How to Learn a Language By Yourself? Learning a new language just takes dedication and practice! If you’re looking to teach yourself a foreign language, there are tons of resources and tips to help you get started.
Language is not only its words and grammar. Language consists of slang, local dialects, the speed and rhythm with which its spoken, abbreviations, and idioms which people use. Understanding all these dimensions of a language in addition to learning its vocabulary and speaking the right words is what learning a language means.
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My Story to speak 6 Languages
First, let me tell you my story of learning 6 Languages, so that you know you can learn a language on your own.
Well, I speak more than 6 languages currently, Punjabi(Native), Urdu (Native), English, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian and German. While, I am planing to add two more languages in my CV, Spanish and Portuguese.
There is the only English language, which I learnt during school and university studies in Pakistan, my homeland.
Before traveling to Sweden, I couldn’t speak Swedish and wondered how I was going to survive in a Swedish culture. I assumed that Swedish folks would make my life easy by talking to me in English.
Learning Swedish in Sweden wasn’t easy. I struggled to make my way around Sweden from morning until night. While, I couldn’t understand the conversations on the dining table and longed to participate.
Words fell on my ears but my brain couldn’t comprehend them.
Rather than pitying myself, I decided to learn enough Swedish to understand the people around me and reply. So that’s what I did. From speaking incorrect Swedish unabashedly to practicing Swedish grammar with workbooks, I tried all ways to learn a language.
Fast forward a few weeks, and I started speaking Swedish fluently. I was still a foreigner in Sweden, but as I began to understand more Swedish, I became part of Swedish culture.
Meanwhile, Danish and Norwegian have similarities with Swedish, so it was fun to learn these languages.
While, the German language is quite different from previous languages, which I mentioned here. So, German language is last addition in my list of fluent languages at the moment.
Why should you learn a foreign language?
Do you want to travel or study abroad? Or maybe you want to work or volunteer in a different country?
If you want to become a part of another culture and assimilate with people at the other end of the world, you will have to converse in their language else you wouldn’t understand their lives and would always remain a foreigner.
To survive or to feel at home anywhere, invest time in learning a foreign language.
If you have the right motivation, you can learn a language on your own.
So, here are few tips to learn any Language from scratch.
Keep It Simple at Start
It’s possible to become conversational in a language in just 90 days. At the beginning, you need to use material that’s really, really simple.
Focus on how to say hello, the most common verbs, the most important adjectives, and how to count.
Though many apps do let you jump around and cherry pick lessons, you’re most likely to see success if you follow the curriculum as intended.
Study Grammar Roles
Chances are good that the grammar rules of your target language will be quite different from that of your native language. Spending some time learning how sentences are structured, such as the word order, parts of speech, and subject-verb agreement, will help you in the long run.
Speak the New Language
Learning a language “on your own” doesn’t mean you have to learn alone. In fact, language learning is a fantastic way to meet new people. If no one in your social circle speaks your target language, a quick Google search will lead you to conversations with native speakers, language tutors, or other learners like you!
Make Mistakes
Many beginners hesitate to apply their new language skills to real-life situations because they don’t want to embarrass themselves in front of others.
Mistakes are inevitable in the language learning process. The only way to perfect your speaking skills is to keep practicing.
Be Consistent
For language learning to stick, it’s important to practice regularly, with no more than a couple of days in between lessons.
For best results, Practice at least 30 minutes per day, four to five days per week. If it helps, set yourself a reminder for the same time each day.
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