Learn Language Step By Step
Pace yourself when learning a language. You cannot learn it all in one day, and even if you did learn it all, you would forget it all the next day.
Learning any language is a step by step process. It takes time, patience, persistence and continued effort over time to learn. Learning a language is very much like learning how to type, learning how to ride a bike, learning how to ski, learning how to manage people, learning how to climb a mountain and so on. There are no real shortcuts to learning a language, but there are more effective methods than others, and in many cases more enjoyable.
Learn Faster Through Association
Practice Language Every Day
Expose Yourself To A Variety Of Situations and Materials
Write Down New Words And Phrases You Learn
Learn Faster Through Association
When you are learning language, invest your time into learning things associated with your own everyday life. For instance, if you generally read a book and watch tv during the day, you could learn how to say "i like to read books" and "i like to watch tv" in the language. If you go to school at 8:00am on Tuesday and Thursday, learn how to say "I go to school at 8:00 on Tuesday and Thursday". If you usually pick up a bagel with butter in the morning for breakfast, learn how to say "Bagel", "Butter", "I want a Bagel with Butter for Breakfast", "I like Bagel with Butter", "I eat Bagel with Butter in the morning" and so on. If you are tired, learn how to say "I am tired" in the language, and be sure to say it out loud with the same feeling that you would have when saying it in English.
Seize the opportunity to associate all situations in your life with the language that you are trying to learn.
Practice Language Every Day
When learning languages, you need to be willing to put in a little effort every chance you get. Consider you were planning to run in the 26K marathon in 6 months and you want to try to lead the race. Would you wait until the week before the race to start training, or would you start now doing a little training every day and prepare yourself for the big race coming in 6 months? For sure, you would prepare, if you were serious about your plan to lead the race.
The steps to learning language are very similar to those same steps you would need to run the 26K marathon. A little bit every day. A variety of exercises need to be practiced. Some intense exercises, some routine. Over time, the exercises become very natural to your body, and not long after you know it, you can hold conversations in the language, maybe even think in the language.
Expose Yourself To A Variety Of Situations and Materials
You really need to create an environment around yourself by acquiring a variety of materials in the language like books, newspapers, tapes, CDs, music, MP3s, foods, study workbooks, puzzles, games to name a few. Also, it would be helpful to know if there is anyone in the area that you may know who speaks the language and can help you.
Another approach you may take, when you are somewhat comfortable saying at least "Hello, How are you?" in the language, is to open up a phone book and call a business / establishment that is advertised as speaking the language. Give them a call just to practice what you know, and you will be amazed at what else they can teach you in one conversation.
Share what you learn in the language with others that do not speak the language. Help others to see that you are progressing in the language, and especially, for those that are interested, teach them. Again, teach others the language, and in turn, you will be reinforcing and teaching the language to yourself.
Write Down New Words and Phrases You Learn
There will always be times that you learn new things in the language. Take the time to write down what you learn, especially when learning casually from others, in the way that you hear and learn it. It is not important that the spelling or scripting be accurate, just that you can write it down so that you can practice and repeat it to yourself and others later. Writing it down also encourages your mind to understand what is being said and to transfer that into written form.
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