How to learn a new language
In an increasingly small world, the ability to speak another language has never been as useful. Now, we can connect with people all over the globe in seconds – but it’s wonderful to be able to communicate clearly when doing so.
Whether you’d like to be able to chat with shopkeepers on your next holiday, you’d love to move to a new country when you retire or you’d like to communicate with potential business clients, it’s never too late to start learning. If you’ve always wanted to learn a second language but have never had the time, check out some of the brilliant new ways to start honing new skills today.
Sharpening your language skills
Spending time with native speakers is one of the most effective ways to start learning a second language, but if that’s not possible, you’ll find some great alternatives online. The BCC has an excellent language resource that offers tips, tricks, tutorials and articles all designed to help you pick up a new language. It also features interactive videos for beginners that will entertain and inspire as well as sharpen developing vocabularies. Mind Tools also has some nice tips and tricks for improving your memory and picking up ways to start learning.
Another good place to get started is with a motivating article from Life Hacker, which encourages you to think about your reasons for learning and the goals you want to be able to achieve. For some serious help when it comes to picking up a new language, turn to the experts at Rosetta Stone. It offers world leading language-learning software that could help you grasp the basics of a new language in much less time than you might think.
There are also some useful technological innovations that can help you pick up a foreign language in an unusual way. For example, Make Use Of offers a guide to setting up your Google Chrome web browser so that it can teach you how to read and understand a second language. The Daily Muse also has some tricks for learning in a fun way while learning to immerse yourself in a foreign language. Also here are 34 unobvious benefits of learning a second language.
New languages can lead to new experiences
Not convinced the benefits of learning a new language outweigh the effort involved? Have a read of Care2’s six reasons to learn and you might find yourself changing your mind. The Telegraph also has an illuminating article on the benefits of bilingualism and a piece in the Huffington Post explains that by taking the time to learn a new language, you can actually improve your brain’s ability to focus overall.
Before you leap in, however, have a peek at The Telegraph’s five most common mistakes people make when starting to learn a new language. That way, you can avoid falling into the same traps and start enjoying your new ability as quickly and successfully as possible.
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