I found this how to study post on How To Learn Any Language extremely interesting and helpful. For my second post here, I’d like to share with you some tips I think are important for learning a language.

Relax: When you are studying a language, it is important to remember that learning should be fun. Make your language learning sessions a time for you to relax with something you love. I personally like to brew myself a nice cup of coffee or tea, and lose myself in learning something I enjoy.

Say It Out Loud: Learning a language (with the possible exception of dead languages) means learning how to speak it. If you never attempt to say the language out loud, you will never be able to learn it. I like to read absolutely everything out loud, to make speaking the language feel more natural. Remember that audio resources are absolutely necessary: you must be able to hear it correctly to say it correctly. Online dictionaries such as WordReference are great for this: they have little snippets of audio that you can use to get the pronunciation of the word down pat.

Use Multiple Methods: There is no such thing as the one perfect learning method that will take you from zero to fluent in sixty seconds. A great approach is combine audio material with explanatory workbooks and native media. Don’t try to do everything at once, but also don’t believe that you can learn everything from one program. This is what proponents of programs such as Rosetta Stone tell you, mostly to get you to pay ridiculous prices for their “One Truly Perfect Program.” You can learn everything from one place, but you can a lot from many different methods.

Don’t Be Afraid to Make Mistakes: They happen to the best of us, so don’t let them get to you! We all have moments where we tell our new Spanish boyfriends that we’re pregnant (embarazada) when we mean to say we’re embarrassed. Remember that mistakes are just another way we learn, and that you really will be able to laugh about it later.

Remember Why You Love It: Languages are fascinating, but sometimes watching tv sounds better than conjugating French verbs in the subjunctive.  Perseverance is key to learning, so remember the people, the places and the haute couture that made you fall in love with the language in the first place.