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Learning a language… When the time comes to dig in!

I have been trying to learn Russian for a year now, and on a day when my teacher had to cancel the lesson due to a severe cold I sat considering whether I wanted to continue or throw in the towel.

The reason that I started to learn Russian was due to curiosity, since I had a lot of Russian students learning English, but also I wanted to put myself through the student process and see what insight this gave me to help me to improve as a teacher. In this I have achieved many things and it has been an invaluable experience, plus I have been proud of my achievement in understanding the language too, but I also see, with shame, that if I had just tried that bit harder I would have achieved so much more. I have come to truly appreciate that ‘less is more’ when you come across new grammar or concepts. That time to revise and revisit previous learning points is never time wasted. That ‘a little… often’ is priceless advice, and that ultimately homework rules, as it really does reinforce your learning and understanding.

So were there any negatives? Yes. My Italian has suffered and that must now resume priority because I live in Italy. I have seen myself struggle to find words that were once known so well, and have heard myself automatically respond in Russian, then English before finding the correct Italian words. It worries me and I intend to resolve that with haste.

However, I am reluctant to let go of my Russian. I have become extremely interested in the process of learning and the construction of the language itself. I am now curious to see if my return to learning Italian will actually be improved. I have a sneaky suspicion that I will be braver in tackling the more difficult grammar and pronunciation now. I mean, nothing can be as difficult as Russian, surely!

So I conclude, as possibly most students of English do at one time or another, that when you think about giving up, it is really the time when you take stock, appreciate and then prepare to dig in deeper than before. Keep learning! If you’ve taken a break from your English studies over the festive period, now is the time to come back with vengeance and start again. Refresh your memory, renew your efforts, progress to new levels. SkypEnglish4U is the perfect place. We’re a fun group, flexible and friendly. We understand the highs and lows of learning a language. We will help you.

So are you ready? Yeah… Bring it on!

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Contact Rachel today > http://www.italki.com/teacher/1394345

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AIM, TARGET, GOAL!

Do you still have troubles talking about an aim, a target and a goal?
Specifically, in the Russian language there is the same word for all of these meanings!

Plus, what about object and purpose?

Have a look at these definitions below and perhaps they will help you.

Target – what you are aiming for.
Aim – the state you want to acquire by the end.
Object – the point of doing it.
Goal – synonymous with ‘target’.
Purpose – the reason for doing it.

So, let’s do an example…

My target (or goal) is to speak Russian.
My aim is to be able to hold a conversation with native speakers.
The object of this is to be able to understand the differences between Russian and English better.
So the purpose of this will be that I can teach my Russian students the English language more effectively.

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Contact Rachel today > http://www.italki.com/teacher/1394345

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DON’T GIVE UP

Learning another language is not something that can be done overnight. There are many things that you can do to speed up the process though. These things I can teach you. Remember, if you start any course: DON’T GIVE UPNÃO DESISTANO TE RINDASNE PAS ABANDONNERΜΗΝGIVE UPNE ADJA FEL, NÁ THABHAIRT SUASNON RINUNCIAREあきらめてはいけない, NOLITE, IKKE GI OPPНе сдавайтесьGE INTE UPPPEIDIWCH Â RHOI UP

LINDA’S PROFILE

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A note from Dasha’s father

It is not often that teachers get such feedback from parents.  I feel very nice to have a parent and a child that are happy with my lessons on skype!

“Hi! How’re you doing? I want to thank you for the “A” grade of Dashas English at school this trimester. You know, last september Dasha challenged a new English specialized school and before that I had a conversation with director of new school about the level of Dashas future classmates as far as they are studying English deeply since they were 8 years old (2nd grade in school. For the moment Dasha at 8th grade). So School Director recommended to deal with one of school teacher to have additional classes for Dasha. Before they started i had a conversation with additional teacher about the purpose of this additional classes pointing that I would love Dasha to start talking English and do not care about grades. After first lesson Dasha told me that English is not interesting for her to study with this teacher. After that we quit the additional classes and sterted SkypeEnglish with you. THANK YOU again for your contribution. I’m so happy to have your lessons for my lovely Dasha.”

 

JANET’S PROFILE

Skype: Bringing the world closer

Summer is upon us and people are going on holiday!  What a brilliant way to learn some travel English.  The wonderful thing about skype is that you can learn about other cultures.  I've never met a Russian person.  I recently started lessons with a Russian girl who is so interesting and our lessons are never long enough!  We have so many things to talk about.  I really like teaching on skype!  Never in my wildest dreams did I think I'd be having a conversation in the morning with a Russian and then in the afternoon with an Italian!  The world is so much smaller now!  Being able to speak to and understand other cultures is surely the way to bring peace and understanding to the world!  (one can dream!)

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Common Phrases

Student: I realize I should learn by heart a set of template common phrases for everyday situations. So I can build my arguments or story around them, use them. Maybe that way to speed my speech flow.

Teacher: It is a good idea to be comfortable using common phrases.  I would not recommend just memorizing them.   You need to be able to use them on the spot, in any random conversation.      Play around with these useful expressions

I believe that learning phrases is more effective than just single vocabulary words.  So many words can be used differently – especially when dealing with prepositions and everyone’s favorite, phrasal verbs!    Just going over that list (or any other list of common phrases) will make you aware of them and you will notice them when you are watching TV shows or reading articles (everyday!)

on the spot:  immediately

 

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I don’t know where to start for a job interview

Student: I don’t know where to start for a job interview in America because the system I use is only Russian.

Teacher:  Get comfortable with the terms in English so you can easily explain what you do in English.  This is going to require a lot of reading, both about the system itself  (in this case: 1C: Enterprise 8 )  and then general IT interview questions.

Interviews require a lot of research.   You need to know exactly what they are looking for and explain how you fit their needs.  You also need to know about the company and their practices.  In the IT industry the required skill set may be the same, but how the companies operate vary from one to the next.   You need to find out how they operate and make sure that your answers fit with how they do things.

 

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Sentence starters, transitional and other useful words

Student: I’ve noticed I use the same speech patterns every lesson. I mean some of sentence structures like “it depends…”, “I think/suppose/guess …”, and etc. Does exist some common speech patterns helping to speak? 

Teacher: The fact that you notice it yourself means that you are conscious of it and going to be looking for other options 😉 Listen to others and how they start their sentences. Sitcoms are a good tool to observe “natural” speech patterns. Podcasts and interviews about topics you are interested in will be helpful as well. For natural speak- stay away from stuffy news programs or topics that don’t interest you.

Here are about 10,000 examples to get you started  >  http://www2.eit.ac.nz/library/ls_guides_sentencestarters.html

Do you have any questions?  Please!  Feel free to contact me with them