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How To Learn Any Language In 1 Hour Quickly

Admin — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 08:42:13 +0000

Learning a new language doesn’t have to be hard or tedious. It can be fun, if you have the right tools. No doubt, you’ve visited a book store or searched online only to find a ton of language learning kits and books. It can make finding which one is the right one very hard. In most cases, you can learn a new language with an hour. Yes, that’s right. Before you go out and spend your hard earned money on a language program, you first should understand what will be involved in learning the new language. First, take the language apart and understand how it is put together. This is one of the fastest ways to learn a new language. You can deconstruct any language whether it is Spanish, German, Italian, Thai, Japanese, Korean, Swedish, English, Norwegian, Irish Gaelic, etc. Once you deconstruct the language of your choice, you’ll be in a better position to learn it quickly and easily, and be able to converse with no problems. How is it possible to learn a language in one hour? That starts by taking them apart and then choosing wisely which ones you are going to be able to pick up easily and which ones are going to be difficult for you. Learning a new language is a lot like learning to play a new sport. When you learn to play a new sport there are certain physical requirements you’ve got to have. For example, body building, you’ve got to have the ability to lift weights and build muscle. In basketball, height is a big plus. So for example, if you were shorter than average, never played basketball before, and you wanted to play basketball, you’d have to take into account that factor and the time it will take you to become proficient in that sport. When it comes to learning a language the same principles apply. Think about the tools you already have now and how they will fit in with your new goal. If, for example, your native language is Japanese, then you may find yourself handicapped with more than 20 phonemes that are particular to your native language. Because of this, it may be that some language will be very difficult for you to learn. By picking a language that is similar in sound and in word construction (like Spanish for example), you could realize the difference between being able to converse freely in that new language in 2 to 3 months instead of 3 to 4 years! You should ask yourself the following questions when beginning to deconstruct your new language; 1. Are there new sounds that will increase my time to fluency? 2. Are there any grammar structures that will take longer to learn? 3. How is this language similar to any languages that I already know? 4. What can help me learn this language faster? 5. What will interfere with my learning this language fast? 6. Will my learning this language erase any previous language that I’ve learned or cause fatal interference? (Ex. Some have thought that learning Portuguese after learning Spanish has caused them problems) 7. How difficult is it going to be to learn this language? 8. How long would it take me to become functionally fluent in this language? It won’t take much to answer the questions above. You simply need just a few sentences translated from your native language into your target language to give you a clear idea of what will be involved. Here are some to start: The banana is yellow. It is Sam’s banana. I give Sam the banana. We give him the banana. We gave her the banana. He gives it to Sam. She gives it to him. These sentences by themselves will expose much of your target language. From these, you’ll be able to decide just how easy or difficult learning your new language will be. They can help you to see if and how verbs are conjugated. This is based both on the person that is speaking and according to numbers and gender identification. You’ll also be able to see placement of direct objects (the banana), indirect objects (Sam), and respective pronouns (it, him). You can even follow these sentences with some negations such as “She doesn’t give. . . “, “He didn’t give. . . “, “I didn’t give”, “I don’t give. . . “, and different tenses, so you can see if they are going to be expressed as separate words (such as “bu” in Chinese) or verb changes (such as “-nai” or “-masen” in Japanese), making Japanese a much harder language to learn. Next, you want to look at the basic sentence structure. Is it anything like English where you have subject-verb-object? (Example; I eat the banana) Or is it subject-object-verb like Japanese (Example; I the banana eat), or is it something else altogether? If you’re a native English speaker, then subject-object-verb is going to be much harder for you than the other way around. If you’ve already picked up such a language, then it will not be as difficult for you. Your brain will have already been formatted for these kinds of languages. Finally, go through the language alphabet and character system. See if your language has at least one phonetic writing system of less than 50 sounds, such as Russian, Japanese, and Spanish. Chinese would not be included here since Chinese tones create many variations of otherwise very simple sounds. Again, treat your new language as a sport. Learn the rules first, and then determine if it is worth your time and energy to learn the language. Once you’ve made the decision to either stick with it or quit it, you’ll be able to move forward knowing that you can learn any language in 1 hour.

Studying Vocabulary When Learning a New Language

Admin — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 05:39:08 +0000

Learning vocabulary words is critical part of learning to speak a foreign language, next to grammar. If you can say any words, how can you speak the language? Learning vocabulary words isn’t always easy. In a perfect world, we would be able to look at a word and never remember it. This way, we could learn hundreds of words a day. Unfortunately, this doesn’t usually happen. For some, remembering the words is simple. For others, it is very difficult. If you practice some simple steps, hopefully you will be able to learn in a short period of time.
The key to studying a new vocabulary word is using it and seeing it over and over. If you can use a language program that has this quality built in, you are in luck. If not, there are ways to simulate it.
Put together a list of words you want to study in the first day. You might pick 10 completely unrelated words. Start by writing down the list with the target language first then English. Read through them a few times. Next, pick your first term. Read through both translations 10 times out loud. Now look at the target language word. Does it remind you of anything that be used to help you remember what it means?
For example, the Spanish word for paper is papel. This one is simple because the the beginning of the word looks just like paper. Now, every time you need to know the word for paper in Spanish, try to remember that papel looks like paper.
Now, you should repeatedly use the word. Try to write three to five sentences using the word in different ways. When you finish it with each word, write them down on an index card so that you can use them on flashcards later on. Carry them with you when you know you’ll have some free time to use them. This way, you can constantly be looking at them and reviewing them. When you are finished with vocabulary each day, don’t just move on to the next set of words and forget the rest. Always keep them all in mind.
Also when you have free time, try to construct sentences as you think using your vocabulary words. You don’t want to just remember the word when you see it, you want to have it mastered so that whenever you need it, you don’t have to think first, it just comes out. For example, you might always know that papel means paper, but will you always know how to say paper in Spanish? Papel needs to just pop in your head.
This is how you will become fluent. You need to know each word inside and out. Try to think in your language. It’s a great way to use your language whenever you want even if you don’t have any study materials. Also, you won’t look weird speaking in another language because you are only thinking it. The key to learning any language is by practicing. As they say, “practice makes perfect!”

New Year – New Language – New Benefits for Your Child

Admin — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:49:34 +0000

Remember those language learning labs in junior high school? Those labs with headsets, the classrooms with written workbooks full of verb conjugation and a teacher who followed a curriculum vs. her students’ capabilities combined to create absolutely the worst (and least) effective method used to teach a second language. That is why those of us who took languages back in the days of middle school being called junior high school remember just a few choice words (and probably pronounce them incorrectly!).
Today, as parents and as educators, we know the importance of raising our children to be bilingual. We see and experience this ever-shrinking world of ours and encounter endless opportunities to test our own bilingual skills. We know from recent research and the barrage of studies thrown at us that the secret to success is introducing the new language early in life. Why, even TIME and NEWSWEEK Magazines ran feature articles on the window of opportunity to introduce a new language is between birth and around the age of ten to twelve.
What most of us do not know, however, is how to bring this language learning into our homes and our daily life. We struggle with the question of how to find a language program designed for very young children, will we need to have teaching experience or command of the new language in order to make the learning successful in our home or our classroom, and how can we incorporate the second language learning into our daily routines?
As parents we need convenience in this new language program (we cannot even find time to read a book some days so make this one fit our daily life routine please!). Do not give us a manual that we have to read through in order to help our child (we cannot even get the Sunday paper read!). We desire a language program created by someone who really knows children and really knows language learning (we really want something that provides results and will not drop to the bottom of the toy box!). And could someone please make it so we do not have to make monthly installment payments to pay for the language learning program (we all know how much we spend in the first year of life!).
Parents and educators use the internet more and more to research many things prior to buying. Try this approach when looking for a language program for your child. Use your favorite search engine prompting keywords you might find in the title of this future learning tool for your child (teach Spanish to child, bilingual DVD, French music CD for child). Then look for language programs that include visual learning (68% of the population learns visually), learning with music (what child do you know who does not love music!), beginning reading in the new language (subtitles in the DVD, language cards or board books are great tools) and some type of verbal exchange (even if it involves prompting the child to speak back to the TV on occasion).
Make certain you are allowed to sample the components of the new language program on the internet. Most programs allow you to see video clips and/or hear parts of their songs. Look for a true bilingual method of teaching for any child who falls between the ages of birth through ten. Seamless transition from the native language to the new language is crucial during the first five years of life. Many experts agree that while the child is still acquiring skills in his native language you should be introducing the new language alongside the native one. Hearing only the new, targeted language for a long period of time with no point of reference will not work as well with children before the age of five.
Make sure the language learning program is affordable and is truly integrated with several components (not just a video you play over and over or one CD you listen to time and again). The program should create a multi-media classroom for your child for his certain ways of learning, moods and methods of acquiring new information. Look for bright colors, captivating scenes, easy-to-understand lyrics in the songs and a simple, engaging presentation that brings the two languages together for your little one.
Does the company offer support services? Is there a toll free number to call with live people who really know the language program (or is it just a call center)? Do they value their customers by offering things such as a resource newsletter, access to additional teaching ideas via their web site and follow-up contact? Have families tried these products, and what testimonials are provided to hear their feedback? How long has the company been offering these language learning tools, and how are the creators/owners professionally connected with the early childhood education field?
All of the factors mentioned in this article combine to provide a great start to what could prove to be a lifetime of language skills for your child. Remember, even if you choose Spanish today for your child and she chooses French later in life, you have given her the head start on connecting the neural pathways for language learning. Resolving to give your baby, toddler or preschooler a head start this year on becoming bilingual should be top on your list of New Year’s Resolutions for both you and your family.

Foreign Language Learning Resources – Which is Right for You? Part 1 – Total Immersion Programs

Admin — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 10:20:23 +0000

Most of you have seen the commercials touting a foreign language program using a very well known Olympic gold medalist swimmer. This popular and very polished software package, known as Rosetta Stone, is an excellent example (but not the only example) of a total immersion language program. But the commercials touting ‘The Fastest Way to Learn a Language – Guaranteed’, don’t necessarily paint the complete picture for the prospective buyer.

What is it?

Let’s start by exploring what is meant by ‘total immersion’. A total immersion system is any program that thrusts you into a foreign language without any (or difficult to access) assistance in your native tongue. The basic idea is to learn by picture/video and audio reinforcement – the same way you learned your native language as a child. The concept is very simple – present a situation, dialog, or group of pictures and challenge the user to (initially) ‘guess’ the native word or phrase that applies to the situation. Variations on this basic theme include audio and picture only, sentence building and grammar reinforcement lessons. Other DVD based programs present common situations in video with on screen clues (sometimes pointers to what the actor is describing), eventually providing the answer with no user interaction. More extensive computer programs include voice recognition to assist you in learning the native accent. Through these methods, the student is expected to easily and quickly absorb the new language. In practice, however, it’s not as simple, nor as fast as advertised.

Where it Succeeds

As you might guess, some aspects of a language are easier to convey with pictures than others. Immersion programs do the best job at teaching object vocabulary – otherwise known as nouns. It’s expected that when someone sees a cat, they will eventually figure out the word that corresponds to the cat over time. A cat is a concrete easily identifiable object, and I am sure you can think of thousands more. Similarly, colors and numbers are easy, because they are easy to represent in pictures. These programs also do a good job at conveying the meanings of action verbs, particularly in the present tense. It’s obvious to the student when someone is eating, drinking or walking and so on.

Immersion is also a great way to introduce a pre-teen to a foreign language. By their nature, kids are more responsive to this type of teaching and tend to soak up that material like a sponge – the younger the better.

Where it Fails.

Naturally, since these types of courses perform well with nouns, action verbs in the present tense, you will see a lot of them. Some of the cheaper programs rely exclusively on the present tense, while some of the more costly programs make attempts at past and future tenses. It’s fairly difficult to represent past and future verb tense using pictures and video, and it’s often done after reinforcing the concepts of ‘yesterday’ and ‘tomorrow’, which also require fairly creative pictures! Abstract verbs are also fairly difficult to represent in pictures, such as ‘to have’, ‘to feel’, ‘to believe’, etc… Other problems include object vs. personal pronouns. Specifically, the concept of him/her vs. he/she is almost impossible to convey in pictures.

But, perhaps the biggest issue of all concerns the adult learner. Many studies (as well as personal experience) have shown that adults learn much faster using native language cues and explanations. As adults are already versed in a native language, they can more readily relate native grammar to the differences in the new language. Total immersion programs can actually lengthen the amount of time it takes to learn a language in an adult when used as an exclusive learning tool.

In Summary

Despite these potential shortcomings (particularly for adults), don’t write off total immersion entirely – just don’t expect to use it as your primary language learning source. At the very least, make sure you accompany any total immersion program purchase with a good phrasebook, dictionary, or beginner’s course book – especially if you are dealing with a different alphabet or script. The presence of these native language ‘helpers’ will go a long way to enhance your learning experience, and quell any frustrations you might experience. For even better results, take the immersion course after taking any beginner course with English reinforcement. I will explore these other methods in coming articles, and until then, best of luck!

Visit The Foreign Language Resource for other articles, links, and reviews of foreign language products for the aspiring linguist! Be sure to check out my Visual Link Spanish resource while your there!

By: Chris Katheman