Do you want to know how to learn English more quickly and in an enterntaining way? If you answer is in the affirmative, you don’t need to search any longer. You’re in the right place!

So you’ve started learning English or, perhaps, another foreign language. Maybe there’s a dream assignment abroad or perhaps a possibility to study in another country. Whatever the reason, you want to learn this language quickly. Well, let’s face it… It isn’t as difficult as it seems. If you put some extra effort into it and follow a couple of rules chances are you’ll actually make it work.

Just get started

If you don’t know English at all it’s a good idea to get started by learning vocabulary and phrases which will be useful for a basic conversation. You can use phrasebooks, YouTube tutorials as well as websites and apps for foreign language learners such as Duolingo or Memrise.

On the other hand, if you’d learned English before and you already have some basic knowledge of it, you can obviously skip this stage or just revise what you’ve learned so far and then basically start to take it to the lext level!

Immerse yourself in the language

The truth is that the more you immerse yourself in the language the quicker your progress will be. It’s as simple as that. So read, speak to people, listen to the radio, watch films and videos, learn vocabulary. Taking into account that in the begining the biggest barrier is the lack of confidence, speaking is especially important right form the start as it will help you to develop communicative competence. You need to have the courage to speak if you’re going to make progress. Find a teacher, preferably a native speaker or one with a native level of English who will speak with you and correct you on a regular basis – the more often the better. Otherwise the improvement will be much slower. By conversing with language experts regularly you also have someone to give you feedback and monitor your progress. Practice makes perfect but you always need constructive feedback to make sure you’re really improving your language skills. Let your teacher and people who you speak with know that you want them to correct your pronunciation and grammar. Thanks to this you’ll be able to rest assured that you’re on track.

However, according to experts, in early stages there is no need to worry too much about the grammar. It’s better to use the language first and focus on its gramatical aspects later. So don’t be afraid to make mistakes. Errors are part of the learning process and thanks to them you can gradually get better.

Watching movies, TV series and TV shows in the language you’re trying to learn is a vital part of language immersion. Choose the ones you like and possibly are familiar with so it will be easier for you to figure out the meaning of some new words that you’ll hear.

Listen to podcasts with interesting content or tune in to radio stations in English. It will help you learn correct pronunciation of common vocabulary as well as develop your listening comprehesion skills.

As for reading, always choose articles that you find interesting and look up new words and phrases that you come across. You can read newspapers, magazines and content available on the Internet. Attempt to read at least one article a day. There are many options to choose from. If your level is very low opt for children books and articles for non-native speakers adapted to your current level.

It’s a good idea to change your langauge settings on all your electronic devices. It will enable you to pick up lots of new words and expressions in English in a natural way by using your mobile phone, laptop or tablet.

If it’s posible visit and spend some time in an English speaking country. You’ll have plenty of possibilities to interact with local people and consequently your language skills will improve a great deal.

Study every day

It’s crucial to stay motivated and determined enough to study every day. Consistency is the key. Even if you don’t have much free time it’s absolutely necessary to make time for studying for at least one hour a day  if you want to make progress quickly.

If you really are in a hurry, you’ll have to commit to studying even a couple of hours daily to see significant improvement within a few weeks or months.

Language learning is based on repetitions – the more often you hear, repeat and use phrases and words, the faster they will land in you long-term memory. That’s why there shouldn’t be long breaks between study sessions if you don’t want to forget what you’ve learned last time. Remember that when it comes to language learning there are no short cuts so you won’t make it unless you commit.

It’s really helpful when you have a specific goal to achieve because it will make it easier to stay motivated. But remember that there are no miracles and mastering a foreign language requires time and effort. However, if you aim at reaching some level of conversational proficiency, following the discussed rules will help you to achieve your goal over the course of a few months.

Joanna Borzym | July 30, 2019