Top 4 tips to Learn a Foreign Language

There is literally nothing to do in the 21st century without a foreign language. Knowledge of a foreign language is required at every step: instructions for household appliances or electronic devices are often presented only in foreign languages, borrowings so actively invade spoken and written speech. However, what to do if a language school or tutor’s lessons are not your option for various reasons? It turns out that you can “absorb” a foreign language directly from the surrounding reality. This article will help the self-taught – here you can find some tips from polyglots and linguists.

Frame on the foundation

When the school and the university bench have long been behind, and in the present – a measured life in the rhythm of “work – home – cottage – weekend and then again”, it is hard to find time for foreign language courses. However, this does not mean that all is lost. If you have at least basic knowledge from the school course, stored somewhere on a distant “shelf” of memory, then this is already good. Even on such a minimal foundation, one can begin to “build” a lexical framework, replenishing the piggy bank of words, looking around. The brain, as a rule, easily remembers what often catches the eye. A banal, but very effective advice (tested many times in practice!): Find the surfaces in your apartment, office, bathroom, etc. that you most often look at, hang cards with hard-to-remember words there, or sign objects in a foreign language. language. Look at them at every opportunity. Newbie tip: Label everything in the house – dishes in the pantry, clothes on the shelves in the closet, souvenirs, bathroom accessories.

However, at the very beginning, the main thing is to decide on motivation and attitude. In the process of learning language lessons, the most important thing is to fall in love with the language. The best way to learn is to speak it like little children when they learn to pronounce their first words and phrases. Adults can help here by creating an associative “image” of the language, which will pop up in the student’s head every time when he encounters the chosen language. The same “image” will help to increase vocabulary more effectively, as well as get rid of confusion if a person is not studying the first foreign language.

Write down to learn

The main thing is that in order not to forget useful words, you need to write them down on stickers and repeat them constantly. To better remember, you can write down blocks of seven new words or expressions, highlighting them in different colors. After writing, read, repeat and set aside for an hour. Then read again. Effectively repeat the exercise at night, before going to bed, and the next morning. I always advise my students to immediately write down in a notebook the context in which the word is used, or come up with their own example of a phrase with new vocabulary.

Play with words in your mind, try to translate everything that comes around, use your imagination. The brighter the emotions in relation to words and expressions, the better they will be fixed in memory. Write vivid stories with new expressions. And in your spare time, write in a foreign language. Anything – stories, poems, notes, keep a diary, or at least make grocery lists before going to the supermarket. All this helps to activate visual and emotional memory.

Advertising to help

Do not neglect movies, cartoons and even advertising! The obsession and omnipresence of the latter, by the way, is only a plus. How many new words can be learned even from brand names. The translation of the name of the French clothing brand Le Coq Sportif is nothing more than “sports rooster”. It is easy for German fans to remember volks (“folk”) together with Wagen, which means both “car” and “wagon”. Everything is very simple: we look around, translate the names, remember the meanings, trying them on in any life situation, use them on occasion.

When it comes to movies, it’s best to start with cartoons. First with foreign subtitles, then without them. It is very useful to read adapted editions of books, and usually the cover indicates what level of learning they are intended for. This is a good option, especially for those who are just starting to learn the language, because if you immediately start to “storm” an unadapted book in the original, you will have to open a dictionary through a word, which after a couple of pages can extinguish interest and “kill” motivation “

Find like-minded people

A great idea for speaking practice is regular “foreign language days” in the family or at work, if, of course, relatives or colleagues share your desire for new language horizons. Just try all day to try to speak only in a foreign language, not paying special attention to mistakes. With children on this day, you can cook the national dish of the country of the language being studied, study its map, sights, read fairy tales, etc.