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What is the real way to learn languages?

People have so many different opinions on what is the best way to learn a language; some say to immerse yourself; some say to memorise grammar; some say to focus solely on speaking; some say we should do all. But what does everyone think is the real way to truly become fluent in a language?
(edited 5 years ago)
Obviously the "real" way to learn a language is to learn it the way you learned your first language. Speaking and listening before reading and writing.
No clue, when you find out pm me :blush:
Reply 3
Original post by shawn_o1
Obviously the "real" way to learn a language is to learn it the way you learned your first language. Speaking and listening before reading and writing.


It’s easy to say that, but how are you supposed to listen to a language and pick it up? It just seems impossible to separate words without learning them first and the meanings of some words are so specific that it seems impossible to just learn it magically.
Original post by sambeaz6
It’s easy to say that, but how are you supposed to listen to a language and pick it up? It just seems impossible to separate words without learning them first and the meanings of some words are so specific that it seems impossible to just learn it magically.


How did you first know what an apple looked like?
You saw this: 🍎
Then you were told it was called an apple. That's how children learn to speak their first language.
Of course, language development gets harder the older you become. Only those who are willing to put the hard work in as adults would be able to pick up fluency in a language quickly.
The reality is its a combination of all. You can't focus on speaking if you don't know any words!

So learn lots of vocab, get to practising speaking, reading and writing as early as possible but keep in mind that if you have committed to reaching fluency for the forseeable future there will be new vocab to pick up. Its very rewarding when you eventually are able to use it in you speaking and writing activities though!
Original post by sambeaz6
People have so many different opinions on what is the best way to learn a language; some say to immerse yourself; some say to memorise grammar; some say to focus solely on speaking; some say we should do all. But what does everyone think is the real way to truly become fluent in a language?


By using that language everyday. By living or studying at that country. For exampe if you want to learn Spanish by living or studying in Spain. And also try to make friends (with people who are from spain and spanish is their first language). Speak to them , listen to them , text them, go out with them etc and everytime that you can't understand something ask them what is the meaning of that word. And also watch movies WITHOUT subtitles.
Original post by sambeaz6
People have so many different opinions on what is the best way to learn a language; some say to immerse yourself; some say to memorise grammar; some say to focus solely on speaking; some say we should do all. But what does everyone think is the real way to truly become fluent in a language?


Speak it. And often.

The rest will follow.
Reply 8
Original post by ThePricklyOne
Speak it. And often.

The rest will follow.


But how? How do you speak to someone when you can’t even speak a word of their language?
Original post by sambeaz6
But how? How do you speak to someone when you can’t even speak a word of their language?


Chances are, if you meet speaker of the language you want to learn while in the UK, they already speak English so you just say a few words in the language. Then increase it as you learn more words/sentences.

I went to Europe speaking only some French but managed to improve it while in France. It actually helped that few frenchies spoke English, it forced me to learn more French so I can communicate.

Went over to Germany and met Germans who spoke fluent English. I started speaking a few words in German and increasing the vocab until it was good enough to get a job there.

If you don't have a language buddy, then speak to yourself out loud in the language. Imagine a 2 person conversation in your mind. First get these imaginary person to say hello to each other, then how are you?, then add more sentences until you can get the 2 people to hold a simple conversation. It's not as good as speaking to real speakers but it does help you to commit simple sentences to memory, so you can bring them up in conversation or in tests.
(edited 5 years ago)
The best way is to use the language as much as possible, but you won’t be able to do that straight away.

Start off with learning basic vocab. Find a list of the most commonly used words in your target language and work your way through it. Aim for learning about 20 new words every day.

Watch kids shows in your target language. Listen as much as you can to try to figure out which words are commonly used together. Reading can help with this too.

Find a native language speaker to help you.

There’s lots of resources on YouTube for language learning too, and apps like Duolingo and Lingvist. These won’t be enough to become fluent, but may be a good starting point.
When it comes to learning a new language, there are a lot of different ways to approach. The best way to learn any language is to practise it as much as possible with native speakers.To be able to communicate with them, you need to start off by learning some basics before, which you can do in various ways depending on your individual learning style. Some people are fine attending a language class with a group of other people, some need a private teacher to focus on the language properly, and some prefer learning just on their own.

Visit where the language is spoken

After acquiring some basics it is very helpful to be surrounded by the new language as much as possible. The best way to achieve that is of course to go to the country where the language is spoken. This way, you are not only improving your vocabulary and grammar knowledge, as you do from language exercise books, but you also get used to the way native speakers use their language in terms of intonation, accents, and slang. Also, you will get a better understanding of the whole culture if you are among native speakers. Once you immerse yourself in the culture you will soon be able to understand jokes, proverbs, or even gags

Listen to foreign radio

It can be hard to get in touch with native speakers if you have just moved to a foreign country and don’t know anyone there. To bridge the period of time until you make native friends, there are still many ways to improve your language skills For example, listening to music in the foreign language. The easiest way to get access to that is by switching on the radio or looking on the internet for famous artists using the language you want to learn. By listening to the radio, you are getting used to the sound of the new language and the way native speakers are using it in real life, as well as extending your vocabulary, may be due to a catchy song.

Watch foreign movies

Another, and may be even better, way to experience everyday language is to watch movies in the foreign language. In contrast to the radio, movies give you the opportunity to see facial expressions and gestures too, which can help to teach you new vocabulary or common expressions. Moreover, a lot of movies deal with everyday situations, so you can adopt a lot of words and expressions which might be very helpful for your day to day life in the foreign country. Another advantage of movies compared to the radio is the possibility to switch on subtitles that can support your understanding while listening.

Use a language learning app

A more modern method to increase your language knowledge is to use a language learning app on your mobile phone. This is a great and sometimes amusing way to spend your time while, for instance, sitting on the bus or train or waiting in line somewhere. Find out some language learning apps.
Original post by sambeaz6
People have so many different opinions on what is the best way to learn a language; some say to immerse yourself; some say to memorise grammar; some say to focus solely on speaking; some say we should do all. But what does everyone think is the real way to truly become fluent in a language?


Grammar is probably the most important thing to understand first, I think. You should learn vocabulary entirely in studying and practising grammar until you're pretty comfortable with all the language's grammar
Reply 13
Original post by sambeaz6
People have so many different opinions on what is the best way to learn a language; some say to immerse yourself; some say to memorise grammar; some say to focus solely on speaking; some say we should do all. But what does everyone think is the real way to truly become fluent in a language?


Ideally, if you can, you want to 'immerse yourself' and force yourself to speak the language in a foreign country or community. However, this isn't always the case so isn't exactly ideal for a lot of people.

Being able to communicate is extremely important and the ability to formulate simple sentences is key to motivating yourself to carry through with the arduous task of learning a foreign language.

Motivation is key and whatever you can do to 'trick' your brain into thinking your making progress will help - also actually making progress will help. :}

I found focusing on technically accuracy held me back a lot. Just go for it and don't be afraid of making mistakes. This is why I got really annoyed in high school learning spanish because progress was so slow: we had to have complete technical accuracy in a subject before we could move onto anything else.

:smile:

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