Hi Kayla, do you think it is possible to teach myself german without taking a course, only through books? I have to learn german so I can work there but dont have the money to go to a course :( Thank you for the great resources!
`roh boy get ready for a long post! :-)
Short answer: YES! I have never had a formal course in german, und ich spreche gut deutsch. I’m not a pro, grammar is so hard to teach yourself, but it’s doable. It’s also taken me three years to get to the point where I feel comfortable having conversations with people, reading news articles, etc. but it also hasn’t been a priority in my life and it is not something I practice daily (or even weekly at this point, as I work on my Spanish para mis dos semanas en Guatemala en mayo!). Nonetheless, here are some tips:
two years ago, I made this post. it has some great (and mostly free!) resources
something that really helped me is Duolingo, and it’s free and getting better everyday. what I did on Duolingo to start learning german was complete the language tree in your native language, so for me: english > german. THEN complete the tree as a german speaker learning english: german > english. It’s a good review and because DL builds on itself you learn some foundational grammar and gender rules and the major words like the, it, is, days of the week, food items, how to reserve a table, etc. as well as other things, like idioms. DL has the discussion board too where you can talk with native speakers about other or less formal ways to say the same thing.
other small changes I made in my life:
the setting on my email, Facebook, Instagram, and cell phone were all changed to german. that helped me learn some words I probably wouldn’t have encountered in a class, but would have wanted to use anyway.
I bought Grimm’s Fairy Tales, in german, and actually read them. Because they’re stories almost everyone knows in their native language, it was really easy to use context clues and the pictures to figure out what an unfamiliar word was, and I could always translate phrases I was uncomfortable guessing.
I spoke out loud… a lot. it’s so hard to learn pronunciation in your head, please push through the awkward feeling and record yourself speaking as you study german or any other language. go back and critique yourself and then re-record until you get it right. save the times you get it right and delete the times you don’t. now you have a reference in your own voice and understanding of what popular words and phrases sound like!
if you feel like you would benefit from the structure of a class but can’t pay the tuition to take one: edx.org and coursera.org are favorites of mine and sometimes they have active language classes you can audit (sadly no german at this exact moment, but check in the future!).
also on this note: if you’re in uni or college and can’t afford to take a lang. you can audit classes for free. you won’t get a grade but you would get all of the assignments and get to attend lectures and participate in the class as a normal student would
the number one teaching-myself-a-language tip is always to hold yourself accountable. if you say you’re going to practice for 30 minutes a day, then actually practice for 30 minutes each day. you will simply not wake up one day fluent, it takes time and practice and patience with yourself as you learn to crawl, and then to walk, even if your goal ultimately is to run.
oh god another tip: I spent $30 on a “Learn German in 10 Minutes a Day” book and completed it in 10 days instead of the month or so it recommends. It came with stickers to label everyday stuff like comb, toothbrush, tv, etc. and flashcards. Very much worth the money for me
also tumblr is great, german langblr is my second home, and here are some amazing blogs (and bloggers) who have helped me learn german unbeknownst to them!
@languagetrash
@willkommen-in-germany
@suplanguages
@ucz-lenia
@languagesandshootingstars
@studyblrsubjects
@languageoclock
@athenastudying
I hope this helps and I’m sorry it’s so scattered! hopefully it helps, feel free to message me anytime!
auf wiedersehen! und viel glück :-)
