New Ways In Teaching Vocabulary
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Misty Said:
A question for adults who have taught themselves a new language?We Answered:
I'm over 50 and I reject the idea that adults can't learn language. However, I'm trying to figure out a strategy to push past that thinking-in-English stage and really get to fluency. So here's what I've been doing:Spanish: Had a smattering of it my whole adult life. Some from my Mom (a native speaker who prided herself on her English and mostly didn't speak Spanish at home). Most from friends and acquaintances, like in restaurants. I was decent in present tense and improved my vocabulary and knowledge of the past tense from newspapers. But I was still stuck. Finally I decided to shell out about $20/week for a local spanish language school that uses only native speakers and concentrates on real idiomatic Spanish, and I'm making great strides in vocabulary. Still can't believe I'll ever be fluent, but I've learned a lot more formal grammar and the classes and pre-class conversation are 100% in spanish and that goes OK, so I've got hope.
French: Got excellent grades in high school so I had lots of formal grammar and a decent enough vocabulary, but found that in the real world I was practically useless. However, over the last 8 years on several trips to Europe I found my skills gradually improving whenever I was in France, a week at a time. I enjoy French cinema too and try to really listen to the French soundtrack, and often I can understand a lot of it with the help of the subtitles. I pick up newspapers and magazines when I can and can read them with no real problem. That's probably the high-school French coming in.
Italian: No formal training at all. Started with some Pimsleur audio tapes, free from the library. Continued with in-depth Italian 1, 2 and most of 3. Those really work but even bought used on the internet they're a little pricey ($100-150 apiece). Still, that is enough to get me around Italy without English and they introduce different tenses naturally without ever giving you a formal grammar lesson. Very effective. Took me only a few months to get conversational, but still pretty clumsy. I can buy train tickets, ask for directions, do minor transactions. But because of the focus on audio, I have a little trouble with reading. Still I do try with the newspapers, and depending on the subject matter can manage to puzzle out quite a lot. Politics seems the hardest.
German: For a trip to Germany I invested in a community college course in German. Took 2 sessions, 8 weeks each. Got a good grounding in grammar and could get around Germany without English but I find that my vocabulary is severely lacking, especially verbs. I can't honestly read a newspaper without a dictionary nearby to look up every 3rd word, but I can do restaurant ordering and directions OK and understand most signage. And I've already forgotten a lot of my past tense, a year later.
I've also joined conversation groups from time to time, with varying degrees of success. Informal conversation is very hard for me. Heck it's hard for me in English. But in other languages I very rapidly run out of vocabulary. But one nice thing about such settings is people know you're there to learn and they'll help you out.
What have I learned from all this?
- Listening to native speakers, very important. You'd be surprised how soon you start to recognize words and then whole sentences. You've got to get used to how it sounds.
- Once you get a good grounding in one language it helps with others. Details of grammar vary but they do all have the same basic categories of grammar. You know there's a past tense, you know there's a future.
- You have to have some basic grammar and conjugations or it's just too big a leap.
- Practice, practice, practice, even if it's scary.
- You'd be amazed how little language you need to get by in a restaurant or market. I had somebody in a market praise my German before I'd ever taken a lesson. I literally had used only 6 words on her, at least one of them conjugated wrong. But I do tend to have good pronunciation, I'm a good mimic.
- Make an effort with pronunciation.
Chris Said:
how to teach non english speakers these words:?We Answered:
First, make sure each of them has a translation dictionary for English and their language. It will be indispensable in their studies. Then, try pictures and acting. Unemployed can be depicted by a man going to work in a business suit, then his boss comes over and makes some harsh faces, points to the door, and then the man in the business suit leaves unhappy. Students will get the message that the man lost his job. It will help to compare "employed" to "unemployed" so that the students understand the distinction and don't get the two words confused.You sound like a caring teacher, and good luck!
Clara Said:
What is the best method to learn Japanese?We Answered:
Visit Japan and take lessonsRaul Said:
Christian Parents. . .?We Answered:
When my older son was little, I found some large paintings of bible stories on poster board, and I had him tell me the bible story while I wrote his perception on the back. It's cute to see now, how his thoughts were flying...It was also his job to remember what color the speakers tie was, and to record how many times the words 'Jehovah', and 'Jesus" were used. It made him pay attention.When I was little, my mother and I studied out of the Paradise Lost book, (Yes! I am THAT old!), and I will never forget an illustration she used with me; she washed my hands really well, and let me run my hands thru the sugar container, so that I could feel how soft and clean the sand in the garden of eden must have been. We also played bible trivia, both at our study time, and when the friends came over. We had bible character costume parties, too. We dressed as a biblical person, and by asking questions of each other, we had to figure out who each of us were. My mom was very inventive, and I appreciate her keeping us safe and informed. I never had to unlearn the lies that many parents teach their kids. I applaud you teaching your little one to recognize some of the most beloved and important words first. She will have a love for the name of Jehovah even before she realises how awesome He is. Because we stress reading and writing, most Jehovah's Witness children start school at an advantage. I know I knew how to read before kindergarten, and so did my boys.
Carolyn Said:
Best way to memorize new language vocabulary?We Answered:
You'll find that Spanish and English share a lot of cognates, which are words similarly spelled that have the same (or close enough) meaning; so that will be big help. (You'll also learn about false cognates, where they don't mean the same.)Other than that, all I can suggest is that as you increase your vocabulary, insert new words into simple sentences so you can remember how/when they're used.
I highly suggest that you watch Spanish soap operas, because it won't take long for you to begin to understand what is being said. Don't focus too hard on trying to understand; just have the TV in the background while you're doing others things. It really does work.
Ida Said:
Natural VS Traditional Approach to Teaching Foreign Language?We Answered:
It seems to me that effective teaching should be a reasonable mix of styles. While the "mechanics" of a language are important, feeling confident in the conversational "natural" use is also important. Students need to feel fluent enough to actually speak to someone. Opportunities should be given for students use and experience a language through short real life interactions. Skits, group projects, games, easy t.v. shows or videos etc. are more enjoyable and can be used to introduce or reinforce themes before delving into the textbook version of grammar and vocabulary. The language needs a chance to live. Both aspects must be integrated in order for students to be successful.