Do you know anyone who once spent a lot of time learning a foreign language, but today he or she can’t remember a thing? That’s very common and a little bit sad too.
We can help you learn without forgetting. Try our fast, demo below or keep reading to learn how it works.
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Seven Secrets For Learning a Foreign Language Easily and Never Forgetting It
1. Study With Slow and Normal Speed Audio
Actually perceiving the sounds of your new language can be difficult. Here’s why.
When you learned your first language, your brain built filters that automatically filter out sounds that aren’t in your native language.
These brain filters can make it easy to hear your name in a noisy room and hard to really hear new foreign language sounds. We solve this problem by giving you normal speed words and the words said again very slowly.
Click on this button to hear how to say the phrase “How are you?” (formal form) at normal speed in French. Try to say the phrase out loud after the teacher says it.
Did that seem too fast? Well that is normal speed for Paris, but it may be too fast for you at first.
Here’s the same French phrase, “How are you?” (formal) but this time it’s said very slowly so you can hear it and learn it better.
You should say each word out loud immediately after the teacher says it. Don’t wait for the phrase to end, say each word immediately after the teacher says it.
All of the phrases and words that you will learn with us are recorded this way. You can listen to the slow recordings when you need to and the fast ones later when you no longer need the slow ones.
Without a system that lets you hear the audio both slowly and at normal speed, your learning will be very difficult.
2. Learn Entire Phrases Not Separate Words
A lot of foreign language learning programs have you start by learning a list of words like man, woman, and apple. This is boring and it doesn’t work well. You should start by learning entire useful phrases like “What’s your name?”
Our software starts beginners out with simple phrases and lets more advanced users select lessons with phrases that are the right level of difficulty for them.
3. Schedule Your Reviews With a Computer
For some strange reason, if you review a phrase one hundred time quickly, your brain treats this as one review and you will forget it very soon.
Fortunately we use our software to prompt you to review a phrase at time intervals that start small and then increase.
For example, if you want to learn a Russian phrase you will first study it and then our software will prompt you to review it after 15 seconds, then 45 seconds, then 1.5 minutes after that, then 5 minutes after that and so on.
The time intervals between reviews quickly grow to be measured in weeks and months. It’s a very efficient way to learn (and retain) a foreign language. You learn very quickly and you won’t waste time reviewing what you already know.
It’s ironic that reviewing too much too quickly can actually slow the formation of long term memories. However if you use our system and review at the right time, you will learn Russian (or Spanish, French, German, Danish or Irish) quickly and keep the memories a long time.
With our software you can skip studying for several months and when you come back you can very quickly re-learn the phrases you have forgotten.
4. Learn What You Love First
I’m sure that you have some thing that you absolutely love to talk about and that you would probably love to talk about it in your new language too. Maybe it’s your cooking hobby or talking to or about your new grandchild.
Well that’s what you should learn first in your new language! Why start with boring lessons that you really don’t care about at all when you could be learning how to talk about something that you love.
Our software lets you study our lessons in the order that is right for you. For example, if you love Russian poetry we’ve got Pushkin lessons ready and waiting for you. You can study them first if you want to.
You can start with any of our existing lessons. If we don’t already have the lessons you want we can easily and cheaply make new lessons for you.
Our (1, 2, and 3) Package and our Super Package include one free custom lesson. Additional custom lessons are $100 each.
5. Don’t Study Grammar Unless You Love It
Face it, if you hated studying English grammar you will probably hate studying Russian Grammar, or French Grammar or German Grammar.
That’s why our lessons mostly ignore grammar and teach you how to speak in complete sentences. However if you are one of those people who loved grammar in school, then you should study grammar in your new language because you will probably love it there too.
Grammar lovers should order a 1, 2 and 3 Package or a Super Package and then call us to let us know what grammar lessons you want us to make for you and we will cheerfully make them.
6. Have the Attitude of Two Year Old Children (But Don’t Copy Their Methods)
I’ve never met a two year old boy who cared one bit that he had made a mistake with his language. Two year old boys and girls always smile and cheerfully try again. You shouldn’t care about your mistakes either. Smile and enjoy your mistakes. Mistakes can be fun.
However use your skills as a person who can already read and write English to plan what you will study first, then decide what to learn second and third.
Our lessons are organized so you can always pick the next lesson that is right for you. Beginners lessons are pre-loaded, but if you aren’t a beginner, you can very quickly go on to the lessons that are right for you.
7. Use Human Teachers to Correct You and Encourage You – Use Software to Study
I absolutely love foreign language teachers and I’ve gotten a lot of help from my teachers and tutors. However, even the word’s best teacher can’t prompt you to study at exactly the right time the way good software can.
If you think about it, all that a great teacher can do is present the material and try to inspire you with the love of learning. You are always on your own to study.
It turns out that all study is self study, whether you are enrolled in a traditional language course or whether you are studying on your own at home.
We highly recommend using things like once per week tutoring and foreign language clubs for help in correcting your mistakes and to stay enthusiastic.
Tutors and traditional classes don’t work very well by themselves. However once per week tutoring, that reviews the material you have studied with our software, is a great idea.
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Last Updated: August 14, 2010