Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Learn German Quickly

Learn German Quickly - The 4-1-1 to Learn How to Speak German

For those of you who want to learn to speak German online, the good news is that you have made a wise choice that is, only if your online course uses a variety of effective teaching strategies to help you learn. First, in order to learn German quickly, you must be self-motivated. Lack of motivation will result in wasting your money, time and your inability to learn how to speak German. Second, no matter how great your German teacher/tutor, German school or online course is, if you have no desire, you will not learn German. And lastly, research has shown that with motivation and desire you need to utilize learning and communication strategies to empower you to learn to speak fluent German in the most sure-footed way.

Learning strategies are techniques used to improve learning, such as mnemonics or using a dictionary. You can implement any of the following learning strategies to further assist you to learn how to speak German:

1. Find out your learning style. Ask yourself this question, how do I learn or process information? Once you know how you receive and retain information, you will be able to find the learning activity that is best studied for your learning style. For example, I am a visual/tactile learner and I prefer to receive German vocabulary in the form of picture and then write the word under the picture. In this way, I will be more inclined to remember and learn German vocabulary. There is a wealth of information on how you can use various activities geared to your learning style such as Game software, flash cards, Audio lessons, etc. which any good online German course should include.

2. Find a community. If you learn German in a community with a positive attitude toward German, it can have a profound impact on your learning to speak German fluently. It is all about networking. You can find a German forum or study group or join an Austrian social club that can give you more exposure to use and hear German. Once again, a good online course should have the resources that allow you easy access to communicate with native-German speakers, fellow students and/or teachers.

Communicative strategies are techniques used to get the meaning across even when you have little or no knowledge of the language. To be able to communicate in German to native-German speakers, especially verbally, is vital.

· Using objects, pictures, mime are things that you can do to communicate on a basic level. This is a quick technique to build up your vocabulary especially if you are trying to say something but unable to find/recall the German word.
· Engaging in conversation is an excellent way to fine-tune your speaking, listening and comprehensive skills. You always should try to have conversation with an individual who is at a higher-level in German than you.

Remember that even if you are highly motivated but remain unwilling to use these strategies, your learning and progress of German will stagnate. Having a solid footing with an excellent German course plus these two strategies will assist you to eventually learn German fluently, quickly and effectively.

Learn German Quickly

As Featured On Ezine Articles

Monday, July 21, 2008

Learn German Quickly

Learn German Quickly - Discover The Missing Link

If you are reading this, I can assume that you have a desire to learn to speak German and your choice to learn German is secure. But you need to know the most important factor to get you learn to speak German quickly and effectively. Unfortunately, most language students overlook this crucial link when they decide to learn German. So, what is this missing link?

But, first things first, you need to find a reputable course that can meet your needs. Now, if you are a person who has no time in your schedule or money to attend a language school, to hire a private tutor, or to live in Germany for 2 years, then you should seriously consider finding an online German course. Learning a foreign language online these days is feasible but you need to find the right course for you. You need to find an online course that has an excellent quality of teaching tools and resources, several varieties of teaching techniques, portability for convenience, accessibility to teachers and your peers, and lastly, affordability.

Now the missing link is that you need to identify your learning style. Many people are not aware of their learning style. Remember your classes in high school or college? Everyone has his/her own learning style and everyone learns at a different pace. According to the popular Index of Learning Styles model developed by Richard Felder and Linda Silverman, there are four groups of learning styles with each group treated as a continuum with one learning preference on the far left and the other on the far right. To help you find your learning style, here is a quick run-down of the 4 groups:

· The Sensory and Intuitive group. Sensory learners look for the facts and prefer concrete, practical, and procedural information. Intuitive learners look for the meaning and prefer conceptual, innovative and theoretical information.
· The Visual and Verbal group. Visual learners look for visual representation of information such as pictures, graphs and diagrams. Verbal learners look for explanations with words and prefer to hear or read information.
· The Active and Reflective group. Active learners thrive doing group work and prefer hands-on activities. Reflective learners enjoy problem solving and prefer to use to think things through, to evaluate options, and learn by analysis.
· The Sequential and Global group. Sequential learner put the details together linearly to understand the whole picture and prefer to have information given in a step a to step b, orderly manner. Global learners can visualize the big picture first and then they add the details and prefer a holistic and systematic approach.

Once you know where your preferences lie on the continuum of each of these groups, you can begin to move beyond those preferences and develop a more balanced approach to learning. Remember balance is the key. If you learn to speak German online the products are designed with these learning styles in mind and hence you are able to learn at your own pace, time and convenience. In this way you will be able to learn German fluently by improving your learning effectiveness and your ability to take in new information and make sense of it quickly, accurately, and effectively.

Learn German Quickly

As Featured On Ezine Articles

Friday, July 11, 2008

Learn German Quickly

Learn German Quickly - All you have to do is TALK, TALK

If English is your mother tongue, then learning German is definitely easier than learning a non-European language. But your goal should be to choose the right course or methodology to learn German quickly. This is of course a crucial step that can make learning German a smooth or bumpy ride.

For example, German grammar is hard. However, studying grammar is not the best or the fastest way to learn German quickly. The ideal language course will get you involved in living the language, through role-plays, discussions, and games to get you used to speaking German. You can also find plenty of interesting ways to speak and listen to German.

Learn German Quickly