What's the best way to learn a language? | Vital Football

What's the best way to learn a language?

Holte139

Vital Squad Member
I've become interested in learning a language recently, and I've been researching the ways it might be possible, adult learning courses, doing a GCSE part-time, online DIY courses etc. But I wanted to post this to ask if anyone else has any experience of learning a language late?

I think having a second language might be important in future, with the way the world is heading, increased globalisation and all. I'm pretty sure I'd like to learn French, which I've already done at school. I think I got a B - but don't read too much into that. I'd have to start completely from the beginning now. I wasn't really interested in it as a teenager, but also my teacher got the weaker kids who didn't grasp it as well to use a translator so that her pass average wouldn't go down! I think she got paid more if more kids got at least a C...
 
I have stop started German and French quite a few times, i would luv also any tips on this, it ay easy you know learning a new language, some might find it easy but i struggled with my intelligence and all that like ;0Z
 
Don't worry Clive, I graduated with a 2:1 degree last year but when I was at school I really struggled with foreign languages. It's just one of those things I think!
 
I have been learning the Greek language, reading, writing and spoken for 8 years. To begin with alot was self taught through various sites on the internet. I picked up alot of bad habits. it's hard to teacher yourself as your relying on the websites being right. Also they don't understand our spoken English qurkes and may pick up things wrongly, which is what has happened to me.

A year ago I gotten myself a Greek teacher who lives on our Island of Kefelonia. She is English and lives out there and has done for nearly 20 years so understands both sides and explaining in a way we will understand.

I couldn't afford a Greek teacher n this country as they are few and far between. Greek language at college is few and far between where we live. The cost of private lessons 6 years ago was £25-00 per hour so I dread to think what they are now,

I pay £12-00 per lesson with Jackie, my Greek teacher, which we do through Skype. My own personal thoughts are try and find a first language English teacher who is fluent in the language you want to learn as they understand better our struggles, which the 1st language of the language you want to learn teacher doesn't understand. Hope that makes sense.

We tend to forget the tones and the articles they use for everything for instance saying 'Moma' is The Moma in their language. The masculine/feminine and neuter is very important too. The tones are very important because they can make a word mean something else if you don't put the tones in the right place.

Think about it: In our language such words as refuse can be pronounced as refuse or refuse as in refuse for the bin. Hence why the tones and articles are so important, as they change the meaning of words

 
Oh and 1 of the most important things I have had to look at alot in this past year, is grammar. We just use grammar, we don't think how a sentence etc. is made up, once we have left school, unless it is going to be part of our profession.

I have learnt more about grammar in the past year than in the whole of my life. I have had to relearn it to beable to speak another language
 
Well, as you know, I'm in Indonesia. For those who don't know, I spent 2 years here back in 2011-13. I've been back here 6 weeks and I know only a small amount of the local (Bahasa) language.

There are different ways to learn a language, but I feel age encumbers.... it certainly does with me anyway.
After only knowing English for over 55 years, I find it hard. I know words, a couple of phrases, but I certainly couldn't hold a conversation.

I find I have to take a word being spoken to me, convert it to English, think of a reply, then try to convert it back to Bahasa...... try doing that very quickly. I get lost after about 3 words...... hence me being unable to hold a conversation. I am improving, but it is a very slow process at my stage of life.

 
Problem we have here is , its all geared to passing exams in the language . Apparently I reached A level standard German during my weekly lessons when I was at Rover . I could write a few sentences and knew a few phrases. I couldn't understand or hold a conversation when I went to Munich .

A 16 year old German pupil , will have English lessons held totally in English .

I think we all did French at school when I was a kid but nobody ever learnt enough to do anything other than pass an exam in it.

I did however learn some technical German whilst a BMW , it was a case of having to , I know what a Piston Crankshaft con rod Camshaft etc is in German , which is something my German teacher never knew , as they only ever teach you how to book a hotel or a piece of Black forest Gateaux .

I'm guessing Living in a country is the only way to learn a language for the average Brit.

VOTN will be a good person to ask
 
This guys stuff is really good (and an amazing life story) - http://www.michelthomas.com/

This looks interesting as well - http://www.fluentin3months.com/
 
ClivetheVillan - 31/1/2015 14:48

I have stop started German and French quite a few times, i would luv also any tips on this, it ay easy you know learning a new language, some might find it easy but i struggled with my intelligence and all that like ;0Z

German is almost the same as Blackcountry English mate , just spake black c**tree with a germun acsunt ! Couple of pints of Weissbeer and you'll be fluent

 
Villan57 - 1/2/2015 10:14

ClivetheVillan - 31/1/2015 14:48

I have stop started German and French quite a few times, i would luv also any tips on this, it ay easy you know learning a new language, some might find it easy but i struggled with my intelligence and all that like ;0Z

German is almost the same as Blackcountry English mate , just spake black c**tree with a germun acsunt ! Couple of pints of Weissbeer and you'll be fluent
:1: :19: I think i would confuse a Black Country YamYam let alone a porr bloody German bloke if i spoke to em :39:
 
Holte139 - 31/1/2015 14:56

Don't worry Clive, I graduated with a 2:1 degree last year but when I was at school I really struggled with foreign languages. It's just one of those things I think!

Does make me wonder if some of us am more tuned to learning a new language than others, but it is very hard, i have confidence in all you lot that can understand a couple of words of what i say tbh you should be able to understand ET's if you understand me :64:

Well done on your degree dude :1: (smarty pants) :5: :17:
 
Best wat to learn a language is to live in the country for a few years. I hope that helps :14:


 
Villan Of The North - 1/2/2015 10:19

Best wat to learn a language is to live in the country for a few years. I hope that helps :14:

Thats what I thought Ian , it's a case of having to learn it or live a very isolated life I suppose ?
 
ClivetheVillan - 31/1/2015 15:48

I have stop started German and French quite a few times, i would luv also any tips on this, it ay easy you know learning a new language, some might find it easy but i struggled with my intelligence and all that like ;0Z


I reckon hhe first foreign language you should learn is English Clive :17:




 
Some very useful info here from our fellow Villan dudes/dudeette's, i am delving into them sites Cheshire dude has put up later on tonight, i am determined to get my brain cells the couple of them sparking like to stones rubbed together to get me learning a language, it just fascinates me, i also thought it could be a job that in the future when my eyes pack up could help me with some form of employment as language is not needing eyes, trouble is i must learn proper English first are fink ;)
 
Villan57 - 1/2/2015 09:53


I'm guessing Living in a country is the only way to learn a language for the average Brit.

VOTN will be a good person to ask


I reckon, having learned a new language to a fairly fluent level, I could learn other languages more easily. It's about developing an ear for it and a different way of thinking. Kefkat's comments about grammar are interesting as most of my Norwegian grammar is the same as my English, picked up as I've gone along so I don't always know why something is theway it is, I just know it is.


 
ClivetheVillan - 1/2/2015 10:22

Some very useful info here from our fellow Villan dudes/dudeette's, i am delving into them sites Cheshire dude has put up later on tonight, i am determined to get my brain cells the couple of them sparking like to stones rubbed together to get me learning a language, it just fascinates me, i also thought it could be a job that in the future when my eyes pack up could help me with some form of employment as language is not needing eyes, trouble is i must learn proper English first are fink ;)

That is a big problem mate , the education system here is geared to teenagers passing exams and not actually just learning to speak a language .
My German teacher used to go on about accusatives and nominatives stuff like that which I don't understand in English , as I left school at 16 like most people my age did , now they don't leave school until they are 23 !! So they should know these things , although most graduates we have with us struggle to tie their own shoe laces ! Good job they invented Velcro :17:
 
I know people who use cds to listen and learn pronunciation of words and go on to learn conversational skills. I would imagine in this day and age there are a wide range of self teaching language cds from beginner level to advanced standard (what I call speak-it-like-a-native level). It might be worth contacting your local library to see if they have language tuition cds and dvds. That way its cheap and free to find out if it is a language you want to explore in more detail.

I studied French German and Latin at school and didn't do that well to be honest. My first French lessons were in Junior school at the age of 9 or 10 and it was basic simple sentence stuff (like the car is red, the cat sat on the mat, I have a green cup etc) until I went to my senior high school at age 13. Even then it wasn't what I call Conversational skills in the languages. At my schools, it was all about the grammatical element of the language, like Villa57 says, they can teach you how to book hotels and order cake but the real everyday conversational side of things we seemed to not get too involved in. Our European neighbours teach their kids English from the age of 5, but they teach them the conversational skills and focus less on grammar. I was amazed at the quality of English my German exchange student had and he was almost a year younger than me. I didn't start learning German or Latin till I went to my senior high school. I loved German but the different cases (nominative, accusative, dative etc) and tenses (perfect, future, future perfect, present etc) confused the hell out of me. As for Latin, well lets just say that I managed to get my name right on my exam sheet. That language has so many twists and turns in its composition I wonder how the hell the our forefathers ever managed to get to grips with it (it has even more cases such as genetive, ablative, vocative, locative and the pluperfect tense) . I think the best example of this confusing array of cases etc is the scene in the fantastically funny (and my all time favourite movie) Monty Python's Life Of Brian, where the lead character, played by Graham Chapman, gets caught painting the slogan "Romans Go Home!!" on a wall by John Cleese posing as a Roman Centurion. As an ancient language Latin is very very complicated but it's amazing that despite this, we still use words that are derived from it in our language to this day - only we don't realise it.
 
Villan Of The North - 1/2/2015 10:30

Villan57 - 1/2/2015 09:53


I'm guessing Living in a country is the only way to learn a language for the average Brit.

VOTN will be a good person to ask


I reckon, having learned a new language to a fairly fluent level, I could learn other languages more easily. It's about developing an ear for it and a different way of thinking. Kefkat's comments about grammar are interesting as most of my Norwegian grammar is the same as my English, picked up as I've gone along so I don't always know why something is theway it is, I just know it is.

When you live in the country you will and that's the best way to do it. Because we don't live in Greece it has made the whole process harder work.

My reading/writing/listening skills/translating will always be better than my spoken Greek, as we don't spend enough time there.

I can fairly well understand what a Greek is saying, however responding takes times. So I always have to start by saying 'my Greek is slow. Please bear with me'

However learning with a Greek teacher is far better than college for it, as they teach you basics and not what you really need out there. Plus they still teach you basics like at school.

I got a grade B in French at school. I couldn't tell you a single word of French now, accept for 1 strange word I remember for handkerchief. Yeah I know. Weird! I don't understand my mind either at times