Recently, people have been asking how best to learn foreign languages. I am not an expert in this matter, but I can give some advice, guided by my own experience and common sense.

So, 10 tips for those who study or want to learn foreign languages.

1. Do not rely on self-education. Self-education is, of course, good, but very few people are capable of it. You will achieve much better results if you have a teacher, and self-education is a good addition.

2. Set aside time for language learning.

You need to study the language regularly. Cavalry attacks will not help in this difficult matter. Real results will be only with regular classes.

3. Learn the language the way you do it best.

It is easier for someone to perceive information by ear (audials), while someone perceives what they see better (visuals).

Find out which channel of perception works best for you and learn the language based on this.

Lots of tests online. For those who regularly write to LiveJournal, I can advise a quick way. This test quickly analyzes your notes and gives you the result.

23.01.10 05:35 . was diagnosed by a psychologist:

A measured gait and a clearly defined voice. The physique is average, proportional. The distance for comfortable communication is about a meter, so you can hear the interlocutor better :) Your LiveJournal Login:		VISUAL
		AUDIO
		KINESTHETIC
		DIGITAL
		GUSTATOR
		OLFATOR
		Corrected diagnosis: av (VISUAL AUDIO)
The test was invented by outside_flo, 2006, 2007.

4.Combine business with pleasure.

At school, English was my favorite lesson, because our teacher understood that it was not at all necessary to insert spaces in the entire lesson in Soviet English textbooks. You can have an interesting conversation in English, while screwing in the right words, grammatical constructions.

So that:
- Watch movies (especially if you are visual or visual auditory)
- Read books (especially if you are visual)
- Listen to audio books (especially if you're an audiophile)
- Sing songs
- Follow the news
- Read books in your field

With the Internet, the opportunities are now simply unmeasured.

5. Use flashcards to expand your vocabulary.

At the university, I spent more than one pack of paper on cards. On the one hand, an English word, on the other, all translation options, phrases, examples, and so on. It is very important to write not one meaning, but all and with variants of use. So you will develop intuition much faster. You will feel the language, not translate sentences word by word.

I used to write these cards by hand. Now it is 100 times easier to make a template in Word or Excel and insert words from multitran.ru or lingvo.ru

Work with cards a couple of times a day. The most efficient and fastest system.

6. Travel.

A language is truly unleashed only abroad, in a linguistic environment. So if possible, be sure to dive into the unknown :)

I really overcame the language barrier only in America. Before that, I understood everything, but I couldn’t say :) More precisely, I could, but with great attempts.

7. Watch the movie with subtitles.

Take your favorite movie, look for a script for it on the net (for example, I found all the transcripts of "Friends" in just 5 seconds), print it out, disassemble it and watch until you're blue in the face. As a result, you will get a lot of fun, remember a lot of useful phrases and expressions, and most importantly - the cultural context.


8. Learn the language from English, not Soviet textbooks.

In Russian textbooks, there are a lot of inaccuracies, errors, shortcomings and other garbage that is not typical for the language. Why do you need this baggage of mental clichés?

9. Download and listen to audiobooks.

A wonderful thing. Tyrnet expanses are simply crammed with audiobooks in all languages ​​of the world. And free. Download and listen, listen and download.

I listened in Moscow at least 1.5 hours a day. Classics and trash, lectures on marketing, podcasts and so on. You can find transcripts for many books, so if the energy is over the edge, then you can first take everything apart on a piece of paper, and then fix it on the way to work, in traffic jams, and so on.

10. And most importantly - set yourself goals and go for them.

200 new words, 4 new films, 2 audio books, 10 lessons - per month, per year, per week. Decide for yourself. The main thing is to go to the goal.

Now everything is available (I heard that in Russia many people receive lessons via Skype), almost everything is free - so no excuse whatsoever :)

Share your experience, friends and friends. What advice would you give to those who want to learn a foreign language? What helps you? What sites do you use?

The need to study foreign languages ​​does not cause any controversy. Knowledge of at least one foreign language is very necessary for every person for education, career advancement and self-development.

Scientists claim that knowledge of a foreign language stimulates brain activity and supports the intellectual activity of a person in the necessary tone. Until now, people still do not know how many languages ​​one person can learn. But at all times there were unique people who were able to study record number of foreign languages. For example, from one ancient legend you can learn that the Buddha studied and spoke fluently in 150 languages, another polyglot of past centuries, Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, easily communicated in 60 languages ​​of the world.

How to learn a foreign language easily: the rules of Kato Lomb

The famous Hungarian the writer has mastered in a short period of time 9 languages. At the same time, at school, the girl was considered an incapable student. To quickly learn foreign languages ​​already in adulthood, Kato Lomb was helped by such regulations:

• necessary devote to studies for learning a foreign language a certain amount of time daily, classes in the morning are especially effective;
• in no case not worth doing empty cramming, do not memorize words and phrases separately, which are perceived in isolation from the main text;
• try to memorize ready-made phrases used only in a particularly maximum number of cases;
• translate everything you can, for example, texts on advertising stands, inscriptions on posters, fragments of accidentally overheard conversations, constantly train your memory;
• never don't get involved rereading uncorrected exercises, since with repeated text subconsciously it can be remembered with all the errors;
• write out and try to remember in the first person singular ready-made phrases and expressions.

In order to communicate fluently in a foreign language, it is necessary do some work on yourself and practice learning it. Even if a person is ready to learn every day, some languages ​​require their study for several years. Many begin to get upset that progress in learning a foreign language is small enough, therefore quit studying, resulting in great results.

Television, radio and billboards are full of offers of services for learning all the languages ​​of the world, but few people really thought about the degree of effectiveness of methods of learning a foreign language, be it English or Chinese. Studies conducted on this issue have shown that The most effective and easiest way to learn a language is private lessons. one on one with the teacher.

A foreign language is a fortress to be taken by storm from all sides at the same time.

How to learn a foreign language easily: effective methods

Can read newspapers in a foreign language to listen to the radio, watch films who do not have dubbing attend lectures in a foreign language and talk to carrier people language. You can look for a native speaker in the city where you live. Feel free to speak, and in no case be afraid that you will pronounce words and phrases incorrectly. In any case, they will be able to understand or ask you again. Start play the game "I say what I see", its rules are that you will name the objects that surround you in a foreign language, you can also start learning songs in a foreign language.

Dive Method

This question worries a lot of people. The most cardinal way of learning a foreign language is currently popular immersion method, that is, a situation where you have reason to leave the country, where the language you want is the primary language. By doing so, you will be forced, around the clock in a row, to speak the foreign language you need, and this will give you the best experience, the accumulation of vocabulary. In such an environment you even "start to think" in language, which you want to speak fluently.

Currently, there are organizations that provide opportunities to go abroad for the purpose of learning a foreign language. If you have free time and enough financial resources, then you can take advantage of such a great chance.

Method "School"

The method of learning a foreign language is also widespread and popular. He is co-education in groups, in them you will regularly and purposefully study effectively by completing certain homework. The advantage of such training is that this method is public, and the only drawback of it will be quite long period of study.

Be sure to practice more often at home and at work, with friends, with like-minded colleagues.

The next step towards the study and improvement of knowledge of a foreign language will be vocabulary expansion or regular speaking practice to reinforce what has already been achieved.

For the implementation of your far-reaching plans, you Need to quickly learn a foreign language? What to do for this? You can find urgent language courses and sign up for them. But anyway, from you it takes a lot of self effort if you really want to be good at it.

Every day, scientists around the world try to look for miraculous ways that allow anyone to easily learn any foreign language. Unfortunately, universal unique method yet that no one did not invent.

Method with music

Scientific progress does not stand still. For example, recently American researchers and music workers came to a startling conclusion that opens the way to easy learning of a foreign language. The name of this miraculous remedy is music! This begs the question, how can music help to learn a foreign language? It turns out that it can, despite all doubts. Gathered group of scientists, studied all the nuances, conducted a series of experiments and came to a sensational conclusion, what exactly music- primary phenomenon basis of speech person. And if music is the basis of speech, then it is also the basis for easy learning of a foreign language.

American scientists explained meaning his new discovery. The existence of speech and language is considered as the main characteristic of human intelligence. And music in this case is perceived as something that has developed from the language. Initially, music appeared, and then it was transformed into speech. So it can be said with certainty that colloquial speech is a kind of music. In support of such conclusions, scientists cited reliable results of behavioral studies. They showed that:

• newborn children are at first able to listen to how speech sounds, and only later they begin to understand the whole meaning of the speech addressed to them;
• newborns have the ability to perceive the speech addressed to them as a melody, namely, to distinguish between individual sounds, their rhythm, pitch and timbre of speech;
• young children (up to one year old) have the same ability to focus on the emotionality and melodiousness of the sound of speech.

Thus, following the data obtained, we can conclude that the main principle that forms the human capabilities and abilities of learning languages ​​is discernment separate words or groups of words in a certain sound reproduction. According to the authoritative opinion of American scientists, the main cause of most problems that do not allow it is easy for adults to learn a foreign language, is that they start concentrate on the meaning and meaning of individual words, but in fact, something completely different should be done. Foreign language and colloquial expressions must be perceived in the way that they are perceived by young children. Namely, paying attention on rhythm, phonetics and language components, self the meaning of the words will come much later. In other words, you need to let the rhythm and sound of the language into your heart.

This can be easily experienced by listening to radio broadcasts in a foreign language. At first, a person’s consciousness begins to reject a foreign language, but over time, the mind will be drawn into the rhythm and mood of the “language wave”.

It immediately becomes pleasant to feel and realize how you soar in a kind of linguistic phonetic flow of speech.

As for an easy way to learn a foreign language through music, the American scientists recommend start the process using classical methods, i.e. listen to songs from the countries of the language being studied. Attentively listen, listening to the rhythm and phonetic pattern, sing, and then write down the words you hear. In conclusion, check with the official originals. After a certain period of time, the differences between your and the official version of the text material will be minimal or disappear altogether, and language proficiency will be much higher.

Using this method in practice is quite simple. In fact, you only need put on headphones relax, sit in a comfortable chair and listen to pleasant rhythmic music. To her accompaniment announcers pronounce various words and phrases, expressions in a foreign language, you can repeat after them if you wish. Expressions and words are divided into specific topics and groups, so you can easily go through the most various types of situational communication and as a result, it is easy to learn a foreign language. The most basic is that after a few listening new words are very well remembered and pop up in memory automatically, to the tune of the music that accompanied them.

Always be sure that you will surely achieve high results in learning a foreign language. Also in the fact that you have an extraordinary ability to learn foreign languages ​​and strong willpower. We wish you a pleasant learning of a foreign language!

One of the first simultaneous interpreters in the world was the Hungarian writer Kato Lomb. Being a certified chemist, she independently mastered 16 foreign languages. She began her acquaintance with the language with a dictionary - the Hungarian did not learn vocabulary, but tried to understand the structure of words and “feel” the language. In addition, she read a lot of fiction and listened to the radio. Kato Lomb called her approach the “total language immersion” method. She formulated 10 simple rules that help you quickly master any foreign language.

Get busy every day

To achieve good results, you need to devote at least 10-15 minutes to a foreign language every day. What you will devote this time to is up to you. You can read, learn new words or repeat the past. Not a large number of information is easier to assimilate, the main thing is to practice regularly.

Enjoy

Learning a language should be fun. Don't force yourself. Find that language aspect that you really like. If grammar is boring, you can always watch a movie with subtitles or read a book. Variety will help. So that classes are not monotonous, take breaks - listen to music or take a walk.

Pay attention to context

Learn not individual words, but whole phrases. Memorizing vocabulary out of context is pointless, you just won’t be able to apply it later. In addition, some words in different contexts can have different meanings. If you learn phrases as a whole, you can avoid many mistakes.

Memorize colloquial expressions

It is especially useful to learn colloquial expressions. So for many situations you will already have “blanks” and it will be easier to apply them in a conversation. Remember that in order for a word or phrase to move from passive to active vocabulary, you need to use it in speech about 25 times.

Don't Learn Mistakes

If we learn texts and phrases by heart, then only the correct ones. Make sure that the construction is well-written, the dialogue does not contain errors, and the word is spelled correctly. Learned mistakes are a waste of time.

translate in your mind

To fully immerse yourself in the language, try to mentally name the surrounding objects in a foreign language, as well as translate in your mind the signs and posters, songs and newspaper headlines you encounter. This will help you learn to think in another language.

Learn first person phrases

Remember idioms and phrases (as well as verbs) in the first person. So they are better deposited in memory and will always come to mind in the right situation. In addition, it helps many to learn to better understand spoken language.

A complex approach

It is best to develop all aspects of a foreign language at the same time: reading, listening, writing and speaking. If you understand printed text well, this does not mean that you can speak and vice versa. Read books and magazines, listen to the radio, watch movies and communicate with native speakers - this way you will get a comprehensive understanding of a foreign language.

Don't be afraid to make mistakes

Many people are afraid to speak a foreign language. They are so afraid to say something wrong that they prefer to remain silent. Don't be shy - we all make mistakes early on. Ask native speakers to correct you - this will speed up the learning process.

Believe in yourself

Do not doubt for a minute that you will achieve your goal. Be persistent, then you will definitely overcome the language barrier soon. And remember that each next foreign language is given much easier.

Would you like to learn how to quickly learn a new language without spending money on expensive language courses or language learning software? There are no secrets or tricks to this - you just need to set a goal for yourself, prepare for hard work and, most importantly, not be afraid to make mistakes. Read on for more secrets to help you learn a new language quickly.

Steps

Immerse yourself in the language environment

Meet a native speaker. The easiest way to learn a new language is to speak it. Very often, people spend all their time learning the grammar of a language and memorizing a lot of words instead of putting all their learned minimum knowledge into practice. Start talking to a native speaker and it will give you more motivation to learn a language - much more than a book or a computer screen.

• You may be able to find a friend or colleague who knows the language you want to learn and who can work with you and help you practice the language. If you do not have such friends, then you can advertise on local forums or in newspapers that you are looking for a teacher to practice a foreign language.
• If you can't find anyone who speaks the language, you can try meeting someone on Skype. Very often people from different countries would like to meet people from other countries and communicate. Another option is to create an account with Hellotalk.

1. Learn a language every day. Very often, many complain that they have been studying the language for “five years” and cannot begin to speak it fluently. But when they talk about five years, they most likely spend only a couple of hours a week studying the language. Let's agree on one thing - if you want to learn a new language fast, that is, in a few weeks or months, then you will have to devote two hours to learning a new language in a day.

   • Learning a foreign language is based on repetition - just repeat something over and over again until it is imprinted in your memory. If you take too long breaks between classes, you will most likely forget everything you have learned and have to go back to remember what you learned.
   • To really learn a language in a short amount of time, you have to practice everyday. There are no miracles in learning a language - to master a language, you need to learn it.

2. Always have a dictionary handy. Take a dictionary with you everywhere - this will help you avoid confusion (if you don't know a certain word) and save a lot of time, so we recommend that you spare no expense and get a good and convenient dictionary!

   • It may be more convenient for you to install a dictionary on your mobile phone - so you can quickly look up the desired word.
   • If you have a dictionary with you, you can always look up the right word. This is especially necessary when communicating with a native speaker, when you do not want to interrupt the interlocutor because you do not know some word that he used. Also, if you look up a new word and use it immediately, you will remember it much better.
   • You can also browse the dictionary and choose random words to memorize when you have a free moment - for example, when you are waiting in line, at lunchtime, or while standing in traffic. So you can memorize an additional 20-30 new words a day!

3. Watch movies, listen to music, read and write in the language you are learning. Immersion in the language environment assumes that all the usual actions that you usually did in your native language, you will do in the target language, regardless of whether you read, write or listen to music, radio, etc.

   • It may be easiest to watch TV shows or movies in the language you are trying to learn. Try not to use subtitles, otherwise you will rely on them too much. To help you understand speech, try watching TV shows or movies that you already know, or something as simple as cartoons or children's shows. Knowing the content will help you understand the meaning of various words and phrases.
   • It is also recommended to read and write in the target language. Take a newspaper or magazine and try to read at least one article a day. Try to check the meaning of words you don't know in a dictionary. Try writing simple sentences in the language you are learning - whatever it is, you can write a greeting card or a shopping list.
   • Download podcasts or listen to radio stations in the language you are learning. It's a great way to immerse yourself in a language, especially when you're on the road. This will not only allow you to listen to the speech, but will also allow you to remember the correct pronunciation of common words and phrases.
   • Change the language settings on mobile devices - this will allow you to learn some new words in a new language.
   • Listen to music in the language you are learning. Try to learn the lyrics, and then check what the song is about. Knowing the lyrics very quickly helps to expand the vocabulary.

4. Visit a country where the language you are learning is spoken. Of course, the best way to improve your language skills is to travel to a country where the language you are learning is spoken. Just go there and spend some time there.

   • Try to communicate more with the local population - it doesn't matter if you need to get directions or make a purchase in a store - just say hello and communicate with people. Native speakers will welcome your desire to learn the language.
   • It doesn't matter how good your spoken language is - just try to speak, and very soon you will notice an improvement not only in speaking, but also in vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation.

   Focus on what matters most

   1. Learn a few greetings before you learn the alphabet. Thanks to this, when you start learning the alphabet, you will already know a few basic words. For example, "Hello", "Goodbye", "How are you", "I'm fine", "What's your name", "My name is ..." and so on.

      If necessary, learn the alphabet. It will be much easier for you if you learn the alphabet and learn how to read and pronounce words - this will also help you remember words more easily. In addition, it is much better to say words out loud by reading them in the language you are learning, rather than looking at their transcription.

      Learn the words. Probably one of the most important aspects in learning a language is vocabulary. Even if you can't understand the entire sentence, being able to pick out individual words helps you understand the overall meaning of a speech or text.

      • Focus on the 100 most common words. Pick out the 100 most common words in a language and learn them - that's a great start. Next, you can select 1000 new frequently used words. It is believed that the knowledge of 1000 frequently used words in a language makes it possible to understand 70% of any text.
      • Pay attention to the words that are most relevant to you. For example, if you're learning a language for business purposes, learn business vocabulary, don't waste your time learning different kinds of marine animals - which can be helpful if you're going to scuba dive.
      • You also need to learn words that apply to you personally so that you can talk about yourself, your life, and the people you know.

   2. Learn how to count in your target language. Learn to count to ten, because numbers are usually very easy to remember. Every day, add ten more numbers to this set. Continue to study numbers every day until you feel that you can count fluently in a foreign language. If you want a real challenge - try learning all the numbers up to 100 in one day!

      Don't worry too much about grammar. The main reason most people never speak the language they spent years in school learning is that the school curriculum focuses too much on the grammar of the language and very little time is devoted to speaking and writing skills. It is grammar that slows everything down - if you want to learn a new language quickly, the first thing you need to do is master the spoken language. The specifics of the grammar will come later.

      • There is no doubt that grammar is important - you need to know how the forms of verbs change and imagine what the correct word order should be in a sentence.
      • The thing is, you don't have to spend many hours memorizing verb forms or thinking about specific cases when you should use this or that article or preposition. You will master all these nuances later - in the process of communication!

   3. Work on your pronunciation. Pronunciation is another aspect that you should focus on. There is no point in memorizing hundreds of words and phrases if you cannot pronounce them correctly to be understood. Therefore, it is very important that when learning a new word, you immediately learn its correct pronunciation.

      • Pronunciation is difficult to learn from a book - this is where communication with native speakers or the use of interactive programs will be useful. You will need to say the word out loud to learn how to pronounce it correctly.
      • If you are practicing the language with a teacher or native speaker, ask him (or her) to feel free to correct you whenever you pronounce a word incorrectly. Otherwise, alas, your training will be of little use. Remember that it is the pronunciation that can distinguish good language proficiency from free.

   4. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Many foreign language learners are afraid of making mistakes. This fear won't let you go far enough.

      • Perhaps the mistakes you make while speaking a foreign language can lead to an awkward situation, but is that really a big deal? Native speakers will always forgive you for mistakes, as they will most likely appreciate your commitment to learning their language - moreover, they will always be happy to help you.
      • Your goal should not initially be superiority, but progress. Making mistakes (and learning from them) is what allows you to continually improve.

   Use apps to learn foreign languages

   1. Try Anki. Anki is a very popular app for computers and smartphones that helps you memorize new words and phrases using flashcards. You can upload your own flashcards with specific words if you need to learn specific terminology, for example, or download any of the flashcard sets provided.

      Try Duolingo. Duolingo is a free language learning tool. There is an online version of the app, as well as versions for Android and iOS. Instead of focusing on memorization, it helps you learn to read and speak a new language by allowing you to see, listen to, and translate words and phrases. Users earn points when they complete lessons, making learning a language with Duolingo a lot of fun.

   2. Try Livemocha. Livemocha is a web-based product that offers online lessons and tutorials, as well as the ability to chat with a native speaker. And while most of the content on Livemocha is completely free, you can always pay for extras, including personalized learning programs and more advanced language courses.

      • Try MindSnacks. Choose any lesson you like to learn the language through different games.
   • Determine for yourself a specific amount of material (TV shows, radio, online newspapers or communication with foreigners) or the amount of time that you will devote to the language every day and stick to the plan.
   • Write down new words and their meaning on a piece of paper and always carry this sheet with you, sometimes looking into it - so you can easily remember everything.
   • Immersion in a language environment is the best way to learn a foreign language, but in most cases a person cannot just drop everything and go to another country. Nevertheless, be sure to try to communicate with native speakers - for example, using special sites on the Internet.
   • Google Translate is a good tool to help you with correct pronunciation. But the translation of words and sentences obtained with it is not always 100% accurate.
   • Start by learning ten words (nouns, adjectives or verbs). Do this every day for three months. It may seem difficult, but it's actually very easy. By learning ten new words every day, you can expand your vocabulary well. The more words you know, the easier it will be for you to form sentences and express yourself in a foreign language.
   • Once you have mastered the basics of the language, you can start watching films in the language you are learning. Start with simple ones - those that you have already seen and that you like. Watch movies with subtitles. If this seems difficult, leave subtitles or audio in your native language.
   • Use sticky note paper to build up your vocabulary. Paste them everywhere - this will allow you to create direct associations between a word in a foreign language and its visualization.
   • Don't worry about making mistakes at first. You will not be able to speak fluently in a foreign language on the very first day of training, be patient.
   • The main thing - do not give up!
   • Start reading funny books in the language you are learning - it's better if they are funny stories or jokes with pictures. For example, you can read anime, comics, magazines, and whatever interests you. This will motivate you to learn the language - especially if you don't understand what is written. It can also be helpful to start with children's books as they contain words that are easy to remember.
   • Some people prefer to listen to music. Find songs in the language you are learning. Listen to them several times, try to understand what the song is about. You can also search the internet for lyrics and try to sing karaoke.

Elena Devos

Journalist, writer, teacher of Russian, English and French. Author of the novel "Russian Lessons", which tells about teaching Russian to foreigners in modern Paris.

1. Motivate yourself every day

There is no age limit for learning a language. The only thing a person of any age needs is motivation. It's great if you have an interest in the language itself or, if you like, in a certain reality that is in this language (when you like movies or books, songs or video games, an artist or writer, and just a young man or girl).

Recall that Ludwig Wittgenstein learned Russian in order to read Dostoevsky in the original (and in the process of studying put all the stresses in the novel Crime and Punishment). And Leo Tolstoy also learned Hebrew because of the book: he became interested in how the Bible was actually written.

Sometimes there is no interest in the language, but you need to learn: for work, for business trips, to live in another country. Feel free to jot down a list of what you generally enjoy in life and pair those hobbies with the language. Do the same things that you always liked, but now with the involvement of your new - foreign - language.

2. Don't be afraid to experiment

There is no one-size-fits-all method of learning a language. A variety of methods, different language schools, different theories flourish and compete, become fashionable and are forgotten. So far, none has defeated the others.

Try several tutorials before settling on one. For classes with a tutor, take part in choosing a textbook. Realized that they made a mistake (even if others are happy, but you are uncomfortable), change it. If there is no choice (at school, in group classes), and you don’t like the textbook, find another one and read it yourself - in the form of a dessert for compulsory classes.

In general, try to individualize your approach to the language as much as possible. Explore websites, YouTube channels, movies that interest you. Look for like-minded people, share experiences, communicate: language, whatever one may say, is a social phenomenon.

3. Choose a teacher

A huge influence on the effectiveness and result of your lessons will be exerted by the one with whom you study the language -. If you are uncomfortable with this person, he is unfair to you, you do not understand him - without any hesitation, look for another. Especially when it comes to a tutor for children: the opinion of the child will be decisive here, even if you like the teacher with strictness, responsibility and all sorts of other adult qualities.

Again, if you don’t have a choice and don’t like the teacher, be sure to find a way to learn the language in parallel in an environment where you are comfortable and cozy. These can be Skype lessons, private lessons, and so on. Do not believe the prejudice that the best teacher is a native speaker. On the contrary, grammatical subtleties and rules are sometimes better explained to you by a person for whom, like you, this language was not native.

Be careful about lessons with loved ones (when a parent, husband, wife, sister, and so on) become a teacher: nothing good comes of them if the “professor” bluntly criticizes and ridicules the “student”.

All good teachers have one thing in common: they don’t scold for off-topic questions (and they don’t scold at all) and if they don’t know something, they say so. And the next lesson they come with the answer to your question. This is sacred.

4. Five Minute Rule

To learn and maintain a language, two conditions are needed:

• you use it;
• you do it regularly.

A person who devotes 30 minutes a day to study will progress faster than someone who sits over a textbook for three hours every Saturday, and does not open this textbook the rest of the time.

Moreover, just 5 minutes in the morning and evening can work wonders. Put the textbook next to the toothpaste. Brush your teeth - look at the rule, at the conjugation table. Take a picture of the homework or vocabulary page on your smartphone. Stand in line - look at the phone, check yourself. Before going to bed, write two or three phrases (if you do two or three exercises, then it’s generally wonderful). Etc. A little, but often is better than a lot and never.

5. Don't cram - learn

You don't need to cram rules and case names - you just need to know how they work. But the correct phrases, words, sentences, language constructions, its conjugations and declensions must be learned by heart.

Try not to cram, but to learn: to understand and use it in practice. Learn poems, sayings, lyrics. And not the ones that the teacher asked, but those that you yourself like. This will be an excellent lexical aid, and in general it will have a beneficial effect on the ability to speak and think, including in their native language.

6. Fix the bug immediately

The sooner you fix a mistake, the less time it will be in your head at all. Therefore, when studying on your own, do not start with long tests, where the correct answers are given only at the very end. They suffer so much only in exams.

Ideally, after a mistake, you should absorb the correct option immediately, that is, correct with the help of a teacher, textbook, language program. This is especially true for independent work: exercises and tests.

Everything should go according to the scheme "your option is the right option." This method is very efficient for several reasons: you reinforce the rule if you don't have an error. And if there is a mistake, you see what it is, and your next step will be correct.

Do not trust textbooks without keys (correct answers to exercises). At the same time, it is desirable to show your work to a teacher or native speakers from time to time. After all, even in high-quality textbooks there are typos and errors, unnatural expressions of the language.

7. Write more

Write and print in the language you learn. Do not correct what is written, it is better to cross out and write the word again. When spellcheck shows you a misspelled word, take three seconds to type that word again - correctly.

The memory of the correct spelling always remains at our fingertips.

8. Praise and Reward Yourself

And the last. Whatever your teacher, whatever book you study, whatever language you learn, praise yourself. For every task done right, for finding the time today to open the book, for every success, no matter how small. If the teacher is unlucky - praise doubly. For perseverance and patience.

“A person needs to be complimented every 15 minutes,” Carlson said, and he was absolutely right. This is another kind of motivation, only subconscious. Therefore, if you want to learn a language easily and with joy, celebrate your every achievement. Don't compare yourself to others. Compare only with yourself: how much you knew yesterday and how much you know today. And enjoy the difference.