The Best Way to Learn a Language | The Live in Asia Blog - 0 views
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1. Define fluency for your own purposes.
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There are different levels of fluency. At the very least, being “fluent” means being able to communicate well enough to take care of daily tasks, including shopping, ordering food, communicating with drivers, getting medical care, etc. That’s a lot different, for example, than being fluent in the business lingo of your target language. To keep focused, and motivated, define your fluency goals based on your own needs. Then, when you reach a fluency goal, congratulate yourself on a job well done. After that, if you so desire, make a new fluency goal. Doing this will give you motivational “victories” in what can otherwise seem like a never-ending conquest.
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Some people can grab a book, start practicing, and, after some time, master a new language. For the other 99% of us, the best way to learn a language is to use a product that provides some structure. For me, computer-based learning is the best. I can study whenever I feel like it. I can study at my own pace, and I can focus on the topics that I find most meaningful.
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The best way to learn a language is to study it every day. That is not to say that you have to study it all day, every day. It just means that all of your high school teachers, and your parents, were right—cramming is not an effective way to learn something. You will learn far more if you study one hour a day five times per week than if you study five hours on Monday and take the rest of the week off. Be consistent.
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speaking out is the most important part of learning a language. You can memorize a million vocabulary words, but if you are not actively using them, you will not be able to recall them when you need them most. I don’t know what it is, to be honest, but there is something about actually getting the words to come out of your mouth that makes them stick in your head. Linguists often say, “Once you use a word three times in conversation, you own it.”
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You don’t even need a speaking partner. This is one of the only situations in life where it’s perfectly acceptable to have conversations with yourself. Or, even better, sing to yourself. It’s a great way to learn!
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Of course, at some point, you are going to want to talk to a real person. For that, turn to the language learner’s best Internet friend—Skype. Skype is a free Internet chat program that has both video and sound. Get yourself a free Skype account, search forums for a language learning partner, and then get talking! There are millions of people on the Internet who want to speak in your target language. Don’t be shy! Get out there and talk to them–it’s the best way to learn a language fast!
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The human brain naturally likes to categorize things. If you want the best way to learn a language, be good to your brain and give it what it wants. You’ll be glad you did.
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Understand that you can get a great deal done knowing just a little bit of your target language; it’s amazing how repetitive daily conversation is. The quickest way to learn a language, at least at a rudimentary level, is to learn these basic survival phrases.
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The key is to remember that you are trying to communicate, not trying to show how eloquent you are. You can be eloquent later.
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If you want to speak another language, you have to memorize vocabulary. There is no way around it! The simplest, most effective way to learn vocabulary is to make your own flash cards.
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With new vocabulary words, do not make stacks of more than 25-30 cards. It is not efficient to memorize too many words at once. Also, make sure you continue to shuffle the cards as you learn; otherwise, your mind will memorize the order of the words, and you will have difficulty recalling their meanings in a different context.
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review the basics. I’m talking about knowing the difference between nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs. I’m talking about understanding subjects, predicates and articles. Understand basic sentence structures.
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when you learn the sentence structure of a new language, you will not just “know how to use it.” You will have to learn, for example, where to place verbs and nouns in a sentence.
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if you can’t recall what articles and verbs are, you will not be able to take advantage these learning tips, and it will take you much longer to figure out how to structure sentences.
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Each of us learns differently. Find out what learning style works best for you and focus on learning in that way.
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when learning a new language, you should always use a variety of strategies. For example, you should not just read and memorize, even if that is your best learning strategy. Focus on that, but also listen to recordings, speak dialogues, write sentences, and learn grammar rules.