The Best Techniques to Learn English (Or Any Language) Quickly!

Learning English can seem really daunting.  It is a complex language with many special circumstances that make learning and following the grammatical and pronunciation rules difficult.  Here’s some techniques to help you conquer all the idiosyncrasies and start communicating in English.

The language-learning process has 3 stages.  If we think about how children learn their native tongue, they follow these 3 steps, over and over, until they’ve mastered speaking fluently and effectively: Listen, think, then speak.

Listen

Start out by listening.  This trains your ear to hear the language you’re learning.  Although it may seem like you’re not learning anything at first, you’re training your ear to hear English. You’ll be training your brain to pick up on the sounds, cadences, and rhythms of the language.

Think

Next, as you learn words and phrases, try to think in English.  However, don’t try to translate every word from your native language to English.  Try to associate objects and activities with words or phrases in English.  The more you do this, the easier it becomes and before long, you’ll be thinking in English!

Speak

Finally, find ways to practice speaking.  You can do this by yourself (I’ll give you some ideas how to do this below) or find a friend and speak with each other.  Each day add a new phrase or vocabulary into your conversations.  Before you know it, you’ll be speaking like a native!

Here are some specific activities to try in each phase:

Listening Activities

• Watch video series designed to help teach English.  These are designed to take you through specific steps, adding new concepts and vocabulary and gradually becoming more complex.  Try to listen to, rather than watch at first.  You want to concentrate on hearing the language first, then go back and watch the series again, using actions and context to see if you can understand what is being said. English Conversation has a great series on YouTube.
• Listen to YouTube videos on subjects you are interested in.  If you like cooking, watch cooking videos.  If you like animals, watch videos about animals.  Or watch videos about sports if you like sports.  Whatever subject interests you, find videos to watch where the narrator is speaking about that subject.
• Listen to the radio.  Announcers and advertisements are a great way to hear English spoken in a neutral accent. 
• Listen to audio books.  Choose a subject that interests you and begin with shorter books that will have less complicated language. Audible has a great program to get you started with audio books. Check it out here!

Thinking Activities

• Watch videos and movies with subtitles.  Try to understand what is being said before you read the subtitles.
• Think about what you are doing throughout your day, describing it to yourself in English.  If you don’t know the vocabulary for an activity, look it up in a dictionary or online.
• Keep a journal in English.  Write down your thoughts, ideas, and actions for each day.  This will not only help you think in English, but will also keep track of your progress.
• Use a good self-study program.  Check out my list of the best workbooks in English here.  Choose something that will help you with your goals.  Incorporate what you learn into your daily life.  Personalizing your studies makes them more meaningful and will help you learn quicker.

Speaking Activities

• Read aloud.  Read to your kids or grandkids, too. This is a great way to get your jaw and muscles accustomed to forming the words and phrases in English.  It also helps you to develop the cadences and rhythms of the new language.
• Talk about what you are doing as you go through your day.  “I am washing my hands.”  “I drive to work every morning at 8.”  “Now, I am watching my favorite show on tv.”  Add new words, phrases, or expressions to your descriptions to increase vocabulary and grammar knowledge.
• Describe pictures.  Look through books, magazines, or online and find pictures to describe.  You can start out simple, and as your vocabulary increases find more and more things to say out loud about each picture.  This can be a great writing exercise too, The goal is to develop the habit of thinking and speaking in English without first having to translate from your native language.

• Talk about past and future events.  You can talk about events in your life, or historical events.  Then, do the same for the future.  Talking about the past and future enhances your ability to communicate fluently.
• Talk with a partner.  Find a buddy to talk to.  Join a Facebook group or Meetup group of fellow English learners and talk to them.  You can talk by phone or video call, if you are more comfortable doing it that way. Talking with a partner will help you both become more comfortable speaking, both with each other and with others.
• Find a good coach.  A good coach can help you with all of these activities by guiding you and challenging you to increase your knowledge and skills and will also point out areas where you may need additional practice.  A competent teacher will provide you with targeted instruction as well as give you additional ways to practice your new knowledge.  Lastly, your coach will work with you to tailor a program of study that takes into account your own needs and goals.  Find a good coach and see your progress soar!

There you have it!  The best ideas for quickly learning English.  And just as in any journey, the first step is always the most important, so choose an activity from the above list and get started on your journey to fluency in English!