I love new languages!

I’ve always been interested in languages, but in my travels (specifically Belize, France, and Germany) I’ve had to learn some basic Spanish, French, and German to just go to the store and to do the everyday things like take the bus or order a pizza.

I’m not fluent in any language except English (yet) but I have found some techniques to quickly pick up basic vocabulary that are low-cost or even free!  Whether you’re learning for class, life, or just for fun, these will enhance the experience:

1) WWOOF with a host who doesn’t speak English, in their home country. The best way to learn a language is by immersion. Only allow yourself to hear, speak and read your target language. This is how children learn. They just pick up the things they hear in their environment.

2) Change your computer’s or browser’s language. Also many websites have a place to change the language. You’ll quickly learn words like “search”, “download” and “add to friends list” in your target language. Just make sure you know where to change it back in case you get stuck!

3) Listen to music – Pop music is great for learning a language because it repeats, and music is naturally a learning-enhancer. There is lots of free music in many languages online, along with lyrics and translations.

4) Play a game – In Canada, most things are bilingual, and we had a lot of board games that were in English and French. I didn’t pay much attention, because I never thought we’d come to France. I’d like to have them back now. All three of us love real time strategy computer games like Age of Empires, and my brother-in-law gave us a German game called “Die Völker” (The Nations) that helped Jeffery and me learn a lot of vocabulary.

5) Watch A Movie – DVDs are wonderful for learning language. Even in the US most DVDs have Spanish and French in either subtitles or voice-overs, and many have several other languages. Change the language and practice your listening skills.

6) Make lists – In Ni Howdy Desi Downey describes how she used lists in China to get by. On one side she would write out the word in English and the other side a friend would write the same word in Chinese. In languages like Chinese where the characters don’t have any relation to our alphabet, this may be the only way you can get things done until you learn more. But with something easier like German or Spanish you can use these lists to memorize the things you need to know, and you can actually try to pronounce them. Separate lists into categories: food, car components, directions, computer words, etc. so you can find what you need easily

7) Read a book – Children’s books and comic books are perfect for learning, with simple language and pictures. Once you’re getting pretty good, you can move up to a simple chapter book (romance novels work well, too). I read a couple books in Germany side-by-side with a German-English dictionary, and it really helped me with vocabulary and sentence structure. Of course, it helped that I had my husband to help with cultural references and idioms. I’m trying the same thing with French, but it’s a little harder.

What techniques have you used to practice or learn a new language?

photo credit: gracey on morguefile.com