Getting Started With A Foreign Language

Learning another language is something many people think about doing during their lives. The idea of being able to go to another country and speak the language without having to reach for the dictionary or phrasebook all the time is a very exciting one. It allows you to learn a great deal more about the country and its inhabitants, not to mention the ability to integrate yourself into the culture to a far greater degree. An additional benefit (and one that does not necessarily mean travelling) is that the world of foreign literature and film can suddenly open up for you. Many language learners find themselves eagerly seeking out books and films in their chosen language as, apart from being a fantastic learning resource, they can provide a great deal of previously inaccessible entertainment and pleasure.

Some people, however, simply enjoy learning other languages for the challenge, or because language interests them. Whatever your reason - even if it's just simple curiosity and a vague wondering - I urge you to read on, and perhaps you'll find your inspiration.

The important thing is to not just jump in and buy the first book/software package you see. There are a huge number of language learning resources out there, many of them good but many also bad. You don't want to buy something only to find out it's badly written and full of mistakes. Approach it calmly and take your time. On larger websites such as Amazon, user reviews and ratings are extremely useful. The publisher's description will undoubtedly be full of praise for the product, but always be cautious and look a little deeper. Reviews for most language resources are available on the internet. I'd advise strongly against buying something obscure and unknown.

In addition, prepare yourself for a lot of work. Language learning is a lot of work, and there's no getting around that fact. If you're determined and self-motivated, though, you'll achieve your goals.

Different people have different ideas on how best to learn a language and there can never be a definitive right answer. Indeed, certain methods suit different people more, and you might get different recommendations depending on who you ask. This is one of those things where, ultimately, you'll have to make your own mind up. Let's look at some of the options.

Language Course
There are many of these around, particuarly for more popular languages. Language learning courses will usually contain a book and at least one audio CD. This is a combination that works incredibly well, allowing you to listen to the language as you follow the dialogue in the book. There are generally plenty of writen and spoken exercises, as well as vocabulary lists for you to quickly look up any unknown words.

Dictionaries
An essential purchase. The vocabulary lists that come bundled with a language course may be adequate for a complete beginner, but sooner or later you're going to come across words and phrases you're unsure of and having a dictionary to hand will help greatly. Make sure it's bilingual and has positive user reviews.

Grammar Books
Although language courses generally spend time on grammar, the subject is often so large and complex that they can't go into great detail. For a beginner, this isn't a problem. But once you've progressed through the first few chapters of a language course, you may find yourself looking for more answers. A dedicated grammar book can help, allowing you to delve into the complexities of the language and gain a greater understanding of how things work. Most languages have strange or unusual grammar rules somewhere, and having this to hand can really help you understand and master them.

Software
Software provides the ability to interact, something that many people find exceedingly useful. Probably the most well known language software courses are Rosetta Stone and Pimsleur. Both have their positive and negative aspects - remember, check those user reviews - but in the end, it's up to you to decide. In my personal opinion, software is to be used as a supplementary resource and not to be relied upon as a main learning tool. You may be different, however.

Resources in Your Chosen Language
This might include books, films, TV shows, radio, newspapers and more. Essentially, the more you expose yourself to the language, the more easily you'll find yourself picking it up. There's a great deal of this available online for free, and you should be able to find websites where you can buy books/films in your chosen language. Children's books in particular are an excellent way of learning.

A Native Speaker
If you're lucky enough to have a friend that natively speaks the language you're learning, make use of them as much as you can! If they're willing to help, they'll be an incredibly useful resource. They can correct you when you're wrong, inform you of slang phrases and keep you updated on local customs and the culture there.

As mentioned, choosing the right resources is something you'll have to decide for yourself. Personally, I favour a traditional language course with audio CDs (for example, Teach Yourself) coupled with a dictionary and perhaps a grammar book. After a while, I might look into software but only, as I mentioned, as a supplementary resource. Internet radio in the language I'm learning is always a favourite; it's (usually) available free online and you can listen to it while doing other things, unconsciously soaking it up.

Again, this is one of those "it depends" things. You can put as much or as little time as you like into your language learning. Obviously, the more you put in, the more you'll get out. The one important piece of advice I would give is to be regular. Make learning your language a regular occurence. A day or two here and there, with huge breaks in between won't do you any favours at all. Try and do something daily if you can, even if it's just 10 minutes. This will keep things fresh in your head and enable you to get back into things again more easily, once you have a bit more time to dedicate. If you can manage an hour a day, that would be fantastic.

Keeping your learning regular requires a lot of discipline. It's all too easy to get distracted by other things and let it slide. Personally, I would say that this is the hardest aspect of learning a language - the self control required to keep at it. Let's be honest, we all have bad days now and again. Forcing yourself to read to the end of the chapter, or listen to that extra bit of dialogue even when you want to do something else, could really help in the end.

If you've maintained your studies and slowly but surely worked your way through all the learning resources you have, you may wonder where to go next. In situations like this, I would heavily recommend buying books/films in the language you're learning. Once you've got the fundamentals of the language down, the next major step is building up vocabulary. Work your way through some stories - perhaps those aimed at younger children or teenagers at first - with a dictionary at your side, looking up and making note of the words you're unfamiliar with.
This is a great way to learn, and regularly testing yourself on those unknown words will ensure they're not forgotten.

If you're determined to take your learning further and achieve advanced fluency, there's no better method of learning than to go to the/a country in which the language is spoken and spending time there. Books, CDs and software can do a good job of preparing you, but they can't compare to the experience of being there in person and conversing with native speakers. If you reach this stage, you should feel incredibly proud of yourself. Many people start out intending to learn foreign languauges but only a fraction of those make it to fluency.

That it for this article. I hope you've enjoyed reading it and if it has inspired you to take up another language, I'd love to hear about it in the comments. Any personal experiences or suggestions are very welcome too. I've included a few links below that language learners may find useful.