Adeline, one of our Assistant Managers and an exceptional linguist, reveals some nifty language-learning secrets!
Learning a language can seem overwhelming, as you may feel you don’t know where to start and get the impression you’re not making progress. I'd like to try and give you some tips that may help you, whether you’re a beginner or an advanced learner.
The first one would be to make sure you list all the new words you come across. The old-fashioned way is to buy a plain address book and list the words alphabetically (make sure you always list the same language first). Writing down the words already helps you remember them, and you will be able to take a look at the previous words every time you add a new one.
If you’d like something a bit more modern, there are plenty of apps that can help you do this on your phone or tablet. In addition to the famous language learning apps, I really like Quizlet (available for free on the App Store and Google Play) because it’s fully customisable. It means you can create a list with the vocabulary you’re currently working on at school and then play various little games to help you remember them.
In general, it's good to always keep an eye (or an ear) out for words you don’t know — every new lesson or conversation you’re in is an opportunity to expand your vocabulary. I've been speaking English for years but I find that I still learn new words — in the office, I recently learnt the words "mortarboard" and "cog" thanks to Leticia Debola and our computer system, as well as the phrase "pet peeve" thanks to Joe Hytner, so I should probably dig out my old address book myself to make sure I remember these!
More tips to follow in a second instalment: keep your eyes peeled...
Blog Post Crafted by Adeline:
Adeline assists Leticia in running our Admin Team. With a PhD in English, she can call herself a doctor but can’t write prescriptions!
Adeline manages the staff on our Admin Team, and liaises with tutors, clients and applicants. She is responsible for processing the ID, Qualifications, DBS Check and References for all our newly joining tutors.