When I started learning German some time ago, I came across an outstanding example of the remarkable power of stories and storytelling in my own life. I was working on memorizing my first few German words, and I quickly realized that this time, my native Italian and the other languages I’ve learned would not be of […]
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If there’s one thing no two language learners can agree on, it’s this question: what does fluency really mean? If you say that a language learner is fluent in his or her target language, it doesn’t communicate much useful information. From the use of the word, we understand that the learner is skilled, but exactly how […]
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What makes some people successful at language learning, and others not? What separates the on-again, off-again dabbler from the most consistent, practiced polyglot? There are many factors, but I believe one of the most meaningful differences between consistent and inconsistent language learners is how each plays the game. What game? The game of language learning! There’s a field of mathematics […]
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Have you ever wondered how you can stop translating in your head, and learn to actually think directly in your target language? It’s a question all beginner language learners have, and one I hear often from my coaching clients. When listening to a foreign language, translating in your head can slow down your ability to understand others, […]
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No one sets a language learning goal with the expectation that they’re going to give up. Somewhere deep down, you may think it’s likely that you’ll fail, sure, but when you first set the goal, the hope is that this time will be the time that you’ll finally follow through. In reality, it rarely works that way. […]
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“Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible” – Francis of Assisi What is the secret to language learning? Simple. LEARN EVERY DAY If you want to know how to learn any language then do it every single day, no matter for how long, and it will add up […]
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“Con los idiomas estás en casa en cualquier lugar” (“With languages you feel at home everywhere”) – Edward De Waal I could have sworn I was in Mexico. Every word I heard spoken was in Spanish. Every word I could read—on the walls, on the products, on the doors—were all in Spanish. Though I was already fluent in […]
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“Don’t watch the clock; do what it does. Keep going”. Sam Levenson Learning English nowadays is not an option if you want to comfortably fit in and enjoy the globalized era we live in. I use English every day, and I simply can’t imagine not being able to speak it. The truth is, however, that English and I […]
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“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall” – Confucius It is every language learner’s dream: to speak a foreign language perfectly, without making any mistakes. Imagine achieving that without having to go through all those unpleasant and/or unwanted corrections you get from teachers, friends, language tandems, not to mention […]
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“The chief function of the body is to carry the brain around” – Thomas A. Edison There are more neurons in our brain than there are stars in the Milky Way. No wonder we can learn any language, play any instrument, or acquire any other skill we put our mind to. It was getting dark in […]
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