This address to school counselors discusses the role of aptitude and attitudes in learning French as a second language with attention to the senior elementary and high school levels. The Modern Language Aptitude Test (MLAT) and the Attitude Motivation Inventory (ATI) were administered to students. The MLAT and abilities it is designed to assess are discussed. Attitudinal variables of the ATI, integrativeness, motivation, attitudes toward the learning situation, class anxiety, and instrumentality, are described. Correlations suggest that prediction of achievement in French can be reasonably accurate if attention is paid to both aptitude and attitudes. Both MLAT and AMI evidence convergent validity because of substantial correlations with French grades. Only AMI has low correlation with non-French academic average. MLAT correlates as highly with academic average as it does with French grades. Language enrollment statistics for Ontario and implications of the findings for counseling are presented. (SW)