Effective Language Learning + Learning multiple languages at once

[superseiyan]

Hi Guys:

Background: I'm 27. Grew up in France aged 2-9. Then Kenya, Then US at 13. I grew up around French. Lost it in Kenya. I took some French in high school. Never got fluent. I took it up to Intermediate level in College. Never got fluent, but did well enough to get a "B". Go figure. Today I NEVER use French, but I somehow pick it up when people are speaking, and I can scan newspaper headlines and know whats going on. I probably couldn't take a grammar test though.

However, recently I got interested in Italian. I like Italy, plus my immediate family lives there. Now I was able to self-teach myself basic rules and grammar and vocabulary to the point I could probably pass a Italian 101 and 102 class at college. But no verbal fluency. French is probably ahead in terms of residual understanding that's left.

Now, I'm in a position where I'd love to know Italian for passion, interest and future travel reasons. For career purposes, French'd be advantegous - I work in on of the most powerful International Organizations int he world.

With this background, I'd like to seek feedback from those that speak multiple language. In addition to these five questions, you may add any other thoughts you have on langauge:

1. What are your experiences learning two languages at once? Do they clash or slow each other down?

2. What are your opinions on formal classes? I'd like to be able to be intelligible and conversational. Knowing every grammatical idiosyncracy is not THAT important to me. But maybe it should be? Classes - necessaryk or nto?

3. At beginning level, should I worry about all: me, you, he/her, we, you (pl.), they + ALL the tenses or can I get buy with me, you, we + simple past, simple future & conditional?

4. As I'm in the Washington DC area, fluent French speakers are more readily accessible. Italian's hard. Either way, how do you guys practice or hone your verbal skills?

5. to what extent do you utilize audio-visual stuff like movies, radio, news telecasts, sporting events, etc? I've heard that it is better to be exposed to language in it's natural form and speed, than to use rote memorization as a crutch.

Cheers,

[magi13]

Originally Posted by superseiyan

Hi Guys:

Background: I'm 27. Grew up in France aged 2-9. Then Kenya, Then US at 13. I grew up around French. Lost it in Kenya. I took some French in high school. Never got fluent. I took it up to Intermediate level in College. Never got fluent, but did well enough to get a "B". Go figure. Today I NEVER use French, but I somehow pick it up when people are speaking, and I can scan newspaper headlines and know whats going on. I probably couldn't take a grammar test though.

However, recently I got interested in Italian. I like Italy, plus my immediate family lives there. Now I was able to self-teach myself basic rules and grammar and vocabulary to the point I could probably pass a Italian 101 and 102 class at college. But no verbal fluency. French is probably ahead in terms of residual understanding that's left.

Now, I'm in a position where I'd love to know Italian for passion, interest and future travel reasons. For career purposes, French'd be advantegous - I work in on of the most powerful International Organizations int he world.

With this background, I'd like to seek feedback from those that speak multiple language. In addition to these five questions, you may add any other thoughts you have on langauge:

1. What are your experiences learning two languages at once? Do they clash or slow each other down?

2. What are your opinions on formal classes? I'd like to be able to be intelligible and conversational. Knowing every grammatical idiosyncracy is not THAT important to me. But maybe it should be? Classes - necessaryk or nto?

3. At beginning level, should I worry about all: me, you, he/her, we, you (pl.), they + ALL the tenses or can I get buy with me, you, we + simple past, simple future & conditional?

4. As I'm in the Washington DC area, fluent French speakers are more readily accessible. Italian's hard. Either way, how do you guys practice or hone your verbal skills?

5. to what extent do you utilize audio-visual stuff like movies, radio, news telecasts, sporting events, etc? I've heard that it is better to be exposed to language in it's natural form and speed, than to use rote memorization as a crutch.

Cheers,

Learn one language at a time. It ensures your mastery. Lessons are okay if you can afford them as well as books. Or free tutorials on the net. ^^

Find someone who speaks the language and talk ^^,

when I learned to speak english in the past is I courted an english girl and learned to talk her language. That's a fun way to do it.

Another is to voice chat.

Another is to use bits and pieces of the language in your daily life. ^^, it may seem like your boasting though but hey, it's practical.

95 percent retention <-- is to teach. ^^ teach it to someone while setting one goal at a time.

[Victor Vikingr]

I'd say classes aren't really necessary, especially since you already have some experience with the language, though it might be a nice way to practise conversations.

This year, I'm taking Spanish classes while studying German on my own. I'm also supposed to study French, but though I read it, I won't say I "study" it so much. I won't say they slow each other down - I actually find that the more languages I learn, the easier it is to learn more.

For the verbs, I like the approach of learning one tense at a time, and all of the conjugations.

I like to swear in other languages. XD Also, I've got a friend with whom I study Spanish, and we often speak it to each other. He has studied German for five years, so he can help me with that too. I suggest speaking the language with people. Definitely a great way to practise.

I like to watch movies in other languages for that. It's more effective if you already are at a fairly communicative level, though. Written language like newspapers are great too, but beware of typos. I don't know if it's just me, but I find newspapers to contain lots of typos. Audio is something I'm unfamiliar with.

Good luck on improve your Italian!