Schlagwort-Archive: language learning

How to survive the worst moments of learning a language – The Guardian

This article from the Guardian looks at some of the most typical (and terribly embarrassing!) mistakes all language-learners will face sooner or later – and how to deal with them. Which mistakes have you made? Do you have any horror stories to share in the comments below?

„From talking on the phone for the first time to using local slang and being faced with a wall of laughter, Erica Buist on how to get over some of the most painful language mistakes“

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/dec/17/mistakes-while-learning-languages-spanish

German Footballers Speaking English

The LINGUA FRANCA Sprachschule blog presents a motivational video to get you working hard at you English. It shows top German football players being interviewed live on television in English – and most of them do extremely well in this high-stress situation! If even football players can do it, it should be no problem for anyone else…

I particularly enjoyed the comment below the video from one English fan – „Hummels and Muller speak better English than Gerrard and Rooney.“

The Linguistic Genius of Babies

Today the LINGUA FRANCA Sprachschule blog is presenting a 13-minutes video from the TED series. TED (Technology, Education, Design) is an international and interdisciplinary conference series based around the concept „ideas worth spreading“.

Why is it that we adults can invest many years of back-breaking work into learning a language (with often mixed results), while babies and young children seem to learn them effortlessly in months? The TED video below takes a closer look at this great injustice.

This video is suitable for a variety of levels. Higher-level English learners should just watch it as it is. Intermediate students – you can turn on the English subtitles on the menu at the  bottom-right of the video. Lower-level learners can go to the video on the TED website (here) and turn on the German (or the language of your choice) subtitles, as well as look at a full transcript of the talk. Enjoy!

Podcast Recommendation 3 – Is Learning A Foreign Language Really Worth It?

For this edition of Podcast Recommendations the LINGUA FRANCA Sprachschule blog is presenting an episode from the Freakonomics Podcast series. This podcast is created by Steven D. Levitt, an economist and Stephen J. Dubner, a writer – and together they present economic and statistical analyses of rather unusual subjects – if you have ever wondered about the economics of being a vampire or how much money you lose over a lifetime by being ugly, then this is the podcast for you.

Is learning a foreign language really worth it? (3/5/14)
Freakonomics LogoThis episode examines the various costs and benefits involved with learning a foreign language, and attempts to answer the question – is it really worth it? Best suited to B2- and higher students – lower levels can follow the audio using the transcript found at the bottom of the page at the link above.
iTunes

If you enjoyed this podcast and have any questions or comments – please join the discussion in the comments section of this post!

What is a podcast?

 

Podcast Recommendation 2 – How Quickly Can You Learn English?

This edition of „Podcast Recommendation“ presents the BBC’s 6 Minute English podcast, a long-running series of topical discussion and new vocabulary.

BBC – 6 Minute English6 Minute English
How Quickly Can You Learn English? (this link will take you to the 6 Minute English website. There you can find the audio as well as some vocabulary and a transcript)
Are you looking for some tips to help you improve your English? Learn some new techniques with Rob and Finn in this episode of 6 Minute English. Best suited to B1 and higher students – lower levels can follow the audio using the transcript found at the link above.
iTunes

What is a podcast? Simply, it’s like a radio show you can download to your computer / MP3 player / smartphone etc. and listen to whenever you want. There are many options for downloading and listening to podcasts. Most will let you download or listen to individual episodes directly from their website. If you want to subscribe, iTunes (PC and Apple devices – use the iTunes Store to find your podcast) is the most popular, while Podkicker Podcast Player is one of many good options for Android.