Ways to learn English Effectively and Achieve Fluency
No language can be learned overnight, and there is no magic fix. But with a few straightforward steps, and a dedicated attitude, it's entirely possible to be competent and conversational within a few months.
There are thousands of ways to learn a language
You don’t need to live in an English-speaking country to become fluent in English. If you are smart about the way you learn English, you don’t even need to leave your home town. Use these 100 top tips for to improve your English without even leaving your city.
- Surround yourself in English. Put yourself in an all English speaking environment where you can learn passively.
- Practise every day. Decide how much time a week you are going to spend studying and stick to it.
- Practise the 4 core skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening. They all need to be worked on for you to improve.
- You will find words easier to remember if you try to remember an example sentence using that word rather the word on its own.
- Saying that, it’s better not to study just to take a test. Think of the bigger picture. What can you do when you have a good command of English? How will the quality of your life improve?
- Create an atmosphere in which you want to learn, not because you have to. You’ll learn more when you’re learning because you want to.
- Use all the free resources you can get your hands on!
- It doesn’t have to be anything complicated or difficult to read, just something simple that you can enjoy and learn a few new words at the same time.
- “Learning another language is not only learning different words for the same things, but learning another way to think about things.” ‒ Flora Lewis
- "You don't learn to walk by following rules. you learn by doing and by falling over." ‒ Richard Branson
- For a word you don’t understand in a sentence, look at the other words around it. They will give you a hint. Try to guess the meaning from the context.
- Choose an accent you like and imitate it
- Watch short video clips and pause and repeat what you hear. With longer videos, you may find your attention wanders. The key to improving by watching videos is to really listen carefully and use the pause button to focus on sounds and words.
- Use English whenever you can. It’s as simple as that!
- Learning a skill such as a new language can take a long time. If you feel like your progress is slow, bear in mind these wise words from Confucius. The important thing is to keep going and you will get there in the end.
- Don’t translate into English from your own language. Think in English to improve your fluency. Talk to yourself…but not on the bus otherwise people will think you have gone crazy!
- Sing along to English songs while you’re driving or in the shower. Humans are also able to remember words when used together with music which is why it is difficult to remember poems but easy to remember the words to songs.
- The most natural way to learn grammar is through talking.
- Don’t give up! Stay positive! Sometimes you will feel that you aren’t learning quickly enough. Everyone feels like this, don’t worry about it. You’ll get there in the end.
- Knowledge is of no value unless you put it into practice.
- Do all the things you usually do, but in English.
- Nobody can learn all of the English language. No need to worry about trying. A useful shortcut to learning is that in English we have lots of words that have the same pronunciation, but a different spelling and meaning. For example, ‘come here’ has the same pronunciation as, ‘I can hear the birds’. You might find it easier to build vocabulary by knowing the different meanings.
- Find ways to make English part of your everyday life at home, like writing your shopping list, reading the newspaper, listening to the radio, writing a diary in English, or listening to English on your cellphone while traveling to work.
- Find ways to meet native English-speakers: going to foreign bars and restaurants, joining sport and social clubs, or arranging language exchanges. You could even volunteer as a guide at a local tourist attraction to meet English-speakers from all over the world.
- Find a study partner, or form an English club and meet regularly to speak English. You can motivate each other, and you will learn by helping others with their problems.
- Train your ear by listening to English spoken at normal speed, even if you don’t understand everything. Also practice listening without seeing things written down and don’t be afraid to listen to things several times to catch any interesting or unusual vocabulary in there.
- Listen to Podcasts. This is a brilliant way of learning English on the move. If you’re going for a walk, plug your headphones in and listen to something in English.
- Whatever you do, have fun! Learning a language does take work, but you’ll be more likely to stick to it if you are enjoying yourself.
- Read a book in English.
- Many people say it’s easier to learn a language when you are young but there are advantages to learning a language when you are older.
- Listening to music while you study English can wake up your mind and put you in a better mood to learn.
- Not only does YouTube have funny entertainment videos, but there are also some excellent resources for learning English!
- If you always study at home, try going to a library or a coffee shop. The change of scenery will improve your enthusiasm, plus changing locations has been shown to improve memory.
- Who doesn’t enjoy a great movie? And if you can watch a movie while learning English, even better!
- Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Be confident. People can only correct your mistakes when they hear you make them.
- When you learn a new word, think of all its other forms: Beautiful (adjective), beauty (noun),beautifully (adverb).
- You can’t learn English from a book. Like driving a car, you can only learn through doing it.
- Remember, it is possible to communicate big ideas with relatively limited language. Don’t feel like you need perfect English before you can go out and have interesting conversations with other people.
- Making mistakes is a natural part of the language learning process. The key is to learn from these mistakes. Don’t be afraid to try out new things in English but always remember to reflect on them and decide what was successful and what you need to keep working on.
- The most natural way to learn grammar is through talking.
- Don’t become too reliant on your dictionary. Your dictionary should be an aid, not your main teacher. Try to guess the meaning of words rather than going straight for your dictionary.
- Don’t worry about making your accent perfect. It’s an important part of your cultural identity to keep your accent. Native English speakers enjoy hearing English spoken with an accent. There are many types of English: British, American, South African and so on. None of these are wrong or not as important. English is English. Instead, be aware of the differences in American and British English and use your words accordingly. For example: Elevator (US) / Lift (British).
- Keep in mind that it takes longer to improve when our level is high. Usually the fastest progress is made when we are beginners. Don’t think that you’re suddenly not learning anymore, it’s just a less noticeable progress.
“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.” – Nelson Mandela.
What it means: Learning another language is important for bringing people closer together. As Mandela said, there is something very special about speaking to someone in their mother tongue. Even if you both understand the same language, when you take the trouble to speak to someone in their own language, it means more to them. The more effort you put into learning English the more important relationships and friendships you will be able to have with English speakers.- You can be discouraged by failure, or you can learn from it. So go ahead and make mistakes, make all you can. Because, remember that's where you'll find success - on the far side of failure.
- Last but not least, Learn with OPOO Learning English