Posts Tagged ‘chicago language school’
Friday, February 26th, 2010
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… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, language classes online, language school Chicago, language tutor online, languageschools chicago, online language classes
Posted in language schools, online english classes, online french classes, online italian classes, online language classes, online mandarin classes, online spanish classes | No Comments »
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
Tags: chicago language school, language classes online, language school Chicago, language tutor online, languageschools chicago, online language classes
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Saturday, February 6th, 2010
Learning a language is a time-consuming project. It can seem that there is always a new verb form to learn, a new vocabulary word we need to know. It is therefore important to appreciate what you have already done, the parts of the language you have already acquired. Our subconscious learning machine builds on its own success. It is important to let it know it is accomplishing its task satisfactorily. Self-criticism can often lead to discouragement. When you are learning, you know that it will take you… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, language classes online, language school Chicago, language tutor online, languageschools chicago, online language classes
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Wednesday, February 3rd, 2010
Focus Language School has been in operation in Phoenix, Arizona for almost thirty years: the land of desert and eternal sun. Winters are idyllic and summers make you curious about the fires of hell. We have just opened our Chicago area office – in February – and the contrast is striking. In the white beauty of the Illinois winter, you are reminded of wind and ice as forces of nature instead of the relentlessness of the Arizona Summer sun. How does climate and weather help shape languages? The following ideas are intuitive impressions and not the result of a scientific… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, language classes online, language school Chicago, language tutor online, languageschools chicago, online language classes
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Friday, January 1st, 2010
Focus Language has come to Chicago, one of the great American cities. We are excited to be opening a school here. There are very active, well-developed cultural venues: one of the largest Chinatown in the US, a powerful East Indian community, and so many others. Learning a language involves immersing yourself in the culture, breathing it in, living and dreaming it. Chicago is a tremendous resource to our students both local and coming form out-of town. We are now offering online classes. It is a fantastic way to learn a language very conveniently. Short, frequent, inexpensive classes make it… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, chicago language schools, language school Chicago
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Friday, December 18th, 2009
If you have read some of the posts I wrote about improving your comprehension through listening intensively, you are ready for the next step. To do nothing. That’s correct. Nothing at all. You actually need to listen to recordings daily for a while until your internal language machine takes over. Have you ever used voice recognition software? (Dragon Speaking Naturally, for example). You actually have to train the software to recognize your own unique voice. Until it does, it cannot type out what you speak.
This is exactly what you are doing here. You need to hear French or Chinese… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, chicago language schools, foreign language school, language school, language school Chicago, language school Phoenix, Language Schools, Language Schools Chicago, Phoenix language school
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Friday, December 18th, 2009
If you can begin to practice your new language with native speakers, you will be able to progress faster – and have fun. The process can also be unnerving or frustrating. So what are the ways to make this practice time fruitful, while keeping your morale up.?
Understand that there are two kinds of natives: good natives and bad ones. Joking aside, only ever work with people who are helpful, patient and benevolent towards you. You must feel inspired and hopeful at the end of the session. Some people want to help, but they are not a good match for… Continue reading
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Friday, December 18th, 2009
What is the secret of developing your comprehension in a new language? Follow the bouncing ball! Yes the old musical movies and the Karaoke parlors revealed this secret decades ago.
First, let us make some preparations. You need to get the code first. If you do not understand the basic vocabulary, you will not be able to break through into understanding. So select several 10-20 minute-long recordings or podcasts of well-recorded natural native conversations. You must have a transcript of the text for best results, as well as a translation. (The Google translation tool is state of the art and… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, chicago language schools, foreign language school, language school, language school Chicago, language school Phoenix, Language Schools, Language Schools Chicago, Phoenix language school
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Friday, December 18th, 2009
What is a good study focus? There are several possibilities, based on your specific language goals and personality.
The Personality component
As a student, are you systematic? intuitive/spontaneous? casual? driven? solitary? social? Realize that you need to adjust any scheduling suggestions to your way of learning and doing things.
Language Goals
1. Developing a deep and thorough knowledge of the language.
You want to master the language. You are committed for the duration. To achieve this goal, you need to develop your capacity in the 5 areas of language learning systematically. Assuming a 5-day study schedule, you want to work… Continue reading
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Friday, December 18th, 2009
When you are serious about learning a language, there are many things you can do to insure that you progress efficiently. This post outlines the most important ones.
1. Clearly understand what you need to learn to progress fast. You need an accurate “map” of the language you will be exploring. This is a clear outline of the skills, content and time elements involved in learning a particular language.
2. Learn how to learn most efficiently. There are specific principles and techniques which facilitate this. You take the various elements of your map and you learn how to master each… Continue reading
Tags: chicago language school, chicago language schools, foreign language school, language school, language school Chicago, language school Phoenix, Language Schools, Language Schools Chicago, Phoenix language school
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