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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-22-2016, 02:14 PM
Watching films and TV is a valid tip. I learned English when I was not even a ten year old lad by watching countless hours of Cartoon Network (laugh all you want
) without translation (although having subtitles then would've helped enormously). That was the base thanks to which I could pull a basic accent from very early on. School was little help, maybe it was good for a bit of grammar but if you asked me now how past tense works I couldn't answer your question for shit (hell, I couldn't tell you even how Polish grammar works
). I just use it by instinct (not that I'm perfect at it). The second stage was refining. I did that by watching Top Gear without subs and films with subs. That took me, I don't know, 6 years until I would understand every single word and meaning in anything I read or heard. Writing is a bit harder, though, I need more practice.
Zdarzyło mi się pokonać armię ciemności albo dwie.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-22-2016, 06:28 PM
Movies and audiobooks works for me. I catch myself speaking Spanish and mixing in Arabic and vice versa especially if I'm having a stressful day.
Also as crazy as it may sound soap operas. I will listen to them playing while doing work in the background.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-22-2016, 07:10 PM
If your dreams are in a different language then you're near the pinnacle
A man is only as faithful as his options-Chris Rock
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-25-2016, 03:40 PM
I just passed my Chinese HSK1, and level 2 is up next month. Always set a goal for yourself, whatever language you're learning.
Actually HSK1 is pretty basic but on the other hand show somebody the sample exam (which is entirely in Chinese) and they'll totally respect you... and also I scored 199/200 which looks impressive.
Also while the level is basic putting it on my resume has been a massive boost - I always get asked about it at interviews, and while they're talking about that they're not asking me tough HR or technical questions... one place did wheel in a native Chinese speaker to question me though!!!! That's not gonna happen often though.
My Chinese has got a lot better since moving back to the UK (I lived in China for a while). It seems to have taken a while to sink in, but in the UK I signed up to some classes at a much higher level than my current level. That was great because my fellow students talked in Chinese a lot more, so I picked up more. I also have a CELTA and I noticed that as students get better at foreign languages, they use their native tongue a lot less, so you'll learn more in the classes.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-25-2016, 07:03 PM
I've always used duolingo for my French, but if you use duolingo long enough you start to catch on to all of the rehashed phrases you're drilled on over and over and I think your learning gets stunted at a certain point.
I've been thinking about upgrading to something better like Fluenz.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-25-2016, 07:53 PM
I am currently learning Russian. There two things I do everyday to keep up with the Russian.
I listen to Russian electronic music while working out not only do they speak Russian but the beats are catchy.
I am also reading Russian children's books like Harry Potter and also other books.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-25-2016, 08:28 PM
Staying proficient in a foreign language is hard, esp. if you are not using it every day. I am skeptical of utility of passive approaches like listening to music and TV (not that it's bad, but less helpful than people think). To keep my language level, outside of actual practice or instruction, my go to method is still pulling out my phone and going through Anki flashcards.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-25-2016, 09:28 PM
Using things like TV and radio are far better than something like Anki because language works in context, not individual words. If you only see words in isolation, it may help some, but a lot of language proficiency is having a shit ton of canned responses you can bust out without thinking.
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-26-2016, 06:03 AM
I'm seeing a girl that speaks one of the languages I'm speaking, it makes it a lot easier
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What do you read to stay/get profecient in your languages
04-27-2016, 04:54 PM
On subject of staying proficient.
There is one language I know, but never use. Can not mention it here, for privacy reasons as there are not so many of us
To stay fluent in that language all it takes for me is to read news once every few days.
Very easy way of doing it. You read news anyway. Once you do it for a while you will find your fingers opening the familiar website automatically each time.
The other question is whether you really want to hear news, as it is always negative...
As for learning you might want to check my
lazy language learning guide.