In case you really feel such as you’ve been dropping phrases and forgetting what you’ve discovered, it could merely be since you’re not partaking your mind the proper means to recollect them.

As a result of let’s flip the script about being “too old.” What if I informed you that being older was, in truth, the excellent time to be taught a language – it’s presently that we’re extra accountable, extra decided, and infrequently have extra time to commit.

What’s greatest is that language studying has a swarm of well being advantages – one in every of conserving your mind wholesome for years to return. And so if you happen to’ve ever discovered your self pondering “I’m too old”… then I encourage you to see that that’s precisely why you ought to continue learning a brand new language. Difficult your mind on this means means conserving it sharp, lively, and robust.

After years of instructing language studying, right here’s what I do know to be true:

Attempting to memorise every part verbatim doesn’t grasp languages. This technique doesn’t help you be adaptable! Right here’s an instance: Let’s say somebody was learning the query of their goal language, “where did you go to university?” After memorising it, somebody asks them, “what post-secondary school did you attend?” … they usually fully freeze up, not realising it was the identical query.

It’s this actual cause that I consider you need to be taught phrases in context, not simply in strict isolation. It’s why each single factor I educate and preach is the antidote to gamification apps. And it’s why it’s necessary to all the time be taught the “why” behind reminiscence methods, so that you’re not simply “copy and pasting” what you be taught, however quite proper-clicking and exploring…