9/24/2015

100ThingsYouCanDoToImproveYourEnglishLangportsLangports

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100ThingsYouCanDoToImproveYourEnglish

HesterisateacheratLangportsGoldCoastcampuswhohasstrongbeliefsabouteducation.Shehassetupherown
websiteandblogtohelpherstudents.Shehassetupherownwebsiteandblogtohelpherstudentshttp://digilearner.com/.Herblogforthisweek
isalistof100thingsyoucandotoimproveyourEnglish.Haveareadofthebelowlistandwearesureyouwillfindalotofhelpfultipsto
improveyourEnglish!
1. Dontbeafraidtomakemistakes.Beconfident.Peoplecanonlycorrectyourmistakeswhentheyhearyoumakethem.
2. SurroundyourselfinEnglish.PutyourselfinanallEnglishspeakingenvironmentwhereyoucanlearnpassively.Thebestwaytolearnis
throughspeaking.
3. Practiseeveryday.Makeyourselfastudyplan.Decidehowmuchtimeaweekyouaregoingtospendstudyingandsticktoit.Establisha
routine.
4. Tellyourfamilyandfriendsaboutyourstudyplan.Getthemtopushyoutostudyandalsodontlettheminterruptyou.
5. Practisethe4coreskills:reading,writing,speakingandlistening.Theyallneedtobeworkedonforyoutoimprove.
6. Keepanotebookofnewwordsyoulearn.Usetheminsentencesandtrytosaythematleast3timeswhenyouspeak.
7. Doalessonatleastonceaday.
8. Memorisationoflistsisoneofthemostcommonwaysoflearningvocabularyforatest.Itsonlyagoodexerciseforshorttermstudying
becauseyouoftendonotretaintheinformationthatyouhavelearnedforatest.
9. Useyourbodyclock.Ifyourenotamorningperson,studyintheafternoon.
10. Youwillfindwordseasiertorememberifyoutrytorememberanexamplesentenceusingthatwordratherthewordonitsown.
11. Plantotakeatest.Youllfindthatyouworkharderwhenyouneedtostudyforsomething.
12. Sayingthat,itsbetternottostudyjusttotakeatest.Thinkofthebiggerpicture.Whatcanyoudowhenyouhaveagoodcommandof

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English?Howwillthequalityofyourlifeimprove?
13. Giveyourselfalongtermgoal.Focusonworkingtowardsit.
14. Giveyourselfshorttermgoalstooandrewardyourselfwhenyouachieveeachone.
15. Createanatmosphereinwhichyouwanttolearn,notbecauseyouhaveto.Youlllearnmorewhenyourelearningbecauseyouwantto.
16. Knowwhatworksbestforyou.Thinkaboutwhatmethodshavebeensuccessfulforyouinthepastandstickwiththem.
17. Figureouthowyoulearn.Itcanbebymemorising,reading,speaking,summarisingorothermethods.Findouthowyoustudybest.Itcan
beinaquietplacebyyourselforwithagroup.
18. Gethelp!Ifyoudontunderstandsomethingyouvegottoasksomeone.Askyourteacher,classmatesorfriendsforhelp.
19. Review!Review!Review!Makesurethatyoutakethetimetoreviewthingsyouhavestudiedinthepast.
20. Itsnotagoodideatostudyonyourownformorethan30minutesatatime.Takeregularbreaks,getsomefreshairandstretchyourlegs.
21. Dontbeinsuchahurrytomoveupalevel.Concentrateonthelevelyouareatnow.
22. WatchDVDsratherthanTV.Itsbettertousesomethingthatyoucanwatchoveragaintocatchinformationyoumighthavemissedthefirst
time.
23. WatchingTVonlygivesyouthechancetohearsomethingcorrectlyfirsttime.Thisisbetterforhighlevelstudents.Itcanbegreatpractice
forspeakingtonativeEnglishspeakerssoyoudonthavetoaskthemtorepeatthemselves!
24. Readgradedreaders.Thesebooksareespeciallywrittenforyourlevel.Readawholenovel.Youcandoit!Youllfeelgreatafterwards.
25. Childrensbookshaveeasierwordsandareagoodalternativetogradedreaders.
26. Newspapersareagoodplacetofindpassiveconstructs.Readthroughanarticleandseeifyoucanfindthepassivesentences.
27. Readforthegeneralmeaningfirst.Dontworryaboutunderstandingeveryword,thengobackandlookupnewwords.
28. Forawordyoudontunderstandinasentence,lookattheotherwordsaroundit.Theywillgiveyouahint.Trytoguessthemeaningfrom
thecontext.
29. Learnrootwords.Theyllhelpyouguessthemeaningofwords.Forexample:scrib=write,min=small
30. Whenyoulearnanewword,thinkofallitsotherforms:Beautiful(adjective),beauty(noun),beautifully(adverb).
31. Learn prefixes (dis, un, re) and suffixes (ly, ment, ful), these will help you to figure out the meaning of words and build your
vocabulary.
32. English,unlikeJapaneseorFrench,useswordstress.Fornewwords,countthesyllablesandfindwherethestressis.Onlyonestressper
wordandalwaysonavowel.Twosyllableverbshaveastressonthesecondsyllable(beGIN).2syllablenouns(TEAcher)andadjectives
(HAPpy)stressthefirst.
33. UseEnglishwheneveryoucan.Itsassimpleasthat!
34. Dont translate into English from your own language. Think in English to improve your fluency. Talk to yourselfbut not on the bus
otherwisepeoplewillthinkyouhavegonecrazy!
35. YoucantlearnEnglishfromabook.Likedrivingacar,youcanonlylearnthroughdoingit.
36. Themostnaturalwaytolearngrammaristhroughtalking.
37. KeepanEnglishdiaryorjournal.Startbywritingafewsentencesadayandthengetintothehabitofwritingmore.
38. Whynotstartanonlineblogandshareyourwritingswiththeworld?
39. Tobecomeabetterwriterbrainstormasmanyideasandthoughtsontopaperwithoutworryingaboutgrammarorspelling.Thenthinkabout
thestructure.Afterthat,writeyourpieceusinggoodgrammarandspelling.Finally,readitthroughorgiveittosomeoneelsetocheckfor
mistakes.
40. Keepaneyeonyourpunctuationasitcantotallychangewhatyouretryingtosay.Checkoutthedifferenceinmeaningbetweenthesetwo
sentences:AwomanwithouthermanisnothingandAwoman:withouther,manisnothing.
41. Sing your heart out! Show the world your beautiful voice! Learn English songs and sing along with them to improve fluency and
intonationanyoneforKaraoke?
42. Getapenfriendorusechatrooms,forumsandcommunitysites.IfyoucantspeaktosomeoneinEnglish,thisisthenextbestthing.
43. ShadowEnglishCDs.Listentoafewsentencesthenrepeatwhatyouheard.Focusontherhythmandintonation.
44. HaveEnglishradiooninyourhouse.Evenifyouarenotactivelylisteningtoit,youwillstillbetrainingyourears.
45. MirrorCDs.ReadoutloudalongwithaCD.Again,thisisgreatforintonation,pronunciationandrhythm.
46. Dictation.ListentoaCDorfriendandwritedownwhatyouhear.
47. Nobodylikestoheartheirownvoice,butbebraveandtryit!Recordyourvoiceandlistentoyourpronunciationandintonation.Itwillhelp
youtoidentifyyourproblemareas.
48. Askyourhelpfulteacherifyoucanrecordhislesson.Thisisagreatwaytoreview.Youcanalsolistentoyourteachersspeakingspeedand
intonation.
49. UseanEnglish/EnglishdictionaryasitwillhelpyoutokeepthinkinginEnglishandnottranslating.
50. IfanEnglish/Englishdictionaryseemsscary,therearelearnersdictionariesforEnglishstudentsofyourlevel.
51. Dontbecometooreliantonyourdictionary.Yourdictionaryshouldbeanaid,notyourmainteacher.Trytoguessthemeaningofwords
ratherthangoingstraightforyourdictionary.
52. Dontgiveup!Staypositive!Sometimesyouwillfeelthatyouarentlearningquicklyenough.Everyonefeelslikethis,dontworryabout
it.Youllgetthereintheend.
53. Enjoyit!Welearnmorewhenwearehavingfun!
54. Ifyougetnervouswhenspeaking,taketwodeepbreathsbeforeyousaysomething.Youllspeakbetterwhenyoufeelrelaxed.
55. KeepyourselfmotivatedbylookingbackatthetextbooksandCDsyouusedinthepast.Youllbesurprisedathoweasytheyseemtoyou
now!Congratulations,yourlevelisimproving!

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56. YouarenevertooyoungortoooldtostartlearningEnglish.Dontmakeexcusesnottolearn.Whatareyouwaitingfor?
57. Procrastinationcanstopyoufrombeingsuccessful.Tostopprocrastinating,itsimportantyouunderstandifyourprocrastinatingistoavoid
studying,orifitisyourbadhabit.
58. Ifyouhaventgottentheresultsyouwantedyet,itsnotbecauseyourebadatlanguages,itsbecauseyouhaventfoundyourownspecial
wayoflearningyet.
59. Useresourceswhichmatchyourlevel.Dontusetexts/listeningexerciseswhicharetoodifficultortooeasy.Usematerialswhichchallenge
youbutdontfrustrateyou.
60. Dontworryaboutmakingyouraccentperfect.Itsanimportantpartofyourculturalidentitytokeepyouraccent.NativeEnglishspeakers
enjoyhearingEnglishspokenwithanaccent.
61. There are many types of English: British, American, South African and so on. None of these are wrong or not as important. English is
English.
62. Instead, be aware of the differences in American and British English and use your words accordingly. For example: Elevator (US)
/Lift(British).
63. Carrycuecardswithyou.Thesearesmallcardswhichyoucanwritenewwordson.Youcanpullthemoutandlookatthemwheneveryou
afreeminute.
64. Usepostitnotesandstickthemaroundyourhome.Youcanusethemtolabelthings.Stickoneonyourpetdog!
65. Youcantignorephrasalverbs(twowordsverbs),therearehundredsoftheminEnglishandtheyrewidelyused.Themoreyoufocuson
theirmeaning,themoreyoullbeabletoguessthemeaningofnewones.Youllstarttorecognisetheirpatterns.
66. Use your intuition. Go with your gut feeling, youll be surprised how often your first guess is the right guess. Like we said before, be
confident.
67. Gatheryourthoughts.Takeasecondtothinkaboutwhatyouregoingtosay.Youknowthegrammar,butmaybeyoudontuseitcorrectly
whenyouspeak.
68. Meetnewpeople.MaketheefforttomixwithEnglishspeakersinyourtown.Youcouldjoinacluborgotobarswhereforeignershangout.
Buyoneadrink,theylovethat!
69. BethepersontostartconversationsinEnglish.Trytokeeptheconversationsmovinganduselisteningwords(really?/goon/what
happenedthen?)Dontwaitforotherstospeaktoyou.Getinthere!
70. Debate.Discusstopicsinagroup.Eachpersonshouldchooseaviewpoint(evenifyoudontagreewithit)anddebateitwithinthegroup.
Makesureyougetyourpointacross.Learntolistenactively.Activelisteningwillhelpintheclassroomanditwillhelpyougetmoreoutof,
and contribute more to, group study sessions. Focus on the person who is talking. Dont fidget or become distracted by other people or
events.Concentrateonthespeakerwithyourearsandeyes.Followthemovementsthespeakermakesinanefforttohearmore.Itmayhelp
torepeatwhatyouhearotherssayinanefforttounderstandtheirthoughts.
71. ItsnotenoughtoonlylearnEnglishwords.YoucanteachaparrotEnglishwordsbutthatdoesntmeanitcanspeakEnglish!Youstillneed
tohaveanunderstandingofgrammar.
72. Verb tenses are used by English speakers to talk about the timing of actions. You might not have the same expressions in your own
language.Itsimportantthatyouknowthesetensesandwhentousethem.
73. Englishhasmanyirregularverbs.Youshoulddrillyourselfonthem.
74. Keepitup!IfyoutakeabreakfromspeakingEnglish,youwillfindthatyourleveldecreasesandallyourhardworkhasbeenwasted.
75. Dontbeputoffbyabadtestscore.SometimesstudentshavetheabilitytopassanEnglishtest,butcantcommunicatewellwithEnglish
speakers.IfyoucanspeakfreelyinEnglish,youshouldbeproudofyourself.
76. Rememberthataslongasyouhavetriedyourhardest,youhavesucceeded!
77. LearnEnglishwithafriend.Youllhavesomeoneyoucanpracticewithandyoucanmotivateeachothertostudy.
78. Remember,thewaywewriteEnglishisnotthesameashowitspronounced.ForexampleOughhasover6pronunciations.Familiarise
yourselfthePhoneticAlphabet.Itwillhelpyoucorrectlypronouncewordsinthedictionary.
79. Getusedtotheschwasound[]anunstressedandtonelessneutralvowelsound.SchwaisthemostcommonvowelsoundinEnglish.
Forexample,theainaboutandtheuinsupply.
80. Keepinmindthatittakeslongertoimprovewhenourlevelishigh.Usuallythefastestprogressismadewhenwearebeginners.Dontthink
thatyouresuddenlynotlearninganymore,itsjustalessnoticeableprogress.
81. MakesurethatyourEnglishmatchestheoccasion.ItsOKtouseslangwithfriendsbutnotinabusinessmeeting.Decideinwhichsituation
itsappropriatetousethewordsandphrasesyouhavelearned.
82. TextbookEnglishisoftendifferentfromthewaywecasuallyspeak.Tolearncasualslangwatchmovies.
83. Idiomscanbedifficulttomemorise,buttheyaregreatfuntouseandtheyllmakeyourEnglishmorecolourful.
84. Whentalkingweusuallylinkwordstogethersothattwowordscansoundlikeone.Simplyput,welinkwordsendingwithaconsonant
soundtowordsbeginningwithavowelsound(consonant>vowel).Welinkwordsendingwithavowelsoundtowordsbeginningwitha
vowelsound(vowel>vowel).Practicethesetoimproveyourlisteningandpronunciation.
85. Makeuseoftheinternet.Itsfullofresourcestohelpyoulearn:BBCLearningEnglishlearnenglish.ecenglish.com
86. Thinkaboutyourstrongandweakpoints.Writedownwhichareasyouwanttoimproveonandworkonimprovingthem.Ofcourse,dont
ignoreyourstrongpoints.Congratulateyourselfonhowwellyouvedone!
87. Unlearnyourmistakes.Youprobablymakethesamegrammarmistakesoverandoveragain.UseEnglishtestsresultsasastudytool.Go
overyourmistakesandchooseoneortwothatyouwanttofocuson.Useyourfavouritegrammarbooktocheckrules.
88. Use the correct article (a/an, the). Be aware that there is more to this rule than a/an= non specific, the=specific. For example: A
university(notanuniversitybecauseitbeginswithaconsonantsound).Anhour(notahourbecausethehisoftensilent).

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89. Forfluency,tryimagetraining.Beforeyougotothatrestaurantthinkthroughwhatthewaiterislikelytosaytoyou.Thinkofwhatphrases
youaregoingtouse.
90. Muchcommunicationcomesthroughbodylanguageandgesture.Thesecanbedifferentbetweenculturesandcountries.Forexample,the
twofingeredVforvictorysymbolisfinepalmsout.Ifyoumakeitwithyoupalmfacingtowardyou,youlloffendaBritishperson.It
meanswell,youaskaBritishpersonandfindoutforyourself!
91. TheeasiestoneSleep!Youlllearnmoreafteragoodnightssleep.Youllbeabletoconcentratemore.
92. TakeanEnglishcourseinanEnglishspeakingcountry.
93. Ifyoustudyingabroad,mixwithpeoplefromothercountriesnotonlypeoplefromyourowncountry.Itsnotagoodideaforyoutolivein
asharedhousewithpeoplefromyourowncountry.Enjoyamoreculturalexperiencebyspendingtimewithothernationalities.
94. Haveyouthoughtaboutgettingajobordoinganinternshipabroad?
95. Getyourselfaqualifiedteacher.Whowantstolearnwrongthings?
96. NobodycanlearnalloftheEnglishlanguage.Noneedtoworryabouttrying.AusefulshortcuttolearningisthatinEnglishwehavelotsof
wordsthathavethesamepronunciation,butadifferentspellingandmeaning.Forexample,comeherehasthesamepronunciationas,I
canhearthebirds.Youmightfinditeasiertobuildvocabularybyknowingthedifferentmeanings.
97. OnceyouhaveabasiclevelofEnglishexplorethedifferentwaysyoucansaythesamething.ThismakesyourEnglishmoreinterestingto
the listener and it shouldnt be too difficult for you because you already know the basics. For example, how many ways can we say,
GoodbyeinEnglish?
98. WhenyouareonyourEnglishcourse,bepreparedforyourclass.Doyourhomeworkassoonaspossibleandhanditinontime.Review
yournotesandyourlastlessonafewminutesbeforetheclass.Doingthiswillrefreshyourmemoryandyoullbewarmedupforlesson.
99. Dontgetdistractedinclass.Focusonthelesson,dontstareoutofthewindow.Dontbelate,arriveafewminutesbeforethestartofthe
lesson.DontsitnexttopeoplewhowontspeaktoyouinEnglish.Switchoffyourphone.Beorganised,remembertotakeyourtextbook,
notebookandpen.
100. Findacomfortable,peacefulplaceforquietstudy.Youneedsomewherewhereyoucanfocus100%.
CheckoutHestersblog!

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