To get fluent, it's got to be a normal part of your life.
I understand the struggle: You want to improve your English, but there just aren't enough hours in the day. You work, you have a family to look after, and you want to enjoy life with friends and hobbies. So when can you fit in that extra commitment to, let's face it, probably not your most exciting commitment: English? But while it might not be as much fun as going for a beer with your buddies, you and I both know that improving your English will improve your life.
Luckily for you, it can be manageable and enjoyable (really, it can- bear with me!)
All you need to do is incorporate English into your day, every day.
Read
Reading is a fantastic way to build your vocabulary, grammar and confidence. It also stops you from translating directly from your first language when you speak. The majority of mistakes that I correct in class are direct translations. Most of my students are Spanish, and I can hear the Spanish structure as they are saying it in English. The only way to stop your first language from getting in your way is to normalise English through constant exposure. Reading is great because you will see repeated patterns and language structures. You will understand the meaning through context and say to yourself, "Ah ha. So that's how they say it in English". And then you will read the same structures again and again in different texts and they will become normal and natural for you to use in conversation. You won't need to translate in your head anymore. How liberating!
I'm going to make reading easy for you with this blog. The posts are written in a casual, conversational way. I use language that you can learn and reproduce in conversations. They are short and entertaining (I hope), so you won't get bored (again, I hope). Finally, each post will contain a glossary of keywords, such as phrasal verbs, expressions and idiomatic language.
Read more about the power of reading here.
Listen
This one is easy and enjoyable. There's no excuse not to do it!
Learning Spanish was incredibly hard for me. I'd been terrible at languages in school, and I'd never been exposed to Spanish before. So when I moved to Mexico with no knowledge of the language, life was not easy! But spending time among the locals, listening to my students talk and watching movies really helped. I can't stand dubbed movies, but I was thankful that Mexicans weren't keen on subtitles, so if I wanted to watch a film on a long bus ride, it had to be in Spanish.
Nowadays, with Netflix and all the other streaming platforms, you are spoilt for choice. You can watch fantastic series and movies in their original language and enjoy improving your English. At first, you might need to put on the subtitles in your own language, to help you while you get used to listening in another language. Soon you will be able to switch the subtitles to English and finally, turn them off altogether. I didn't have a subtitle option in Mexico, and I was surprised at how much I could understand through context. Each time I watched something, I understood a little more. Because I couldn't rely on subtitles, I was forced to train my ear and just develop a natural understanding. It doesn't matter if you don't understand everything; it doesn't matter if you barely understand anything! I promise that you will start to understand more over time. Think about when you were a child learning your first language; it just happened naturally over time.
I advise you to watch modern series and films which use English that is relevant to today. The Crown and Downton Abbey are great, but nobody actually talks like that! The more colloquial, the better because you need to understand real people in real situations (this is how I justified so many seasons of Allí Abajo when I lived in Sevilla).
Podcasts are a great way to train your ear and your brain. With no visual context, you rely only on what you hear. Again, this is difficult at first, but just allow yourself to get used to it, and it will begin to feel more natural. I've been listening to podcasts in Italian while I'm driving, and I'm surprised by how much I can understand. Of course, I lose concentration and therefor the thread of the conversation, but it doesn't matter; it still seeps into my brain, and if I focus, I can pick it up again.
Write
I always tell my students that if you can write in English, you can speak in English. Writing helps you practice your grammar, vocabulary, and sentence structures but also enhances your overall language proficiency. Writing allows you to express your thoughts, ideas, and opinions in a coherent and organized manner, which is crucial for effective communication. We all know that English spelling can be a pain, so writing forces you to improve your spelling. Using a tool such as Grammarly allows you to self-correct and review your own work. It may not be perfect, but we're not looking for perfection, we looking for normalisation.
Try journaling in English every day and watch your English level soar!
While we're on the topic of writing, don't be afraid to use Google Translate when you need to ensure correctness and effective communication, especially in a professional capacity. I use it for written correspondence in Italian and Spanish, but I make sure I check the text carefully because Google Translate doesn't always get things right. You need to know the target language to check that your translation is accurate and reads well. We're all busy, and this software saves time and energy. However, you can also learn a lot from the AI translation: pay attention to how the syntax and sentence structures differ from your own language. As a study method, try this: Write a paragraph in English, without translating. Then write the same paragraph in your first language in Google Translate and see how your original text compares. Another exercise is to translate a passage from your first language, without the software. Then use the software to translate and compare. Again, it may not be perfect, but it doesn't matter.
Speak.
You need to activate all the language you've learned through reading, listening and writing by speaking. The importance of oral practice cannot be emphasised enough.
I often compare this to my dancing. When I first started learning salsa and bachata, I was too nervous to go to social dances, so even though I'd learned loads of moves, I was dependent on the class structure to execute them. I lacked confidence and the ability to read my partner's cues and follow, without being told what move was coming next. Dance is like a conversation: a spontaneous interaction. When I began swing dance, even though I knew very few moves, I started social dancing almost straight away. As a result, my dance vocabulary grew beyond what I was taught in class and I have the confidence to dance with anyone, understand their part of the conversation and respond appropriately. If you’d like to read more about my dance journey, here’s an article I wrote for the Cape Town Swing Association website.
The same principles apply when learning a language. Classes provide you with the tools you need to go out into the world and put them into practice.
Here are some ways you can bring speaking into your everyday:
Set up regular “English only” dates with friends or your partner
Join or organise a language exchange
Book conversation classes here
Speak to yourself!
Book a long holiday in an English-speaking country
Make English a part of your life
By incorporating these four skills into your life every day, English will stop being something foreign and scary, and become so normal that you won't even think about it any more. The goal is to think in English and stop translating from your first language. Importantly, enjoy the process! It will be worth it. As Theodor Rosevelt said, "Nothing worth having comes easily".
Glossary
Buddies | Friends |
Manageable | Something can be controlled or dealt with without difficulty |
Knowledge | Facts, information, and skills acquired through experience or education |
I can't stand (+noun or verb +ing) | Strongly dislike or hate something |
Spoilt for choice | To have so much choice, it seems indulgent |
Switch | Change |
Can barely understand anything | Hardly anything; almost nothing |
Colloquial | Language used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal |
Seeps | Figurative: when a liquid enters or exits slowly through a porous material or small holes. |
Pick it up | Continue; start again from where you left something (more definitions of this phrasal verb here) |
A pain | Irritating; unpleasant. The full expression is"a pain in the neck |
To journal | To write your thoughts and feelings in a diary |
Soar | Fly high (like an eagle) |
Lack | Verb- To be without or not have enough of something |
Cue | A signal |
Straight away | Immediately |
Set up | Start and manage a business, group, team, etc. |
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