Vocabulary building

Again, thanks to Twitter I stumbled on an interesting article with learning tips. It tells how to learn and build new vocabulary in the language you are learning. You can read the whole article here: Poligo Guide to Language Part 40: Vocab Building.

Here's a sample of some pieces of advices from the article:

(...)
"So, in order to build your vocabulary fast, you should follow this simple recipe:

1. Increase your daily exposure to the language: listen and read a lot;
2. Make a note of new words;
3. Make an effort to sit down and learn the new words.

If you are not learning lots of words at the intermediate level, you are not doing one of these three things. If you are not encountering new words, read and listen more. If you are not remembering the new words you find, sit down and learn them. If you sit down and find that you have no new words to learn, you have skipped number one or number two.

Do not try and choose which words to learn. Learn them all:

1. If you have met a word in some real-life situation, it is not useless, no matter what you think.
2. You cannot judge the usefulness of a word by comparing it to your native language.
3. Even if a word seems useless, it might be very easy to remember, so you might as well learn it.
4. You also cannot tell, until you learn all of the language, whether a seemingly useless word might not be related to other far more common and useful words. Learn it and you can lay the foundation for learning other things.
5. It is also sometimes the case, that the sheer absurd uselessness of a word makes it memorable. You might be able to learn it with very little effort.
6. Even obscure words can show in interesting ways features of the target language that will help you to learn more common words later.
7. The words learners judge "useless" are almost always words they (and most twelve-year olds) know or at least can understand in their native language: for example, you might be surprised that anyone would know, or want to know, foreign-language words for things like "hippopotamus" or "dolphin", "schizophrenia" and so on. Yet everybody certainly knows all of these words in their native language. Why would you know a word for it in ANY language if it was "useless"?

You should just learn the words that come your way, no matter what, and enjoy them."

• Poligo Guide to Language Part 40: Vocab Building

Links

• Babelan. People learning, practicing or teaching languages

Strategies to learn a foreign language

Learning a foreign language could be easier than you expect. You must work different skills such as reading, writing, speaking and listening. Just attending a class a few hours every week is not enough, you must work every day a bit at home. Obviously, the best way is to live in the country where the target language is spoken. Although, if you do not have the chance, you can improve so much in your home country.

There are some strategies you can follow in order to learn a foreign language properly, although, I strongly believe that the key word you cannot forget is "motivation". The following are some strategies to help you to success. They are useful for any language you wish to learn (English, Spanish, German, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, Italian, Portuguese, Czech, Romanian, Vietnamese, French, Korean, Arabic, Hungarian, Polish, Bulgarian...).

1. First of all, be self-confident and strongly believe that you can get it. You know probably that learning a foreign language is hard but it is not impossible.

2. Enjoy yourself. Make the most of the new language, culture and all the things you will learn and the people you will meet.

3. Study every day for short periods of time several times a day. You do not have to do always the same activities. You can do the homework, watch videos, listen to the radio, read a bit, write a friend and brush up vocabulary or grammar points. If you feel a bit bored try listening music in the target language or watching a funny video.

4. Look for native speakers penpals with similar interests. You can use new technologies to practice. Use a chat or e-mail and practice your writing skills, moreover, you can talk with Skype, Yahoo Messenger or Msn and impriove your speaking skills. There are several sites to contact people (e.g. babelan.net), just search for them.

5. Take advantage of all available resources. They are great to broaden your skills:

• Reading: you can borrow books or newspaper from the library. In internet, there are thousands of pages that you can read in the target language.
• Listening: the chances are endless, video pages, radio stations, tv, podcasting...
• Writing: make new friends (penpals) and write them, you can also try building a blog in your target language and write about your hobby, interests or whatever you feel like.
• Speaking: you can talk online with native speakers.

6. Do the homework. And later you must revise it, only what your teacher has corrected. Do not learn what you do not know it is correct.

7. Buy a small notebook. Write down new vocabulary, phrases, grammatical points, idioms, etc. It is really effective to read articles or books and write down the new words you come across. Later, you can revise them..

8. Do not worry about making mistakes. Your partner or teacher will correct you. In addition, you wil learn from mistakes, everytime you make a mistake you will notice it and improve.

9. Increase the amount of contact you have with the language (e.g. change to the target language on your computer, mobile, e-mail acount, calendar, etc.).

10. The best tip of all is linguistic immersion. If you have a chance, travel to the country of the target language. Study and work there. Or just visit the country for holidays.

Links

• Babelan, language exchanges and lessons

Five strategies to better learn... a language

Thanks to Twitter I stumbled on a post called Five Strategies to Better Learn Spanish in TopArticleInfoBlog.info. It tells some good tips to study Spanish (or any language). Here's those strategies:

Five learning strategies

- The first learning strategy is a simple one, and one that might not appeal to many people. This strategy is simple: Turn off your TV, turn off your radio and find a quiet place to study Spanish with no distractions. It is amazing how many people like to have background music playing when they are learning, unaware of how counter-productive it can be. If you need to have background music, then choose Baroque, and then preferably strings, rather than brass. Baroque music played on strings has actually been shown to be beneficial to learners.

- The second strategy follows on from the first. Don’t slob out on the bed, especially on your front, when you are trying to study Spanish. Sit at a desk or a table, if possible, with a comfortable, but straight-backed chair and make sure your materials are within easy reach. You don’t want to have to break your leaning state over and over again, by having to retrieve items you need from elsewhere, such as a highlighter, or a pen. You can read a book for pleasure while sitting or laying on your couch, but when you need to learn something, such as in this case Spanish language, even though you might be home, you still need to replicate a classroom or a library setting to help you learn faster and more effective.

- Strategy three: You will be amazed how many people approach learning Spanish without first asking themselves why they are learning it and what they want to achieve with it. Having a concrete reason to learn Spanish makes your brain focus more on the task. With learning Spanish this step is vital because it is essentially a brain-oriented task. And if you get bored or bump into an obstacle, your brain will veer off to another world, you will lose your focus and learning Spanish will become a nightmare. So, write down the reason why you’re learning Spanish and what you will accomplish with it, and have it next to you to remind yourself when and if the going gets tough.

- Strategy four: Study the Spanish language for short periods of 20 to 30 minutes each, and take breaks of about 10 minutes in between. It’s a new language and it’s literally a new world to you. Your brain will get overwhelmed pretty fast. Experts have found that our peaks of learning information tend to come at the beginning and the end of a session. In other words, we remember material more easily that we learned in the first few minutes of a session, and the last few minutes. Therefore, creating many beginnings and endings in one learning session would increase the amount of Spanish you are able to take in, and more importantly, recall it later when you need to use it.

- Strategy five: Breathe deeply and relax at your 10 minute breaks and not get on the phone or watch TV. That will break your concentration. Close your eyes, breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth a few times, slowly and evenly. This helps prepare you for your next 20 to 30 minute study session.

If you want more hints, read the previous post Ten Commandments for language learning.

Links

• Babelan, language exchanges and lessons

Improving listening skills (tip)

As you probably know, internet offers endless chances of improving your listening skills: radio broadcasts, podcasts, videos, films, etc. Although, there are other ways of working your listening skills. The following is a useful tip.

If you have a recording and the text you want to work out, you can upload it to your mobile or mp3 player. Write down the text in your notebook, and search the new words. You can also print out or photocopy it, although it's much better to write it down.

Once you have finished, you can listen to it several times in the underground, in the bus or at home. At the beginning, listen to it reading the text, later do it without the text. This way you'll improve your listening skills and broaden your vocabulary.

Those who learn English, for instance, can work this way with Words in the News from the BBC Learning English. If you have the CD from a learning book, you can also work this way.

If you know more tips to improve your language skills, please leave a comment.

Links

• Babelan, language exchanges and lessons

Learn Serbian

Learn Serbian is a blog with lessons of Serbian (by Marina Petrovic). You'll mainly find short videos (and exercises) with different topics about the language. Also, Marina tells tips about the language and some useful links for learning Serbian.

Many lessons are fun and display real videos from tv or music clips. Here's an example, learning numbers with an hilarious gag about inflation: Practise Numbers in Serbian - Listening Exercise.



In her 'intro lesson' she advices:

I believe that the easiest way to learn a language is to be relaxed and eager to learn. Your actual feelings towards language learned will depend on your teacher and surroundings, to their attitude and their feelings - you will be just their mirror.

Therefore, I would suggest you learn bit by bit - small chunks of language, incorporated in short and easy to memorize sentences. Therefore, you will be able to repeat these simple things and motivate yourself by your own success.

Do not worry about the pronunciation. The aim is to say a word clearly enough, so that people understand you. That is an achievement in itself. In the course of time, your ears will get accustomed to Serbian, and thus, your pronunciation is going to improve. So pls, don't worry about difficult sounds like š, ž, ć, č, đ...it will come in time :)

• Learn Serbian: http://learnserbian.blogspot.com

Links

• Babelan, language exchanges and lessons

Learn English with jokes

Sometimes, language lessons are not really motivating and boring. ESLjokes.net offers materials for teachers and students to learn English in a fun way. All the materials are focus on jokes. They are classified in different levels: elementary, pre-intermediate, intermediate and upper intermediate / advanced. Every joke comes with grammar points, vocabulary and exercises.

• ESLjokes.net

Welcome to ESLjokes.net

This is a website of free English Language Teaching materials for teachers and students. Jokes written in graded English are followed by grammar and vocabulary exercises.

Teachers: print out the jokes and language exercises to use with your classes.

Students: work through the jokes on screen, or print them out to make your own self-study book.

Links

• Babelan, language exchanges and lessons

Ten reasons to learn Russian

Master Russian is a comprehensive site for students of Russian. It's got several resources such as lessons, videos, tips, links, etc. An interesting article in the page is Ten reasons to learn Russian. It talks about the different reasons to learn Russian as a foreign language. Here's this article:

Ten Reasons to Learn Russian

You might already have your own good reasons for learning Russian. Perhaps you like the sound of the Russian accent, or admire the Russian ballet and literature, or want to get a Russian girlfriend or meet your prince charming. Maybe you plan to do business in Russia or simply want to visit Moscow as a tourist. Just in case you are still wondering about the benefits of learning Russian, here are ten great reasons to get started.

1 You are passionate about Russian classical literature and dream to read the works of Russian classics in the original.

Talented Russian writers - Bunin, Chekhov, Pushkin - are authors of amazingly interesting literary works. The famous writings of Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky and Nikolai Gogol convey the essence of the Russian soul. However, the Russian culture is known not only for its writers. Many brilliant musicians and singers such like Oistrakh, Chaliapin, Tchaikovsky, and dozens others also came from Russia. The glory of Russian ballet and its stars Anna Pavlova, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Rudolf Nureyev does not subside even today. Russian cultural heritage is widely known throughout the world and knowledge of the Russian language is a must to fully enjoy and understand it.

2 You have heard a lot about the beauty and modesty of Russian women and want to find your destiny in Russia.

The amazing and mysterious Russian women have been the Muses of many great artists and writers. People have told legends about the beauty of Russian women, while the traditions and peculiarities of Russian upbringing shape their noble and modest character. Russian women make wonderful hosts and place great importance on family values. Many men from different countries of the world dream of having a Russian woman as a wife. Therefore, besides learning the language of love, it would be perfect to master the native language of your future "second half".

3 You are aware of Russia’s lucrative investment opportunities and consider establishing a company in Russia.

If you are going on a business trip to Russia, you want to be prepared to communicate with your Russian business partners. Russian entrepreneurs are well-versed in international economics and willingly establish business relationships with partners from abroad. Russia is adequately represented in the international arena. Due to the size of the country and its natural resources, the Russian market is of great interest to foreign businessmen. And serious business requires a serious approach - the knowledge of the Russian language is a must for efficient communication with your new business partners.

4 You are an ambitious traveller and Russia is the next stop on your travel list.

Many foreigners have set to travel across Russia at various times. Russia is a fascinating and exotic country. It occupies a vast territory offering plenty of opportunities to enjoy resort towns with spectacular beaches, experience the taiga with its diverse wildlife and unexplored places, visit the Russian Far East where the sun rises while people in the Western parts of the country are still fast asleep. There is so much to see and do in Russia, and speaking a little Russian will help you to meet all sorts of fascinating people and make the most of every moment.

5 You know that life in Russia is very different from life in the West. You are interested in everything connected with the Russian way of life, habits and mentality.

Life in Russia is not quite the same as in the Western world. Everything from upbringing of children to family values to friends and relationships has its own flavor in Russia. The system of education (kindergartens, schools), health services, and work of various official organizations – all this is often radically different from what is common for the Western Europe, USA, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. You will find it much easier to quench your thirst to all things Russian if you can speak and understand the Russian language.

6 You like to meet new people from around the globe but don’t have enough knowledge of the language to talk to your Russian friends. Your Russian friends will certainly be very pleased if you can understand them better.

The latest advances in technology have opened limitless opportunities for communication. The distance is no longer a barrier. In just a few hours, anybody with a computer and Internet connection can make dozens new friends with similar interests from around the world. Russian Internet users are actively exploring the virtual space – run personal blogs, post Twitter updates, connect with people via numerous social networks, and gain new knowledge about other countries of the world. In Russian schools, English is taught starting from the elementary grades, therefore most Russians can understand a few English phrases and express simple ideas in English. So why not learn a little bit of Russian? After all, it’s much easier and more interesting to communicate with friends from abroad if you can understand the language of each other.

7 Russian language is the most widely spoken among Slavic languages. You should certainly learn it – there are about 300 million total speakers of Russian in the world.

Russian became one of the languages of world communication – a global language – as early as in the twentieth century. Today, there are less than ten global languages in the world. This means that the Russian language – just like English, French or German – is used for communication by a very large number of people around the globe. In addition, Russian is one of the official UN languages. Out of approximately 300 million people in the world who know Russian, 160 million people consider it to be their native language. The Russian language is ranked the fifth most prevalent language in the world.

8 You are seriously interested in history of Russia. The knowledge of the Russian language is required for you to work with archival documents.

The historical past of Russia is of great importance for understanding the World history. In fact, Russia played crucial role in the development of the world during the past several centuries. The Russian authorities have recently opened access to a variety of archives storing many invaluable documents. These materials enable researchers to look into the past and understand the reasons behind many global events. However, the study of these documents is only possible if you understand Russian. Want to better know the history of Russia and the world? Start learning Russian!

9 You plan to adopt a child from Russia.

International adoption of children from Russia became possible in the early 1990’s. Since that time, Russia has been one of the top sending countries. Today, there is an estimated 750,000 children living in baby homes and orphanages in Russia. They dream about a new family, a cozy house, and affection of mother and father. And some adults find that it’s in their power to give the child a miracle and make him or her happy. If you are planning to adopt a child from Russia, you should start learning Russian now. Many adoptive families agree that it’s important to know more than just “yes” and “no” in Russian.

10 You have a lot of free time. Why not learn a foreign language like Russian? Especially when it has such an unusual and original sound for native English speakers.

Every person should strive to develop and improve. A wise man will always find it interesting to make new discoveries and master new knowledge. It is believed that the more languages a person knows the more intelligent and educated he or she becomes. Learning the Russian language should be twice as interesting because it is very challenging to learn and many native English speakers find Russian accent to be unusual and beautiful.

Links

• Babelan. The languages site
• Learning Russian webpages