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How to learn a new language

 

We all tried to do it at least once. We were fascinated by the way it sounds or were forced to learn it because of the reasons. Whatsoever, mastering a foreign language is a great way to keep your mind alive and broaden the opportunities life might give you some time from now. Maybe, you struggle with discipline and consistency, or you lack logic behind languages. No matter what background you have with dictionaries and grammar – here are some tips to keep your motivation up when it comes to discovering a whole new universe called ‘foreign language’.

  1. What you’d better do at the beginning – decide why you need to know a language. The reason must speak to you as it should keep you next to a copybook instead of Netflix. Unless you watch a show in your target language, but we’ll get to this point. Passing a language exam doesn’t seem as cool as being accepted to your dream university or moving to your favourite city, so change the approach.
  2. Nobody likes deadlines, but they are essential, especially if you have to write an exam that only takes place once a year. The sense of an upcoming test will keep you motivated to study. Now when you know where you are going, you need to know where you stand and make a plan on how to get to the point. Take a test to define your level, decide if you want to attend language courses, study with a private teacher, or learn alone. If you pick the last option – make sure you have a list of topics you need to go through.
  3. But whether you study in a group, with a teacher or alone, you need to decide on how fast you will do it. Of course, you may adjust the pace as you wish, just make sure you are on the safe side and will have enough time to go through all the topics even if you suddenly get sick or something urgent pops out.
  4. Don’t forget to take days off. Studying every day, especially if this is the only thing you do, won’t benefit you as much as you think. Indeed, you will get stressed, and the more stressed you are, the less you will remember after non-stop learning.
  5. Find the way of learning that works the best for you. Do you need to hear an explanation of the grammar to get into it or you’d rather read it in a book? What is the best way for you to learn new words: creating mind maps or using flashcards? Be creative and try out many things before you settle for those that work out the best for you.
  6. Surround yourself with the language. Change the settings on your phone, start following people on social media who post content in your target language, watch movies and listen to music in it. And find pages that post memes in the language you learn! The moment when you realize that you got the joke twice feels amazing. Maybe, it will help you to discover a whole new cultural world and will motivate you even more on your way to fluent speaking.