2 of 24

Write now Article Tools

Page 2 of 5

as it's in your target language, such as books, movies, TV shows, music, magazines, websites, newspapers or even video games. The key is that it's important to get real world material made for native speakers. Regardless of whatever your interests are, you can find something that appeals to you. It's as simple as thinking about what you enjoy in your own language, and doing them in another. Your language learning journey should be something personal, and enjoyable. Making it interesting and relevant to what you want to learn is essential in making your time effective. This is why it's so important to choose material that you like. Knowledge is free, and there are a lot of legitimately free resources on the Internet that may very well become central in your learning process. From dictionaries, to websites, you'll find the Internet to be a treasure trove of useful stuff. Aside from that, some low cost options may include renting videos rather than buying, checking out books from your local library, or buying used versus new.

You should also have a dictionary that has example sentences, bilingual to start, then eventually monolingual. By using sentences to learn rather than charts and lists, you're learning multiple words, in context, with correct grammar usage too. I would suggest using these sentences in conjunction with an SRS (Spaced Repetition Software). This is a program that shows you simple flashcards, but then you grade your own answers on a scale. Depending on that card's grade, the program will show you that card more or less often. It's said that by reviewing information in intervals over time, you remember it better than from just one huge cram session. Although some useful pre-made SRS decks exist online, I really recommend making your own from scratch. A good starting point however would be standard greetings and expressions, as they become instantly useful in any situation. Making your own deck also ensures that you're learning material that is interesting to you, and that it's at your own pace. Think of what you'd like to know. "How do I say X in my target language?"-that sort of thing.

Textbooks are a mixed bag. I used to be big on ones like "Learn X-Language in 30 Days!" and so on. While I was quite good at memorizing vocabulary lists and charts, it's just not how people talk. They're not useless, but I think of them more like a grammar guide than a reflection of how people actually converse. I think if you use them as a point of reference

• << previous page
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about The best techniques for learning languages?
We want to hear your view. Write now!