When I learn a new language, I tend to try to think everything in the target language. It can be very simple sentences like « what should I eat today », « it’s very hot today ». The problem with French, is that starting with reading and alphabet will not help you at all. Indeed, French pronunciation is VERY DIFFERENT from how it is written. Just to give you some examples, « au », « oh », « eau », « eaux », « haut », « hauts » are all pronounced the same as « O ».
There are many silent letters (the « h » is always silent and most consonants at the end of the words are silent). This is why for French, I recommend you to try to learn the international phonetic alphabet also, you will have no problem with guessing how a word is pronounced because it is very transparent. Most online dictionary also write the word in IPA.
I highly recommend watching a lot of videos on Youtube in French or series on Netflix dubbed in French so you can familiarize yourself with French phonology. When you watch the videos, try to listen carefully and find some patterns (where the subject is located, where the verb is) and try to find words that occur often and then look for their definition and try to use them as much as possible. Or even better, just take the whole sentence and try to use it when you can.
I also recommend writing everyday in the target language just like a diary. It can be one or two sentences, the main thing is that you must try to write something personal, that you like. Look up the words and memorize them, and use them a lot in your daily life.
