"A different language is a different vision of life" - Federico Fellini
So, it's coming up to January. The time of year when people decide that they need to kick themselves up the butt in some way, shape, or form. And whilst I'm a firm believer in the fact that if there's a 'resolution' you truly want to fulfil, a date of the year is going to be irrelevant in influencing when you take action, the first of January does serve as a friendly reminder to do a little self-reflection.
So, it's coming up to January. The time of year when people decide that they need to kick themselves up the butt in some way, shape, or form. And whilst I'm a firm believer in the fact that if there's a 'resolution' you truly want to fulfil, a date of the year is going to be irrelevant in influencing when you take action, the first of January does serve as a friendly reminder to do a little self-reflection.
New years resolution rant over, a lot of you may be here because this year you'd like to learn a new language, or you may have been gifted (or let's be real, gifted yourself) a trip abroad for some time during 2017.
Having spent (and possibly wasted) a number of years in school studying languages, lived in a foreign country, and taught my own language, I have a fairly solid idea of what works and what doesn't when it comes to picking up a new language. First of all, I want to say immersion is the absolute key word here. That's why moving abroad will improve your skills immensely, and why higher education classes are conducted entirely in the language in question. Even if you don't have the opportunity to travel, or go to physical classes, there are ways in which you can create your own immersion.
And one final note is one I understand a lot of you will wince, or perhaps roll your eyes at, so I'll get it out of the way: regular practice. A language is like a muscle, you have to constantly exercise it, and it will eventually become like muscle memory and you'll be able to just open your mouth and full sentences will flow out of you.
Watch Films/TV
This is a fairly easy one to do because subtitles are a magical creation. You can either choose a film with the audio in the language you are learning (with English subtitles) or just select subtitles of your desired language when you're watching your favourite English films and TV shows. Following along and matching up the dialogue with the words is a great way of visually connecting the words. It also works really well to help you remember certain vocab or phrases - I will now forever associate all of my lawyer related vocabulary with How To Get Away With Murder.
This is a fairly easy one to do because subtitles are a magical creation. You can either choose a film with the audio in the language you are learning (with English subtitles) or just select subtitles of your desired language when you're watching your favourite English films and TV shows. Following along and matching up the dialogue with the words is a great way of visually connecting the words. It also works really well to help you remember certain vocab or phrases - I will now forever associate all of my lawyer related vocabulary with How To Get Away With Murder.
Listen to Music
This is a great way of subconsciously learning languages - you can play it in the car, while you're working, just in the background of your day, and you don't even have to pay too much attention. What a magic way to learn. All I will say is be wary of varying accents. For example, if you're trying to learn traditional Spanish, listening to the accent of Mexican singers might throw off your pronunciation.
This is a great way of subconsciously learning languages - you can play it in the car, while you're working, just in the background of your day, and you don't even have to pay too much attention. What a magic way to learn. All I will say is be wary of varying accents. For example, if you're trying to learn traditional Spanish, listening to the accent of Mexican singers might throw off your pronunciation.
Apps Apps Apps
Apps are amazing. What is the one thing you always carry with you? Your phone. You can have these language tools with you at all times. One simple thing you can do is just start translating the things that you can see around you with a dictionary app, to give you a visual connection in your brain. This is perfect if you're on your work commute, waiting in a queue in a shop, walking the dog - just look around and mentally label the things around you. One amazing dictionary tool for Spanish is SpanishDict, and, although the app doesn't contain it, the SpanishDict website has an amazing blog section full of great posts about grammar and slang. Another app that I recommend to everyone is Duolingo (which supports a whole list of languages) - it gives a great variety of tasks that tests all areas of the language and all areas of your brain, making it work for a whole variety of people.
Apps are amazing. What is the one thing you always carry with you? Your phone. You can have these language tools with you at all times. One simple thing you can do is just start translating the things that you can see around you with a dictionary app, to give you a visual connection in your brain. This is perfect if you're on your work commute, waiting in a queue in a shop, walking the dog - just look around and mentally label the things around you. One amazing dictionary tool for Spanish is SpanishDict, and, although the app doesn't contain it, the SpanishDict website has an amazing blog section full of great posts about grammar and slang. Another app that I recommend to everyone is Duolingo (which supports a whole list of languages) - it gives a great variety of tasks that tests all areas of the language and all areas of your brain, making it work for a whole variety of people.
Shop in Another Language
A lot of sites will have an option for you to change the language of the web page. This is amazing for giving you a whole plethora of vocab. If there's phrases/words you don't understand, you could just use a dictionary, or you could do it parallel style and open another tab with the site in English. You can learn the vocab whilst you go about shopping for an outfit for next weekend.
A lot of sites will have an option for you to change the language of the web page. This is amazing for giving you a whole plethora of vocab. If there's phrases/words you don't understand, you could just use a dictionary, or you could do it parallel style and open another tab with the site in English. You can learn the vocab whilst you go about shopping for an outfit for next weekend.
Change the Language on Your Phone
Most people know their phones well enough to know what most of the buttons say - so change the language and you'll find that you can actually survive pretty well and you get to pick up on loads of new vocab. (But please do make a note of how to change your language back to English if you're not sure...)
Most people know their phones well enough to know what most of the buttons say - so change the language and you'll find that you can actually survive pretty well and you get to pick up on loads of new vocab. (But please do make a note of how to change your language back to English if you're not sure...)
Read
Parallel books are really easy to find on Amazon and you can find them in every style of writing you could possibly want. Magazines are also great if you want smaller chunks of text to deal with if a book seems a little overwhelming.
Parallel books are really easy to find on Amazon and you can find them in every style of writing you could possibly want. Magazines are also great if you want smaller chunks of text to deal with if a book seems a little overwhelming.
Podcasts
If you have iTunes, Spotify, or even Soundcloud, you can find so many podcasts (a lot of them free) for learning new languages. Spotify holds a series called Coffee Break that does 20-minute classes for a bunch of different languages. These are really good for in the car, or again, walking the dog, and they're short enough to not be too intense and not take up too much time of your day.
If you have iTunes, Spotify, or even Soundcloud, you can find so many podcasts (a lot of them free) for learning new languages. Spotify holds a series called Coffee Break that does 20-minute classes for a bunch of different languages. These are really good for in the car, or again, walking the dog, and they're short enough to not be too intense and not take up too much time of your day.
Finally - think about your learning style. If you're a visual learner like myself, I recommend keeping some sort of notebook or working with things like books, magazines, websites. And if you're a creative person, get creative with your learning. Buy a little notebook, do fancy headings, draw little pictures to go with your vocabulary, display your conjugation endings beautifully - go bullet journal style if that's your thing. Remember that not everybody learns in the same way and it might take a bit of trial and error to find your jam.
photo: Malasaña, Madrid