Focus Language School: Chicago & Phoenix» online language classes

Learning Mandarin Chinese: Getting started Part 2

jpfocus — Mon, 10 May 2010 21:05:29 +0000

So how do you proceed from here? You have a general idea what you need to learn. What is the best approach to learn effectively? the most effortless and fruitful? So many programs! So many promises!

Whatever system you choose, there are two fundamental ways to approach the language. Output and input based.

1. Output

This is the traditional approach. We are immediately asked to memorize and use an increasing amount of vocabulary and grammar. We are also asked to produce spoken and written language almost right away. This is the output-based method. It works well for people who do well at learning systems and rules. It can be more frustrating for intuitive or kinesthetic learners. The great challenge of this approach is always integration. Can you really use what you have learned? Do you understand native speakers? When you succeed learning through this approach, you will have a solid knowledge of your new language. Later articles will show you how to shine if you take this path. It is very effective if it shored up and facilitated by the massive input method.

2. Input

These days, there is a language learning movement – largely internet-based – which advocates learning through massive input first. Listen, listen, listen! Watch, absorb, fill yourself with your new language! Don’t worry about speaking until you can hear and understand. It works very well and eliminates the frustration of trying to speak before you are ready. This is naturally the input-based approach. This is what happens naturally in early childhood or when you move to a foreign country. Nowadays, it is easily possible to follow this approach while staying in your home country. How? Incredible internet resources – many of them absolutely free. We will cover some of the greatest ones in future posts. We will also advise you on how to use the input approach efficiently.

Input and Output

You don’t need to choose one or the other of these two paths. Choose both, of course! Initially focus on input. Let the language become familiar. Let it automatically ring in your head. Enjoy the impact of the new culture. Simultaneously, find your way around the grammar and vocabulary. Be curious and inquisitive. Find out how the language works. See if you can express yourself. Learn some simple expressions.

Next article will get you started practically on your Mandarin journey.

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Grammar Practice in the Internet Age

jpfocus — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 20:38:04 +0000

Intelligent grammar practice is still vitally important in language learning. It is still one of the most powerful tools at a student’s disposal. These days, there is a lot of material on language learning online. Many people are emphasizing the importance of intensive listening work. Numerous sites make great learning videos available. There are delightful podcasts, filled with humor, vocabulary and cultural knowledge. Some writers are actually saying that 90 percent of the work can be done simply by listening to a lot of recordings of natural language. They say that the need to learn grammar formally comes later. Vocabulary, they say, is King. Your level of knowledge of a language is defined by how many words of vocabulary you know.

I agree with them to a certain degree. Lack of vocabulary knowledge is a crippling blow to communication and understanding of a new language. However, I have found in my own learning, that a clear and precise understanding of grammar allows for a much deeper and active kmnowledge of a new language. I found that understanding native speakers, catching the gyst of what I was hearing did improve my capabilities. It definitely improved my pronunciation and allowed me to form my own sentences much more naturally. It also taught me high-frequency expressions and language mannerisms. All this is quite useful. However my capacity to speak and form intelligible sentences seemed limited – on the level of syntax – by how much of that syntax I had absorbed unconsciously and intuitively. I somehow knew how to say something: unconscious competence. The problem with this approach is that is can be random and passive.

I have found that good practical grammar practice goes a long way towards developing my fluency systematically. The three steps I like to use are the following. 1. Study and understand a specific pattern. 2. Learn how to use the pattern reliably. 3. Do a lot of “English to the New language” translation. Translation is frowned upon as a learning tool by many. Yet the ability to translate compentently demonstrates a deep and real knowledge of a language. When you are bilingual, translation can be almost instantaneous and flawless. It can also be a great learning tool.

My favorite structure for practicing involves using a good recording with numerous examples of the new pattern being learned. The best format is “English – pause – new language – pause – new language – pause.” This allows me to look for the translation in my own memory and set of tools, to compare it to a native version; and finally to repeat it twice if I am incorrect or not sure. It instantly lets me know what my capacity is. If I try to say”I have been working here for two years” in Chinese or in French, I can either do it or not.

So although it may not be in style, I find grammar drill practice to be vital and extremely powerful as a learning tool. Done intelligently, it is akin to practicing a basic sport technique until it becomes automatic. The trick is to do it in an interesting way.

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Back on the Road

jpfocus — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 19:41:41 +0000

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 learned ten or twenty times faster than when we started out. Vocabulary fades really fast if we don’t use it – even in our mother tongue. But we can easily relearn words we used to know. I always found that grammar stayed in place dormant and was pretty easy to reactivate. It’s the same thing with pronunciation. Your mouth and your ears remember.

The best way to reawaken a language is to reconnect with the familiar. Find your old recordings and podcasts and just start listening. Be passive. You are recreating an echo. It is useful to have the written texts as well. Refresh your eyes as well as your ears.

The other best way is to find brand new fun materials that attract you. The internet language tools available keep multiplying: movies, videos, tubes, games… There is an endless wealth of language resources.

The third best way is to connect or reconnect with the culture of the language you want to learn. Find meetup groups on the internet and go play with natives and other people who want to learn. There is no substitute for being involved with other people.

So in with the old and in with the new. Within a week or two you will be amazed how much you have recovered of your previous knowledge.

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Meditation and Language Learning

jpfocus — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 23:40:05 +0000

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 and planning my afternoon meeting. The problem with that is lack of depth. The biggest challenge through time in learning a language is remembering thousands of words and their proper context. It is virtually impossible to do this efficiently without creating deep associations. Without associations memory melts like snow in the sun.

What are the principal elements of meditation? Focus. Relaxation. Comfort. Effortless patience. Pleasure.

We have already mentioned focus: the one-pointed concentration on a piece of information and the use of multi-sensory associations. This really is the great key. Which do you think you would remember faster: your neighbor’s social security number or the number to a Swiss Bank account in your name containing $500,000? The difference would be the focus applied to memorizing.

Relaxation and comfort are also vital. Stress is really a form of pain. Can you dance if there is a nail poking through the sole of your shoe? So get comfortable. Study in a place you enjoy, a place which relaxes you and makes you feel comfortable.

Effortless patience is an interesting one. Meditation gives you the ability to be fully present in your body, to enjoy the physicality of the moment you are living, to let your thoughts move through as clouds in a Summer sky. Every physical, mental or emotional experience that surfaces becomes the source of your meditation. Applying this to memorization is very fruitful. You are fully associated as you process, code and imprint the new words. Someone who enjoys reading poetry would automatically do this.

Pleasure is the direct result of all the other aspects, whether you are sitting in meditation, painting a portrait or learning new vocabulary words.

So there you are! Meditation is another powerful tool to be applied to learning a language.

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The Treasures of the Internet

jpfocus — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:54:29 +0000

Twenty years ago, if you wanted to learn a language, you bought a book and a cassette series, and you looked for a teacher in your city. With the Internet explosion of the recent years, there are treasures beyond all imaginings for the language learner. There are organizations, schools, individuals, blogs which provide us with countless tools: podcasts, games, lessons, language exchanges, free materials etc.

What this means is that you can customize your way of learning exactly to your own specifications. You can work alone, with others, online, at home, anywhere and any way you like. If you find one learning style boring, there are many others to choose from. And there are so many people willing to help and share their knowledge and their tools. Yes, there are entities who may think of us only as consumers and sources of income. They make seductive promises so that we buy their products. But there are also many people who are sharing information out of kindness, joy and a desire to help.

With the onset of IM, Skype video calls, etc, we are able to communicate directly with anyone in the world instantly. Instead of Bali, Morroco or Italy being days and thousands of dollars away, they are within instant reach – and for free. So as we organize our learning, we can easily expand and connect with people who speak the language we are learning. This is the delightful gift of the Internet to the language student. Have fun in your treasure hunt! and if you want to practice your new language online, you can contact me at my school, Focus Language. Our prices are reasonable and we will help you shine in your new language. Jean-Paul

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English, Spanish, French, Italian, Mandarin & Hindi Classes Online

jpfocus — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:49:06 +0000

We want to invite you to join us for Online Language Classes. It is probably the most convenient way of practicing a new language. It lets you have a class from home whenever it is convenient for you.

Speaking a language, hearing it, and interacting with native speakers are the vital steps that allow you to make a language yours. It is often a challenge to arrange this. Online classes make it incredibly easy. We must still learn new vocabulary and grammar to expand our knowledge, but a new language only becomes integrated when we speak it and hear it frequently. Online language are an amazing way to do this.

All you need to set up your online language classes with us is Skype and a webcam. (Skype is a phone, IM and video service: www.skype.com. It takes 5 minutes to set up and costs $4 a month) Online video calls allow us to meet with anyone on the planet and have a personal, productive multi-sensory experience effortlessly.

Call us at (630) 333 9513 or Email us for a free consultation and trial class. Finally begin to practice your new language regularly.

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