#they are doing a language learning method (like Dreaming Spanish recommendation)

[rigelmejo]

I have realized there's very few people actually doing Automatic Language Growth as Marvin Brown made it, pretty much only Thai AUA and ALGworld and Comprehensible Thai (on youtube) and their related school/teachers. So if you aren't studying Thai then you probably won't run into pure ALG lessons/study program unless you make it yourself. Pure ALG is only going to be reasonable when doing a program, if you happen to already be in an ALG school. I have found very few people doing pure ALG on their own, outside of ALG programs, and few have posted results and experiences. (So if you wish to read/hear about experiences, David Long on youtube who did ALG Thai, and a few other youtubers and redditors doing ALG Thai, are the best resource).

Dreaming Spanish is not purely ALG according to certain ALG enthusiasts, but it is the closest thing you'll find that's hugely popular in the English speaking sphere. Dreaming Spanish is welcoming even if you have taken classes before, and even if you still use other study methods alongside it. So I do recommend it if you like it. With the caveat you Remember that for goals involving listening, reading, speaking, writing, you DO eventually need to do things to practice all of those goals. Dreaming Spanish Roadmap mentions starting to read and speak at Level 6 of the roadmap, and anecdotally learners on r/dreamingspanish mention eventually reading 1-3 million words, speaking 200 hours, and working with a tutor/friend or a WritingStreak writing group for practicing writing in prep for B2 or C1 tests. So if you plan to reach goals in all 4 skill areas, eventually you will want to do those things too.

(And I would say that most people who have done Dreaming Spanish who are going viral lately for 1000-2000 hours and can't speak well, probably just haven't practiced 200 hours speaking yet, or have not read 1-3 million words yet. I'd argue a lot are actually A2-B1 level already in speaking even before 200 hours of speaking practice, but since a lot of people claim they'll "speak as well as a native speaker" they're getting torn to shreds online, because A2-B1 - or even B2 to C1 after 200+ hours of speaking - is not as good as a native speaker. I think Dreaming Spanish changed it's roadmap as it now has B2 level skills as it's Level 7 description. But certain ALG enthusiasts love to say perfect pure ALG results in speaking as well as native speakers, and then those enthusiasts say Dreaming Spanish is NOT pure ALG enough and that's why the results are imperfect. But B1 is fucking GREAT for never having spoken before, and B2 after 200 hours of speaking practice is excellent as far as I'm concerned. Dreaming Spanish roadmap is 1500 hours for B2, and FSI Estimates 1200 hours for B2 in Spanish when accounting for 40 hours a week - self study and class time - at 30 weeks. Those estimates are in the same ballpark. Expect it to take 1000-2000 hours to get to B2 in Spanish no matter what route you take to study.)

And don't get me started on the purist ALG enthusiasts... I read Marvin Brown's book. And I honestly think he did NOT guarantee you would become as good as a native speaker! I think the ALG schools may market themselves using such language though, so maybe that's where the misunderstanding comes from - and David Long in particular did pure ALG, runs an ALG Thai school, and definitely claims he speaks as well as a native... though I'm not sure. I've seen other anecdotal reports of students who did ALG Thai school, and they got B2 active skills results (C1 comprehension) in around 2000-3000 hours - Pablo Roman, and ALGWorld blog posts. Not "results like a native speaker," B2-C1 level. I think Marvin Brown himself... himself... thought any adult learner could NOT learn to speak as well as a native, due to all the years they've learned about grammar in their native language and in other languages. I think Marvin Brown's theory of permanent damage and a learning ceiling, was based on his own experience of fossilized mistakes and things he could not stop mentally thinking about before speaking/could not spontaneously produce. Basically, I think Marvin Brown did not claim any adult learner could learn to speak just like a native speaker... I think he said theoretically IF you did ALG perfectly, and had no prior experience analysing languages then maybe you could get the best result possible. But almost all adults have done grammar revision on essays in school, so they already have a ceiling on the results they can achieve, according to his theory. Maybe Brown's ALG school claimed it could give students "native speaker like results" and it's false marketing is still plaguing ALG theory. I'm going to say... probably. Hey if a school says THEY can give you native like results, sure do it if you want to spend your money, and hold the school accountable if the results are worse than they claimed. But if you're doing ALG on your own? Expect B2 overall results if you do the hours they recommend, then speak for a couple hundred hours after you feel ready to speak (after 1000 hours of listening), read a lot once you've done a lot of listening, and practice writing once you are practicing speaking. Expect realistic results - B2. Not "as good as a native speaker," and you can't be let down later.

[what-even-is-thiss]

do you have any advice for language-learning for romance languages or developing skills in romance languages? (i know some spanish & i'm hoping to learn french but i'm not sure where to start)

My advice for learning literally any language is to listen to it and read it a lot. Use whatever study method you want but the bulk of your time should be spent reading, listening to podcasts, or watching videos without English translations. In fact, if you find some resource that does comprehensible input for absolute beginners then active study might not even be necessary. The way you get a language to stick and make sense and develop an intuitive understanding of it is to listen to it and read it for thousands of hours.

For Spanish I’ll always recommend the YouTube channel Dreaming Spanish. They have a premium tier but their YouTube channel already has hundreds of hours of free listening practice for every level. Even if you don’t know any Spanish at all.

For French, there’s a channel I found recently called French comprehendible input that has a series for beginners where he talks about one word for a while in slow French.

Go onto YouTube and search for comprehensible input (language) or (language) listening practice.

And, most importantly, find what gets you to stick to it. If studying in a textbook makes you bored and sad, then don’t do that! Try translating some songs you like or doing flash cards while waiting in line or listening to a podcast about a topic you’re interested in or reading a news website for kids.

Just get the language into your brain somehow by any means necessary. And have fun with it!

[superlinguo]

Linguistics Jobs: Interview with an ESL teacher, coach and podcaster

Some people find ways to bring their linguistics into their workplace, others find ways to create their own opportunity to do linguistics at work. In this month’s interview, Kristin Espinar talks about how she found her niche as a linguist who teaches English learners to navigate the notoriously fiendish International English Language Testing System (IELTS) tests. There are many people with linguistics qualifications who teach English or other languages (including Ash, who I interviewed in 2016), but Kristin combines these skills with an entrepreneurial attitude. You can find out more about Kristin and her IELTS coaching and podcast on her website (also on twitter and instagram). 


What did you study at university?

I completed my BA in Communication and Spanish but I decided to specialize in ESL (English as a Second Language) and Linguistics with my master's degree. I received an MA in Applied Linguistics with an emphasis on ESL from the University of Massachusetts Boston. The program focused on first and second language acquisition as well as curriculum development for the ELL (English Language Learning) learner classroom.

What is your job?

I'm an IELTS (International English Language Testing System) coach and podcaster, so I ended up creating my own company. My original dream was to find a Tenure full-time ESL Instructor position in the US, but it was difficult to do without a PhD. Not impossible, but difficult. I ended up forming my own company in 2015 focused on helping IELTS candidates get their desired score on IELTS writing and speaking tasks. I also created a weekly podcast called Activate Your IELTS. The podcast is unique because it uses my knowledge in Linguistics along with my experience in exam preparation and language learning to give advice to IELTS candidates. I think my part of what sets me apart, specifically, is the knowledge in second language acquisition. As a result, I really do use Linguistics in my day-to-day life, but I did have to create my own company to truly monetize it.


How does your linguistics training help you in your job?

My whole life is focused on language learning. I spent 20 years learning a second language (Spanish). I'm married to a man from Spain and we are raising our children bilingually, using the OPOL (one person, one language) method. My knowledge of Linguistics helps at work and establishes me as an expert in my field, but it also has an impact in my personal life. For example, I understand the mistakes my husband makes in English and even the mistakes I make in Spanish and I understand why those mistakes were made. My background in Linguistics was amazing in watching my children learn their first language and follow the order of acquisition, but it was even more interesting to watch them acquire two languages at the same time as their first languages. My background in Linguistics gives me insight into all aspects of language learning within my life.



Do you have any advice do you wish someone had given to you about linguistics/careers/university?

I would recommend that anyone who is considering studying Linguistics consider completing a PhD instead of a master's degree. My experience is that, even if you are a better candidate and more talented in the area of second language instruction, you are likely to be passed over for jobs because you don't have a PhD. The field is competitive at a professional level, so it's important to maximize your opportunities by acquiring the highest level of degree that you can in the field.



Any other thoughts or comments?

I would recommend considering creating your own company, YouTube channel, podcast or blog. It's likely you have a lot to offer and share with the world in terms of your knowledge related to Linguistics. You might be able to create something bigger than you had originally thought you were capable of, simply by sharing your knowledge online.


Related interviews (both ESL and self-employed entrepreneurs):

Interview with an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher

Interview with The Career Linguist

Interview with an Accent Coach

Interview with an Internet Linguist

Recent interviews:

Interview with a Juris Doctor (Master of Laws) student

Interview with the Director of Education and Professional Practice at the American Anthropological Association

Interview with a Research Coordinator, Speech Pathologist

Interview with a Dance Instructor and Stay-at-Home Mom

Interview with a Transcriptionist

Check out the full Linguist Jobs Interview List and the Linguist Jobs tag for even more interviews  

[mimzy-writing-online]

Hi! I just wanted to say thank you for writing the 'How to Write a Blind or Visually Impared Person'. I myself am not Blind or Visually Impared and i am in the process of writing the basis for such a character and your guide really helps. (And will help as well as be shared to those I know whom also need to see this.) I do have one question though: What about writing people blind from birth?

So, with writing characters who are blind from birth, it’s important to remember that there are both real people who have been completely blind from birth and people who have been legally blind or VI from birth. So, with blindness from birth, it doesn’t necessarily have to be no sight at all. It’s also important to note how small a minority that is in the blind community. 

Statistics

2.4% of Americans are living with visual disabilities. (Total (all ages): 7,675,600)

0.8% of school age Americans (ages 4-20) are living with a visual disability. ( Total: 706,400). This accounts for 9.2% of the entire blind community in the country.

90% of the entire blind community world wide has some remaining vision. People who are completely blind are a small minority.

Source: National Federation of the Blind

Molly Burke and her boyfriend Adrian (this post was written in 10/20/2020) are both people who have been legally blind from birth or a very young age (I can’t remember exactly when Adrian said he went blind, but it’s been his entire memorable life, though he still has remaining vision).

Most children are not diagnosed right away at birth. It heavily depends on the eye condition in question. Unless you had an easily observable symptom, such as nystagmus or pupils which don’t react to light or lazy eye, doctors and parents are unlikely to notice right away.

Most blind children don’t realize they’re blind until they’re a bit older and have developed enough communication skills to recognize that the visual experiences their family describes don’t match their visual experiences. Slowly small moments and situations begin to pop up where you realize there’s something everyone else seems able to do easily that you’re struggling with.

Particularly severe vision issues will be noticed by parents sooner than more subtle ones. The more usable sight a child has and the fewer visually observable symptoms they have, the longer they’re going to fly under the radar until the adults in their life realize something is different. Even then, it might not be until the child is able to communicate an inability to see what they’re describing that parents might realize something is wrong.

More severe vision issues will be picked up sooner. Parents realizing their children doesn’t respond to peek-a-boo or their eyes don’t follow moving items but sound will get their attention.

At this point in life, the economic situation of the child’s family will have a huge impact on how they grow up.

Families living below the poverty line or living in countries (America) where health care is expensive and treated as a privilege rather than a necessity and human right, or simply isn’t available at all, will have a much harder time getting their child diagnosed or treated.

Those families likely won’t have the education or knowledge needed to realize what is wrong and how they can help their child. Like health care, knowledge/education is treated like a privilege instead of a necessity and human right.

The education their children have access to will likely be lacking as well. Poorer communities have less funding for their students than wealthy communities. Those schools will have an even more restricted budget for accessible education, meaning they might not be able to pay the wages of a teacher’s aide to work one-on-one with that child in class, or have access to magnifiers and braille books/typewriters/education. Even though by legal law they must provide accommodations for disabled students, it doesn’t mean they will, and a financially disadvantaged family won’t have the resources to fight the school for their child’s rights (or even be aware of their child’s rights in the first place).

Children from middle class or wealthy families will (like all children in their community) have a huge advantage over their peers who attend schools with fewer resources. However, those blind children still have a disadvantage with their own peers.

Again, a school might refuse accommodations because administration can be jerks like that. It happens all the time. Parents may have to fight for their child’s rights to equal education through an aide, accessible school materials, and blind-friendly education.

Molly Burke made a video recently talking about her experiences with education as a blind child.

Learning Braille is a huge step in helping blind children, but it’s becoming less popular as audiobooks become more available. Audiobooks are amazing, and that method of reading is just as valid as any other, however a child reading solely with audiobooks will lose the literacy benefits. Like any writing system, Braille teaches spelling and grammatical rules necessary for educational and professional writing. While Braille is a writing system unique to itself, it still lives within the confines of whatever the native speaking language of the child is. Braille in English still uses the same spelling and grammatical function English uses. Braille in Spanish still bends to the rules of Spanish.

This is very different from different sign languages which can have grammar and syntax rules that completely differ from the native language of that country. Which is why you have languages called American Sign Language and British Sign Language and Canadian Sign Language that are using in English speaking countries but function very differently from both English and their fellow Sign counterparts. I’ve heard it said that ASL is more similar to the grammar structure of Chinese than it is to English, which gives the Deaf community a literacy disadvantage of their own when their native language and their reading/writing language are completely different languages.

Though there is a secondary system of Braille which uses shortened abbreviations. That is Grade 2 Braille, and it is learned after Grade 1.

This is Molly Burke’s video on Braille, which includes the history of Braille, how she personally learned it in school, and showing what a Braille Typewriter is and how it is used. 

I highly recommend it because Braille is something I only know from research and theory, not from personal experience.

Children who don’t learn Braille are statistically less likely to receive higher education and more likely to live below the poverty line.

Though blind adults are at a huge disadvantage in the work force with 80% of blind adults being unemployed but not by choice. Even though they have the same qualifications as other applicants, employers will almost always choose a sighted applicant over them, even if the sighted applicant is less qualified.

As adults, people who were born blind are just as affected by their upbringing, education, and family life as sighted adults are. The first eighteen years of their life shaped who they are as a person, so like any other character, you must consider what your character’s childhood must have been like for them to become the person they are now.

Once they reach adulthood, there isn’t much difference between people who were born blind or became blind early in life, compared to people who went blind as adults. But there are a few:

- Adults who were blind or became blind during their education are more likely to learn Braille than adults who went blind later in life.

-They are more likely to have O&M training. Though, only 10% of the blind community has a cane or guide dog, while the rest rely on remaining vision and sighted guides.

-O&M abilities (beyond mobility guides, there’s also learning how to use your remaining vision, your hearing and touch, and other senses to navigate without a cane/guide dog) are generally much better the longer you’ve been blind.

-Adults who have been living with blindness all their lives are more likely to be comfortable with their disability than newly blind adults, but that is not necessarily a rule. There is more confidence in living x-many years blind and knowing how to live your regular life without new major adjustments. 

-The fewer memories a person has of vision, the fewer visual things they are likely to miss. You can’t miss something you’ve never experienced or don’t remember. Doesn’t mean someone won’t wish they knew what stars and fireworks and the ocean looks like, but it won’t be as big a focus as it is for someone who went blind recently.

-People dream with whatever experiences they are living with now, meaning blind people dream with whatever their current vision is. Someone who has never seen or no longer retains any memories of sight will not have dreams with visuals.

(Note, memories of sight are something that fades with time, no matter when you went blind in life. After about 7 years of not seeing a particular image, you’re likely to have forgotten what that thing actually looked like, including color and other general vision things)

That is what I have for you. I’m going to link this to my masterpost so that it’s easily accessible for everyone and if you want to come back to it, you will be able to easily find it.

[muggle-writes]

Rules: Answer 21 questions and then tag 21 people who you want to get to know better.

tagged by @elizabethsyson

Nickname: Muggle is my nickname, but when I went by Muggle in person for more than a month at a time, it naturally got abbreviated, usually to Mugz

Zodiac: Aquarius

Last movie I saw: into the spiderverse (same answer as last time. I don't watch that many movies tbh except around Christmas. unless YouTube counts in which case... music of some sort? idk links for the next answer)

Favorite musician: changes by the day. I've kinda been in an acapella and/or folk music mood recently so the Maccabeats and Peter Hollens are in my YouTube and Spotify history a lot recently. also I'm eternally in awe of Forte Handbell Quartet (eta a longer video; i recommend skipping to the techno piece or the Jurassic Park theme)

Last thing I googled: "vine why are you buying clothes at the soup store" (my wife hasn't seen it; also i can't find the vine because apparently it's a much bigger meme than I realized). before that it was "chgrp not root" because work and group permissions are useful when they work

Song stuck in my head: well for most of the day when I haven't been actively listening to something, it's been the Pokemon RSE route-walking music. (but that somehow happens frequently when I'm in the no-music-no-internet room at work, as I was for most of the day, and I don't know how I accidentally trained my brain to make that connection). right now, surprisingly, I don't have any background music playing in my head. I think it's because the humidifier provides just enough white noise that my brain doesn't feel the need to provide its own

Other blogs: my main is @muggle-the-hat and I'm a mod on @why-do-neurotypicals but we've gotten one ask ever so that blog has been dormant for a while. I have a bunch of other sideblogs, but they're all small and I use different screen names on each of them (enby life: no idea which name suits me best so I may as well try them out) so i feel like it would just confuse things to link them.

Following: blogs matching all the themes of my sideblogs, (including this one, which is writeblr), korean langblr, jumblr, assorted fandom blogs, authors of my more favorite fanfictions (some overlap with other categories), and irl friends and acquaintances (including one fandom blog turned irl friend)

Do I get asks: on my main if at all, which isn't really surprising because i have hundreds of followers there and maybe 60 followers combined among the rest. but I get asks far less often than I reblog ask memes so... I'm always happy to get more. I do get tagged in ask games more on this one, but writeblr is actually vaguely organized about tag lists so that makes sense. also I used to get tagged a bunch on my main and I rarely could find the posts again to follow up when I had time to answer.

What I’m Wearing: pajamas. staying warm and cozy

Lucky number: I don't remember what I said last time, but I like a lot of numbers. 64 is a good number. recently I've been debugging software in which 0x3E is my lucky status number and 0x0E taunts me. (um, decimal 62 and 14). Also my other favorite number i can't share until it's no longer the combination to the lock to the Secret Room. (or realistically never because opsec and i shouldn't make public the types of parents we use for that combination lock), honestly I aim to be like.... ah, I'm sure the anecdote involves G.H. Hardy but i don't remember on which side. anyway one mathematician remarked to another about how the id number of the taxi he rode in was sadly uninteresting, and the one I aspire to be like, argued "what are you talking about, this number is interesting because ______" and I'd like to be able to do that for any arbitrary number thrown at me. (hi yes math is good, history is hard, math history is interesting yet i still forget the people even if i remember the math. except when things are named after people, but that tends to be, like, Euler and LaGrange and other people who did lots of cool science things so i remember the methods and the names of the methods separately which never helps)

Amount of sleep: ....depression both screws with my sleep schedule and means I always feel like I need more sleep except when I wake up at 5pm and feel like I've wasted the day. so yeah. I can never get enough sleep

Favorite food: yes (why do I have to pick a favorite?) uh, chocolate in most forms, many other sweet things, red meats (especially if served with potatoes), curry (especially if it has "too much" ginger), fresh-baked bread, chai the way my favorite local Indian restaurant makes it (spicier with just a little bit of sweet, which is the opposite of what i can get from the mocha machine at work which is wayyy sweet with a hint of spice but that inferior chai is still superior to coffee so i drink too much of it). also vegetables which I really don't eat enough of: sauteed zucchini and onions, roasted broccoli

Dream trip: dreaming requires creativity and tbh I funnel that mostly into my writing instead. I wouldn't mind going back to Korea for another visit though

Dream job: my current job is pretty good when I feel productive and when my debugging tools actually produce data maybe??? (they were not being helpful today. but i still mostly like my job.) dream job is probably this but with seniority and confidence and double the salary (while living in a similar area of the country; I wouldn't want to double my salary by moving to work for Google in California and having less available after rent than I do now)

Describe yourself as aesthetic things:

the smell of old books

the first glow of sunrise (the sunrise painting the mountains pink and gold)

a rainbow in the spray from a waterfall

the flicker of distant lightning (watching a thunderstorm fade into the distance)

this picture

Random fact: about me or about the world?

how about a combination answer: when we got our new handbell music this season, we only looked at half the pieces our first rehearsal and afterwards I tried to look up one of the pieces we hadn't gotten to on YouTube because it's got a weird time signature and I wanted to get a feel for how fast it would go and how strict the counting is...... except it turns out we're the first group to ever play the piece. it was commissioned recently but seeing my conductor's name on the page didn't tell me how new it was because he's super prolific. (the fact that it was on printer paper without the publisher's graphics should have been a giveaway but it's only the second time I've been among the first to play one of his pieces so I think I can be excused for not realizing)

Languages: mostly just English, but I took Spanish for years, so I can hold simple conversations in it. I can almost read sound out Hebrew fast enough to keep up in services, and I know some random Hebrew vocab but comparatively no grammar. and I took Korean in college, enough that I can recognize sentence structure but I can really only speak tourist-Korean, though I can sound anything out (if it's typed. handwriting is hit or miss.) in both Hebrew and Korean (and Spanish tbh but i don't often listen to Spanish music) I'm very proud when I can separate the words enough, listening to a song, to translate them without looking up the lyrics. also I tried to learn Japanese from Duolingo when it was new, but I still hadn't gotten the kana straight when it started progressing to kanji so that was a rough time and I went back to Hebrew.

tbh I "dabble" in "language learning" which really means I start a million courses on Duo and stick with none of them. with the notable exception of French, which I acknowledge is super common and probably a good idea to learn but the spelling and pronunciation seem so arbitrary I'm scared to look close enough to learn it properly, and I've never particularly considered starting the Duolingo course for French

I think I lost a few questions, because that's only 18 answers. whoops.

um... who to tag

@abluescarfonwaston if school hasn't drowned you in work yet and @copperscales I'm interested in both of your choices for lucky numbers especially.

... wow I'm blanking on other mutuals I haven't tagged recently. as usual lmk if you'd like to be edited in, or just answer the questions and tag me back, that's great too.

[optomstudies]

Hello, it’s optomstudies here with a multi-part masterpost with study tips to make you fluent in any language! These will work at any level, whether you’re just starting out or are an advanced learner!

do you have any tips for language learning (especially for an advanced learner?) i've been reading about mind maps and study journals but i have no idea how to apply that to learning german!

EXPANDING YOUR VOCABULARY

Learn synonyms of words you already know. This is the key to native proficiency. The difference between a native speaker and a proficient speaker is that they have multiple handles for any sentence. Like in English, there are multiple adjectives which can be used for a particular situation, however when we learn languages, it’s often just the one word that we learn because that’s what the textbook gives you.   

Use a thesaurus and write down synonyms and the connotation/ nuance that particular word has. I cannot stress this enough. This is a great way for you to utilise mind maps!! For example, old is different to mature, is different to archaic, is different to senior. You can write something like:

Old

Mature - no longer young, bildungsroman, coming of age

Archaic - historical, longer time period implied vs. old

Senior - higher in level, polite reference to old people. 

As you can see, the notes on the connotations should be your own words / understanding of the terminology. It’s best if you can verify or get a native speaker to discuss and explain to you the nuances since they understand it best, prior to making these notes.   

Invest in a good dictionary. In the beginning, you’ll want a Language--English dictionary that’s reliable. You should purchase a physical dictionary if possible, because these have been quite extensively edited prior to publishing. Web dictionaries translated to English are sometimes subject to mistakes and may be missing nuances. Once you get good enough, use an actual Language-Language dictionary i.e. a German dictionary written for Germans. That’s the same way we learn new words in English. At this point, using a web dictionary would be fine e.g. Naver Dictionary for Korean.   

One good website for learning new vocab is FreeRice! I used to learn a lot of English words from here when I was in high school and trying to expand my vocabulary. You can use this as a fun thesaurus and look up the nuances. There’s German, Spanish, French, Italian and Latin. Plus, every word you get right they donate 10 grains of rice!   

Write down a list of areas you don’t know. A lot of times, once you get past the intermediate level of language learning, there’s less structure unless you take a higher level education course. So you need to make some sort of structure for yourself if you want to master the language at a native/professional proficiency. You can use this as the “index” (like in a bujo) to your study journal.   

Many times, people don’t remember to look at subject-related/professional terminology because they don’t think they’ll need to know something so esoteric. But you forget that even native speakers will know some basic technical terms in every subject. For example, in the health science field, it’s common for patients to know words like arthritis, hypertension, astigmatism, carpal tunnel syndrome, because even though these are the technical medical terms, they are quite common conditions. 

Reading and Writing Skills: Part 2 (Link) Speaking and Listening Skills: Part 3 (Link)

MY STUDY TIPS AND LANGBLR POSTS

How to Format Language Study Notes

BTS: 봄날 (Spring Day), Outro: Wings, Blood, Sweat and Tears, Not Today, Run

SM Entertainment: Rookie - Red Velvet,  I Got Love - Taeyeon

Requests: 예뻤어 (You Were Beautiful) - Day6, A Lie - B1A4, Don’t Recall - K.A.R.D

Other Artists: Rain - Soyou x Baekhyun, TT - Twice

My study tips directory (web only) for the full list (over 60+ original posts/guides!)

NEWEST STUDY TIPS

20/11 Advice: Art School vs. College 🎨 19/11 Exam Study Tips 💯 15/11 Digital Organisation System 💻 14/11 Library Adventures! 📚 11/11 Budgeting for Students 🏦 10/11 How to Deal with Leeches 🐛 08/11 Extra-Curriculars Tips 🤹 07/11 More Handwriting Tips ✍️ 07/11 APUSH Masterpost 🤠 06/11 Memorising Tips 💭 06/11 How Your ATAR is Calculated Infographic 💯 04/11 Reading a Scientific Journal Article 📜 02/11 Tips: Tackling Assignments while Sick 🤒 30/10 Tips for Writing Faster 🖊️ 29/10 Self Study Tips 📔 26/10 Staying Productive No Matter How Much Time You Have 🕖 23/10 Studying When You’re Sick 😷 22/10 Interview Tips 👔 20/10 Studying with the Cornell Method 📝 18/10 High School vs. University 🏫 18/10 Chasing Dreams 💫 or Income 💸 17/10 Public Speaking Tips 🎤 17/10 Studying In Noisy Places

UNIVERSITY STUDY TIPS SERIES

Part 0 Choosing a Degree - what’s right for you? popular!!

> Things to Consider Before Switching Degrees!

> Changing Degrees

Part 1 Administration - choosing majors, available services, choosing class times etc.

Part 2 Getting to Class - pros and cons of attending class, when you should choose not to attend, advice about choosing a backpack and other essential equipment.

> Laptop Considerations and Recommendations

Part 3 Studying - differences between high school and uni, basic tips on how to keep on track, class types like lectures, tutorials, etc.

Part 4 Extra-Curriculars - what clubs to join, what to do outside class, and other great things to discover around campus.

Part 5 Exams - everything to know about examiners, how to prepare, what happens during the whole examination process.

Part 6 Social Life - differences between high school and university, some hard learnt lessons, etc.

Part 7 Part Time Work

Part 8 Four Secrets The Uni Tells You

Part 9 Best Study Spots On Campus

Part 10 Saving Money 1 - Food, Transport, Entertainment

Part 10 Saving Money 2 - Textbooks, Tax, Scholarships

Part 11 Adapting to Uni Study - 3 big differences from studying in high school popular!!

Part 12 How to Study From Textbooks in Uni

Dealing with Lazy Group Members - five options for what to do and how to do it! popular!!

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[cherishtheartist]

Guernica et Mes moments de réflexion dans le Musée Picasso

Pablo Picasso, Guernica, Oil on Canvas, 1937, Museo Reina Sofia

Have you ever thought about why we admire some people? Because I have such an analytical mind, I am constantly asking myself questions like this. I remember the first art museum I visited and learned about Jackson Pollock, Pablo Picasso, and many other artists from the 20th century. But it wasn't until I was in my senior year of high school that I really started to think about why these artists influenced me. Over the years, these thoughts have gone even deeper. But before I get too deep into that part of my mind, I just want to express pure admiration for Pablo Picasso.

Most people know Pablo Picasso best for his cubist style. But some people outside of the art world don’t know that he could “actually draw” as Jean-Michel Basquiat said about himself. Picasso’s father was an art teacher and drilled traditional techniques and practices of copying old masters work (for example, the drawings of Michelangelo or Da Vinci). He became so advanced that by the age of 16 he was admitted to the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid, Spain. Although, he left soon after starting because he disliked being formally instructed.

Pablo Picasso, Autorretrato (self-portrait), Oil on Canvas,1896 (at 15 yrs old!)

Yeah, he’s also Spanish. Most prominent artists at the time were French (hence why he worked very hard to become successful in Paris, France – see my very last image in this post). He was seen as a foreigner in France. I had not realized initially that this was such a big problem. However, given the context of French society and how they react to “foreignness” it makes perfect sense. You see, the French believe that in order to preserve their culture and history that everyone who is to be a part of their society will adapt the same cultural norms – this is also known as assimilation. This is a simple definition of a very big part of French idealism, but I think it works for the purpose of it being mentioned in this post. I recommend you read into it more.  

I visited the Musee Picasso this past week, in which there was a special exhibition on one of his most famous piece Guernica. To say that I was living an art fan girl’s dream come true is an understatement. Picasso’s work speaks to me because it reminds me so much of my own work and work ethic. Picasso was always searching for a new muse, a new method, and a way to make people think critically about what they are viewing. I love to think critically and engaging others in these kinds of conversations through my artwork. I also work in a similar style and this is unintentional. I was indirectly inspired and unknowingly creating works that were reminiscent of Picasso’s work.

For example, I made a mega series about depression my senior year in high school. Within the mega series, I created seven abstract self-portraits that happened to look almost identical to a ceramic piece by Picasso that I had never seen until after someone who was viewing my work on display told me about.

Pablo Picasso, Head, glazed white-earthenware plaque, 1956

Cherish Joe, Cara de Cariña: Seis (Cherish’s Face: 6), underglazed earthenware, 2016

As I looked at his sketches for Guernica, I saw my own style of sketching reflected on the pages. His lines were so much more confident and crisp is the only difference. It made me realize what I should be doing in my own workbook. It also made me realize why I admired him.

In the 11th grade, I learned about Guernica in my art history course. Initially I thought that it was different than any other work I had seen of Picasso. It evoked a completely different feeling and meaning than most of the works by him that I had seen. Picasso made Guernica as a commissioned work. It was a response to the evil of the Nazis who bombed the small town of Guernica, Spain. This work is about the reality of injustice in our world. At this time, the world was going through its second World War and had been introduced to the atomic bomb, genocide, and widespread great depression. The world was on everyone’s mind for the first time. This was made very clear in the exhibition.

Posters about the Spanish Civil War in the Musee Picasso

From the moment I stepped into the Guernica exhibition, my eyes were wide open and I was taking in every object on display. I have a deep interest in the way Picasso represents reality in his work, especially Guernica. When you look at each component of this work, I believe that you can feel each subject’s emotion deeper than if the painting had been a tight rendering (in layman’s terms a highly realistic depiction) in color. In my opinion, the success of this piece is from the breaking down of horrific and complex imagery into shapes, lines, and black and white values to express emotion. Emotion is so complex and hard to express to a wide range of people from different backgrounds. At the beginning of the exhibition, each part of the piece is broken down for the viewer because you could read this painting like a book. Picasso was a highly intelligent person who worked very hard to create reality and constantly make people question what they see as reality. Arguably, I would say that the work he produced from Les Demoiselles d’Avignon onward is some of his most realistic work. This is when he was not only taking a critical look at his subjects, but what it meant to be an artist. The power of creating imagery goes over most people’s heads. I may be getting very art philosophical now, but I hope you are able to follow.

Earlier, I mentioned that I would go deeper into my understanding of the way the world chooses who to admire. Why is it that so many people admire Picasso? Well there are quite a few obvious reasons that would come to mind for the average person who’s heard of him. I’ve mentioned some personal reasons for admiration, but I did not mention my conflicting feelings about Picasso. Picasso was deeply influenced by African art,and I say art loosely because the concept of art is based on Western ideals of life art is usually used in a sense of mimicking or creating reality but the objects from different African cultural groups are mostly not that. Most of the objects in this category were reality, they were parts of everyday life. 

How a small African figurine changed art...

Picasso did not admit his admiration and influence from these cultural items, but without them he would not have invented cubism. He even said himself that “Good artists copy, but great artists steal.” I have conflict with my admiration for someone who perpetuates the system of racial hierarchy and the many cannons that dismiss the intellectual, technical and aesthetic quality of black and brown people’s work, especially since I am a black female artist. Sometimes, I think about the things I am learning about as an artist, and in other areas of life, and I wonder how different life would be if these things were truly meant for everyone. By this I mean if the canon included the efforts and accomplishments of people of color and held them to the same importance and acknowledgement as those of white people. And then, who would we admire?

                                          *************************************

Picasso signed many of his paintings with not only his name, but the date the work was finished. It is interesting that his work was often titled in French and had French date format and not Spanish. If you look closely, like the close up in this picture, you see that it is in French date format. I am a bit of a nerd when it comes to art, culture, and language so I noticed this difference and I think it has a deeper meaning. Picasso was not French so he worked hard to prove himself to the French, who were the leaders of the art world at the time. The French believe in a lot of the ideals that the French Revolution embodied, such as speaking the same language nationally and having a shared almost autonomous identity. I believe Picasso titled his work in French and signed with a French date format to prove to them that he was serious about the work he made and could fit into French society. What do you think?

Merci, Au revoir! 

[ericvick]

'Inclusive' technique laid out in layout ideas for 'Bay City'

At a digital BPDA conference past Wednesday evening, community users reacted mostly positively to details and images offered by the development team concentrating on urban design features of the Dorchester Bay Metropolis challenge (DBC) proposed for Columbia Place.

The meeting — the 2nd in a series— was broadcast on Zoom and translated into different languages which include Spanish, Vietnamese, Haitian Creole, and Cape Verdean Creole, an accommodation that Accordia Partners co-proprietor Kirk Sykes mentioned mirrored the spirit of inclusiveness driving the task.

“We’re hoping to make Dorchester Bay Metropolis the most inclusive, empowering, and accessible area in Boston,” mentioned Sykes. “This is a incredibly particular location. We are also conscious that we have a possibility to completely transform what has been for several, many a long time now asphalt and autos into a vision that incorporates 20 acres of more open space that will increase community obtain to the water’s edge.”

The structure-heavy presentation, led by Sykes, Tamara Roy of Stantec, and architects involved in the job, highlighted the team’s intent to hook up the web site seamlessly to both equally the existing community and the waterfront, although incorporating pedestrian and bicycle-pleasant infrastructure.

Roy emphasized their watchful thought of the Columbia Level Grasp Plan, a eyesight for the area formulated by the town and the Columbia and Savin Hill neighborhoods in 2011. 

Th team customers “respect and value” the hard work that went into the Columbia Stage Learn Strategy, reported Roy, adding, “we have taken quite a few portions of that strategy into our street and stroll layout.”

As it stands, the venture would bring to the community 1,740 housing units (20 p.c of which would be economical), 4 million sq. feet of lab and business area, 150,000 square ft of area for buying or dining, and 20 acres of open up room.

Roy pointed out that a great deal of the former Bayside property signifies untapped probable. The DBC challenge would change those parking heaps into a transit-concentrated local community that Sykes mentioned will welcome people “by land, by sea, by road, and by T,” comprehensive with enhanced sidewalks connecting Mt. Vernon Street to the JFK/UMass T station, a prospective ferry company giving relationship to downtown, and divided bike lanes on “every single street” within just the task. 

“The region is at this time extremely vehicle-centric, and the goal of our city style is to weave jointly the two web-sites and integrate the project into the current neighborhood,” claimed Greg Minott of the community architecture agency Dream Collaborative. “Our other objective is to create a much more pedestrian and bicycle-helpful area.”

Demetrios Staurinos, from Philadelphia-centered OLIN Architecture, described how four pathways or “fingers” with distinct characters would join Mt. Vernon Street to the waterfront.

“These would be additional than just streets but actual linear parks,” he said, that would create inexperienced room, accumulating factors, and space for outdoor dining patios, in addition to routes for motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians alike.

A person of individuals fingers, a central “Boardwalk” passageway, would be bookended by an “Innovation Plaza” on the Morrissey parcel that now houses Santander Bank and a “Porch,” a back garden-like accumulating place abutting the DCR Harborwalk.

A map displayed throughout the conference displays how the site might be laid out with 4 pathways or”fingers” bisecting the property. In a Q&A area pursuing the meeting, RODE Architects principal Kevin Deabler applauded the development team’s plan to maintain a style and design competition for selected properties in the sophisticated, an initiative he hopes will “raise the bar” for the job.

“I inspire this idea of a levels of competition,” he explained, “and I look forward to viewing some of the world’s greatest architects seem at this as a obstacle for them.”

A fantastic portion of the group questions and responses took up transportation troubles, with inhabitants curious how the challenge will dovetail with many infrastructure assignments slated for Morrissey Boulevard, Kosciusko Circle, and Moakley Park.

“Things like buying and retail areas are huge site visitors turbines,” said Michael Corcoran, the main operating officer at Corcoran Jennison, an abutter of the DBC web-site. “There requires to be tremendous infrastructure enhancements for men and women to get in and out of this site, not only for people today living and doing the job right here but also for readers.”

Dorchester resident Adam Pieniazek prompt the project’s present-day allotment for 1,289 underground parking areas was abnormal. He pointed to a Twitter poll he carried out asking people today if they would reside in a car or truck-no cost Dorchester Bay Metropolis. He stated 50.5 percent responded ‘yes,’ and a different 13.2 p.c mentioned, ‘maybe.’

“So, I think there is a whole lot of assure for these types of a matter, and it solves a great deal of the challenges that people increase about site visitors and K circle,” said Pieniazek. 

Sykes was receptive to various recommendations that the task structure consist of general public art installations or murals produced by nearby artists, noting that these types of an initiative “may take a lot of sorts, but I consider that will be a strong piece, and we’ll quite a great deal embrace nearby artists in supplying them a put to do what they do and to make some dollars carrying out what they do on our sites.”

Erica Shwarz, a member of the community team Dorchester Not For Sale, expressed problems about Dorchester inhabitants staying priced out of the project’s housing structures.

“It looks like it’s inclusive for everyone to stroll as a result of, but not live in,” explained Shwarz. “Market rate housing will not be affordable to a big proportion of Dorchester families whose living costs are likely to go up for the reason that of this development. …Unless there is a a great deal longer method, this development, like so quite a few other individuals that are becoming pushed by way of definitely immediately like the one in East Boston, is likely to devastate our town.”

BPDA undertaking manager Aisling Kerr famous that the project’s general public remark period has been prolonged to Dec. 11, and that upcoming community conferences will address troubles of transportation and housing.

People meetings are scheduled as follows:

Nov. 4: Open Room, Community Realm & Resilience Nov. 16: Transportation & Infrastructure Dec. 2: Subject matter to be decided.

Much more information about the development proposal and the Short article 80 course of action can be found on the project page at bostonplans.org.

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[rigelmejo]

I hope the posts I make about comprehensible input are useful and help people understand things.

I see soany people confused on language learning forums about comprehensible input. Asking about what it is, if they have to use it to learn a language, if it's "better," if it's 70% or 98% or if it's about reading or lessons.

It's just a term. A term that people confuse for more than it is, since it's used in many contexts.

Comprehensible input is input (so listening, reading, watching) that you understand the meaning of. That's all.

In reading, many classes refer to 95-98% comprehensible input (aka reading material with only 2-5 unknown words out of 100) as ideal extensive reading material. Extensive reading material is reading material where you read and can easily guess new words from context - it's a big activity we did to learn to read in our native languages. Ideal intensive reading material in classes is usually 90-95% comprehensible (as in you don't know 5-10 words out of 100 on the page), and usually in classes and learning material the unknown words will be provided in a glossary or vocabulary list so you can comprehend 98-100% with the help of using the glossary/vocabulary list/looking up the meaning of unknown words. That is how comprehensible input as a term is used in literature classes, in foreign language teaching discussions about intensive and extensive reading. It's about specifically how many words you comprehend (understand) in the reading material, and then if that makes it better as extensive reading material where you can simply guess the unknown words from context, or if you need to read it intensively (look up words) in order to make it more comprehensible (understandable).

In learner forums, comprehensible input often vaguely means "anything you can comprehend the main idea of with or without tools". So a graded reader for your language level would be comprehensible input as it is (as you'd kmow enough words to understand the main idea with no tools), a textbook dialogue with a vocabulary list would be comprehensible input (where the tool of the vocavulary list helps make the dialogue comprehensible), a show where you look up every unknown word until you undersrand the main idea would be comprehensible input (by intensively looking up unknown words with a translation tool). Comprehensible Input lessons for learners are (usually) a video or classroom where teachers use visuals like gestures, objects, pictures, and expressions to make the main idea of what they're communicating very comprehensible even if you don't know any words they're saying. Comprehensible input lessons made for intermediate students tend to use more of words they expect learners to know, and less visuals, more like graded readers and learner podcasts.

Learners refer to ALL of those things as comprehensible input. Even though they're different! Even though some would require tools to comprehend! If you comprehemd the main idea, it's comprehensible to you. If you can't comprehend the main ideas, you can use tools to Make a material comprehensible by looking up enough unknown items to understand the main idea.

If you comprehend input enough to understand the main idea of something, then you can guess some more details from context - and gradually learn more stuff from the material just from context. So if you make it so you comprehend input, then you can further learn more words and details and grammar from the context of the portions you understand. So if you use a Comprehensible Input Lesson for beginners, and understand the main idea using visual images, the idea is you'll learn some words you're hearing by guessing/understanding based on the context of the images (which you understand). If you use a graded reader and there's 1 unknown word in 100 words you don't know, the idea is you can guess or infer the meaning of that 1 unknown word in context. If you read a news article and look up enough key words to understand the main idea of the article, chances are you'll be able to guess a few additional words in that article from context (without having to look all the words up). If you watch Peppa Pig in a target language, and can follow the main idea using the visuals of the objects on screen, chances are you can guess a rough meaning of some of the words they're saying (maybe they're holding an apple and keep saying a word so you eventually guess that means apple).

Some people say they comprehend as low as 50% of something, and where those kind of guesses come from is probably visual media more. Maybe they comprehend 50% of the actual words in Peppa Pig, but they understand most of the main ideas that are going on in the story thanks to the visuals. People might say they comprehend as little as 20% of a Super Beginner Dreaming Spanish video if say they learned few words, but thanks to the visuals explaining everything visually they understand 90% of the actual main ideas.

My way of deciding if a material is comprehensible enough to start learning some things from context, is if I can follow the main idea. Whether that's a learner podcast and I just happen to know most of the words so I can follow the main idea, or a novel and I look up enough keywords while I read (use a tool) to understand the main idea, or I watch a cartoon where I know few words but visually can understand the main idea going on.

It is comprehensible input, if you comprehend the main idea. That's all. Use tools if you need to, or don't if you understand the main idea without tools.

Learning material designed specifically to be comprehensible to learners tends to be labelled "comprehensible input." I think confusion here comes when someone is studying using ALG or Dreaming Spanish method, and then tells someone else "comprehensible input" is the name of the METHOD they're learning through and it involves no textbooks or classes. The method they're studying with is a specific method. The Dreaming Spanish method, or the ALG method. The method involves using a specific kind of comprehensible input - lessons made for learners, then materials designed for learners to use extensively (as in understandable without tools), then materials for native speakers. But ALL language learning methods utilize various types of comprehensible input. These study methods (ALG, Dreaming Spanish) just specifically use "comprehensible input learner materials" and recommend not using study materials which require tools (by which I mean lookups, translations, explanations in another language, any intensive kinds of study where you look up explanations and translations).

On the other end of the spectrum, some learners call all immersion comprehensible input. And by that they tend to mean, they ARE using tools (anki decks, translation apps, grammar guides) to look up enough words in material to comprehend the main idea. So they are using tools to understand some materials, and perhaps also using comprehensible input made for learners (such as comprehensible input lessons and learner podcasts), and eventually material made for native speakers Is comprehensible enough to them without tools to follow the main idea. This would be Refold method, and some other learners who use the term "comprehensible input" to mean immersion, learner podcasts, CI lessons, broadly.

Textbooks are comprehensible input, designed to have the tools BUILT in to make it comprehensible (vocabulary glossaries with translations, grammar explanations). Language/Target Language sentence audio like Pimsleur and Glossika are comprehensible input - they make it comprehensible by giving you the translation so you understand the input.

All immersion you understand the main idea of, is comprehensible input. Which all learners will do EVENTUALLY when they one day read, listen, watch, speak with someone, write back and forth with someone in the language. All learners get comprehensible input in some form, usually multiple forms. Sometimes comprehensible input you just understand the main idea from context alone. Sometimes you make something into comprehensible input by using tools to understand the main idea. As long as you understand the main idea (however you can), then you can learn additional bits of language from the context of the parts you do understand.

I hope that makes sense.

[asfeedin]

Top 10 Language Learning Apps To Ease Down Study Load

Waiting for a signal that starts learning a new language? Here it is! If you’ve been killing the idea of learning a new language, it’s time you downloaded fun language learning apps to get acquainted with while drinking your morning cup of coffee or during your everyday work commute. Using your favorite application several times a day may be enough to make learning a new language as a part of your daily life. 

Here is a list of the best applications for iOS and Android that will let you start learning French, Spanish, Japanese, Russian, and other languages just from the screen of your smartphone. The GPA labs team has tested all applications and can guarantee that you will definitely find the one you’ll love. All applications are free of charge and offer various paid subscriptions for improved options and courses.

Top Language Learning Apps 

1. Duolingo 

Duolingo is one of the most famous language applications and was awarded by Apple in 2013. If you find every lesson to be a challenge, the app will help you improve your scores, check the right answers, practice spoken language, and read and translate various texts to ease down the process of learning. The application will tell you about your weaknesses and offer a path to improvement. The list of languages is impressive, so you will definitely find one to learn.

The app provides users the facility of in-app purchases.

Download for Android and iOS.

2. Easy Ten 

This application is a regular participant in Apple’s top lists. Creators stick to the principle that a person on an average needs to know 3,000 words to easily communicate with other people. According to this, if you study 10 new words every day, at the end of the year you will know 3650 words! In general, you will need 5-10 minutes a day to work with the application.

The app also ensures in-app purchases and is easily available on –

Download for Android and iOS.

3. Memrise 

If your aim is to improve your vocabulary and learn new words, this app is for you! The application contains a great variety of lists with words and phrases. The application uses a scientific approach and is based on the frequent repetition of the learned material. The reminder will tell you that it’s time to repeat the words that you have already learned. 

Checkout the Memrise app review if you want to get more indulged with the app features.

The app facilitates users with in-app purchases.

Both Android and iPhone users can have the app from –

Download for Android and iOS.

4. Rosetta Stone 

Initially, the project was established in 1992 and has evolved into a smartphone application. Here you can choose from more than 20 languages and spend hours learning the chosen language. The program utilizes a special algorithm to help users intuitively learn grammar and vocabulary. The more the user knows, the harder the exercises will be. Besides, you can test your pronunciation, and the application will evaluate it.

This language learning app renders in-app purchase service for both Android and iPhone users. 

Download for Android and iOS.

5. Busuu 

Busuu is a great solution for those who wish to learn specific languages like Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese. The learning process is traditionally based on simple exercises, courses, and practice with native speakers. Every language course contains more than 3,000 words and thematic lists of the most important topics. 

This valuable app has made things easier with in-app purchase feature.

Download for Android and iOS.

6. Learn Japanese 

If you always dreamed of knowing how to read Japanese, this app will help you learn Hiragana and Katakana. You can go through the lessons that focus on writing and pass writing quizzes. Also, a great option is that you can redo the lessons you have successfully passed to improve your score. Due to exclusive learning methods, you will easily learn vocabulary and grammar with this fun app. 

The app is ready for in-app purchase and is available for download on –

Download for Android and iOS.

7. Babbel 

Short lessons (10-15 minutes), words and phrases for real-life conversations, and language practice will tune you into speaking a new language from the first lesson. Here, all exercises are divided into several levels, from simple to difficult. Considering the fact that Babbel doesn’t contain any grammar exercises and is aimed more on improving vocabulary. With this app, you will improve your listening comprehension and pronunciation. 

This best language learning app is widely used for in-app purchases. 

Also, it’s for all Android and iPhone users and can be downloaded via –

Download for Android and iOS.

8. FluentU 

A distinctive feature of this application is that it uses funny, emotional, and meaningful videos. Here, you will find clips, TV shows, commercials, movie trailers, and other videos where you will hear the language of native speakers. All videos are supported with subtitles. All you need to do is pick the video that corresponds to your language level.

In-app purchases are available with it. 

Download for Android and iOS.

9. ChineseSkill 

This app will be great for beginners who are only starting to learning Chinese (Mandarin). With its help, you can improve listening comprehension, reading, writing, and speaking. The application uses a system of repetition, evaluation of pronunciation, and correct inputs of Chinese characters. The learning process involves various games and tests that won’t leave you bored. As a bonus, you can use the application without an internet connection.

In-app purchases are additional features one can avail.

This exciting app is available on both –

Download for Android and iOS.

10. HelloTalk 

HelloTalk is an application that allows users to communicate with native speakers from all over the world and learn 150+ languages. No theory involved — only practice and live communication! Your mentor will correct your speech, grammar, pronunciation, and other mistakes in real-time. The application allows using text, audio, and voice messages for communication. All you need to do is pick someone to talk to and start practising. It’s a great way to find friends from all over the world and learn a new language.

Yes, the app has an in-app purchases option.

Download for Android and iOS.

Like the above-mentioned apps, if you want to get your app featured on prominent app review sites, contact MobileAppDaily for reliable app review services. 

Conclusion 

Learning a new language may be fun and engaging! Turn your smartphone into a source of new knowledge, and not a form of procrastination. You can always take out 10-15 minutes a day to improve vocabulary, learn grammar, or practice pronunciation. To get better results, we recommend combining several applications at once. Good luck!

Written By

Vikram is an experienced wunderkind, who embraced technology at a very early age, and today he is at the helm of it. Mobile apps are something that excites him the most, and now he is up to give this vertical the best shot. He routinely catches up with the new apps and comes up with the top apps that can excite you to the core.

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[sarahviahhday]

I really want to learn Finnish but it scares me so much more than the other Scandinavian languages I know...teach me ur ways ;—;

Heeiiidon’t be scared young Padiwan, Finnish is more of a beautiful enigma than a scary monster :3 (apart from Helsinki slang and the stuff you read onSuomitumppu… That shit’s terrifying XD).Firstup: Finnish is not a Scandinavian/Norse language, that’s possiblywhy it’s intimidating. Unless you speak Estonian,Hungarian, or various indigenous Siberian languages, it’s not gonnabe familiar. But that’s why it’s fun! ‘Cause it’s totally different :3 You just throw away everythingyou think you know about how languages work and you start fromscratch.Secondly: Here’s some facts that make it sound less scary– there’s no grammatical genders. There’sno gender pronouns either, there’s just “hän” for he or she (or“se” in spoken Finnish which literally means “it” XD).There’s also no articles, which means that sometimes I forget tosay “the” and “a/an” in English now. And also the spelling istotally phonetic. Every letter only makes one sound, so spelling andpronunciation are simple. Oh, and there’s only two tenses: Present and past. Bloody marvellous <3 Myways you say? Well personally I began witha book called Teach Yourself Finnish by Terttu Leney. I HIGHLYrecommend investing in this book, preferably a more recent version (oldest oneis too formal). I taught myselfspelling and grammar and basically the most important shit solelyfrom that book for something like 8 years before I got lessons, and Istill go through it from time to time. Honestly you should see thestate of my copy XD When I finally started lessons, my teacherscouldn’t believe I had taught myself. So I literally can’tpraise it enough.Thatsaid, there’s other good books out there too, I’ll put themin a list at the end of this ramble :3NextI got lessons. I am lucky that I live a few towns away from anAnglo-Finn group called Camberleyn Suomikoulu (Camberley’s Finnishschool), who are basically a bunch of Finns who mingle whilst theirspouses/kids get taught Finnish. I’m their novelty student XD But they treat me as a Finn too. :3Anyway,I know it may not be so simple for most people to get lessons. If youhave looked/googled all over and can’t find any near enough to you,are there any Finnish embassies or groups in your country that dointensive courses a couple times a year? Also consider gettinglessons over Skype. There are teachers who even have group lessons ifyou are nervous :3 Or find Finnish speakers who don’t mindcommunicating with you often, there are people here on tumblr forexample in the langblr community, and loads more on forums andlanguage communities across t’internet who may be able to help.Honestly my knowledge on this is not great as I am not that involved(would you believe I am quite shy irl -__-), but I’m sure it won’tbe difficult to find more info about other communities if you findsome Finnish langblrs. I don’t follow loads but I will put themat the end of this ramble too.Forhelp with vocabulary, there are websites and apps that can help you.Memrise has absolutely FUCKTONNES of useful vocab, for example. The courses are put together by Memrise users so it’s all free, thoughsadly that also means you might want to be wary of accuracy here andthere. “3000 most common words”, “Beginner’s Finnish” (with amoomin for a pic), and “Vocabulary from Selkouutiset”, areparticularly good vocab lists. Interesting to note that the appexercises (at least on iphone) are different from the website, but both are good.Mondlyis also great! You get a free lesson every day, even if you don’tbuy the full version :3 I’m dreaming of the day I can afford ittbh, it has speech recognition like on Duolingo, which is so rare forFinnish *____*Clozemaster is something I’ve just discovered, it’slike the last two apps/websites but it presents the words in context,which is pretty damn useful in Finnish. There are so many other random/smaller websiteswhich are good for reference also, not just for vocab but alsophrases and tidbits of grammar. I’ll put them at the end.Ifyou can, try to listen to Finnish radio, news, or even watch the Moomins,so that you can hear more every day and casual subjects andconversation, as opposed to song lyrics and interviews, or thosebloody voice actors who speak slowly for the accompanying audio totextbooks. I mean, that’s useful at first, but nobody speaks likethat irl.

Oh,also I better acknowledge the cases, conjugations, and consonantgradation. It seems pretty intimidating I know, but don’t worry!There is method in that madness. The rules of Finnish grammar arelogical with only very few exceptions, and therefore in time becomequite easy to apply. Chances are you won’t know what to do at timesand that’s fine - I don’t think anyone will give you shit for gettingthings wrong. But if you are unsure and want to check how toconjugate words and such, use Wiktionary. You can search for a word there and it should have awhole table of all possible conjugations when you click the little “more”button :3 Sometimes there are examples in context as well.Personally I’ve always had a little table of case names with examples on my wall where I work, because sometimes a textbookwill say “use ___ with the elative case” and I can’t rememberwhat the fuck that means (because I just know it as “the -sta/-stä ending”,for example XD) and it’s made life so much easier than having to lookit up every time. East to reach conjugation tables/lists are definitely your friend.BeforeI stop rambling (finally) and get to the links - maybe this willapply to other languages, maybe not, but imo keeping on top ofFinnish is a daily thing. Doing my Mondly lesson and two Memrisesessions a day has greatly improved my listening skills,and it helps with keeping vocab fresh in my mind. That is my bareminimum a day - I can do more, but never less. It’s a new-ish routinein my life, but it’s already helped soooo SOOO much. Just five littlemeasly minutes a day, every day, find something to practice whetherit’s vocab or reading about grammar, or one exercise in a book. Thenyou can choose to do extra or not. If you choose to do loads, do NOTgive yourself a day off the next day. Still do those five minutes. Ipromise you will learn faster than cramming it all in your head forlike three days straight, then burning out for a month, then beingintimidated by the pile you have to catch up on. I speak fromexperience. XD

So,onto those links. 

Websites mentionedhere:www.memrise.comwww.mondlylanguages.comwww.clozemaster.comwww.wiktionary.com

Otheruseful websites for just abouteverything:www.uusikielemme.fi/index.html– “Finnish for busy people”, great for simplified explanationsto grammar and lists of important vocab. Also inSpanish.www.101languages.net/finnish/- This website has audio samples of common words, a conjugator, atranslator, radio, news, vocab and phrases, a conversational course,the whole friggin’ works.www.livelingua.com/project/fsi/Finnish/- some free and extensive courses with audiohere.https://twitter.com/kaikkisanat– a twitter account posting literally every Finnishword.www.sanakirja.org - online dictionarywww.urbaanisanakirja.fi– dictionary for slang words. The definitions are in Finnishthough.http://extreme-finnish.teachable.com/- a course on spoken Finnish.www.randomfinnishlesson.com– a great blog with lots of useful anecdotes, grammardeconstructing, slang words, vocab etc… The owner occasionallyteaches over skype, she also does podcasts in simple Finnish andstuff.http://donnerwetter.kielikeskus.helsinki.fi/FinnishForForeigners/parts-index.htm– useful exercises andsuch.https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/selkouutiset/- the news in simpleFinnish.https://viahhapocalypticalangblr.tumblr.com/post/154651215026/starryskiesandlanguages-memrise-finnish#notes– A masterpost of other helpful Finnish content.Some langblrs/tumblrblogs with useful Finnishcontent:@blackteaandlanguages​@letslearnfinnish​@useless-finlandfacts​@learnsuomi​@uselessfinnish​@thisisfinnish​@finugriclanguages​@hiiru-lainen​@finnishproverbs​@finnishwords​@catfinnish​@just-finnish-learning-things​@finland-is-cooler-than-you​@viahhapocalypticalangblr​(this is mine, I’m not terribly active there but I try to reblog anyuseful shit I see and occasionally talk about life inFinnish.)Books I can recommend:Teach Yourself Finnish byTerttu LeneyFrom Start To Finnish by Leila WhiteHyvin Menee!Suomea Aikuisille (series)Suomen Mestari (series)BerlitzFinnish phrasebook & dictionary (good for travelling)I haveloads more in my collection but I haven’t managed to read them yetso… Watch this space for more info maybe?I have probablyforgotten some things here and there but I hope you get the idea, andsome kind of starting point. I wish you the best of luck learningthis unique and beautiful language, and please feel free to ask any questions if you get stuck. Tsemppiä! And may yourencounters with the partitive case be peaceful and easy to understand XD

[fluentlanguage]

9 of the Best Podcasts for Learning Spanish

Imagine what you would do if you could easily understand spoken Spanish.

You could finally travel to the Spanish-speaking countries you’ve dreamed of, watch foreign films and addictive telenovelas, or understand a paella recommendation from the _menu del día_on a Thursday in Valencia.

Best of all, you’d be prepared for real conversations with native Spanish-speakers. The only question is: how do you find the time to practice your Spanish listening skills?

Podcasts are a great way to add a little Spanish listening practice into your day-to-day life. They are free, and can accompany any part of your day: driving a car, washing your dishes, doing laundry, working out, reading, and more.

The Fluent Show

In addition to the Spanish podcasts you’ll find in this article, check out the Fluent Show. That’s my own show, co-hosted by Lindsay Williams, where we discuss languages, learning methods, and how to live a multilingual life.Click here to listen and subscribe.

Quick Primer: How Do Podcasts Work?

If you're curious about podcasts, but not quite sure how they work, here's what you need to know:

You can subscribe for free to podcasts on your phone, tablet, or computer.

If you use an iPhone or iPad, go to the Podcasts app. If you're on a Mac, use theiTunes directory.

On a PC or Android device, try theStitcher app for a quick and easy start.

Subscribing means you'll always have the latest episode ready and waiting for you as soon as it's published.

The 9 Best Spanish Podcasts for Learners

In this article, you’ll find:

Spanish Podcasts for Beginners

Spanish Podcasts for Intermediate and Advanced Learners

Spanish Video Resources

Story-Based Shows

A Special Tip for Advanced Learners

To help you target your Spanish learning goals, this list also specifies whether a podcast uses Castilian Spanish, Latin American Spanish, or offers options for both.

Spanish Podcasts for Beginners

Castilian Spanish

Notes in Spanish

Notes in Spanish is a podcast run by Marina, a native speaker from Spain, and Ben, an Englishman. Each episode is actually a conversation between the two. There are episodes dedicated to beginners as well as intermediate and advanced learners. For beginners, the hosts also go over key vocabulary, phrases, and basic grammar points both before and after their conversations.

Since Ben is also a Spanish learner, he offers a lot of useful tips for listeners while Marina often provides corrections and points out common mistakes. They speak clearly, making it easy for beginners to follow along.

Castilian and Latin American Spanish

SpanishPod101

SpanishPod101 from InnovativeLanguage covers the basic through advanced levels of Spanish. The episodes are exciting and immersive. Plus, you can find episodes for both Castilian and Latin American Spanish along with the differences between them. There are even episodes that explain some of the regional vocabulary from places like Costa Rica, Peru, Mexico, and Spain.

The dialogues are presented by engaging hosts in a clear, concise way covering many grammatical features and cultural topics. On the website you can sign up for premium content to access spaced repetition flashcards, PDF lesson notes, and a community forum.

Spanish Podcasts for Intermediate and Advanced Learners

Castilian Spanish

Unlimited Spanish

Unlimited Spanish with Òscar Pellus uses a unique storytelling technique based on Òscar’s method of learning Spanish through exposure and repetition. Every episode includes a quick story followed by a question and answer session that encourages listeners to practice their speaking skills as well. It’s also a great option for anyone who doesn’t care for lengthy grammar explanations.

Podcast topics include various aspects of Spanish culture, including places and food, as well as social topics and situations. When necessary Òscar touches on some relevant vocabulary and grammar, but it isn’t overwhelming. The podcast is entirely in Spanish, but if you have any trouble understanding, you can download transcripts of every episode in PDF format.

Español Automático

Done entirely in Spanish, this podcast is meant to provide an immersive experience for intermediate to advanced learners. The host, Karo Martínez, is lively, engaging, and speaks both clearly and naturally.

There are over 100 episodes to choose from, some of which explore grammar concepts, offer tips to improve your pronunciation, or explain colloquial expressions. Other episodes talk about different parts of Spain or even how to learn Spanish with popular shows like Game of Thrones.

The Español Automático site offers episode transcripts along with additional guides and resources.

Latin American Spanish

15 Minute Spanish for Your Job

Though this podcast is directed towards those learning Spanish for work, its main goal is to help listeners get used to and understand native, spoken Spanish.

The host, Miguel Lira, is a native Spanish speaker from Mexico and a Spanish learning coach. Each episode goes over a particular conversation exchange in Spanish, such as conversations between workers or while simply ordering coffee. Miguel, as the sole host, uses a different tone of voice for each speaker, which is both entertaining and helpful as you follow along. There are also a few episodes on cultural subjects, like The Day of the Dead in Mexico.

In addition, the website offers notes, transcripts, and other resources to help you review the conversations.

Castilian and Latin American Spanish

News in Slow Spanish

News in Slow Spanish is an intermediate level podcast. This podcast covers world news, grammar, and expressions and slows down all the dialogue to make it easier to process what you hear. Every episode breaks down a point on grammar and vocabulary. It also lets you choose between Castilian and Latin American Spanish.

The audio is very clear and easy to follow. On the website, there are transcripts for each episode available with grammar, expressions, pronunciation, and quizzes.

Spanish Video Resources

Yabla Spanish

Yabla is a video-based learning platform with bilingual subtitles and integrated dictionaries. The subtitles are interactive, which is a really cool concept! Check out how Yabla works in detail by reading myfull review.

Yabla is great for all levels from basic to advanced. You can check out their podcast and choose between videos from Spain and Latin America for hours of entertainment.

Story-Based Shows

Castilian Spanish

Coffee Break Spanish

Coffee Break Spanish, a podcast from Radio Lingua Network, combines Spanish language lessons with a lot of useful information about Spanish food, culture, Spanish speaking countries, and so on.

My favourite part of the podcast is the chemistry between relaxed and charismatic host Mark from Scotland (who is fluent in Spanish) and Spanish learner Kara from Scotland. Mark guides both Kara and listeners through Spanish grammar, conversation, culture, and society.

The dialogues are presented in a clear, concise way, covering many grammatical features and cultural topics. On the website you can sign up for the premium content to access spaced repetition flashcards, PDF lesson notes, and a community forum for a subscription fee.

Latin American Spanish

Duolingo Spanish Podcast

The Duolingo Spanish Podcast tells real-life stories from all across Latin America. Some of the stories are uplifting and inspiring while others are suspenseful and heartrending. Either way, they really make you want to hear more!

The stories are done partially in Spanish and partially in English, which makes it a great option for more advanced beginners who want to get used to spoken Spanish while still understanding what’s going on.

Advanced Learner Tip: Native Spanish Podcasts

If you’re interested in a more immersive experience, there are plenty of podcasts intended for native Spanish speakers available.

One great option is the Radio Ambulante podcast. Radio Ambulante is a longform journalism podcast that shares real-life Latin American stories. There are stories about language, sports, education, events, and more. Plus, there are both English and Spanish transcripts available for every episode.

If you want an easy way to access even more Spanish podcasts, go to iTunes and switch your country setting to Spain, Mexico, or any other Spanish speaking country. There’s no restriction on your switch and you’ll be able to access all podcasts in the same way that listeners from those countries can.

This article was written by Cassie Wright and me. She’s a freelance writer who loves languages. Thanks Cassie!

Looking for more Spanish resources?

Click here to get my top tips for Spanish learners.

Which podcasts do you listen to for practicing your Spanish? Leave a comment below and share your tips.

[professorstudentsuccess-blog]

Why Give UP?

by Joe Salazar

“Jojoy, always remember that it’s hard to defeat those who never give up.” These words were told to me by a little girl who had cancer and her words will not be forgotten. Through eighteen years of my life I had to work harder than an average student. English is not my first language. When I arrived in Austin, Texas I only spoke Spanish, my first language. I was told by my parents and teachers that it was necessary for me to learn English as soon as possible, so what I did was to ask my teacher if she could stay after school and help me learn English. I promised to give a hundred and ten percent of my effort.

 During this process I had to stop attending my martial art class (kung Fu) in order to have all my attention on my studying. At times I cried and wanted to give up because it was super difficult for me. I got to a point in which I told my parents “I can’t pressure myself like this, I am just a kid.” They just smiled and said “we believe in you and we are not giving up on you.” A few minutes after complaining I would close my eyes and tell myself “Why give up if she didn’t give up at any point of her illness.” I then opened my eyes wide with a big motivation that regardless how hard the work was I would not give up.

 After six month of struggle and disappointments I learned English to a ninety percent level in which I could understand, read, write, and speak English. My teacher and many other counselors couldn’t believe what I had accomplished because I did something that they were trying to get many students to do whose first language was Spanish. Many of these students had been in school for two years and yet they had not come close to that level. Counselors and teachers asked, “Salazar, how did you accomplish this? What’s your method to learn a whole different language so fast?” I said, “I never give up and I gave one hundred percent of effort.” “How old are you?” one teacher asked. I replied, “I’m 7 years old José Salazar Why Give Up? sir.” “Wow, you have a strong mentality for your age Jose.” Jose Salazar what would you recommend the teachers do in order to help students learn English fast like you?” I said “show them that you are there to help them and not just because you get paid. Most important is not to give up on them.”

 Education for me is really important, so graduating from high school became one of my long-term goals. The first year of high school was confusing and difficult for me because a semester before high school I had just got back from Mexico. I did my middle school at Monterrey Nuevo Leon Mexico. This was a big move for me again because I had no idea how high school worked, but after my first semester of ninth grade the rest of my school year was difficult, but not too hard. When my senior year came it became my worst nightmare not because classes were killing me, but because my senior year was super important since the time to apply for college and scholarships had begun. The first semester of my senior year I applied for college .

 I also focused on looking for scholarships on the internet and asking the businesses downtown and other places for assistance. I looked for the money like crazy, because I needed to pay for college. The second semester was game time. I started applying for scholarships and acceptance letters from colleges were arriving. Being accepted to seven colleges motivated me a lot. While applying for scholarships I got denied from them many times. This got me mad and disappointed because sixty three consecutive times I received letters saying “Dear Salazar, Jose you are a great candidate for our scholarship. We are amazed at what a hard worker you are and how much you are involved in the community, but we are sorry to not be able to provide you the scholarship award.” This made me mad. I couldn’t believe it so I called the organizations and most of them said that the reason for not winning the scholarship was because I had to have a social security number. Others said “Sir. you have such great potential for succeeding and winning other Why Give Up? By Jose Salazar scholarships so the provider of the money decided to give the money to students who have less chance of winning scholarship and have a social security number.” Just because of one document my dream of attending college was being crushed. I kept applying and more rejects came in. I was at scholarship number seventy and opened the letter to discover a another rejection.

 At that point I wanted to give up and forget going to college. I told myself, “Jose you did your part and you have worked harder than any other students, but for some reason it is not working out. Just forget about it.” That same day my college coach gave me two scholarship applications and made me fill them out in front of her. Then she told me to turn them in to the college counselor from school. I just said “ok,” but I didn’t turn them in and a week passed and I never turned them in. Then Sunday night I had a dream of the little girl who died of cancer asking me, “Jojoy, what did I tell you?” I told you to never give up.” I said, “but I have done all I can.” She said, “ you let yourself fail so now stand up with your head up high and don’t give up” I woke up looking for those scholarship applications that I had not turned in.

 On Monday morning I asked my friend for a ride to school. I ran to the counselor’s office and asked him if I could still turn in those two scholarship applications. , He just smiled and said, “man this is your lucky day because the deadline got extended.” That day I skipped my first two classes just to apply for lots more scholarships. I did thirty scholarships in one day. I got crazy for that day I guess. The week passed and I picked up the mail. I saw two letters for me, and I sat down on my bed and opened one with my fingers. It was another rejection letter and this got me upset so I just ignored the other letter. The next morning before I left for school I found that same letter that I had ignored on the dining table. I opened it and to my surprise it said “Dear Mr. Salazar, you have won the award of five thousand dollar for your college education.” This made my day. I told all my teachers and friends. I was super happy. Scholarship number seventy two and I finally got a yes. José Salazar Why Give Up? I kept applying and got lots of rejections. I thought that my luck had run out. When I was close to that point of giving up I told myself, “no Jose, not this time are you going to give up.

 Why give up if she never did regardless of how much pain the cancer gave her. She fought until the bell rang and her life ended so why are you going to give up.” Scholarship one hundred and two arrived and I got the news that I had won one thousand and five hundred dollars. I was happy again, but I kept applying for more scholarships. I applied until the school year ended. In total I applied to one hundred and fifty scholarships and only two said “yes”. Thanks to my sister, who before she died, showed me that giving up wasn’t an option. My sister showed me that there is nothing wrong with being a dreamer or failing, but what is wrong is not dreaming and not standing back up after you fall. To all the dreamers, never stop dreaming and don’t give up. If you fall just stand back up stronger. Fight for your dream until the bell rings like this little girl did. Why give up? If those who have mental and physical disabilities don’t quit you can also be a strong fighter. Why quit if those who love you don’t give up?

[learnspanishfans]

24 Time Hacking Tips from Language Hacker Benny Lewis

For busy language learners, it can feel like your constant thought is “I don’t have enough time!” I’d like to share some simple shifts you can make in your life so you can manage your time - and have more time available for language learning. Many of these we’ve shared on Fluent in 3 Months (Fi3M) before - and much of the advice comes from Fi3M founder Benny Lewis. Benny’s aim in creating Fi3M was to share language hacks - faster and smarter ways to learn a language. In other words, we want to help you learn a new language in less time - or in the small pockets of time you have available through your day. So, I thought it would be a good idea to have all our best advice on time management in one place. Before we begin, there’s a quote that’s popular on Pinterest, which I really like. You may have seen it.

“You have the same amount of hours in a day as Beyonce.”

While you can argue that your 24 hours aren’t the same as Beyonce’s - you don’t have assistants, teams, or stylists helping you out - you still have the same 1,440 minutes a day. The key is to make the most of each one of those minutes. Now, here are the tips from Fi3M’s Benny Lewis on just a few ways you can use the 24 hours you have each day more effectively when it comes to language learning. Let’s get started!

1. Get Feedback on Your Mistakes

If you want to be sure that you’re actually using the language correctly, talk with a native speaker who can provide feedback. Not only will you learn to use the language more effectively, you’ll get a better ear for it and start to pronounce it more closely to native speech.

From: How Adults Learn: 6 Important Things to Know

2. Create Personalised Vocabulary Lists

Instead of spending countless hours memorizing vocabulary lists from a textbook, I create my own personalized vocabulary list, ensuring that I’ll learn the words that I’ll need to know first.

From: Busted: 6 Common Myths About Polyglots and Language Learners

3. Avoid the “Just Do Something!” Mindset

A very popular way to kill time in language learning is to simply do ‘something’ and feel that it's at least dragging you in the general direction that you need to go. No! Sometimes doing ‘something’ is barely better than doing nothing. Do something worthwhile!

From: Solving specific problems rather than trying to learn everything

4. Focus on Learning What Matters

Trying to become a master of everything at once will not allow you to make progress on anything specific swiftly enough to feel progress, and you can get demotivated.

From: Why hard work isn’t what makes good learners

5. Apply the 80-20 Rule to get 80% of the Results from 20% of the Effort

Successful language learners find ways to use the little they know in the maximum possible ways; this adaptation of Pareto's principle is an absolute must for people focused on speaking well as quickly as possible.

From: The Pareto (80-20) principle in language learning

6. Count Hours, Not Years...

"Now add up your ‘hours’ based on this new system, but actually counting the time you put in and you will see a dramatic difference. ‘Five years’ of two hours of passive listening a day, four hours of grammar studying a week and two hours of actual practise with natives per month would give you about 364 ‘hours’ (based on my weighted units) of genuine work. That's fifteen days worth of work in your ‘five years’.”

From: How to learn a language in hours, not years

7. ...Or Count Minutes, Not Hours

If you’re suffering from guilt or stress about how behind you are on your study hours, then maybe you should stop counting how many hours you’re practising for a few days, and instead see how many more minutes you can squeeze into a day.

From: “I’ll Do It Tomorrow” – Solving 3 Mindtraps that Make You Put Off Language Learning

8. Use the 5 Minute Pockets in Your Day

I highly recommend micro-commitments and zoning out in your target language. Committing for five minutes is a lot easier than committing for thirty minutes, and after five minutes I often find myself thinking “this isn't so bad, just another five minutes”.

From Fi3M Team Member Joseph Lemien, in Learning a New Language: Secrets of Language Learning Pros

9. Step Outside Your Comfort Zone

If you charge into the frustration, embrace it, and fill up all your free time with it, then you WILL get to the other side much quicker.

From: The only way to get far quickly is to get out of your comfort zone

10. Avoid Useless Information

If you removed two hours of social media you’re just – let’s face it – not doing anything terribly productive, just consuming random bits of news and sound bytes, you could literally become a proficient [language learner] in that amount of time.

From: Intensive Language Learning and the Tim Ferriss Experiment

11. Stop Using “I’m Too Busy” as an Excuse

If you sleep eight hours a night, then you have 112 hours a week to play with. If you work full time for 40 hours a week, then there's still 72 hours left over.

From: How I Learned Fluent Italian While Working 60 Hours a Week

12. Can’t Find Time? Make Time!

No matter how busy you are, how much you work or socialise or devote your time to other important projects in your life… you always still have some time left over that you may be currently wasting!

From: How to make time if you are too busy

13. Go Public With Your Language Goals

One of the best ways to encourage progress is to tell others about your objectives. Making your mission public will also make it real. There will be more at stake and you won’t want to fail.

From: 5 Rituals to Help You Learn a Language Faster

14. Remember: There Are No “Perfect Conditions”

What I prefer to do is try to make things as ideal as they can possibly get and then handle problems quickly and swiftly, whenever possible, if they come my way so that I can stay on track.

From: Absolutely perfect learning conditions? An unrealistic pipe dream that holds you back

15. Eliminate “Time Sucks"

We are all very busy, but many of us still achieve great things because we organize the time we have control over much better, and remove things that suck time out of our day, like television.

From: The many reasons (32 so far) why we DON’T succeed in learning languages

16. Keep a To-Do List

What has worked better for me, has been setting up a to-do list of precisely everything that I need to do that day and deciding approximately how much time it will require.

From: 21 ways to work, socialise & sleep well, maintain inbox 0 with 400+ emails, AND intensively learn a language all in a day! Time hacking 2.0

17. Use the Pomodoro Technique

Use the Pomodoro time-hacking method to increase your productive sprints. By alternating 25 minute work sessions with 5 minute rests, you allow your brain to get some breathing room and are able to get in more focused work.

From: The CIA is Wrong: It Doesn’t Take 1,000 Hours to Learn a Language

18. Remove Distractions

If you’re going to sit down for a session of language learning, take a few moments to turn off all the electronic attention-hogs that surround you. Go away from your TV, turn off the wifi on your devices, and close down unnecessary applications or windows.

From: 5 Simple Research Proven Hacks to Stop Wasting Time and Start Learning Fast

19. Stop Comparing

If someone is a smarter language learner than you, has more free time than you or whatever, well good for them I suppose. But who cares when it comes to you and your situation?

From: Questions that waste your time

20. Focus on One Day at a Time

The question should never be “how long does it take one to learn a language” but “how long do you have?” or “How intensively are you willing to invest your time?”

From: How much time does it take to learn a language?

21. Immerse Yourself at Home

An immersion environment is all about finding opportunities to bring the language into your current lifestyle and activities.

From: Language Immersion: How to Create an Immersion Environment on Your Phone

22. Just Start!

What would you be doing right now if you really wanted to learn a new language? The key idea here is RIGHT NOW, and the answer is something. Anything. It really doesn't matter what you do, just start, and start now.

From: How to Start Learning a New Language (Right Now. Today. Seriously).

23. Try “Blending”

Think about what you actually do in your free time and try it entirely through your acquired language! I've played chess in Italian, read computer and men's health magazines in French, taken dance lessons in Spanish, windsurfing lessons in Portuguese, flirted with pretty girls in Esperanto and chatted in MSN and Skype in Irish Gaelic.

From: Combining learning languages with your hobbies

24. Use Mini-Missions

Apart from the actual benefits and doing something practical to reach your “end” goal, there is a great sense of achievement that you can feel every day in reaching your objective.

Will You Make the Time to Learn a Language?

We hope you enjoyed this collection of tips from Benny Lewis on how to learn a language even when you’re busy. We’d love to know how you find time to study language. Feel free to share your time management strategies in the comments below. Need a little extra help making time for language learning? We’re really excited to announce our new course on building solid language habits. Learn more about how you can fit language learning into your schedule.

The post 24 Time Hacking Tips from Language Hacker Benny Lewis appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.

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[rigelmejo]

Updated 6/8/2025 - List of Comprehensible Input Chinese Resources:

Comprehensible Input Wiki - this wiki includes tons of Comprehensible Input Lessons linked for many languages. I go back to this regularly. Go to the Chinese sections for Chinese.

Vidioma.com - a person made this site to make it easy and convienient for people learning Chinese to find CI Lessons for their level of understanding. I think they were trying to make something similar to Dreaming Spanish's site to help encourage learners to start/continue by making it easy and in one place. Time watched is tracked on the local device you're using it on, there's no account sign up, and the website makes no money - it links youtube videos of youtubers that teach Chinese.

r/ALGMandarin Wiki - includes playlists made by learners of the content, sorted for beginners.

r/ALGhub Aural Resources List - includes comprehensible input lessons and learner podcasts for many languages, go to Chinese - Mandarin section.

Lazychinese.com - Su Qing made this website, her youtube channel is Lazy Chinese. Like Dreaming Spanish, it is Comprehensible Input Lessons on a website where paying a subscription will unlock more lessons. This website is still growing, the payment goes directly to Lazy Chinese and the teachers making the lessons. (As it is still growing, I recommend also checking out each teacher's youtube channels too, for example I love Xiaogua Chinese channel).

r/ALGhub What Is Automatic Language Growth? - page that explains ALG if you want to to it. (My quick summary is ALG is using only comprehensible input lessons that contain ONLY the target language, until you can use materials for native speakers, avoiding thinking about the language such as anaylzing/translating in your head/using translations and explanations, and waiting to speak and read until you feel you have a good grasp of listening skills. So 600-2000 hours depending on the language, ALG Thai courses typically recommend waiting 1000-2000 hours, Dreaming Spanish typically recommends waiting 600-1000 hours. Note: ALG is stricter than Krashen's input hypothesis that "we acquire language by having meaningful experiences we understand in the language" and therefore CI is not a synonym for ALG. ALG is comprehensible input, but comprehensible input is a much BROADER category than ALG. ALG was invented by Marvin Brown, who felt it is ONLY comprehensible experiences in the language we acquire language from, and nothing else is necessary or beneficial. Brown felt the other activities were detrimental to success. Brown also felt speaking early, or any explicit study and analysis of ANY language would damage ultimate ability in languages. This is the controversial point - as many other teaching programs that include Comprehensible Input Lessons still feel there's a place for grammar study and translations and explanations. Most learning programs for learning a language, do not worry that explicit study will damage their ultimate result, and do not care when one begins to read or speak).

Dreaming Spanish Method - includes the roadmap I'm often referencing, Dreaming Spanish Method is the ALG method, just a bit more lax. Dreaming Spanish also says to avoid explanations and translations, but to look you at them if curious then it won't hurt. Dreaming Spanish says you should wait to read and speak 600-1000 hours, but if you need to do it earlier then do, or if you will give up unless you do them early then just do them. (This is basically why I prefer going to r/dreamingspanish, their more lax approach to the ALG method means I can find more learners who are using Comprehensible Input Lessons alongside other study activities or study history, which is more compatible with my own experiences).

*personal note: think ALG's ideas are a bit extreme. I do not think explicit study, translations, speaking early, or reading early will create an insurmountable block for most people's language goals. I am not doing pure ALG. If you feel like doing pure ALG though, it will work. There's plentiful examples on r/dreamingspanish of people doing pure ALG to successfully reach B2 level, and people doing additional things that contradict ALG and successfully reaching B2 level. Dreaming Spanish's method and roadmap are a slightly more lax approach to ALG if you'd like to try it out without completely following the ALG rules, and you can find many people to connect with who also did ALG somewhat but not purist in that learning community.

My recommendations are: no matter who you are, the linked resources above are ALL useful for Practicing Extensive Listening. You'll need to practice listening to improve your listening skills, and many of these resources will have easier options for beginners and intermediate learners to practice with. These linked resources also are great ways to learn words/grammar in visual context with no translations, and learning more is always useful. If you enjoy learning from context, you may find these resources suit how you like to learn. So I think anyone studying could find these useful.

[rigelmejo]

On a lighter note. If you're a language learner browsing forums and sites, some fairly chill ones to check out:

Chinese-Forums.com: there are a lot of good study suggestions on here, and people who have shared their progress and stuff they did to study X skills. Even if you are not studying Chinese, a lot of their discussions can apply to learning other languages. And if you've ever been on some japanese learner forums where people tended to attack more over "study MY way, not X way," this forum has much less of that. So I've found the ideas shared on here have also been useful for applying to how I study other languages. Some great tips on reading here.

forum.language-learners.org: this site may be easier to find posts for, if you go to a web search site (google, duckduckgo, searx.space) and search this site's name as well as the question you have. So for example "language-learners.org how to improve reading skill" or "language-learners.org listening reading method." This forum has posts by many language learners, who share experiences with study methods, progress they've made, language challenges and study methods and how they went progress wise. It's very useful for looking up study methods and how they've worked/not worked for people, and seeing people's progress they share. The forum seems a bit less ready to attack others compared to some subreddits on reddit.

reddit.com/r/dreamingspanish: Dreaming Spanish is a youtube channel and website that teaches Spanish through pure comprehensible input designed lessons (and the creator designed the lessons for Automatic Language Growth, but people use DS in a variety ways including as practice to supplement explicit study so the community is somewhat open to people studying DS in ways besides purely comprehensible-input). The subreddit is more focused on pure ALG method, so no looking words up and no trying to translate in your head and no explicit vocabulary and grammar study, because that's how DS instructs students to study using it. But their study suggestions still work very well with other study methods, so if you are a learner doing a lot of explicit study like anki flashcards and textbooks, the Spanish resources suggested on DS subreddit are still useful for practicing listening to Spanish or reading Spanish. It's also cool to see people share their progress doing an ALG method, and a lot of people on DS subreddit share how they're doing, what they've done so far, progress during different stages. I did a lot of digging a while back, to try and see if any learners who did the ALG method shared WHEN they spoke, and how they improved their speaking over time. And also, when they found content made for native speakers understandable. DS subreddit has a lot of learners sharing that stuff - when they started speaking, how they're practicing it, how it's improved over time, when they could understand X content and how well they could understand it and how it's improving.

Heavenly Path Notion Site: excellent resource for finding recommendations of content to read/listen to in Chinese. I think their ranking of difficulty on their website is incredibly useful, and matches well to my own experiences. Their recommendations for how to start learning to read Chinese are also super solid, from mentioning Pleco and graded reader options to suggesting when to transition to materials for native speakers around (1000-2000 words learned/HSK 4) and which materials to start with (their Newcomer recommendations are way easier than the novels I started trying to read with). MoonIvy has posted recommendations on Heavenly Path, and shared their progress on reddit and other forums as well, and their journey and progress learning is something I'm hoping to follow along after lol. They're a great example of progress through reading Chinese. There's other people involved in Heavenly Path who also made amazing progress, someone shared they read SaYe within a few months of starting to learn Chinese, then increased novel difficulty from there! If you are learning to Chinese and wish to eventually read webnovels, I highly encourage you to check out this site and start working on reading as soon as possible. Their guide on reading has a place to start for anyone (beginner graded reader suggestions even if you only know 300 words like Mandarin Companion, and up), and if you follow that guide I do think it's entirely reasonable you will be reading a novel for kids by the end of the year (like TuTu DaWang) and a webnovel by an author you love in 2 years (or sooner, if you read a lot or aren't an absolute beginner... after all, I read some of a Priest novel within 1 year, and some people who referenced Heavenly Path's recommendations read bl webnovels Within the first year of studying). Reading that novel you love in Chinese is not an unobtainable goal, it's something you can do in 1-2 years. Please check out Heavenly Path's recommendations for a path to achieving that, with reading material that may not feel as hard as if you randomly selected novels.