How to learn English at home. Bonus track: how to do it in 5 minutes

How to learn English at home yourself? In this article, we will gradually understand the ways in which the main four components of the language can be developed, and finally, what tools, gadgets and physical objects you can use to achieve the goal.

As a foreword, it can be said that the most effective way to learn to read, speak, listen and write in English is to learn how to think in English. To do this, just do not say aloud translations, do not repeat them to yourself, do not write and, if possible, do not listen. Then you will have the shortest and most pleasant associative bridge between the meaning of concepts and their verbal designation, between amorphous thought and the construction into which it can be clothed.

Before you tell how to learn English at home, as a warning - when choosing a material, be aware of what language you want to own, American English or British, literary, or slang.

Reading

So how to learn English at home? Start with the simplest literature, the simpler, the better. Ideal - a text in which you understand without an interpreter at least 80-90% of the words. Suitable children's tales and adapted editions.

Learn to see in the text 1) objects, phenomena, 2) signs of objects, 3) actions, states, 4) characteristics of actions, states, 5) directions, time intervals connecting words like "and" and "but," quantity There are parts of speech.

Ask questions - "What's going on?" - "With whom does it happen?" - "Through what happens?" - "How does it happen?" - "Who is happening?" Etc. - that is, learn to separate the members of sentences and see Connection.

Speaking

How to learn English at home if you do not live in an English-speaking country? Think in English and just say what you think, out loud, and then adjust. It does not matter if monosyllabic statements or not, especially at first. However, this does not mean that it is permissible "eee ...", "mmm ...", etc. Kill the parasites of speech immediately on the vine. After all, it's not really a thought, it's just the ability of a speech device to make some kind of sounds in the background while your brain is busy with other things. Then just make sure that more complete designs appear, and formulate them in such a way that they convey the relevant thoughts as faithfully as possible. And after they are announced, eliminate the errors. You can communicate with someone on Skype. There is a chance that it will be more interesting for you to talk with another person than with yourself. And someone will correct your mistakes instead of you, although not fact. Remember that not all native speakers speak competently.

Listening

It may seem that listening is easier than talking - you do not need to make up any constructions, look for expressions, just focus on keywords. But it is difficult to single out individual words from phrases if the hearing is not tuned to English speech. Further, if the sentence structure is incomprehensible, this will not help. And, finally, analyzing the words and following the design, you can simply not have time to combine all the logical units - that is, for example, understand who, but do not understand why and where, or understand why and where, but do not understand who. Therefore, the more practice, the better, and we must not forget that the 80-90% rule is also valid here. Practice best in English video with synchronous English subtitles.

Writing (grammar)

Open the tutorial. The textbook should be decent. This means that it should be concise, understandable, structured by subject, and not by lessons. That is, more like a directory, a root folder, broken down into groups and sub-groups, rather than a messy set of rules. Because how to learn English at home with a textbook designed for class work? Also, the mandatory conditions - with non-local examples, and as close to the original English syntax. And practice. Instead of exercises, make independent texts and then adjust them. Replenish the stock of used designs and expressions according to the chosen specialty or style.

You can start a correspondence with someone. Here, take into account not only that not all carriers speak correctly, but that a few of them competently write, especially on the Internet.

What you need to learn the language yourself

It may seem that one Internet is enough for all types of activities. And this is so. Paper books can be replaced with electronic versions and read them from a computer, a readbook or tablet, the voice of a living person can be replaced with a record available online, the interlocutor can be found in one of the social networks, and instead of writing a notebook in a Word document. It is not always convenient, productive and useful, but it is so. For regular reading, you can sign up (if not already written) in the library, where there is literature in English, or find a good site for learning the language with the archive of books. To understand how to learn English at home from scratch, remember how you learned your native language.

You will need:

- Explanatory English dictionary, author's choice - Colin Cobuld. It is good that it has a successful design and a list of words in alphabetical order, which are most often used in the book, even with the reduction of specific figures. This allows the most rational replenishment of the vocabulary.

- Google Translate. It's good that you can listen and read words. Use for translations is not recommended in principle (although as an interpreter is not so bad).

- A decent textbook with original grammar written by native speakers (because there are no decent English grammar books in Russian yet), the author's choice is Colin Cobuld Grammar for students, it is very simple, clear and concise, convenient orientation, each topic occupies exactly one page - in all 100 topics. To the left only the grammar, to the right only exercises. Excellent separation, considering that exercises can not be done at all and to whom they are needed in the text, only get in the way. Naturally, for a detailed study it will not be enough, but for the beginning and the middle is almost perfect. If you think that it's time for you to take on something more serious, first make sure that Colin has told you everything.

- English-Russian dictionary. Use as little as possible.

- Russian-English dictionary. Use only when urgently needed.

- Depending on the preferred method of communication: account in the social network, mailbox, headphones with a microphone, webcam. To correspond with a native speaker or speak Skype.

Bonus track: how to learn English at home in 5 minutes

First, here are the most common rules:

- The sentence consists of the subject ('Martin') and the predicate ('is clever' or 'drink'). There may be an addition ('coffee'), circumstance ('now') and definition ('in the morning').

Clever Martin drinks coffee in the morning.

Martin is clever.

- In common questions, the 'do' or the first verb of the compound predicate stands before the subject. A special word is added to the special word. In negations, 'not' or 'do not' is added.

Is Martin clever?

Clever Martin does not drink coffee in the morning.

Why is Martin clever?

- There are also 4 times, 4 aspects and passive voice ('to be' + Participle II). Past Indefinite is the verb + 'ed' or the second form of the verb, Participle I is the verb + 'ing', Participle II is the verb + 'ed' or the 3rd verb form.

Secondly, here are the most common words and phrases:

'Yes' / 'No'.

Third, if you do not understand what is being said, say: 'I can not understand' and 'do not kill me'.