We’re coming up on the end of the year and with two months left to go, it’s a good time to reflect on what you’ve accomplished so far this year, and what you still want to do before the end of December. This time of year can be very busy, with holidays, family commitments, work parties and more. It is easy to say, “It’s too late this year to start something new. I’ll wait until the new year.” But come January, won’t you say the same thing? “It’s too busy now, I’m tired after the holidays, I’ll start when the weather is nicer out and things are less busy.” There is always going to be another excuse to not do something. While you can make as many excuses as you like about starting your other goals, if you want to start learning a language, I’m here to tell you that there is no better time to start than now.
Why is there no better time to start than now? Well, the days are shorter and colder. It’s difficult to want to leave your warm house and go anywhere, which is precisely why you should. Find a language class once a week to help you learn the basics of a new language and leave the house. That’s a win-win, right? On the other days of the week, use technology to improve your language skills. There are so many different apps and programs to choose from now, and they will all work well if you’re willing to put the effort into making them work. You can buy CD’s or audiobooks to play in your car to practice speaking along with as you drive to work. You can download an app like Duolingo (or any comparable one) and spend five to ten minutes a day learning new vocabulary.
If you want to learn a language, but convince yourself you don’t have time, then start anyway! There is always enough time. You create your time and you control what you fill it with. Instead of saying you don’t have time, look for places in your life where you can create it. Then, treat your language learning like a workout for your brain. We all know that it is important to work out our bodies to keep them healthy and fit. And you likely know that it is equally important to work out our minds to keep them healthy and firing on all cylinders. Learning a language is a great way to give your mind a workout. Schedule in your language learning time like you do your workouts and make sure you honor it. That will put you on the way to stringing together full sentences in Spanish (or French or Italian or German or any other language) in no time!
What about some other fun, small ways you can increase your exposure to your target language and learn vocabulary? First, try switching your phone’s language from English to the language you want to learn. If you decide to do this but don’t know the second language very well, then make sure you know how to easily change the language back to English if need be. Since you probably know your phone and how it works pretty well, this can be an easy way to pick up vocabulary. You will already know what the different buttons or commands on the screen say, so you will automatically learn important vocabulary in your new language.
If you’re brave, you can also change the language on your computer and all of your tech devices. At the very least you’ll know a plethora of tech vocabulary. Another easy way to increase exposure is to watch TV shows and movies in your target language with subtitles on. If you know the target language well enough, keep the audio and subtitles in that language. If you are a beginner, try putting the audio in the target language and keeping the subtitles in English. This way, you’ll hear the words spoken and be able to see the translation at the bottom of the screen.
Pick up kids e-books in your target language. Kids books use very easy-to-understand vocabulary, so you can work on your reading comprehension and learn new words easily, all for a low price tag. If you are more advanced, then find some translations of your favorite books in the target language. This is a great way to start reading as well because you will already know the story and be able to follow along easily.
Finally, listen to music in your target language. While you might not understand all the words in the lyrics, it is still a good way to get your ears accustomed to different sounds. You can train your ears, and therefore your brain, just by having some music on in the background. Everybody has time for that!
Hopefully, you’ve found one or two tips that you can carry forward into the end of the year to jumpstart your language learning. Remember, there’s no time like the present to take a language-learning leap–and there’s no reason to wait to learn until January!
Happy learning!
À bientôt!
Shannon