To ask how you learn a language?

[ThatCyanSheep]

I’m totally embarrassed to not be able to speak any other languages, I did German and French in school but gave up at GCSE level. I’d like to start learning French again but have no clue where to start? ChatGPT had suggested purchasing textbooks and working through them to get the basics, but is there another way?

@Afflt, ditto to writing out verb conjugations, etc. in order to learn them.

Ok, it was long ago now, but at school I had precisely one year for Russian O level, and another 2 for A level, and writing them all out (6 noun/adjective cases!) was the only way to ding them into my head.

Do you have Netflix? Go to the kids programmes and change the language to whatever you want but keep English subtitles. It will be the basics but very repetitive.

A former learner of several languages, including Russian and German, and a former teacher of EFL, I fancied learning Welsh with Duolingo, but couldn’t get on with it after about 3 months. The format seemed to change - exercises in words/structures that had yet to be covered, that you were somehow supposed to absorb.
I can’t learn like that - I need written material to refer to (I used to write everything new down). So that was the end of Duolingo for me.

Honestly the only way to really properly learn a language is to be forced to learn it.

I have tried over the years to learn four or five languages but the only one I can speak competently is my ex husband’s mother tongue: because I spent a lot of time around his friends when that was the default and you had to speak that language to fit in.

The reason English speakers rarely speak other languages well is because they rarely have to.

That said if you are really keen there are all sorts of ways to get started. Duolingo will give you a foothold, language classes if you are more interested and serious. Its fun to learn even if you don’t become fluent.

The key is just clocking up hours and hours of input of the language (preferably by listening). Understanding the grammar in principle doesn't actually magically make you able to use it (especially when speaking, as you don't have time to think about it). Hearing and reading lots and lots of content demonstrating the verb tenses and grammatical structures is what makes you able to actually use them.

Also, yes, you have to just stop worrying about making mistakes. You will inevitably make lots of mistakes - it's a foreign language! If you hold back until you think your sentence is perfect, you'll never speak! The best motivator for using the language without embarrassment is emergency or necessity! If you have to make yourself understood, you will.

you have to just stop worrying about making mistakes. You will inevitably make lots of mistakes - it's a foreign language!

Even in their mother tongue, speakers make mistakes - we change our minds about quite how we're saying things half way through and things like that, so get it wrong.

As an adult learner, I find it harder to remember vocab than when I was at school. I am very good at realising I have previously learnt that word, (whether I'm searching for the English or in the language,) and it can be quite frustrating! But when I get really tired, I can forget words in English, too.

And you can get away with murder with a good accent, I always find.

I learned French and German as a child, and we spoke Cantonese and English at home. But I struggled to learn how to speak Spanish as an adult. Duolingo for vocabulary and Babbel for grammar meant I could read competently but even 121 weekly lessons couldn’t get me speaking. The thing that worked was 30 mins a day of the Pimsleur app. It’s £18.99 a month but that’s cheaper than lessons. It’s very structured and they hammer the high frequency phrases. I’ve also learned some basic Mandarin in two months with Pimsleur and my Chinese homestay student says I’m quite understandable.

To really learn you need to someone to speak the language with. It’s very hard without that.

I’ve started (literally just started) with arabic, I’m using an app that starts with learning the alphabet phonetically (obviously the script is different so obviously a slower process). If I were learning something like french or italian I’d look for a youtube kids phonetic alphabet video. I think if you can get the sounds right, then reading and pronunciation should be easier. I do think reading is really important. It takes effort but it’s rewarding when you realise you can read something (even if I have no clue what it says).

Once I’m done with the app the plan is kids books and tv shows in the arabic dialect I’ve chosen. Sentence structure will be clear and short as a staring point. Happily I have a native speaker friend who is kind enough to sound out random words for me. I do think having someone for whom it’s a first language at hand is the most helpful way of learning. I’ve seen some forums where people buddy up to learn each others languages,

Ah yes, the first ten lessons are for absolute beginners regardsless of which language you are learning. When you are thirty lessons in it starts getting interesting.

For French I would like to recommend "Learn French with Vincent" on Youtube. He is really good.

If you have Netflix you can search for movies in the languages that interest you on there. I think that the series with the master burglar was called "Lupin". I don't have Netflix anymore, so I cannot look it up.

Do see if you can find the movies or books "Le chateau de ma mère"or "La Glorie de mon père" by Marcel Pagnol. They are so wonderful.

For German there is also a lot of stuff on Youtube. Search for "German for beginners". If you like crime stories, the series "Der Alte" was good, but it is very old, so I don't know if it is still valid.

In my experience Duolingo is useless for learning a new language.
However, I have been using it to remind myself of the French I did to O level in the 80s and have found it useful in terms of re-awakening the knowledge I already had and it made me more confident with basic interactions on holiday in France recently. I would definitely recommend an interactive class for new learning - what Duolingo is doing is reminding me what I learnt properly in class long ago!

Op I haven't looked for french specifically, but when I looked for apps or pre recorded courses (as opposed to traditional lessons) for Portuguese, I was surprised to find books on audible that for the price of one book contained a similar volume of course content to things like Pimsleur and Rosetta stone, which are ££££

I tried doing what people recommended such as watching TV in the language I was trying to learn but I just didn't have enough understanding of the basic language to get much from it, it only helped me become familiar with the accent. I used a combination of the audible audiobooks, which included common words/phrases, simple conversations + explaining basic grammar, plus free YouTube videos and children's books, before I was able to get something from tv & radio intended for native adult speakers.

Yes