Tips to Learning a Language

By Connie Marianacci

Trying to learn a language once you arrive to a new city, meet new people, with a lot of new things to do, a lot of excursions and cultural activities and night life, it gets quite hard to sit down and study everyday, or even do your homework.

But, most likely you are going to have homework and to get most out of this experience you probably want to request homework!

This is why setting up your mind before arriving to the location that you really want to be consistent and study every day at least one hour a day is important. I know now you are thinking "you are crazy" but having been there myself I can honestly tell you that I learned a lot more when I did my homework and studied every day after school than when I didn't.

Once you arrive, make a rule for yourself that you will not speak in your own language at any time, unless you have an emergency of course. At the school, at the host family and even after school you should try to speak in the local language even with those that keep on switching to their native tongue. Everything you read should be local, the TV and even the radio if you listen to one.

You will notice that little by little you will start thinking in the language, you will be thinking in your mind how would I say this, and I am now going here, what would I say? And you would be having all these thoughts in the local language!

Comic books are a great piece of literature if you are starting. They are easy to read and you will learn a lot! If you are more advanced, then you definitely want to get to the newspapers.

If you want to watch a movie, make sure it is in the local language.

And last but not least, when going to the store, speak in the local language! Even if it takes you a while to make yourself understood!