This article will focus on the plans and steps that foreign language learners need to take.
Of course, if you are studying in, teachers will take on a lot by testing you and preparing a detailed study of a foreign language.
But if you decide to study independently or additionally, then you will need an accurate plan, with which the most difficult goal can be presented as a sequence of doable tasks. The experience of polyglots shows that with each new language, the learning process becomes more interesting and understandable, so start planning right now.
Have you ever thought about where you will use a new language, how it differs from other languages and what its culture is like? For example, what associations causes you? Are you thinking of a trip to Rome, are you heading to sunny Venice, or are you traveling through magnificent Puglia? Perhaps you love croissants for breakfast with a cup of cappuccino, you love pasta with seafood and you love different sauces? What do you imagine when you speak Italian? Do you remember Marcello Mastroianni or Hugo Tognazzi? Perhaps Raoul Bova is the sexiest actor for you? Once you find your emotions associated with the language, it becomes easier to start learning it.
The next step is to set goals. Answer the questions posed:
- Why are you learning a language?
- Are you going to put your knowledge into practice?
- Do you want to work abroad
- Strive to communicate on general topics?
- Would you like to master?
To accomplish each goal, you will need certain actions: to communicate on general topics, you will need grammar and basic vocabulary, to master business vocabulary, you need a standard one, after which you can go to and learn how to use them correctly in speech and in correspondence. This path can be quite difficult to go on your own, so do not hesitate to ask the teacher for advice.
Remember that to develop all skills, you need to pay attention to all aspects of the language: grammar, writing, speaking, understanding, vocabulary, reading and pronunciation.
It is important to understand that the learning process may be different if you started a language from scratch or continued to study it. If you want to consolidate your knowledge and remember the material, you can practice vocabulary on special sites and study with a teacher for regular speaking practice. Learning a language from scratch requires much more serious tasks: mastering phonetics and reading rules, understanding grammar and compiling sentences, working on pronunciation and constantly replenishing vocabulary.
Determine the order in which you will study. Do you want to go on a trip? Then your topics will be the airport, cafes and restaurants, taxis, ATMs, shopping, etc.
Do not forget about active work: it is better to practice every day for 10-15 minutes than once a week for 1.5 hours.
Do not be afraid to dream and make plans, but do not forget to put everything into practice as soon as possible so as not to “burn out”. Do not live in illusions, learn languages today!
If you decide to study English on your own, then the very first thing to do is to prepare a plan. We decided to help you with this by providing at least an approximate algorithm and explaining what and when to do. Our approximate plan is designed for 6 months, but, again, someone will do it faster, someone will need more time. In any case, you will already have something to build on.
Before moving on to the plan, you need to decide on a set of tools that will help you learn English on your own:
- grammar reference (the thinner the better);
- dictionary (the most convenient, of course, online dictionaries);
- study guide (to your taste);
- phrasebook;
- aids for language learning (eg).
Choose learning materials based on your level of knowledge and do not be lazy to spend a lot of time on this part.
English self-study plan:
1 - 2 month
The first two months are the most difficult and important for those who study English. You build a system, develop the habit of learning a language.
The main thing here is to surround yourself with English: books, songs, communication.
Of particular note is the expansion of vocabulary; every day you need to learn 15 new words (for example, co). To communicate fluently in English, you need to know about 2500 - 3000 words. By studying 15 words every day, in six months you will expand your vocabulary to the desired level.
At this time, you should devote at least 2 hours a day to studying the language.
3 - 4 month
This is where you will start getting the first results. Consistency will be achieved easier and more comfortable. If you did everything right, you will already know about 900 words and will be able to maintain conversations on certain topics. Find yourself an interlocutor (live or via Skype), a native speaker, this practice is simply necessary.
You also need to devote at least 2 hours a day to learning, but already practicing and developing speaking and listening skills. Start reading simple books in English, highlighting unfamiliar words. Also force yourself to think in English. Every time you think about something, mentally translate all thoughts into English.
5 - 6 month
By this time, you should already be able to speak English well. Now practice and only practice: with friends, colleagues, partners. TV shows, films and books (already more difficult) in English will also help.
Stock up on a few films in English. And don't worry if you don't understand something while watching. It is much more difficult to perceive speech from a film than to understand the speech of a real interlocutor.
Continue to give the language 2 hours each day (at this stage, this will be especially easy).
If you continue like this, you will very soon be able to freely carry on any conversation in English, the main thing is not to reduce the practice.
To paraphrase the classic, we can say:
“If you don’t develop a plan in the morning, you will do stupid things in the afternoon.” (Voltaire)
Quite a fair expression. Therefore, I decided to make my own English learning plan and developed some rules for beginners. English according to plan I will immediately note that it is much more difficult for beginners to learn a foreign language on their own. You will need maximum effort and self-discipline. Unlike specialized courses where you are the learner. In self-study, you must be an active learner.
Before moving directly to the plan and rules, it is necessary to define a set of tools that will help a beginner master the language:
- Tutorial for your taste
- Website "Learn English from scratch"
- Phrasebook
- Dictionary
- grammar guide
- Mobile applications
Strictly follow the plan, and you will succeed! Tested on myself!
Rules for learning English
rules of English In addition to the plan, it would also be nice for beginners to remember the following rules for learning English:
- Motivation. Decide why you need English - work, study, self-development, travel
- Permanent lessons. You need to study regularly. You can’t study for two weeks, rest for two. Exercise every day
- Lesson time. Study time should be at least 1 hour and not more than 3 hours. “In a liter jar, no matter how many lei, more than a liter will not fit”
- Repetition. Regularly repeat the material covered and put into practice the acquired knowledge, talk to yourself, repeat phrases in transport to yourself, etc.
- Word - context - life situation. A word out of context is not interesting and inefficient for memorization. Therefore, study the word in context and imagine a living situation, revive the words!
- Put the newly acquired knowledge into practice immediately. Feel free to speak and write in English, you will be assessed and corrected
Well, not everything is as difficult as it seemed! Truth?! Simple plan and simple rules!
Practice your communication as much as possible and hone your English skills.
Wish you success!
Isn't it sometimes envious of people who can communicate in English? These lucky ones can easily establish contact with people in any country, be the first to watch new movies that have not yet been translated, understand the meaning of popular songs, and much, much more. And what prevents you personally from getting into their ranks? After all, today it’s easy to start learning English on the Internet on your own from scratch! Don't believe? This article will dispel all your doubts that it is quite possible to learn English at home on your own.
Yes, everyone can learn English. And nothing to do with various myths about genius, the gifts of the gods and innate abilities for languages. It's all about setting the end goal. It is necessary to clearly understand why you are starting and carrying out this educational process. First of all, you should have a question not how to learn English on your own at home, but why do I need to learn English?
Everyone has their own answer to this main question. We can only give you a little guidance and guide you to find your own goal. So, learning English is necessary in order to:
- Feel at home anywhere in the world .
No matter what country you visit, there will definitely be people who speak English. In this way, you will provide yourself with confidence in your position when you are abroad.
- Study at prestigious colleges and universities .
High-quality training in the profession is the key to a successful career. If you want to lay a solid foundation for your adult life, then an international diploma is exactly what you need.
- Build a career in large international corporations .
Prestigious work requires many skills, including knowledge of foreign languages. With English, you will not be afraid of a business trip even to the most remote branch of the company.
- Expand your business opportunities .
The international market is incomparably wider than the domestic one, even if you live in the largest country in the world. In turn, communication with foreign partners and clients is unthinkable without knowledge of business English.
- Get to know the way of life in other countries .
Interest in the traditions and customs of other nations is inherent in many of us. With the help of English, you can not only get interesting information from foreign sources, but also communicate directly with local residents.
- Make foreign acquaintances .
There are never too many friends, and having reliable connections in different parts of the world is not only pleasant, but also useful. Communication with interesting interlocutors helps to practice spoken English and learn the mentality of the country.
- To join the international experience and a limitless amount of information.
The most valuable thing in the world is information. And the English language opens the door to one of the world's largest repositories of historical and contemporary materials. With English, you can keep your finger on the pulse of the whole world!
Here are just a few obvious facts confirming that learning English is necessary. Try to deduce your practical purpose from these rather streamlined formulations. The simpler it is, the better, because initially unattainable peaks kill faith in the success of the entire event.
Let the goal at first be minimal - to watch and understand the series of your favorite movie in the original. This is not difficult to achieve, but the result achieved will give you confidence in your abilities and arouse the excitement for further study. And it's never too late to set a new serious goal, right?
How to start learning English on your own from scratch?
And only after your goal is defined, clear and understandable, it's time to ask yourself: how to start learning English from scratch on your own? Here, too, we will not stand aside and tell you the main starting points for beginners.
Getting ready for study
Where to start training sessions? First of all, you need to create an atmosphere conducive to learning and plan a schedule for classes.
Pick up the necessary teaching aids, stock up on stationery and allocate free time in your mode. The issue of time must be taken very seriously. It is clear that we do not study at school, and we cannot study English at home strictly at the same time. What is important for us is not the accuracy of the beginning of the lesson, but the regular conduct of classes.
The lesson schedule is selected individually. If it is convenient for you to spend 2 hours studying, then it is enough to study 3 times a week. If you can’t devote so much time to self-study, then you will have to do at least 30 minutes, but every day. This time is enough to learn a few new words or remember a couple of grammar rules.
During class, do not allow yourself to be distracted. Limit the use of the Internet and telephone, unless required by the educational process. Also, do not listen to music and entertainment programs while recording the theoretical material of the lesson. Otherwise, your attention will be scattered and there will hardly be any use from such activities. Keep your goal in mind and try not to waste your study time.
Learning the basics
So, the goal is set, the atmosphere is created, and the mood for training is combative. What's next?
If we study English from scratch, i.e. we have never encountered it before, then let's turn to the very basics: alphabet, sounds, transcription, counting and reading rules. As a rule, these simple topics do not create difficulties for students. But here lies the catch, because. easy lessons always want to scroll through faster or skip them altogether.
Do not be led by laziness and momentary desires. Later it turns out that you missed it, then you didn’t understand, you didn’t remember it, and as a result, each lesson will turn into an endless jump from old theories to new material. It is better to honestly and responsibly go through the initial stages of English lessons from scratch, laying a solid foundation for subsequent knowledge.
Building an active vocabulary
When we have already learned the first basics of a foreign language, many will certainly have a question: how to quickly learn English? If there are no obvious prerequisites for this (for example, an urgent trip), then such a statement of the problem is nothing more than a manifestation of laziness.
Think about how many years it takes a child to passably master their native speech? In fact, more than a decade! And we want to learn a foreign language in our country in a couple of months. Yes, it just doesn't happen. Therefore, be patient and get used to the gradual improvement of your English skills.
So, the next stage is an active set of vocabulary. We recommend working either with thematic selections of words, or try to remember small phrases and set phrases. Firstly, this way you will master a larger amount of vocabulary, and secondly, your speaking and grammar skills will be improved at the same time.
By the way, the development of the skill of speaking in a foreign language is the most important factor in successful learning. And the more a person remembers related words, connectives, phrases and phrases, the easier it is for him to start building whole sentences. Without the ability to speak, knowledge of the language will become a meaningless achievement, and soon the memorized words and rules will simply be erased from memory.
As an additional note, we emphasize that additional, a source for replenishing the lexicon, various Internet platforms and mobile applications have proven themselves well. Their advantage is that they allow you to quickly get acquainted with the spelling and pronunciation of new words, and also make sure that the material is repeated in time and not forgotten.
But as a standalone benefit, interactive apps have too many disadvantages:
- a small number of words;
- studying without context;
- too frequent repetitions;
- paid features;
- opportunity to answer randomly.
And if you can somehow put up with the first points, then the last line in the list causes irreparable damage to the educational process. Following the lead of laziness, we begin to mechanically poke the button we remember, without even comparing the correct answer with the question. As a result, our learning English on your own at home from scratch turns into an ordinary guess-ku, and classes end without really starting.
Getting to know grammar
In parallel with the study of new words, it is necessary to join the grammatical component of the language. And here a new question arises: how to learn how to work with grammar correctly?
1) It is necessary to choose such an explanation of the theoretical material that will become easily understandable and accessible to you. A good option is to combine material from several manuals or articles on the topic - this way you will get the most complete picture of this grammatical moment.
2) Get a folder with tabular material to help you learn English. At first, these tables will be a good cheat sheet, but, often doing practice, you yourself will not notice how you will remember most of the information presented in them.
3) Practice is the only way to learn English from scratch. It doesn’t matter if you are studying at home or enrolled in group courses. Each learned rule must be reinforced with practical exercises. Well-mastered material can be consolidated with online tests, and it is better to work out a complex theory thoroughly by solving several exercises of various types.
The combination of all these stages is a complete answer to the question of how to learn English at home. Yes, this business is not so simple, but everyone who speaks English fluently today learned this way. In addition, if you choose the right method of teaching, classes can easily be turned from a boring duty into a pleasant pleasure.
We try different methods and bring diversity to the educational process
Beginning Searching for an effective method for learning English from scratch, we come across many options. Let's take a look at some of them.
| Method | Level of training | Efficiency |
| Listening to audio recordings | Primary, Intermediate | Helps to learn vocabulary, work out the correct pronunciation, perceive English speech by ear.
To make things harder, listen to stories and audiobooks. |
| Reading English texts | Primary, Intermediate | Practicing reading skills, learning new vocabulary.
It is better for beginners to use adapted literature with parallel Russian translation. |
| Working with cards | Elementary | Working out new vocabulary, studying irregular verbs of the English language.
It is better to make cards yourself, because. when writing words by hand, the effect of "mechanical" memory is triggered. |
| Watching films | Medium, high | Acquaintance with colloquial speech, developing new vocabulary, improving listening comprehension, correcting pronunciation.
For a successful result, before resorting to this method, you should lay a solid lexical and grammatical base. Therefore, it is only recommended for intermediate and advanced students. |
| conversational communication | All levels | Communication with a native speaker is the best way to quickly learn colloquial speech. It is recommended to start from the very first lessons: to increase the level of knowledge and at the same time improve the speaking skill. |
| Artificial recreation of the language environment | All levels | Ability to use a foreign language as if it were a native language.
Try to express your thoughts in English more often. Keeping a daily record of impressions from the past day helps a lot in this. |
We hope that the above arguments have dispelled skepticism about whether it is possible to take and learn English on your own. Everything is achievable - the main thing is to get together and start. And how to set yourself up in the right way, we have already told you. Good luck in learning and improving English!
How to learn English without abandoning this idea after a month of intensive studies? And how realistic is it to learn English on your own?
Just one or two hours of daily self-study per day will show excellent results in six months. You will understand from your own experience that learning English is not such a problem. The main task is to create a plan of action and stick to it rigorously, not missing a single day of class.
Action plan:
Get ready to allocate 1-2 hours to study English daily (this is the bare minimum, it would be ideal to allocate 3-4 hours).
It is necessary to draw up a short plan that will include four daily 15-minute sessions.
No matter how busy you are with work, everyday life and other chores, even the busiest person can afford 1-2 hours a day for English classes
1 Complex training
Practicing listening, reading. We are working on pronunciation.
We use the site www.deepenglish.com
On the site, we choose one of 140 independent lessons (free lessons).
All lessons are not only interesting, but also informative!
Having chosen a lesson, try, without reading the text, to understand by ear what the author is talking about. If English is still poorly perceived by ear, you can choose a slow speed of perception, and the second time you will listen to the same file at a fast speed.
After listening, read the article, translate all incomprehensible words and expressions. Listen to the same lesson again - now the understanding should already be 100%.
It is advisable to take the same lesson for 2-3 days.
If you want to practice pronunciation, listen to a slow-motion file, read at the same time as the speaker, imitating his intonation as much as possible.
To practice writing, you can rewrite the sentence from this lesson from memory, rereading it a couple of times. Thus, the skill is formed to correctly “collect” the sentence by bricks. Without memorizing the rules of grammar, you will develop the skill of correctly expressing your thoughts in English.
2 Practicing reading
For the practice of reading, ordinary textbooks are not always suitable /too boring/, and books in English are still difficult to understand.
In this case, books in English adapted for ESOL students are ideal / there is a special stand for this literature in bookstores and libraries /.
Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, even Chekhov in an adapted form in English will captivate you with the plot, and because of the simplicity of the phrases, you will forget what language you are reading. Books will be swallowed one by one.
3 Learn grammar
To improve your grammar, and not spend a lot of time picking boring textbooks, use 15-30 minutes a day a very useful resource
www.engvid.com
The site is easy to navigate, you can choose lessons by difficulty level, topic, teacher.
4 Listen again
Be sure to watch a short excerpt of your favorite series once a day
(Friends, Alf - whoever likes what) in English.
If English is still at an elementary level, first watch the series in Russian, immediately switch to English (while everything is fresh in your memory) and review the same series again (preferably without subtitles).
Thus, day by day, the skill of understanding everyday everyday speech will be formed.
It is not difficult for each of us to allocate four short breaks to study English!
In addition to watching movies, listen to various podcasts in English.
From personal recommendation - AJ Hoge and http://www.china232.com/
How to keep motivated?
So that the motivation to learn English does not leave you, you must follow three rules:
Choose to study only simple and easy-to-understand material. At the initial stage, do not force yourself to watch television news.
Do not form an inferiority complex in yourself.
- Choose only interesting and informative material.
If you are fond of sports, read, listen, watch materials about your favorite sport. Do you like to travel? Explore this topic in English.
- Look up to the kids.
When learning English, do not try to speak as quickly as possible, do not force this process.
For the first six months while learning a foreign language, try to remain silent. Focus initially on listening and reading
Spend about 80% of your time practicing listening and reading, and only 20% of your time practicing speaking and writing.
Only after reaching the Advanced level, we change the proportion in the opposite direction.
And don't miss a day!
Learning English is more than real! Remember, every missed day sets you back 2 days.
Even if you can’t devote 1 hour a day to English, set aside at least 15 minutes to read a book or watch a series.
