LANGUAGE EXPLORER

Hello

Welcome to my third podcast. Bonjour, Guten Tag, Buenas dias, Bom dia, goeden dag, ni hao Jo napot

This time I’ve decided to call this a “blogcast” because I thought that it might be a nice idea to just talk about a few things, writing it down as if I were just chatting with you.

So, I’ll talk for a few minutes about a few things that I’m interested in regarding my language.

The first thing I’d like to talk about is expressions

English people love using expressions and sayings when they talk with each other. It adds interest to conversations and “colour” to the language. It always surprises me that when I am talking with non-native speakers I notice just how many expressions I want to use – but then have to think about whether the person I am talking with would understand them.

When I was in France in 1997 to learn French, I made a comparison between English and French expressions. It was interesting to discover which were the same (when directly translated) as for example, “walls have ears” and others that were not quite the same:

Never in a month of Sundays (English)
Never in a week of 4 Thursdays (French)

The meaning was the same – it means that something will never happen.

Here’s a good website that explains lots of expressions: http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/

I often wonder how people keep motivated when they learn something. Language learning is difficult and it’s easy to get a little bored or feel that things are a bit too difficult. I also think that keeping motivation high is not always easy. Here’s a good expression I found on the Internet:

Be respectful towards yourself:
“Don’t shout at the apple and demand that it ripens!
It won’t ripen any faster and all you’ll get is a sore throat!!!”

This really does apply to language learning I think – even the part about shouting !

Have you ever tried singing in a different language to your own native language. I’ve been learning French songs for a couple of years and it’s very difficult! On the other hand it’s really interesting to have a try and see how pronunciation can improve – it also interesting to be able to see what the songwords mean – depending on the song these can be difficult to understand.

One thing that is difficult for language learners is when native speakers speak fast and it is difficult to follow them. I have had lots of problems with this in the past with French and German people speaking too fast for me – and it sometimes still happens.

I have a technique that seems to work for me and I’d like to share it with you. This involves trying to listen carefully but also to listen mostly for key (or the most important) words so that you can follow the sense of what is being said. Also, don’t be afraid to interrupt (politely) with an interjection something like “ oh yes?, I see” or if you don’t understand so well, then repeat what you think was said.

Here’s an example of what I mean:

Main speaker (native speaker)

“ Ah, so you are learning English, and how do you find it – do you find it interesting, difficult sometimes I suppose. We talk a bit too fast maybe it’s difficult for you to follow everything that is said…”

Here the words to listen to

“ Ah, so you are learning English, and how do you find it? – do you find it interesting, difficult sometimes? I suppose you would. We talk a bit too fast maybe it’s difficult for you to follow everything that is said…”

You could say:

“Ah, yes, I’m learning English” - it is interesting – sometimes I find it difficult yes

The idea is to keep listening to the important points, and if you don’t understand something completely, then always be prepared to say so “oh, sorry, I didn’t just catch what said there – could you just tell me that again please?”

Bye for now

See you next time

Hello

Welcome to my second podcast. Bonjour, Guten Tag, Buenas dias, Bom dia, goeden dag, ni hao Jo napot

Today I’d like to talk about common mistakes which people make when they are learning English. These are often only small mistakes and really don’t matter to a native English speaker like me when we hear them – but I thought it might be interesting to discuss some of these small mistakes here,

Remember that part of my learning philosophy is to not worry about making mistakes – so with this podcast I’d like you to know that am not trying to make you worry about them – just to know a little more about my language.

The first common mistake people make is to use the word “since” when talking about things that are happening now that started in the past, for example when people say “I am learning English since 2 years” when this should be “ I have been learning English for 2 years”. We use the word “since” to describe things that started in the past, but not for talking about duration of time someone has been learning or doing something. Some examples of English using “since”

“Since I started learning English I find I enjoy writing letters more”
“Since you left I have been very sad”
“I’ve changed a lot since we last met”

Another common mistake is to use the phrase “of course” in the wrong context. If, for example someone offers you a cup of tea “would you like a cup of tea?” the correct answer would be “yes, please” or “no, thankyou”. Sometimes learners of English will say “ of course!” meaning to them “how kind of you, I would like a cup of tea, yes”

But if they say “of course” it could sound to the native English speaker something like “ yes I do, and you should already know that I do!” – in other words a little bit impolite. Of course, we do you the phrase “of course” – which I just used!

Some examples:

“Of course, when we go to the beach, we must not forget our towels”
“Of course I would like to go with you to the show – because we’d love seeing it together”
“I would, of course, need to bring my swim suit if we are going to the beach!”

These statements are used to agree with someone or affirm something needs or should be done.

Of course, there are many more uses for “of course” and of course, I would like to tell you more about it, but of course, I haven’t much time to do this today!

Common pronunciation difficulties:

The “th” sound as in think, thought, thanks as also the slightly different sound with the, these, though, there and those for example

The “r” sound for running, riding, rowing, rocking and rolling!

The “w” sound for walking a wonderful way to work

I’ll talk a little more about pronunciation next time

Bye for now

Hello, welcome to my language podcast. I thought that I’d make a podcast to help my friends who I speak with in Paltalk to learn more English.

If you like these podcasts, I’ll make more when I have time. Learning a language isn’t easy. I can vouch for that. I’ve been learning French for 16 years and German for 7 years – it’s never easy for me. Having said that, I find that learning a language can be very enjoyable despite the difficulties. It helps you to understand more about the people and countries where the language is spoken. In the case of English, this is a world-wide language – a “lingua franca” for the modern world. The Internet has made English even more important, and more and more people the world over are learning my native language.

You may have read my “Top 10 language tips” on my blog. I’ll explain them a bit more.

1. Keep motivated even when you are frustrated with your progress - which will sometimes happen - Rome wasn’t built in a day! Don’t expect to become fluent very quickly, learning a language well takes many years. But always remember that any level allows communication. I think that very often learners expect to become fluent much more quickly than is possible. This can lead to a lot of frustration and it can also make learners feel they aren’t progressing when they are!
2. Keep interested in new words - they are the key to any progress. What I mean here is that language is mostly about words – a person who knows a lot of words would communicate without much grammar. I’ve read somewhere that to speak a language in a basic way needs a vocabulary of 2000 words. This sounds a lot – but isn’t so difficult to learn with a bit of patience and time.
3. Enjoy using the language you already have - many people often say that they are “not yet good enough” - but forget what they have already achieved and what opportunities it brings. I realised a long time ago that “a little goes a long way” and I have found that it is surprising just how much communication can take place at any level.
4. Use the Internet as and when you can. There is a fantastic amount of useful material, not to mention interesting and useful blogs and chatrooms. I remember the first time I went on line which is 10 years ago this year. I thought, what a great opportunity for me, I can learn now from my own living room. These days, there is so much there for you to get for free. It’s a brilliant resource if used intelligently.
5. Read in the target language as much as you can. But don’t try to read at a level too high - or you will get frustrated. Try reading for enjoyment sometimes at the level you are at - or just a little higher. You will find this encouraging. I read a book many years ago on second language learning that placed a big emphasis on reading a lot – but was careful to point out that the level should not be too high or it would not be beneficial. Too many courses in my opinion expect learners to read texts that are set at too high a level.
6. Make as many friends as you can that speak the target language - maybe you could join a language club where people learn together. I am a member of 3 French language clubs and 2 German language club. If you find it difficult to find a club, you could try to make some “virtual friends” online. This is something that takes some effort, but is really worth it. It means looking to see what is out there and where you can find the right club. I know people who form their own club for exchanging ideas and tips. I do realise also, that finding clubs and native speakers is sometimes impossible depending on where you live.
7. Don’t think of mistakes as failure - this is negative. Think of mistakes as “feedback” and then you learn to find ways to reduce them by keeping a positive attitude. When did you see a young child worry about making mistakes? This is my point. When did a child think that they make mistakes? They only know it if an adult corrects them – and very often this is a parent who corrects in a nice way – so they child never thinks of mistakes – and gets on with learning. As a result – they learn quickly. We can do this as adults if we try.
8. Take every opportunity to speak the language and engage with people. If you can’t find anyone to talk with, then talk about things with yourself (out of earshot or people will start to wonder…) I have some interesting conversations with myself whilst driving…! And other places too. If this is your only means to express yourself – then don’t forget to do it! Listening to yourself speak is similar to learning to play and instrument “by ear”. I’ve been learning guitar this way for 37 years and I play for myself more often than I play for other people – I’m not a professional musician. So take every opportunity to speak as much as possible.
9. Learn about the culture of the country or countries where the language is spoken when you have some spare time. For example: English culture is somewhat different to the USA but we have many similarities and we do speak the same language - or do we? In reality there are quite a few differences between American English and British English. However these variations in accent and dialect happen with other languages too. I read that one of the most important things in developing language learning is to also learn about the culture of the countries where the language is spoken. This helps make the language “real”, because it helps put the language in context.
10. Finally don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t progress as fast as you would like to. Learning a language isn’t a smooth process - you can learn a lot quickly sometimes - then sometimes the progress is slow. Always think of language learning as a long-term project not a short-term project and you’ll enjoy it more. I can’t think of any more to say on this apart from

Finally, here is my own favourite saying (I wrote it myself)

“Enjoy what you know and the rest will only grow”

Take care

See you next time

Merci j’espere que tu l’as trouve interessant!
Danke schoen, Ich hoffe dass, alles interessant war
I hope you found it interesting

Bye!

More thoughts on language learning

Just some thoughts about common mistakes people make when learning English and a few more thoughts besides

My English language learning tips!

More information about my language learning experiences and transcripts for the podcasts are available at::

www.alanpalmer.blogspot.com

Alan’s language chat room at www.paltalk.com

Category: “Education/Learn different languages”