Best Tips for Learning a New Language
How to learn a new language? Certainly not through the language lessons in elementary school. I studied German (4 years) and Spanish (2 years) at school, but can hardly order a meal at a restaurant in those languages. It was rarely motivating, and our teachers were not the best ones on the planet. From my own experience, two things are required to learn a new language: motivation and pedagogy.
I have also learned that nothing is as motivating as falling in love with a native speaker and moving to their country. That is what has motivated me to study Finnish for the last three years.
6 Tips for Learning Languages
What is your goal? To think that your goal is to become totally fluent in a language can feel incredibly unmotivating. Why? Because language learning progresses slowly. In that case, it may be a good idea to lower the bar and think that you should know how to use a few phrases during the holiday. Or, that you should be able to understand people reasonably well so that you can answer any questions or so, for example, in Swedish.
Find a Way That Works for You
There is a theory whereby it is better to learn a language in that language. However, I have never been as angry, frustrated, and annoyed as when I took my last Finnish course, and the teacher only spoke Finnish. It was so hard for me that I even thought about asking someone from https://www.buy-cheapessay.com/case-study-writing-service to help me with my Finish assignments.
Back then, I would rather have had a teacher who could explain things in a language I understood so that I could actually learn something.
Before deciding on the best strategy to pursue, you should ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you have to take a course or can you study on your own?
- Do you need a language partner who can support you, or do you study best alone?
- Do you want to study one day a week, two days, or maybe a little every day?
You may need to test yourself to see what works best for you. Go for a course, look for material online, buy a book, test different apps, or find a language buddy.
Focus on Different Senses
Listen, talk, read, and write. For example, when watching a movie (which is subtitled in a language you understand) or listening to music, you can write down some useful words or phrases. Read shop signs and other things that you pass in the street as often as you can.
Stay in or Visit the Country
Learning a language by living in a country where it’s spoken always works best. For example, I read German in Germany when I was living in Munich. It was challenging but much easier than having to remember lessons in English. If you do not live in the country but want to learn a new language anyway — plan a trip there as soon as possible.
Ignore the Fact that You Sound Like a Three-Year-Old
It’s actually pretty cute. If you say something wrong and it makes people laugh — think that it is an art to be able to make others smile and not that it is embarrassing. On the contrary, you can consider it a gift, a gift to make people laugh. Besides, correct grammar is rarely needed to be understood.
Learning a New Language Should be Fun
Focus on what you think is fun and try to combine language learning with something nice. For example:
When I found this recipe book that had all the recipes in both Finnish and English, I had to buy it. It is a perfect way to study Finnish for me. I can read in both languages, cook with my boyfriend, and we can read both languages and learn from each other.
Language Learning Apps
As I said before, I believe in combining several different ways of learning languages. Therefore, I also recommend using all kinds of language learning apps. Here are some of my personal favorites:
- WordDive
- Babbel
- QuizletDuolingo
- Memrise
I think it can also be a good idea to combine several apps (just like combining several books). That way, you’ll get to have a little broader perspective. Each app has its own advantages and disadvantages, so it’s up for you to decide which one works best for you. However, the last two on the list, I haven’t tested myself, so I do not know how good they are.
