Passion, in any area of our life, improves our performance and insures that our motivation remains high. Learning a language is not an instantaneous process. Many advertisers tell you you can learn Chinese or French in a month, 10 days or even 3 days. This is of course unrealistic (I mean absurd). It takes time and application to develop fluency in any language: ask any baby. It is possible to learn smatterings of shopping language or travel language in a few hours. And it… Continue reading
Archive for the ‘language learning’ Category
Learning a Language with Passion
Thursday, July 15th, 2010
Learn a New Language with Focus Language: in Person or Online
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010
Would you like to learn a Foreign Language? Focus Language makes it feasible and enjoyable.
Easy to learn:
Many people believe that learning a new language is a difficult and boring task. We make it doable and fun. We provide you with the right teachers, the right materials and the right programs. We have thirty years experience helping people learn.
Fast:
We understand how to structure our programs so you can learn efficiently and fast. All you need to do is apply and enjoy yourself… Continue reading
Learning Mandarin Chinese Part 5: Pinyin
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010
Pinyin is the writing system that allows you to read Mandarin immediately. It is written with the Roman alphabet and is very consistent. You just need to learn how to read the different sounds. Some letters are used as they are in English: bei, hua, lao etc. Others are not. You simply need to learn the new values: xi is pronounced like she and qi is pronounced like chi.
Pinyin makes it possible to pronounce Chinese fairly accurately very fast. You want to be learning how to… Continue reading
Learning Mandarin Chinese Part 3: Sound
Monday, May 10th, 2010
MANDARIN AND SOUND
Language is sound. Arrgh! … Oops! … Wow! … Oh noooo! … Various combinations of sound communicate our meaning. As you approach Mandarin as your new language, get acquainted with its sounds. The better you hear, the easier it will be to understand natives. The better you sound when you speak, the easier your communication will be.
Falling in love
My advice is always to learn a language that you are attracted to. It is much easier to spend time with something… Continue reading
Learning Mandarin Chinese: Getting started Part 1
Monday, May 10th, 2010
Mandarin Chinese is a beautiful language. I have deeply enjoyed my own learning journey through it. This article is the first in a series for anyone interested in its study.
In many ways, learning Mandarin is no different than studying French, Spanish or German. You need to learn new sounds, to get a feel for how natives say things. There are words and expressions to be learned. It naturally takes motivation and time. But there also are different things to absorb. If you approach them smartly, they become… Continue reading
New Tools for the Language Student
Wednesday, April 7th, 2010
(A post about how to use the Google Translate Tool to practice a language.) I recently decided to brush up on my Chinese. I always roll with laughter when I see “Learn Chinese in 7 days” programs being advertised.
Whenever you learn a language, the great limitation is vocabulary – in speaking and also in understanding. Trying to increase my own fluency, I just created the following technique for practice.
I was listening to a guided meditation in English and was trying my best to translate what I… Continue reading
Back on the Road
Tuesday, April 6th, 2010
How do you get back into language study after stopping for a while? Life can get in the way, and before you know it, months have elapsed without your doing any study. Shame, guilt, and grief set in. Discouragement: the great enemy! These emotions are obstacles to be dealt with.
So how do we resume study seamlessly?
The first part is mental. Remind yourself it is normal to take breaks. Even after years of not using a language, we can relearn what we had… Continue reading
The Magic of Comprehension.
Tuesday, March 9th, 2010
I often hear this complaint from students learning a language: “I can’t understand anything”! Yes, it can be frustrating when you have been studying hard. It can be discouraging and embarrassing. But do not worry: comprehension will come. Sometimes you need to hear something 12 times to hear and remember it!
I have a student from China who is learning English. She studied English for 10 years but initially could not understand much. She had just arrived from Sichuan and was quite… Continue reading
Meditation and Language Learning
Monday, March 1st, 2010
We think of meditation as a spiritual practice or as a tool for reducing stress. But what do they have to do with learning a new language? Actually, meditation is the ability to be fully focused on whatever activity we are engaged in in the present moment. An artist captivated by his work, or an athlete fully associated in the body and its every movement and nuance are meditating.
The antithesis of meditation is multi-tasking. I am riding my motorcycle while texting my friend, eating lunch… Continue reading
The Importance of Love, Beauty and Nature in the Learning Process
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
We normally think of efficiency, brain enhancing substances, extraordinary software and stream-lined cutting edge methods when we think of improving our learning capabilities. There is an entirely different aspect of learning which I have encountered in my long career as a student and a language learner: Love, Beauty and Nature. We are so efficient, having become multi-tasking masters and super-focused planners. We may be doing more, but are we actually becoming more accomplished? Are we more fulfilled and happy? I believe the answer is we… Continue reading