Exam Preparation (B1 / B2)

Walk into your DELF calm, timed, and ready

You have a date, or you are about to pick one. From that moment the DELF stops being a vague goal and becomes a very specific test with four parts, a fixed running order, and a clock. This course is built around that reality. Over twelve focused sessions with me, Xavier, you will learn exactly what the examiners ask, how each task is marked, and how to spend your minutes so that nothing surprises you on the day.

I am a native French teacher from Nantes. I have prepared candidates for the DELF at both B1 and B2, and I also teach at Burapha University in Thailand, so I know what it is like to work with people who are learning French alongside a full life. My approach here is not “learn more French and hope”. It is “train for this exam the way you would train for a race”: we practise the real tasks, under the real time limits, again and again, until the format feels ordinary.

Who this is for

This course is for you if you are already sitting around B1 or B2 and you have committed (or are close to committing) to a DELF session. We confirm your target level in the first meeting: DELF B1 and DELF B2 share the same four-part shape but differ in text length, question difficulty, and what the oral and written tasks demand of you. Everything is one-to-one and online, so the whole thing is tuned to your level, your weak spots, and your exam date. If you have never seen a past paper before, that is completely fine. That is exactly what we fix in session one.

How the DELF actually works (so nothing is a mystery)

Both B1 and B2 are scored out of 100, with 25 points for each of the four competencies: compréhension de l’oral (listening), compréhension des écrits (reading), production écrite (writing), and production orale (speaking). You need 50 out of 100 overall to pass, and at least 5 out of 25 in every single part, so no competency can be ignored. The listening, reading, and writing are done together in one collective session; the speaking is a separate individual appointment. We plan your preparation around that structure from day one.

The 12-session program

Each session is 60 minutes, live with me, one to one. Between sessions you get targeted homework that mirrors the exam, and I return marked work with comments before we next meet. Here is the full route.

1. Diagnostic and exam map. We sit a short sample of each competency so I can see where you really are. You leave knowing your target level (B1 or B2), your current strong and weak parts, the exact format and timing of your exam, and a personalised plan for the eleven sessions to come.
2. Compréhension de l’oral, part 1: the mechanics. How the audio is played (once or twice depending on the recording), how to read the questions before you listen, and how to catch numbers, times, prices, and names. We drill note-taking shorthand and practise short documents: messages vocaux, annonces, bulletins d’information.
3. Compréhension de l’oral, part 2: longer documents and traps. Interviews, débats, and reportages. We work on identifying le point de vue de chaque locuteur, distinguishing fact from opinion, and not being fooled by a word you recognise that leads to the wrong answer. Full listening section under time.
4. Compréhension des écrits, part 1: reading to find, not to admire. Skimming and scanning practical texts (courriels, petites annonces, règlements, programmes) to answer vrai/faux with justification and multiple-choice questions quickly. We build a personal list of connecteurs logiques so structure jumps out at you: cependant, en revanche, par conséquent, tandis que.
5. Compréhension des écrits, part 2: argumentative and press texts. At B2 especially, articles de presse and texts with a clear thesis. We practise spotting the author’s position, the counter-arguments, and the nuance, plus vrai/faux avec justification where you must quote the exact line. Full reading section under time.
6. Production écrite, foundations: structure that scores. The essay-type formats: at B1 the essai, courrier, or article giving a personal opinion; at B2 the prise de position formelle (lettre formelle, article, contribution to a débat). We build reusable frameworks: introduction, arguments with examples, conclusion, and the polite formal register.
7. Production écrite, precision: grammar and cohesion under the marking grid. We look at the actual grille d’évaluation and I show you where points are won and lost. Work on subjunctive, connective phrases, avoiding repetition, and hitting the word count. You write one timed piece; I mark it against the real criteria.
8. Production écrite, timed practice with feedback. A full writing task at exam length and exam time. Detailed correction: every error categorised, a rewritten model, and two or three targeted fixes to carry forward. You start to see your own recurring mistakes and kill them.
9. Production orale, part 1: entretien and monologue. The interview warm-up and the presentation. At B1 you present and defend a viewpoint from a short document; at B2 you build a structured exposé and defend it in a debate with the examiner. We rehearse opening lines, buying time politely (c’est une bonne question, je dirais que…), and staying fluent when a word escapes you.
10. Production orale, part 2: defending your position. The examiner will push back. We practise conceding a point without collapsing (je comprends votre point de vue, cependant…), giving examples, and keeping a clear thread. Recorded so you can hear your own progress on fluency and pronunciation.
11. Full mock exam. A complete DELF at your level: listening, reading, and writing under real timing, plus the full oral. This is the dress rehearsal. You feel the pace of the whole thing in one sitting.
12. Mock debrief and exam-day plan. We go through your mock scores competency by competency against the pass thresholds, fix the highest-value weaknesses, and write your exam-day routine: what to do in the first two minutes of each part, how to manage the clock, and how to stay calm. You leave ready.

Resources and materials you will actually use

• Real past and sample papers (sujets DELF). We work from official-style B1 and B2 papers so the tasks, wording, and marking match what you will meet on the day.
• Graded audio. Authentic listening documents at your level: interviews, news bulletins, voicemails, and debates, with transcripts for review after we listen.
• The real marking grids (grilles d’évaluation). You see exactly how the writing and speaking are scored, so you write and speak to the criteria instead of guessing.
• Writing worksheets and model answers. Frameworks for each production écrite type, plus corrected models built from your own work.
• A shared study document. One living doc for the course: your connecteurs list, useful oral phrases, recurring-error tracker, homework, and my written feedback. It is yours to keep.
• Session recordings. Every session, especially the oral practice, is recorded so you can hear yourself improve.
• Homework between every session. A timed reading or listening set, or a writing task, marked and returned before we next meet.

What you will be able to do by the end

• Recognise every DELF task type at your level on sight and know exactly how it is marked.
• Read questions before the audio and take fast, useful notes during the compréhension de l’oral.
• Skim and scan reading texts to answer quickly, and justify vrai/faux answers with the right line.
• Write a clear, structured production écrite (opinion piece at B1, formal position at B2) at the required length, within the time limit, in the correct register.
• Deliver a structured monologue and defend your view in the production orale, including handling the examiner’s follow-up questions.
• Manage the clock across the whole exam and walk in with a calm, rehearsed routine.

What is included

• 12 live one-to-one online sessions of 60 minutes, fully tailored to your target level and exam date.
• All materials: sample papers, graded audio, marking grids, writing frameworks, and worksheets.
• Homework after every session, marked and returned with specific comments before the next lesson.
• A full mock exam (all four competencies) with a detailed, competency-by-competency debrief.
• Your shared study document and session recordings to keep.
• Support between lessons: send me a question or a piece of writing and I will get back to you.

Price: €349 for the twelve-session course.

An honest word

I cannot promise a pass, and anyone who does is not being straight with you. What I can promise is that you will know this exam inside out, you will have sat the whole thing at least once before it counts, and you will have trained every part against the real marking. Most candidates lose points not because their French is weak but because the format catches them out and the clock runs away. That is precisely what we remove. If you have a date, let us get to work.