Give the classroom a chance

May 5, 2012 in Thoughts and ideas

Give the classroom a chance

The opinion on language learning in the classroom environment differs. Classroom is perceived by many as the place of utter boredom, where the dreams of fluency come to wither and die in obscurity. This isn’t quite true, and I will try to persuade you why.

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A tale of R’s: part 3 (the end of story)

April 30, 2012
A tale of R’s: part 3 (the end of story)

I was emotionally crushed that fateful night. The usually steady train of thoughts, which had always carried the internal monologue in English without delays or accidents, went completely off the rails upon leaving my mouth.

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A tale of R’s: part 2 (in which the story really begins)

April 26, 2012
A tale of R’s: part 2 (in which the story really begins)

I used to flunk the classes for half a year, come back in the end of a term and take some sort of perverse pleasure in seeing the teachers boil in silent anger over my lack of attendance having no visible consequences on my language skills.

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No big deal

April 20, 2012
No big deal

So I’d team up with random strangers I’ve just met a couple hours earlier and we would go on a hike around the city, popping into bars, laughing, striking up conversations with persons on the streets, exchanging odd bits of advice.

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Have faith

April 5, 2012
Have faith

There is a part of me that is constantly anxious about lack of faster progress. I try, however, to calm myself, keep a steady pace, relying on the past experiences to guide me. For they have taught me a harsh, yet valuable lesson.

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Embracing the written word, series 2

March 13, 2012
Embracing the written word, series 2

I like to follow up on good ideas. I have described at length a way of getting to know Brazilian Portuguese through intensive listening. An approach that rapidly becomes a personal favorite. Today, we shall disperse with the doubts and discover additional food for thought.

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Demystifying a language

March 8, 2012
Demystifying a language

There are simple ways to embrace the fun and adventurousness of learning a language. A person have no need to imagine all the hardships of a 1000-mile journey at once. Instead, let us help him make the first step.

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You are what you do

February 29, 2012
You are what you do

As a firm believer in the “enjoy the process” approach, I always took the path of acquisition leisurely, on a day-to-day basis, preferring to set more immediate and realistic goals.

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The sweet taste of fluency

January 8, 2012
The sweet taste of fluency

It has been seven months since my last post. This summer I went on a digital sabbatical, spending an unforgettable summer in Barcelona, followed by a considerably hectic second half of the year. I’m back, my friends, with the erratic and consistently inconsistent programming.

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Embracing the written word, series 1 (aka, the linkfest)

May 28, 2011
Embracing the written word, series 1 (aka, the linkfest)

However, there are many fascinating people out there making sure that we can’t write off our unwillingness to embrace new languages as a supposed shortage of ideas on how to approach the task.

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Stay-at-home Spanish immersion, part 2

May 18, 2011
Stay-at-home Spanish immersion, part 2

Amazon Kindle, by virtue of being a portable electronic reader, has many wonderful features, however only few of them I would like to highlight as the ones that I consider to be particularly useful for a language learner.

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