Tips and Tricks on Learning a New Language
Q: Do you have suggestions on how to make it easier to learn a new language? To use some apps or learn in class, read articles, watch movies, anything like that. It’s hard to find time for everything, so I would like to know the best practice is for that.
Learning a new language is like opening a window to the world you never realized was there. By learning a new language, you also get to learn the cultural heritage of the people or peoples that speak it, their way of thinking, and how the world looks through their eyes.
Learning a new language at a fluent level can take anything from roughly 600 to 2,000 hours, which translates to anything from about 6 months to 2 years. The time it takes depends on the difficulty of the language and your method of learning it.
Here are some basic strategies to consider in order to speed up your language learning process:
1. Get official instruction, especially in the beginning
The basic building blocks of any language are its alphabet, grammar, and syntax. You need to ensure that you learn those correctly. Therefore, make sure that when you are just starting out, you get sound, thorough instruction by an expert tutor in all three areas.
Make sure you learn all basic grammar and syntax rules correctly and develop ease in using them. The better you master these rules, the easier you can practice on your own.
2. Learn the language’s 500 most common words and use them constantly
Each language has a vast vocabulary, but you are not likely to encounter all the available words with the same frequency. To learn to use a language quickly, prioritize learning the first (and most common) 500 words as quickly as possible. Those will be the ones that native speakers are most likely to use in their interactions, so you will be able to quickly begin to understand them.
Learn the words in thematic groups that make sense, such as “clothes,” “animals,” “phrasal verbs,” “adjectives,” etc. That way, remembering them will be easier and you will be surprised to realize that, after a point, learning new words will be a lot easier too.
3. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes
When starting off on using a new language, it’s a given that you will make many mistakes. That’s alright! Native speakers are usually delighted to see foreign people try to speak their language and will help you out by correcting you. Make sure that the moment you are corrected in your grammar, vocabulary, or syntax, you repeat what you just said in the correct fashion. That way you get accustomed to the proper usage faster.
4. Watch movies with subtitles
Seek out movies in the language you are learning and watch them with subtitles. Exposing yourself to the spoken language is good for listening comprehension as well as acclimating yourself with how the language is supposed to sound. The subtitles will help you increase your understanding and single out words and phrases more and more as you advance in your learning.
5. Learn songs
Seek out songs written in the language you are learning and learn the lyrics by heart, singing along. This helps with building vocabulary and syntax more than grammar. You will also get a sense of intonation and pronunciation. Just make sure that if the lyrics have grammatical errors (which is a frequent phenomenon to help with rhythm or rhyming) that you know they’re there and what the correct form of the sentence is.
6. Use the internet
Seek out forums, discord servers, and similar social media frequented by users of the language you are learning. Join them and start interacting. Let them know you are learning and immerse yourself in speaking and writing the language. Not only will you make new friends who speak the language you are learning, but you’ll also acquire vocabulary, slang, and interesting turns of phrase that are frequently used by native speakers.
7. Play games in that language
If possible, seek out and play games written and developed in the language you are learning. These don’t need to be language-learning games or word games. Rather, opt for adventure games, MMORPGs, and point-and-click games that rely on language to give you instructions on what to do.
Overall, language learning takes time and investment. So, if you are pressed for time, the most efficient way to learn a new language is through one-on-one tutoring. Select a competent teacher that makes learning fun for you and invest long hours into learning: it’s important that you allocate at least 6 hours a week when you’re starting, with an ideal amount being 8 hours a week to keep your studies rigorous and your mind geared toward language learning.
As soon as you master the language to a B1 level, which is intermediate, you can ease up on the weekly hours to just 4. The more you add to your language practice by doing all the other things mentioned in this list, the faster you will progress. Good luck!
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