Learning Another Language

One of my goals this year is to slowly learn to speak French. I already speak Turkish and English (obviously) and I'm not sure how to get in the groove of learning another language. I don't know where to start or what would help me. Advice?

http://confessionsofaturkishgirl.blogspot.com/

Tags: Cultures, Languages, Nationalities, People

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Permalink Reply by Melissa Brander on January 6, 2012 at 12:28pm

I would say try to study a little bit every day because language can slip away so quickly if you don't use it on a regular basis. Also, finding someone who speaks French who can speak French with you would probably be really helpful as well. It will challenge you to use it in a more real life scenario and will help you remember it. 

Permalink Reply by Nagehan on January 6, 2012 at 12:30pm

I used to have a French roommate in college. Maybe I can become 'pen pals' with her on facebook!

Permalink Reply by Lozzz123 on January 6, 2012 at 7:37pm

I would agree with this. I was learning Greek in 2010 (husband is greek) by going to classes, and then did nothing last year. Now I can barely remember it, which sucks. I think I'll try to make my husband speak it to me a lot more.

Permalink Reply by Gina on January 6, 2012 at 1:55pm

This sounds super nerdy, but when I needed to learn Spanish in a hurry, I downloaded Spanish versions of songs I already knew, then listened to them while reading the lyrics. (This could conceivably work the same with TV or movies with the captions on). Then, once I could sing along, I translated the lyrics, so then I learned what I was saying. Then I started just listening to Spanish artists entirely and translating those lyrics.

It helped a TON. I learned all kinds of phrases and verb tenses that would have taken me three or four years of college Spanish classes to get to.

Permalink Reply by Nagehan on January 6, 2012 at 2:57pm

This sounds super fun! It's like exercising without feeling like exercising :)

Permalink Reply by Lozzz123 on January 6, 2012 at 7:36pm

That's a really cool idea! Might have to try it.

Permalink Reply by Gina on January 6, 2012 at 7:53pm
Bonus: I can still sing along with most of the songs I learned, ten years later. I have forgotten some of the exact translations, but I remember the gist of them, and can answer honestly and correctly when somebody tries to get smart with me and ask "What is she singing about, huh?"

It makes me look way cooler and more intelligent than I really am.
Permalink Reply by Jorah Day on January 6, 2012 at 2:08pm

hey girl. 

  So languages kind of became my 'thing' for a while.   I'm going to sound like a commercial, but seriously, Rosetta Stone is the way to go. worth the money. I learned French by being with a French guy, but I learned Hebrew and Italian via Rosetta Stone, and it stuck with me and I spoke it better.

 But if you can talk to people using the language frequently, that's the best. Use it whenever you can.  Immerse yourself in it. When you start dreaming in French, you're on the right track. :)

Permalink Reply by Nagehan on January 6, 2012 at 2:59pm

Jorah, you're so right. I remember when I started to speak more English and less Turkish in my dreams, I knew I was on the right track! :)

Permalink Reply by Freeman Dyson on January 6, 2012 at 2:19pm

I have seen this question asked countless times over the years. Particularly about Rosetta Stone. I used to date a translator and knew a bunch of them. All of them said Rosetta Stone isn't very good.  The best way to learn a new language, in the US, would be to take college courses. Even like a community college night course or something. 

You can probably find Rosetta Stone online for free. It might work, I'm just going on what other people told me. 

Permalink Reply by Lily on January 11, 2012 at 1:27pm

I hear that about Rosetta Stone alot. I work at a Spanish Language school, and many of our Introduction students come with "I've tried Rosetta Stone and failed!". Our advanced students usually have some high school or college Spanish under their belt. I would second Freeman about the community college courses.

Permalink Reply by Jen Johnson on January 6, 2012 at 4:08pm

Firstly, I was visiting Turkey over Christmas and loved it - which part are you from? 

Also, the best way to learn a language is to immerse yourself in it! Obviously this isn't always possible so the second best thing to do is to practice as much as possible. Even passive practice; for example, when I blow-dry my hair, I listen to French radio or turn on the French TV channel (because you don't have to pay too much attention but are still getting the background noise). Try watching subtitled movies in French, reading simple French books or comics.

I also find Michel Thomas courses really good - I learnt a lot of Spanish by listening to his cd's on long bus rides. He has a French course and if you know how to download Torrents you can get it free.

I actually need to practice my French too, so if you want a practice buddy feel free to email me: jennifer.johnson403 [at] gmail [dot] com

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