Learning English is an excellent way to improve your life. However, if you begin your English learning process with dread and a belief that it is impossible, it will make you miserable. Too many people start and stop learning English right away because they think it is too difficult. Typically, this is because people are focusing on textbooks and grammar rules.
By switching your focus and identifying why you want to learn English, you are already off to a better start than them. First, know that learning English is not only possible, but it is also fun! Ideally, you want to learn English so that you can communicate using English. You are not learning English to master grammar rules or read textbooks.
You hope to learn conversational or business English, right? Every year, students across the world head to language schools in Washington DC to learn English. They learn how to communicate in English fluently, experience a new culture, and make new friends. These language schools make it both easy and fun to learn a foreign language.
Along with their classes, these students also learn the importance of finding ways to use English in their every day lives. By using English every day, they will become fluent sooner.
TED Blog states, “The more you invite a foreign language into your daily life, the more your brain will consider it something useful and worth caring about.”
It’s easier than you realize to make your daily activities learning activities. Here are twenty ideas to get you started:
Change your phone settings
By changing your phone’s language settings to English, you will be forced to use English to operate its basic functions. Additionally, your messages and web browsing will be done in English. Since you are familiar with your phone’s basic operations, you will quickly be able to understand the same operations in English.
Talk to yourself
When you are alone, go ahead and talk aloud or read aloud in English. Practice conversations, read books, or narrate what you are doing.
Watch tv shows and movies
Find some American television shows that you enjoy and watch them with the subtitles on. Sitcoms are great tools for learning conversational English and are less than half an hour each. Likewise, watch your favorite movie genres in English.
Listen to music and sing along
Music is an excellent way to learn new English vocabulary. Go ahead and load up your phone or mobile device with your favorite songs in English and listen to them often. When you feel ready, sing along. When you are feeling brave, head out to karaoke and perform in English.
Read articles, blogs, and books
We spend a significant amount of time scrolling through our newsfeeds online. Add your favorite English writers, bloggers, and journalists to your follow list and read their work in English when it crosses your feed.
Keep a daily journal
At the end of each day, take a few minutes to write about the things you did that day in English. Students taking English courses in Washington DC will have plenty to write about each day such as the things they saw, the places they went, and the food they ate.
Speak in English on public outings
It is intimidating to speak in English in public, but ultimately, this is your goal. So, make efforts to speak in English when you are eating in a restaurant or shopping. Speak to waiters and cashiers in English whenever possible.
There are tons of online language learning games and apps that you can download to your devices. Find a game you love and play it regularly.
Find a conversation partner
Having a conversation partner is critical for learning to practice and speak in English. Students who study English in Washington DC will be able to pair with their classmates, as well as be introduced to native English speakers. Additionally, you can find conversation partners online with programs such as Busuu.
Use English for voice-activated devices
If you have an Apple Device that uses Siri or an Amazon Alexa device, use English to speak to these devices. This is a great way to practice speaking English because it will force you to enunciate and use the right words.
Use speak to text
Likewise, use the talk to text feature on your cell phone to communicate in English. You will have to speak clearly and then you can check to see if your words were clear enough for your phone to write the correct message you intend to send.
Tell someone about your day
If you have a roommate or live with family, make it a regular habit to spend a few minutes telling them about your day using English only.
Think in English
It may sound crazy, but language learning experts swear that thinking in the language is a great way to master it. For example, when you see an object, think of its English name in your head.
Take an English class in DC
If you are serious about learning English, then enroll in an English class at the Washington language school, inlingua. Inlingua’s unique program is designed to help you quickly become fluent in English.
Label things at home
Stock up on post-it notes and use them to label objects throughout your home in English. Place post-it notes on everyday objects that will surely come up in conversation.
Keep a notebook for new words
Keep a notebook or an ongoing digital notepad of new English vocabulary words you encounter. Then, take time to look up their definitions when you get back home.
Text and email using English
While attending language schools in DC, students should make it part of their routine to text message and email in English. This is a real-life way to practice writing in English.
Keep in touch with family and friends back home by using Skype to show off your new English skills. Or, use video chat to practice speaking and listening to English with a native speaker through a partnering program.
Use English for your hobbies
Take the hobbies you love and give them an English twist. For example, if you enjoy online gaming, then speak to your teammates or opponents in English.
Immerse yourself in the language
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, immerse yourself in the language. Students who choose to study English in Washington DC will be immersed in the language – hearing it and seeing it every day. Immersion is the best way to learn a foreign language.
What are you waiting for? Sign up for an English class at inlingua today!