#guidetolearning

[guidetolearning]

We have some exciting news...

Your Learning Guide is now available as a free ebook: The Crowdsourced Guide to Learning! Congratulations to everyone whose tips were included - we hope you agree they look great in (electronic) print.

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the learning guide so far. This edition of the ebook is not the end, so please continue submitting your tips.

[guidetolearning]

A special place to study

Choose a place to always study where you can really concentrate. It will make you have more focus because if you are there you know that have to study!

[guidetolearning]

Repeat the words

The least amount of noise around, the better for you to concentrate. Sometimes, while on my way to work, I repeat some words and somehow, I eventually remember them. I now tend to spend more time speaking and my 4 year old son helps me to pronounce new words.

[guidetolearning]

Keep Google open

I always have a notebook at pen beside me when I study as writing stuff down helps me to remember and I can easily look back on anything I might need. I also keep Google open so if there is anything I’m not sure about I can look into it further.

[guidetolearning]

Sharpen your mind

I am a retired lecturer. With limited mobility due to old age my contact with culture depends on my computer where I regularly sit for two hours in the morning and two in the afternoon. Then I do some housework. In the afternoon I take a siesta, it sharpens the mind. I enjoy discovering new things for myself and for other people and urge others similar to me to do the same!

[guidetolearning]

There is no beginning, middle or end to learning

I like to learn something because it looks/sounds interesting or stimulating, and the information may come in handy at any point in my life. (This concept motivates me to try and learn new things, acquire skills and think of myself as a lifelong learner.) There is no best place for learning, but a clean and peaceful (as far as is possible) environments help. Try to avoid the ‘bed’ or a comfy couch as a place to 'work on learning’. I am an auditory and visual learner, primarily.

I am still learning from my own grandchildren as I’m curious about the skills they have, and keep asking them to teach me some of those. 

'There is no beginning or end to learning.“ 

[guidetolearning]

Study what excites you!

I think it is the most important key to successful learning is if something excites you, everything you read, you watch or you write, will be a learning experience that you love.

[guidetolearning]

Watch wisely but always listen

Listening is an important element in communication due to the fact that if someone doesn’t understand what the native or foreign language student is saying it becomes difficult to answer and share information properly. I introduce some tips designed to help intermediate students:

Watch television wisely. Some students spend several hours watching, movies , series and soap operas in English with the audio and subtitle in English but this kind of immersion is not highly recommended. News and documentaries are a better challenge because they mix spoken English with an academic variety of the language.

Begin watching movies and cartoons of stories you are familiar with in English and with the subtitles on in English. If it’s hard at first, you can watch in your language and after that in English. Write down in a notebook the vocabulary, words and expressions, that appear more frequently also write sentences to put the vocabulary acquired in context. 

Buy dictionaries, bilingual and monolingual, especially the ones from OXFORD, CAMBRIDGE AND PEARSON EDUCATION. A good dictionary about idioms and phrasal verbs will help tremendously to increase your understanding of English. Remember if you don’t invest money and time your progress will be unsatisfactory.