Have you decided to learn a new language? For many of us, this can is a challenge, but don’t get discouraged – remember that knowing other languages can open new doors for you and it can, as well, be very interesting. And, besides, who doesn’t want to impress their friends with the knowledge of the romantic French or the complicated German language? Sadly, most of the times, the decision to learn a new language goes to the bottom of our to-do list, especially when we are up to the ears with work and all we want to dso after a tiring work day is to take a rest on the comfortable sofa.
But learning a new language doesn’t necessarily have to be boring and tiring, you can turn it into a fun and interesting activity. This is why I present you with these 5 easy steps to learning a new language on a good conversational level.
1. Study as if you are (very) young
A fun and easy way to start learning a new language is by doing it the way a kid would do it -reading children’s books with many pictures, watch video clips and listen to funny songs can be a good basic step. That can be your best and fastest option for learning the new language, especially when you are running short on time, in fact – it is a lot better than reading the information off a complicated book or a difficult Grammar book.
2. Watch movies
Watching movies helps a lot. As a matter of fact, many parents are fascinated by their children’s abilities of learning a foreign language, some kids can learn very fast only by watching cartoons. In fact, children can even speak with the same accent of the language they hear, they might even learn the language better than you. Watching movies and TV shows on the language you are learning can help you truly, because hearing the language and the phrases is what can best teach you. You can start by watching movies with subtitles, try to listen carefully and repeat what you are hearing. After a few weeks, turn off the subtitles and watch a movie you have watched before. Try to catch what they are saying. Watching the news is also good. You will not understand everything, but you will get used to the particular sounding of the language.
3. Listen to music
Listening to music helps, just like watching movies – it develops your auditory memory. If you already have basic knowledge of the language, you will be able to easily remember phrases and the proper way of pronouncing the words.
Listening to music also helps for building an impression of the language – at least you will be able to recognize it among other languages. We all have heard the song “Gangnam Style”, sang by the South Korean singer Psy. Well, it turns out that more people start to differ Korean from other languages, Chinese and Japanese for example, all thanks to that one song.
4. Use the technologies
You don’t have to invest into an expensive software, while there are so many free applications for learning new languages. YouTube is one of the best sources you can find – people of all nation upload videos which will help you in your studying.
It’s also not a bad idea to use Skype for talking to a native speaker of the language you have chosen.
You might as well search the Internet for different information that you find difficult to understand.
5. Speak as much as you can.
The best way to learn to speak a language is, of course, to speak it. Use every opportunity you get to speak. Try to find people from other countries who will help you develop your language skills.
Even when you are at home, try to pronounce out loud what you want to say. For example you can try to explain to yourself what you are about to do in a while, or try to name different object in the room around you. Don’t forget to pronounce the words correctly and also work on your accent.
You don’t need a teacher to learn a foreign language. You can do it all by yourself. Try these methods and you will see that within a few months you will be progressing more than you expect it.
Author Bio: Emma Trevisani is really passionate about education and business. She manages a company for carpet cleaning in London and she is really happy with that. In her spare time she loves to read.
