TheQuestion partner response

Learning any foreign language on your own is not an easy task. First of all, it is important to understand why you need a language.

• Maybe you need English for travel?
• Or do you need business English to get your dream job?
• Or just pull up the level for an assessment at the university?

That is, first you need to determine the goal, and then the tools that are suitable for achieving it.

First.
If you are completely new to English, it would be nice to imagine how words are read. That is, point number 1 - the rules for reading words. Read and repeat words aloud, including drawing on examples from movies, TV shows, or songs. Excerpts from them can be found, for example, in the section. By repeating all this regularly, you will train both pronunciation and listening comprehension.

The second is the formation of a personal vocabulary.
It is not necessary to memorize all the words in the dictionary from A to Z. As a rule, everything starts with general topics and simple words. Think about the words you use the most Everyday life, determine the range of topics that interest you. It is convenient to use an electronic dictionary, especially one that works offline. That is, if you are learning English for travel, start learning the vocabulary that you will need on the trip.

To successfully use your vocabulary, you need to understand how words fit together, how to express this or that thought correctly. Of course, it's about grammar.
Lots of rules and even more exceptions. But without her, nowhere. There are many tutorials to help you learn the rules. If textbooks are not to your liking, you can always pick up a convenient online resource. We advise you to choose a course with the possibility of feedback. This will give you the opportunity to quickly receive answers to questions that arise in the learning process. And there will definitely be a lot of them.

So, there is a certain base. What's next?
And then, so that the language does not remain just a passive baggage, you need to speak it. And to speak, you need an interlocutor. And in order to communicate successfully, you need to understand the interlocutor. Two more important components in learning a language are speaking and listening, which, as a rule, cause the greatest difficulty.

• You need to get used to the sound of foreign speech. Do not rush to immediately watch films in the original, focus on your level. The ideal way out is to find a resource that will offer you videos of different levels, it is very good if these are videos with subtitles. Sing songs. It has been proven to be a very effective way to train speech and hearing at the same time.
• And finally, speaking. Who to talk to? You can train on others, you can talk to yourself. But what to do with the inevitable mistakes and a bunch of questions. To develop your speaking skills in a language, you will most likely need not just an interlocutor, but a competent interlocutor who will correct your speech.

So, the goal is set, the means are chosen. It remains to understand how to motivate yourself and not give up halfway.

First, make sure your goal is realistic and meets your needs. Start with the basics, do not try to embrace the immense and learn everything at once. Go from simple to complex. But do not set yourself very easy tasks, otherwise you will stagnate. The training should be a little hard, but still possible to complete successfully. So you will receive joy from your achievements, and not disappointment that you again failed or did not understand.

Choose the teaching method that suits you.

• Don't leave your phone? Install the appropriate application, since the choice is now rich.
• Love to read? Read books. Of course, Shakespeare in the original is not immediately defeated. But you can choose adapted literature according to your level.
• Listen to music, watch movies.

  Learning a language is not boring cramming, but a process that can be enjoyed.

Yes, and quite easily. Especially with modern advances. Already managed to teach many of his friends, with the help of just three things:

1. Watch the TV show "Polyglot" with Dmitry Petrov. 16 episodes of 40 minutes each aired on the Kultura TV channel. As a base language - more than enough.
2. Sign up for the LinguaLeo service and install an extension for your browser that will make it easier to read web pages in English. By double-clicking on an unfamiliar word, you can immediately see its translation.
3. Sign up for DuoLingo. Simple exercises will help you improve your skills at any level of language proficiency. There is both a web version and a mobile app.

Well, there, keep it up! The more you devote to all this time (reading, exercises and a little cramming) - the higher you raise your level. Professionally, of course, you won’t master (just as you don’t speak Russian now, at the level of a philologist) - for this you need a specialized education. But you can easily master the language at a conversational level sufficient to read articles, watch movies and communicate! And if you want to be a professional, then you will go to courses. Even in order to work as an interpreter, certificates are required, for which you need to take special training courses. So, this is another plus, in favor of self-study. All this is just a myth that you can be made a professional and a translator at the institute, and even more so at school :)

Hmmm. Generally a good question. Personally, when I watched this TV show, I already knew English language. Perhaps, of course, therefore, but it just seemed to me as clear and concise as possible. Then I advise you to immediately go to the exercises in DuoLingo. There I studied languages ​​in which I had no knowledge of grammar. Only through perseverance and regular practice, she later came with experience. Try it too.

Answer

Of course, if you need the language at a basic level (for travel, for example), then yes, 16 hours of "Polyglot" may be enough. But certainly not in order to study the language professionally, because in this case you can’t leave the basic vocabulary. There are a lot of grammatical aspects even in the same English, not to mention more complicated languages, without knowledge of which you won’t be able to master Shakespeare, and you won’t even read an ordinary article on the site.

As for learning the language INDEPENDENTLY, then everything depends on your willpower. But still, I would recommend taking outside help. The main thing is that the assistant should be competent, so that time is not wasted on talking about the same thing, as is done at school.

Starting to learn a language is the main problem for many. Everyone wants to know the language, constantly postponing learning, making excuses, or simply doing nothing for it.

Learn a language for at least 30 minutes a day - this is only 2% of your day, but even these 2% will greatly increase your level of knowledge in a year. I came up with a rule for myself: learn 5 new words a day. 5 words a day is 150 words a month and 1800 words a year. For daily communication on everyday topics, a person needs about 2000 words, i.e. you need to follow this rule for a little over a year. Of course, you still need to know a minimum of grammar and the rules for constructing sentences. To do this, I can advise a good site: everything is detailed and understandable there, very nice design, I often work on it myself. In addition, use the language in everyday life. For example, walking down the street, try to mentally name in English the objects that you meet. If you don’t know something, then add it to the list of words that you need to learn. Of course, conversational practice is necessary to learn a language. Constantly communicate in English on trips, practice the language with friends, with relatives or make a pen pal, communication with a native speaker is unrealistically effective. There is also good way raise the level of pronunciation and understanding: review in English series / films that you have already seen. At first it is possible with Russian subtitles, then with English or without them at all.

Alexandra Galimova

English and chess teacher, translator and author of summaries for Smart Reading.

The Russian mute soul disdains communication,

Foreign language perceiving with a dictionary and disgust.

I. Huberman

Without exception, all Russians study at least one foreign language. They continue to learn linguistic wisdom on language courses, with tutors and in universities. Nevertheless, for the majority, a foreign language is a meaningless set of grammatical rules and words.

In my 20 years of teaching English, I have discovered several reasons for this "muteness".

What prevents you from learning a foreign language

1. Fear of making mistakes

What have I never heard from my students! “I will make a mistake, and they will laugh at me!” - a respectable lady, the chief accountant of the bank, almost cried. "I'll look like an idiot!" - categorically stated the top manager of a large manufacturing company. “I forgot the third form of the verb go, so I was embarrassed to ask for directions,” a young entrepreneur told about an independent trip to Europe.

Language is not mathematics, you should not strive for ultimate accuracy and correctness. Even the most literate of us are not immune from mistakes in our native language. What is the point of striving for excellence in a foreign language, forgetting that it is primarily a means of communication!

2. Imperial manners

“Why don't these colonizers learn Russian? It is they who come to us, not we to them,” my corporate student, who came to work in a British company and was forced to learn the language of Shakespeare, was indignant.

Seventy years behind the Iron Curtain have taught us that residents of neighboring republics and countries speak Russian, as well as part of the staff at the popular resorts of Turkey and Egypt. However, time passes, and the younger generation of Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Finland no longer speak Russian, which is extremely inconvenient for tourists from Russia.

3. Wrong motivation

I have heard more than once: “Knowledge of English will decorate my resume”, “I will learn the language and prove to my mother what I am worth”.

It is unlikely that you will quickly speak in if you want to impress colleagues, pass an exam, or find a high-paying job. However, if you dream of communicating with people, studying the history and culture of the country of the language being studied, then you will not only learn the language, but also have a great time.

4. Excuses

Here are some common excuses that prevent people from learning a foreign language:

• I'm too old (young, busy).
• I have no language skills.
• Learning a foreign language takes too much time.
• It's too expensive.
• Learning languages ​​is boring.

What does it mean to "learn a language"

Before talking about how much time you need to spend on learning a language, it is important to determine what exactly you want to achieve: be able to maintain a conversation in certain everyday situations or be able to work in the country of the language being studied, as well as read, write and discuss on any topic.

The main thing is to clearly understand what level you are striving for.

Why three months

Benny Lewis, the polyglot who wrote the book Fluent in 3 Months, is convinced that 90 days is the optimal time to learn a second and subsequent foreign languages. The first foreign language will require a little more time and effort. Such a deadline for learning the language did not appear by chance: it is equal to the period of visa-free stay of British citizens in many countries.

For those who are determined to learn the language, Mr. Lewis gives the following advice.

1. Clearly define the mission (to formulate goals and deadlines)

2. Break the mission into mini-missions

When Benny Lewis began to teach, memorization of elementary phrases, which he practiced when studying European languages, did not work. The Chinese did not understand him. Only after a mini-mission to study the tones did communication improve.

3. Create a virtual language environment

Learn Japanese? Create a virtual Land of the Rising Sun around you: read books about Japan, watch movies in Japanese, meet Japanese online.

The method is based on the following principles:

1. Speak the language you are learning from day one. Let you say only a few primitive phrases and understand not everything that was answered to you, but this way you will learn a living language.
2. Do not learn grammar at the beginning: you will get confused and will not be able to talk.
3. Spend a few hours every day learning the language. It doesn't matter how many years you have been teaching it, what matters is how many hours you have spent on it.
4. You don't need to learn the language, you need to live it. Benny Lewis not only recommends effective methods for memorizing words and phrases, but also shares his experience:

• How to look like your own in a foreign country. It turns out that behavior is more important than accent. Watch people: how they dress, what kind of facial expression they have when communicating, whether they make eye contact, how far from the interlocutor they are, what hairstyle and gait they have.

• How to make friends with foreigners. On the site www.couchsurfing.org, the author searched for native speakers of the language being studied. He arranged a language practice for himself, inviting his virtual acquaintances for coffee or lunch. So he communicated in Italian in Amsterdam, and in Dutch in Istanbul.

• How to become a polyglot. This can be done on one condition: learning languages ​​will become your way of life, you will live in these languages, studying culture, literature, getting acquainted with interesting people and traveling. The number of languages ​​you can learn depends only on your desire and the time you are willing to spend on learning.

The Benny Lewis method is quite realistic. In fact, in three months of intensive daily practice, you can master the spoken language. In this case, fanaticism in a good sense is important: a combination of motivation, regularity and intensity of classes.

1. The first rule - forget about how long and painfully you learned English at school and college. This, as a rule, negative experience can discourage the desire to learn foreign languages ​​for a long time, and also convince you that you seem to have no predisposition to this.

2. Motivation. Maybe you want to sing songs in French, watch TV shows in Spanish or read Paolo Coelho in the original. First of all, the language should not just please you, it should inspire.

3. Start. No need to prepare for a long time, just start doing every day small step- learn five new words, watch the tutorial. Do not drive yourself into limits and do not set clear deadlines, because you will not have to take tests and exams.

4. Start with the study of words, do not load yourself with grammar at first. Remember how children begin to talk: first they listen, then they begin to understand, that is, to associate a word with an object or action, then they begin to speak the first words, and only after that they build a sentence. Do the same - watch the video first, listen to the recorded speech, do simple exercises to memorize words. When you acquire a significant vocabulary, then you can begin to build sentences and study tenses.

5. Translate texts that interest you. Well-known songs are best, so you can memorize many words very quickly.

6. Many effective free tutorials can be found on the Internet.

7. While you can't speak yet, chat with native speakers. So you can always use a translator or dictionary to express your thoughts.

8. Once you have learned to read and speak a little, look for opportunities to practice speaking. Even if there are no speaking clubs in your city, look for native speakers who live here and who need to learn Russian, place an ad on social networks that you are ready to conduct a free city tour for visiting foreigners. In extreme cases, you can communicate via Skype.

9. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. Take with those who speak English. They speak extremely simply, sometimes with errors, but very confidently, and everyone understands them. Language is a means of communication, so the main thing is to be understood. Do not use complex grammatical structures, simplify everything as much as possible. The mere fact that you speak Spanish, Portuguese or Japanese will be received with enthusiasm by the inhabitants of other countries.

10. Remember that there are no people who are completely incapable of learning languages, there are those who do not even try to learn them.

Often, when it comes to learning foreign languages, people of the older generation immediately remember the school and the languages ​​that they seemed to have been learning there for many years, but never learned. If there is no urgent need, then learning a language remains something abstract, and therefore most often desirable, but out of reach. So, how to learn English on your own from scratch? My assistant, a philologist of foreign languages, will tell us about this today. Personally, I learned English via Skype at Skyeng school and eventually started a blog in English.

Almost all more or less literate people will agree: yes, knowledge of languages ​​is a useful skill for anyone modern man. However, what exactly? Let's look at this issue from the point of view of benefits for copywriters.

A copywriter who knows how to find the right information will always find a job. A copywriter who knows how to find unique and high-quality information will never be left without a highly paid job. And knowledge of English significantly expands the possibilities of access to information.

Because English is spoken, written and thought in countries that are currently world leaders in economic and cultural development. And in many areas of applied and theoretical science, they set the vector for the further progress of all mankind. Therefore, information from this community is of interest all over the world. Unlike countries with Chinese and Spanish- although in terms of the number of people who speak them, they are ahead of English-speaking speakers, and Chinese is beginning to enjoy increasing interest and demand.

And if we talk about the Internet - the place of earnings of millions of journalists, copywriters and authors of texts, then there is even nothing to compare. Whether we are talking about highly specialized professional resources or those developed by users on their own, Russian-language sites are significantly inferior in terms of the amount of information available. To do this, just visit the English and Russian versions of Wikia - specialized encyclopedias for various hobbies.

For the sake of interest, you can compare similar encyclopedias on role-playing games: here is the Russian one (http://ru.rpg.wikia.com/wiki/Rolevoy_encyclopedia), and here is the English one (http://rpg.wikia.com/wiki/RPG). Although the number of articles on both resources differs by only a thousand, on the side of the Russian site you can see that in English there are much more independent encyclopedias devoted to various types role playing games.

Of course, the exceptions are those areas that are relevant for the inhabitants of Russia and the post-Soviet space. However, the demand for texts on the topic of Russian folk traditions and customs is significantly lower than the things that are relevant for a single cultural space on the Internet. So, I think it's good to learn English - a thought that, to one degree or another, visits every copywriter. And the question of where to learn English also seems to be not too difficult, when there are a lot of announcements about different courses and methods around.

However, how can we approach the practical solution of this problem?

Is it possible to learn English at home

Learning a language is not easy, everyone knows that.

The four basic skills that must be developed in order to understand and speak a foreign language are:

• reading;
• letter;
• hearing;
• speaking.

To successfully develop these skills at least at the simplest level, you need to master:

• alphabet;
• reading rules;
• basic vocabulary;
• elementary rules of grammar.

Too smart? Ok, let's take a closer look.

Only in colloquial speech, an ordinary person uses from 2 to 3 thousand words: even if you diligently learn 10-15 words a day, it will take almost a year. However, the matter is not limited to the knowledge of words, but you need to somehow connect them into meaningful sentences, for this, too, there are rules.

Tenses are a serious stumbling block in any foreign language. What in native speech is formed in a conversation without hesitation, in a foreign language becomes an occasion for serious reflection.

Although English is quite simple in this matter: you only need to learn by heart Irregular Verbs English, the rest are put at any time with the help of a few auxiliary words and endings.

Are you going for a walk now? Or did you go yesterday? Or are you going to go tomorrow? The Russian language among other world languages ​​is considered quite difficult to learn. “Go-go-go” - can you imagine what difficulties foreigners face? Rejoice that English in this matter is much more simple and consistent!

Declension: they are hammered long and hard into children at school, but many do not fully understand that “I am going” and “He is coming” is exactly the same in almost any foreign language. Although in English this is also easier, you will have to remember only two forms of endings, but knowledge of the theory does not save you from mistakes in practice.

And we have not even come close to complex rules yet, we have taken the most basic and most common language constructs that are present in all languages. And there are also differences!

Here is the most famous of them: Russian-speaking people who are thinking about learning the most commonly used language in the world are first of all frightened by the fact that English words are not pronounced the way they are spelled. That's why in English dictionaries, in addition to the word and translation, a transcription must be written - how this particular word is pronounced. But here's the problem: transcription is in itself a universal written language with its own conventions for this or that sound. That is, in order to read how a word is pronounced, you must first learn the transcription icons. So those who hesitate fall away even at this stage.

And there are also accepted phrases that simply cannot be adequately translated, but have their own meaning. In fact, this is the main difficulty of English for foreigners, and not the pronunciation of words at all. It's just that few people are aware of it, except for teachers. However, this feature brings a lot of problems in the study. For example, the expression "What is going on?" when translated directly, it will turn out to be complete rubbish: “What is going on?” But what it really means is "What's going on?" So you just need to memorize such constructions - and this is in addition to several thousand words.

Ok, this is what concerns the structure of the language itself. But there is also communication - for what, in fact, to make titanic efforts to overcome the above difficulties? And here a person may encounter another surprise: he seems to be able to speak, but understanding is a problem.

By ear, an unprepared ear, even for someone who has mastered a basic knowledge of the language, on average perceives only 25% of what they hear. For clarity, I will take a paragraph from this text and in it I will delete three words out of every four:

... of them ... about studying ... the world ... then ... are written ... Here ... except ... it is written ... specifically ... here ... itself ... conditional ... other ... read ... or ... before ... transcription ... disappear ... stage.

Well, did you understand everything? I will not be mistaken in assuming that even in your native language it is almost impossible to understand what this fragment is about.

I think that the attentive reader at this point is either discouraged - if he planned to study the language after all - or at a loss, why all the difficulties are described in such detail here. Let's get back to the question: "Is it possible to learn a language at home"? The answer is: yes, it is possible. However, no one says that it will be easy.

Self study for beginners

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The most important condition in the development of any layer of knowledge is consistency and regularity. This is true even for chemistry, even for foreign speech. Under this condition, anyone can learn English on their own.

IN Soviet times Once there was such an incident: at the school Olympiad in four languages, the same student turned out to be the winner. Naturally, officials could not believe in such incredible knowledge of a child who, moreover, did not have time in other subjects. Therefore, no place was awarded to him.

Why this story? Moreover, if even in those days when it was possible to learn a language only from a few textbooks approved by censorship, a child succeeded, now, in the era of the World Wide Web, there are much more opportunities.

Now you can find and purchase many language courses in any form: playful, rhythmic, rhyming, plot or purely practical. There is a suitable textbook or course for every age and taste. It's even better to use several at once. The main thing is not to turn the study into a boring swotting, but to do it with pleasure and interest.

If you are sure that you do not need a team, you are disciplined enough for regular and full-fledged classes, you have found everything you need for gradual learning, then it is possible to learn English at home. Moreover, in modern world English words surround us everywhere: on signs, advertising, in educational or feature films. Therefore, many things are acquired passively, manifesting themselves after the beginning of training.

How to learn the English alphabet

If you have to learn English from the very beginning, then you cannot do without the alphabet. Studying English letters is not difficult, especially for those who studied languages ​​​​at school - and this is a long time ago one of compulsory subjects. All European languages ​​are based on the same alphabet, Latin. Depending on the characteristics of a particular language, they may drop out and turn on letters that convey sounds characteristic of this area or country. However, he migrated to English without the slightest change, only the pronunciation of letters differs.

To remember, you can just learn it, it does not present any particular problems for memorization. And for children a long time ago, various educational songs with the alphabet were invented. Want to have some fun? Why not sing them to remember?

Not confident in your abilities? Hang the letters in the rooms in order and randomly, read and repeat them every time you enter the room. The main thing is to provide yourself with constant practice, and then memorization, depending on memory, will take from a couple of days to a week.

In fact, it is not the letters themselves that are difficult, but the various rules for reading letters in different combinations. However, contrary to popular belief, Russian also has features of reading, albeit not in such quantity. Ask junior schoolchildren, who are scolded by teachers for writing words the way they hear, they will tell you.

Unlike Russian, English reading rules mainly depend on vowels or their combinations, and only in some cases on consonants. In addition, these rules are quite consistent, therefore, having mastered them, you can read any unfamiliar texts with virtually no errors. Practically without - because in addition to the rules there are also exceptions. True, from reading to understanding is still far away. But everything comes with time spent on learning.

For practical consolidation, you can use different audio lessons for beginners, which you can either buy or find on the Internet. Simple repetition after the speaker along with reading the same phrases or words will help you quickly learn new reading rules. The effectiveness of this method was tested in practice by a friend of mine who decided to learn English after studying German at school. Without much effort, repeating simple phrases in the intervals between caring for a baby, literally in the very first lessons of the then cassette course, she was able to readjust from reading German to english at home free and independently.

The main thing is not to be afraid of failure: everyone who speaks the language once started learning English from scratch, you are not the first and not the only one who does this.

How to learn English words and phrases

Having learned the letters in general, the features of their pronunciation in certain words, we come close to the set of vocabulary.

It has been proven that the study of individual words is less effective than memorizing them all at once in whole structures. Because it is easier to remember the phrase where this word was used than it separately, without reference to the situation.

Just as it is impossible to learn how to play the piano at least classical or modern music without repeating scales, so it will not be possible to learn a language without mastering simple phrases, such as: “This is a table, and that is a chair. The chair is yellow and the table is red,” and so on.

Although some training courses start with conversational phrases: “Hi, how are you? Great, thanks, how about you? But without this and without this knowledge of the language will not be complete. You need to know how to explain to a foreigner that this stump in the middle of the room is actually a designer chair, and not at all a felled tree that has grown through fifteen floors.

To go through this stage quickly, and not snort at the stupidity of the creators of the textbook, try to immediately visualize the situation: when and where such a phrase would sound appropriate. By the way, elementary school students often laugh when teachers offer them to translate the phrase “Where am I?” - however, for sure you can remember several films where the hero, being in an unknown place, says exactly this. And this phrase, seemingly strange in the classroom, sounds quite natural in such a situation.

At this stage, it is better to decide what you need the language for. If you are planning to travel abroad in the near future, where you will need to ask how to get there or where you are - this is one set of words. If your task is to master the conversational base level to easily conduct and maintain a simple exchange of common phrases - beginners' tutorials will help with this. And if, ideally, you are going to communicate with native speakers at all levels, from everyday to professional, then it is better to turn to serious, multi-level textbooks.

How to learn spoken English

If the student is not a child under 10 years old and does not live in an English-speaking country, then elementary concepts of grammar cannot be dispensed with. Because with all the desire, it will not be possible to speak in memorized phrases.

I think many have home library phrasebooks by different languages. And some even used them while traveling. However, I have not yet met a single person who would have learned the entire phrase book, and it was enough for him at least for constant everyday communication. The reason is that the proposed phrases can only be used in one, maximum - two situations. However, the reality is that situations are constantly changing. characters too - and that's it, the phrase is no longer relevant. Here we need knowledge of grammar in order to easily replace the constituent words of a phrase, adapting it to a close, but slightly different situation.

Grammar is the very checkers with which Lego words are kept in the speech house.

Simple constructions: declarative, interrogative, negative and affirmative sentences in English are built according to a strict scheme, therefore, having understood their order, then it is quite easy to construct phrases. Those who know the names of parts of speech and sentence members from school can use translated materials or textbooks by Russian-speaking authors. For those who prefer to master grammar in practice, the English Grammar in Use textbook will come to the rescue, where all the rules are explained solely with the help of diagrams, numerous examples and pictures. The textbook consists of three voluminous volumes, starting with the simplest and ending with complex grammatical constructions of the conditional mood.

Another good thing about this textbook is that grammar is taught with the help of commonly used colloquial phrases and small dialogues.

Well, we should not forget about the understanding of speech. Spoken language is not monologue, here you have to listen to the interlocutor and answer questions. Therefore, you should definitely listen to native speakers regularly - at first adapted, and later natural conversations and texts. This will help both purchased and downloaded materials from the Internet.

Learn English online

As you can see, in modern society, the Internet is a huge help for those who want to expand their horizons and understand representatives of other countries. Everything you need to learn a language can be found online:

• textbooks;
• allowances;
• audio courses;
• movies;
• interlocutors;
• teachers.

In addition, there are very convenient programs for learning languages ​​on the Internet.

One of them is quite popular among users - this is Duolingo. It can be put on a computer, tablet or phone, and, according to the schedule you have indicated, spend on training from 5 to 20 minutes a day. The program sends you e-mail reports about your progress, reminds you if you forgot to work out and, of course, checks for mistakes during training. This often worries many people who take on independent study: an opportunity to check whether they have learned the material correctly. Training takes place in all aspects: understanding English phrases, spelling, pronunciation and listening comprehension. So for beginners and intermediates, this is a convenient and enjoyable way to learn.

However, you should not stop at this program only if you want to really master the language, and not flatter your ego with the thought that you are developing by devoting just five minutes to learning English every day.

The Internet gives us a unique opportunity: being in our own country, to provide ourselves with deep dive into an English-speaking environment - something that was previously available only when traveling. Thanks to this, it is quite possible to quickly learn English.

Many courses for a nominal fee will offer you their training programs. And this is perfect for those who need additional motivation to start using English in everyday speech.

Everyone knows that in order to speak, you need to speak. Feel free to make mistakes and continue to formulate your thoughts in the language you want to master. Only this will help to overcome the psychological barrier that every student faces.

If you think you need individual training, then this is not a problem either: many sites offer the help of their teachers who conduct lessons via Skype at any time convenient for you. Among them you can find both local specialists and emigrants who have successfully mastered the language, and even native speakers. That's exactly what I did.

In order not to throw money away, at the initial levels it is better to use the services of someone who can explain the very basics to you in an understandable language. But having already mastered the basic knowledge, you can start classes with English-speaking teachers: they will be the best able to teach you modern conversational trends, help you get used to hearing someone else's speech and give you an incentive to talk.

The best way to learn English

We are surrounded by a lot of advertising. Surely you have come across invitations to courses on the methods of the special services, on the author's methods and in various other ways. However, all these techniques will work only in one case: with the desire and efforts on the part of the student himself.

The experience of many generations of schoolchildren proves that you can learn a language for years, but still be left with a few phrases in your head.

You can take a calf to water, but you can't make it drink.

Eastern proverb

The language must come to life for you - and in what ways you do it, the tenth thing.

However, you should not rush from one textbook or teacher to another - such an unsystematic approach will not give the desired result. Because any technique is built on the gradual deepening of knowledge. And jumping from one technique to another, you run the risk of going through the same material again and again.

Therefore, if you decide to learn the language on your own, then you need to choose for yourself:

• basic textbook;
• grammar book;
• video or audio course;
• several books to read.

What are the principles for choosing a textbook?

Now in our market are widely presented in detail developed textbooks of Cambridge, Oxford and other well-known centers for learning English. They consist of several parts: the main book, the book for exercises, the audio course, the book for the teacher. They all complement each other, their main task is to allow them to master the spoken language from the basics to the features and nuances.

But since they are still intended for classes in groups, not everyone can master the language without outside help. In such a case, there are tutorials that are focused on self-study.

In addition to the exercises presented in them, which are designed to gain vocabulary, you need to work it out on your own in any free time. It can be cards with words, or a list in your pocket - it doesn’t matter. Do what is comfortable for you, the main thing is that there is a result.

Grammar is a source of knowledge of English constructions and now, features and other subtleties of the language. Usually it is explained using simple words, so working with the exercises will not cause any particular difficulties.

Be sure to listen to English speech - the ear must get used to the peculiarities of pronunciation, and with the help of some teaching texts or dialogues this cannot be achieved. Those words that you easily perceive in an already familiar context may get lost in the flow of speech on another topic.

An excellent base for activating the existing vocabulary and expanding it is reading books. Of course, at first it is better to read adapted books with a dictionary and explanations. Over time, you can switch to non-adapted literature.

Since English literature is widely represented by both classics and modern works, it is not so difficult to find something that suits your taste.

Three hours a day of such immersion in the English-speaking environment will allow you to speak and understand native speakers of this language at a decent level in six months.

How to organize effective lessons yourself

Ok, this is a section for those who are self-confident and have decided to learn English without the help and prodding of teachers.

Textbook selection

First of all, decide what kind of English you are going to learn? As everyone knows, the language of the UK and the US are somewhat different. Of course, the British and Americans can understand each other, as the grammar and words are the same with a few exceptions. However, there are significant differences in the colloquial version of both options, since colloquial speech changes quite quickly following the trends of the times.

The biggest differences are in the common vocabulary. Therefore, choosing a Cambridge or Oxford textbook as a textbook, you should know that you will master the British version of the English language.

Place of study

Next, as we have already said, prepare yourself Additional materials. If these are materials in in electronic format, create shortcuts for yourself on your computer desktop so that they are always in sight, otherwise you risk forgetting about them at the right time. If paper textbooks, then put them on a table or bedside table, but do not hide them in a closet, where they will be lost among other books.

Workplace preparation is an important factor in the successful completion of work.

Studying time

Decide in advance for yourself the time that you allocate for classes and include them in your schedule. You should not leave training for free five minutes, because they may not be available, otherwise you will lose the opportunity to advance in learning the language.

Before learning has become a habit, it is better to plan your classes in advance. This will allow you to correctly allocate time and at the same time will be an additional incentive for learning: it’s not in vain that you spent time planning.

Allocate 20-30 minutes to work with each textbook. At first, let them be no more than two per day: the textbook itself and grammar. You don’t need to set a goal to go through a certain amount of material in a day, because this may take you longer than you planned, and because of this, time for other things will be reduced. This may be an excuse to skip classes next time. Whereas limiting time to study can encourage you to work harder during the same time interval.

Video lessons

If you want not only to learn a language, but also to get acquainted with the culture of a country or countries, then you should take the time to watch special video lessons, of which there are now many posted on the net. They tell plain language about the traditions historical facts, features of England and the USA, are both educational and interesting.

Language immersion

And free minutes can be used for an additional immersion in language environment: a book or an audio recording if you are at work, in transport, on a walk; movie while at home. As for understanding, at first it will not be much like entertainment: to understand English without translation, you will need to make an effort. No need to force things, let it be five to ten minutes, and then proceed to your usual rest. Over time, when you get used to the pronunciation and gain experience, you will begin to enjoy watching and from the original pun, which is lost even with the best translation.

Videos and books

At the very beginning, choose films and books with fairly simple spoken language. At the first stages, it is desirable to avoid fantastic, historical and detective stories, because their very subject matter implies the use of rather complex vocabulary. Everyday dramas and comedies are best suited, since the conversations there revolve mainly around simple everyday things.

It is better to choose books that have already been read in your native language - this way it will be easier not to lose the thread of the story. Some people diligently look up every word in the dictionary - this significantly reduces the speed and often leads to a refusal to read. However, this method is also effective, but not at the initial stage, but when the main base of at least a few hundred words has already been formed. Frequency words that are repeated more than five times will soon be remembered by themselves in the process of reading, and the number of trips to the dictionary will decrease significantly.

It’s great if you can watch movies with English subtitles: this way you will not only listen, but you can immediately read what the characters are saying. However, this is good only at the initial stages, and then it is better to stop reading, because this will interfere with full listening comprehension.

If you want to learn how to speak without an accent, then while watching, repeat phrases regularly, imitating pronunciation and intonation as much as possible.

Try to use English wherever possible. If you are registered on Facebook, then translate its language into English - there are not so many functions there, but they will be constantly in sight. If you are a fan computer games, then reconfigure your favorite games to English. So informational messages and labels will help you learn words without special memorization.

If you have a hobby, then register on the English-language thematic forums. You don’t need to immediately rush into the pool - at first, just read the correspondence: this way you will master the vocabulary that suits your interests. And then you can join the discussion.

Constant practice is an important component of success, so try not to miss opportunities to practice a little. Even if at first you do not understand most of what is written or said, it does not matter. Our brain does not forget anything, at some point the amount of information will turn into quality - and then you may suddenly discover how easy it is to learn English in fact.

How can a child learn English

Teaching children a foreign language is a very special skill. Abstract goals don't work very well for a child. If for an adult the thought of a trip to another country can be sufficient motivation, then for a baby it will be too much. challenging task. In addition, the ability to concentrate in children is significantly less than in adults. And therefore, a lesson lasting more than half an hour is too difficult a task even for younger students, what can we say about kids from three to six years old?

Because everything modern techniques teaching children consists in an unobtrusive and interesting game way of immersing them in a foreign language environment. Rhymes, songs, games - that's what you can not do without in teaching kids. In addition, you can use a variety of computer-based learning programs that give children interesting tasks, completing which they learn words and sentences.

Another way that works 100% is immersion in the language environment. Once in the company of peers, the child will begin to search with them mutual language. The smaller the baby, the faster he adapts. Therefore, children who regularly and repeatedly travel to other countries, even for one month a year, know the language of that country, at least at an elementary level.

But if this is not possible, and you need to learn the language, look for the most interesting ways for the child to learn, if you do not want to turn classes into torment for him and for yourself.

It should be remembered that young children learn best from what their parents do. Therefore, if you decide that it is time for a child to learn a language, then it is worth mastering it yourself. Joint activities or games can greatly facilitate the process of mastering unfamiliar words for the baby.

How to learn text in English: ways and methods

Until now, the fastest and most effective way to learn words on a particular topic is to memorize the text - or topic, as schoolchildren and students say. For example, a text about the place of residence, the city and its infrastructure will allow you to immediately master and use many words such as “street, square, building, shop, apartment, house” and the like. However, how boring and hard to memorize a whole text!

There are some special techniques on how to easily learn English texts.

1. Based on the available lexical material, write the text yourself. This is especially true if you have a general text, and you need to talk about yourself - your place of residence, family or other personal information. Sentences that you come up with yourself are much more memorable than those written by someone else. However, in order not to memorize the text with errors, it is better to have it first checked by a teacher or someone more knowledgeable. In extreme cases, you can use the proposed constructions - this will help to significantly reduce errors in the text itself.
2. Another way to learn the finished text is in the translation technique: first you need to translate it yourself into native language and write down the translation, and then translate it back orally.
3. The logical way is to plan the story, and after several readings, try to reproduce the text according to the plan. If you know all the necessary words, it will be more like a story than a retelling.
4. The mnemonic technique of spaced repetitions is to use the features of memory: you should read and then repeat the text yourself several times - even if you remember less than half. Then do the same five more times: after 15 minutes, half an hour, two hours, four hours and the next morning. Thus, it is possible to memorize the required amount of information without exhaustion and stress. If it is necessary to keep it in memory for a long time, then it is advisable to repeat the same text at least once a week.

More best effect will allow the use of several methods at once.

And we should not forget that if you do not need to memorize and issue some kind of boring report or welcoming speech, then the main task of memorizing texts is to master common words and phrases. Therefore, the result is considered achieved not when you can literally repeat the entire text, but if you can recall and use the constructions of this text in an arbitrary order and in other situations.

A few words at the end

I hope that after reading this text, the answer to the question of how much it takes to learn English and how to do it does not seem too difficult for you. It all depends on the person himself:

• how strong is his motivation;
• how much time and effort he is willing to devote to learning;
• how comprehensively he decided to approach the process.

And it's not about age, abilities or material possibilities. Yes, a person over forty years of age will take more time to study than an eighteen year old. However, if we compare how quickly someone who spends at least five minutes a day learns a language and someone who does not learn at all, then the answer is obvious.

Let's start with the main thing - your capabilities and desires, because they make up the lion's share of success in learning any foreign language! As for opportunities, do not doubt that you have them, and do not console yourself with the fact that they are not there, because back in 2006, an American scientist Richard Sparks convincingly dispelled the well-known myth that learning foreign languages ​​requires some unusual innate ability which means there are opportunities for everyone! Let's move on to desire. As the well-known wisdom says, “desire is a thousand possibilities, and unwillingness is a thousand reasons.” Decide which camp you're in and if a thousand opportunities take over, this article will surely help you realize them.

First person

According to many linguists, learning foreign languages ​​with the help of phrasebooks improves the process of memorizing individual words and the general principles of sentence construction. In addition, by memorizing a language with ready-made phrases in the first person, a person not only repeats the narration, which is typical for the traditional retelling of texts, but also subconsciously models a certain situation, imagining himself in one position or another. This method allows you to avoid the impersonality of the memorized material, making it possible to "try on" phrases that may be useful in real life. A study conducted by psychologists in the Russian general education school with in-depth study of the English language. During the experiment, students primary school texts were proposed that were half third-person and half first-person. As a result, it turned out that 98% of schoolchildren were able to almost accurately reproduce that part of the text that consisted of direct speech. According to linguists, the advantage of phrasebooks lies precisely in the characteristic feature of presenting the material in the first person, which allows you to "get used" to the text and makes memorization more effective.

Our advice: carefully approach the choice of a phrase book; study topics sequentially, while memorizing related words. Spend 2-3 days on each topic.

Formula

Experts have deduced the ideal memorization formula - 30 words a day, 5 of which are verbs. The technique is aimed at busy people who want to learn the basics of a new language without much time, learn to understand and speak. According to the formula, words should be chosen by the first letter, changing it daily to the next - thus, if today you are learning words in " A", then tomorrow it should be 30 words per letter " B". When the full circle of the alphabet is completed, you return to " A" and so on. The effectiveness of this method lies in the fact that it allows you to create certain rules for yourself, which over time will become a habit and transform into a system.

Our advice: in order to achieve results in learning a foreign language by this method, accept the main rule - words must be learned daily, without giving yourself days off.

Lyrics

Perhaps the most pleasant and effective method language learning - learning foreign songs in parallel with their translation. This method was discovered by our compatriot, who was able to learn English in 3 months, resorting exclusively to “cramming” and playing English songs. Linguists admit that this method really helps to master a foreign language, especially if the translation is worked out by the student himself, taking into account the grammatical and stylistic features of the text. A huge plus of the "song" technique is excellent pronunciation - the result of repeated repetition of the same text, as well as imitation of the performer - in this case, the student receives a kind of master class. It is worth noting another significant advantage that comes with memorizing songs in a foreign language - this is the stylistic purity of the language and the beauty of speech turns that are characteristic of lyrical works. By learning the language through songs, you subconsciously accept the style of presentation of thought, get used to it and reproduce it.

Our advice: start with your favorite lyric pieces, where the words are in a singsong voice. For example, for those who are going to learn Spanish, a great starter song might be « Besame Mucho, ideal composition for memorization and pronunciation - « Megustastu».

Dash - dot

Psychologists studying the problem of perception of foreign languages ​​have come to the conclusion that the mistake of most people is that they try to “consciously” hear what the speaker is saying from the screen or the voice from the headphones. “However, you should not try to hear every sound - instead, you should catch the general tone, that is, listen “unconsciously”. This is the secret of adequate perception of a foreign language!” psychologists say. Scientists draw a parallel with Morse code, where it is almost impossible to count the number of dots and dashes even at extremely low transmission speeds - however, the very tonality of various sequences "settles" in the subconscious and allows you to instantly decipher information. Another striking example is children who, unlike adults, are able to listen “unconsciously” and therefore learn foreign languages ​​so quickly and without much effort, once they are in another country.

Our advice: it remains only to relax and listen to foreign speech as often as possible. Try to catch the melody of the language, frequently repeated words and speech cords, without delving into the details. At the same time, learn words and go through a classic audio course with text repetitions, memorization of phrases and translation.

Out appetite!

One of the most trusted and effective ways learning a foreign language - the famous "immersion method" Berlitz. According to the author, it is necessary to speak the language from the very first day of learning, describing everything that you see around. Thus, the students and the teacher "get" into various typical situations, for example, they sit down at the table and act out the dinner scene. During the conversation, which is conducted exclusively in a foreign language, the participants name and describe in detail table items and products, ask each other to convey something. The main idea of ​​express learning using this technique is that the student first memorizes key words and phrases, and only then masters grammar. According to Berlitz himself, with such an algorithm of actions, the grammar of the language comes intuitively, as if “by itself”. Here it is worth returning again to the phenomenon of children's perception of language, when, getting into a foreign environment, a child is able to learn to correctly and grammatically correctly express his thoughts in a short period of time. The Berlitz method, in essence, puts the adult into the role of a child who hears a foreign language in the context of a certain situation - lunch, shopping, walking, and so on, and takes part in a dialogue that has a specific meaning.

Our advice: if you study the language on your own, devote 30 minutes to classes daily! Separate the words thematically (lunch, shop, plane) and pronounce everything that you see or can see around. Feel free to talk to yourself!

When studying languages, do not forget that you are the bearer of the most beautiful, rich and complex language! This thought will inspire and give you confidence, because for you personally, learning any foreign language is many times easier than learning Russian for a foreigner!

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