Christmas and New Year may have been and gone but 2020 is officially here. It’s set to be an exciting year ahead for growth and exploration. And what better time to learn a new language than right now!
Learning a new language is the ultimate New Year’s resolution and unlocks many benefits as a result. Having another language under one’s belt can open a variety of doors.
There’s the skills to communicate with new people from around the world and from other cultures, plus explore a plethora of new places. Employers love it too, with fluency in a second language proven to increase employability. A key motivation for adult learners, teenage students and parents of young language language learners alike.
And there are so many more reasons why learning another language is an excellent New Year’s resolution. But making the resolution is the easy part. According to a recent study, 80% of resolutions are a thing of the past by mid-February.
So let’s find out how to make language learning resolutions stick.
Set a routine
Making language learning part of every day is the key to success, whichever time of year that journey starts. Multimedia can work wonders when learning another language. Information, music, videos, and other media are all easily accessible in a vast range of languages courtesy of the web, so utilise this your daily family life.
Blogger and language enthusiast Ashleigh Davies reveals how she used multimedia to broaden her horizons in the language department:
“One of the best ways to learn a second language is to watch movies and tv shows. Not only is it an exciting way of learning but is also very effective. Don’t get me wrong, you won’t watch a 90-minute movie and come out the other side a native speaker but it will help you to improve.
Whether you’re learning French, Spanish, Italian or even Cantonese it doesn’t matter. With services such as Netflix, Youtube and Amazon Prime, there are many choices to go ahead and choose from.”
Using language apps and games are other great ways to weave language learning into every day.
Find a learning buddy
Having supporters is vital when creating a positive environment for language learning. Finding a learning buddy who has similar goals will increase chances of sticking to language learning resolution for the long term.
Ideally we recommend partnering with a native speaker of the target language. However the more support a language learner has the better. So whether that’s peers, or a parent - child learning team, the more the merrier.
If you are a parent, here at Lingoo we even have family homestays available so you and your child can tackle your language goals together.
But whether a study buddy is based at home or overseas, communicating with them on a regular basis gives the opportunity to practice and discuss any difficulties or frustrations.
Chatting via email and text to improve written language skills is a great idea too.
Plan for setbacks
The road to success is never an easy one. But sticking to resolutions and pursuing goals will be extremely rewarding.
If you’re the language learner, don’t let the setbacks you encounter get you down. Instead plan for them, and be open about your struggles throughout your language learning journey with your support team.
Learning buddies are great to confide in and they may even be experiencing the same difficulties.
Being open and honest and acknowledge that mistakes are all part of learning will help get past the hurdle. This is a key role for parents of language learners too.
Recognise progress
As well as recognising and discussing challenges, make sure to celebrate those milestones. Every success deserves to be acknowledged, with every little win fluency is becoming closer.
Make language learning resolution more digestible by breaking big goals down into a series of smaller targets. And reward yourself (or your child, if you’re the parent) every time one of those goals is accomplished.
Rewards come in all forms, from a trip out to the cinema or a fancy meal, to an evening watching a favourite netflix series with a big bar of chocolate.
Have fun
By making language learning as fun as possible, the student wants to keep doing it. For younger learners, unleashing their inner silly with games, make believe, singing, and dancing can add the fun factor.
Adult learners can incorporate their favourite activities into their language learning journey. Love a good film? Make time for a foreign movie. Is reading a book more your thing? Read an untranslated book. For foodies, exploring the culture behind the language with a themed cooking session can make language learning fun and relevant.
Book a trip
Booking a trip overseas is another way to make the language learning experience more fun and engaging. A language exchange or homestay provides an affordable way of exploring the countries where the target language is spoken. A language exchange even lets your family return the favour, hosting guests in your own home to learn your language.
An exchange or homestay is about more than just perfecting language skills. It provides the base to explore everything that’s fascinating about the target language and its culture.
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