Accumulating words is the fundamental task in language learning, in other words it is very important to acquire new words. Many learners are under the impression that this is done through memorization. This is not, however, the most effective way to grow your vocabulary. I’ve never been able to learn new words by deliberately trying to memorize them. The more effective way to learn new words is simply through exposure to the language.
When it comes to learning a new language, the debate around the role of grammar is as lively as ever. Do you need grammar to learn a language? The short answer: not…
Aprender inglés (o cualquier idioma) es un desafío, pero el principio es simple. El cerebro necesita procesar y asimilar el idioma a través de exposición consistente y comprensible. En este blog, exploraremos…
Reading comprehension is a fundamental skill for language learning and communication. Reading unlocks new levels of understanding and fluency. Improved reading comprehension entails a larger vocabulary, the ability to process more complex…
You’ve decided to start learning a new language. While exciting, getting started can feel a bit daunting. What’s the right approach? How do you know what tools work for you? In this…
Reading is the ‘killer app’ for education, communication, and language acquisition in my opinion. It bridges gaps between cultures, connects us with history, and enhances our linguistic abilities. In this post I…
We live in an age where there are lots of distractions. The multiplicity of media has made it easy to be distracted from whatever task we are engaged with.
Why do I want to talk about perfection? First of all, I am a dilettante learner. I also recognize that there are people who need the language for professional reasons because they want to get into a school so that they’re not just dabbling in the language, exploring, having fun like I like to do, they actually need it. So how good do they need to be in the language?
Language learning as we know is about motivation. That’s the driver. That’s the smart plug that triggers your interest, your curiosity. Content, which feeds that curiosity and those interests, is extremely important. Content that you like, content that has resonance for you.
I think very often in the standard classroom there’s a tremendous emphasis placed on producing the language, speaking the language, which is fine because that’s what people want to do. But what I think is more important is what will I be able to do with the language in a year from now? And from that perspective, I’m not tremendously motivated to speak.
