Study Languages

An incomprehensible guide.

@admc

Hello and welcome.

Hej og velkommen

Привет и добро пожаловать(Privet i dobro pozhalovat')

Bonjour et bienvenue

Warning:

The following are non-factual observations and theories I have constructed in a purely experimental fashion.

Background● My family lives all over.● Lots of languages in my life.

○ French, English, German○ Danish, Spanish, Russian○ Indonesian, Mandarin

● Perils of Language Learning○ Blog post in 2009

● Presented at LXJS in 2012○ Immersion

Berlin, 2009 - couldn’t communicate with a taxi driver, almost missed my flight.

Languages● 31 years of English (america)● 6 years of German (all things)● 4 years of French (school)● 2 years of Danish (duolingo)● 1 month of Russian (duolingo)● Discovery projects:

○ Arabic (interesting youtubing)○ Spanish (all of Duolingo)

"Bilingual is one way to keep your brain active—it's part of the cognitive-reserve approach to brain fitness"

- http://goo.gl/tEHDo (National Geographic)

What’s in it for YOU?● Brain health: alzheimer’s, dementia - http://goo.gl/tEHDo● Makes you smarter: http://goo.gl/KzVQo - NY Times● Better understanding of your mother tongue● Travel enhancer● Fascinating study of social dynamics● Expanded world view, cultural etc.

Sex Appeal“From a survey conducted in Britain involving 270 dating agencies, the result shows that people who speak or learn a foreign language are more attractive, intelligent and sexier to the opposite sex.”

Preparation

What to Consider● Language complexity and difficulty - stay tuned● Global number of native speakers● Practicality & real world motivators● Will you ever visit, or move there?● What comes most naturally to you?● Do you want to read, write or speak - more?

○ It can drastically change your learning strategy○ Are you outgoing? Speaking requires extroversion

● Alphabet and or character set○ The extra step with cyrillic is gnarly, on screen keyboard etc

● Do you like grammar?

Difficulty

Popularity

Incase that isn’t complicated enough.

Strategy

Grammar● Used to explain a language● Ineffective learning strategy● Children absorb● Not my priority● Russian has few Articles?

Focus● Filler words are very important● Ignore formality, learners are judged on tact● Idioms and metaphors are full of richness (make lists)● Focus on the flow of the language● Concentrate on speaking, even terribly● Circle back around to say things _right_● Language subtleties

○ “Drengen” - “The boy”, coupling of articles (definite singular)○ “Ich bin langweilig” - “I am boring”, why are you laughing?

● Prepositions are insane. (on, behind, near, over)○ And don’t always work how your brain has been trained to think.

Tools● Duolingo (free)● Rosetta Stone (excels with speaking, $$)● Mobile app dictionaries and knowledge base (leo.dict.cc)● Youtube, news sites● Free streaming live news● Cover your house with sticky notes● Unlimited web sites

○ Ex: http://masterrussian.com/russian_alphabet.shtml○ All the cyrillic sounds and something close to an english equiv.

Immersion● Language institutes (Goethe)● Craigslist Tutoring ($50/hr’ish)● Local meetups, meetup.com● Vacation time @ bars in said country● Visit and do an immersive program● Date and or marry into it?

Stockholm, Sweden

Culture● Language is culture● Conversational nuances

○ “How are you?”● Learn their traditions● Experience their food● Study their history● Relationships with neighbors● Political situation● Social system● Sports interests

Advice● A little time daily, compounds nicely● Don’t get discouraged, build confidence● It’s okay to learn and then forget● Make it fun, use content you are generally into● Accept imperfection● Gamify your language interactions

○ Where am I from? Any guesses?○ How long can you keep them from switching?

● Native speakers will:○ Correct you - welcome it.○ Switch to English, don’t respond in English.○ Tell you that getting fluent is “impossibly hard”

■ Use it as motivation○ Lose interest, don’t be offended

Measure Progress● Reachable goals● Don’t rush● Look back, appreciate progress● Have fun● Celebrate!

Does it get harder to learn as you age?

Who cares.

Get Started● Pick a target language● Change your default language on your phone● Complete all Duolingo● Take a trip to a place you can apply your learning● Decide if you want to continue

○ If no, go back to Step 1○ If yes, create something like the following:

Learning scheduleDaily● Pre-breakfast: 20 mins daily news● Foreign music, all day● After dinner:

○ 1 hour Duolingo○ 1 hour streaming video

Weekly● Write 1 page journal entry● 1:1 tutoring, tuesday nights

Monthly● Language speakers meetup● Read a chapter in a book

CommitmentFail. 1+ hours daily.

Continue for many years.

Is it worth it?

Dunno, but The feeling of having your brain “switch”, is indescribable..

@admc

Q & A?