Women in Language TICKETS ARE HERE For 7-10 March 2019
Women in Language is a special online conference for all language lovers, organised by Shannon Kennedy, Lindsay Williams, and me. In this article, you’ll discover more about how it all started and what it feels like to be at the conference.
Just over 16 months ago, Lindsay Williams (my podcast co-host) and I were chatting on Skype. It was October or November. I remember the day turning into night at what felt like 4 in the afternoon on my side of the world, while Lindsay was getting ready for her day.
We were chatting about a few ideas for the future, when she mentioned this one thing that made my heart explode with excitement.
“So I’m thinking of maybe doing a one day event on International Women's’ Day with loads of female language people speaking...wouldn’t that be cool?! I can’t do it this year though because I’ll still be away but…”
I didn’t need to hear any more. I was like STOP IT RIGHT THERE I AM IN!!
Lindsay had just spoken an idea that had been growing in my brain, too. And I’m not a patient kinda girl so I wasn’t going to let Lindsay’s round-the-world trip stand in the way of an amazing idea. We contacted Shannon Kennedy and asked “would you maybe be interested…”.
Shannon was a yes. The organising team was ready, and few months down the line we shared the news with the world that we’d be hosting Women in Language in March 2018.
The event was a massive success! (Read my full debrief if you want to know what I learnt and how we pulled it off.)
Over the last year, we continued to work on our list of speakers and our background preparations. And now, we’re ready to bring you WOMEN IN LANGUAGE 2019!
If you were at last year’s event, you’ll know what to expect.
But if not, I know you’re curious. I asked writer Cassie Wright who was at Women in Language to share what it was like for her. Here’s Cassie’s story:
Conference Experience: What Cassie Thought Of The Language Conference
Once, when I was 9 years old, I tried to tell everyone I knew that in Finnish, you could make whole sentences into one super long word.
How awesome, right?
Unfortunately, my school friends were a lot less enthusiastic about my latest language tip. In fact, I was surprised to find that they didn’t really care at all.
Even at that age, I had two binders dedicated to languages, each full of vocabulary: one labeled ‘Finnish’ and another labeled ‘Japanese’. I was fascinated by languages and it stood out just as much as my mop of curly hair in a classroom full of long, straight locks. I was a language nerd at heart, though no one else seemed to have the same sort of passion.
Despite the fact that my friends didn’t care about my Finnish facts, I was proud of my attempts and motivation to learn. I never got very far, but I was always confident in my abilities.
"Japanese?" People would ask, “Isn’t that hard?”
I would just nod and grin.
But eventually, going it alone became too much of a challenge and the things other people told me were more important took over.
Still, languages followed me through both high school and college. Without fail, each time I tried to start again, I couldn’t find the drive to keep going.
Then, years later when I tried once more, I found an entire blog dedicated to learning languages. It was a lot different from the sites I’d seen before that featured big name polyglots and sold all kinds of "easy tricks".
That’s when I came across an announcement on my Twitter feed for Women in Language.
It caught my attention immediately, not only because there were so many women prepared to talk about their language experiences, but because it was all online. The only thing I needed to attend was a ticket for the event, which meant the cost of plane rides and hotels wasn’t an issue.
When I bought my ticket to Women in Language that day, I didn’t realize how much it would change my approach to language learning.
It’s not just about languages. It’s about representation.
Learning a language is the goal, but how do you do it with a busy schedule? Kids? How do you find the courage to pick up and move to another country? How do you immerse yourself when that’s not possible?
How amazing would it be to learn about those things from someone in your place: women of all different races and backgrounds with a variety of experiences.
This is what I really gained from Women in Language and it gave me a sense of validation.
Here were a number of talented women who gladly shared their knowledge and ideas. I saw in them my own language learning dreams, only this time, it wasn’t some unrealistic goal.
In this community of multilingual women, I felt I could proudly hold onto my vocabulary-filled binders with my mess of curly hair and say, "Hey! I’m one of you, too. I see myself here."
Women in Language brings that community of learners forward and inspires them to keep going.
More than anything, it’s a breath of fresh air for those who need a place to share a common interest and belong.
GET YOUR TICKET TO WOMEN IN LANGUAGE!
This year, we are proud to announce that there are EVEN MORE presentations at Women in Language. There’s so much more happening – including 2 Panel Discussions and a chance for YOU to present, a prize draw worth over $1000, and daily fun activities for everyone.
Ready for it?
Women in Language is happening live and online over 4 days from Thursday 7th March to Sunday 10th March 2019.
If you can’t make it on those dates, you can catch up at any time since your ticket purchase gets you access to all recordings for as long as you like.
Everyone is welcome (the ‘women’ in Women in Language only refers to the line-up of speakers!) and we’d love to have you join us for the live event. Click below to get your ticket now for Women in Language 2019.
To join us, click here to purchase your ticket.
Are you coming to Women in Language? Leave a comment below and let me know!
#clearthelist February 2019: Chinese App Reviews and Teaching Welsh in Edinburgh
In this post, I’m sharing my language learning goals and strategies used in January 2019. And I’m starting to learn my 9th foreign language!
Welcome to the January edition of my #clearthelist goal tracking post. Clear The List is a support and accountability blog group sharing monthly language learning goals, hosted by my friends Lindsay and Shannon.
I have now been tracking my goals using Clear the List for 9 months. It’s a fun process - a little cumbersome at times to write check-in posts but always worth it for the accountability.
Ever since I created the Language Habit Toolkit I have been aware of how important it is to build a review process into your language learning routine. When you step back regularly and write down what you did, it’s easier to feel accomplished and understand that any lapses are temporary.
What Happened in January 2019?
After so much travel in December (retreat and Christmas), my intention was to have a month of routine, perhaps even a little rest. Now at the end of the month, I do feel a little more calm. But I’m also wondering where January has gone!
The month was focused on planning my year and working on the first project, which is launching a fabulous German course for beginners and “false beginners”. I worked on this course for 7 months last year and can’t wait to open it up for my 2019 German learners.
If you want a free preview, hop on here and register your email address.
On the blog, I shared the 9 Best Websites for German Beginners
Presenting my talk in Edinburgh. Thanks Maureen Millward for the picture.
This month, I also started work on Women in Language 2019 by contacting over 40 potential speakers. And ended with a trip to Edinburgh to present a lightning talk at Polyglot Pub Edinburgh. More about that in the Welsh section…
The Fluent Show
The Fluent Show was super efficient this month, I recorded 3 awesome interviews, 2 solo shows and ran a survey of over 150 listeners. Listen out for the next solo episode where I’ll share results and plans.
My favourite episode of January was Ask a Linguist, where we got to meet our linguist podcast heroes from Talk the Talk in Australia!
Language Goals and Progress
Let’s start with Mandarin Chinese for this one! Last month, I came out of the Chinese prep phase and decided that yes, I do want to learn this language a little bit.
Studying Chinese
I have been playing around with a bunch of apps. In my mind this isn't really "language learning" in my usual style yet. I feel like “proper learning” will start for real when I get a notebook, set goals and start saying things to people.
Without repetition and a notebook, I only retain 20% of what I see and practice. So I guess this is high level dabbling, and I’m not finding myself particularly rushed to move forward. I spoke no Chinese for 35 years of my life, and now I’m ok if it takes 6 months to start.
Patience is a secret language learning weapon.
Reviewing Chinese Language Learning Apps
Here are my insights on the Chinese language learning apps I've tried so far:
Memrise @memrise is fantastic for teaching the kinds of phrases you'll want to say. The videos with locals are wonderful, and this grammar screen you see here is a delight. Memrise seems to understand where I'm at as a learner. Only downside: I'm not finding it helpful for character study.
Drops @languagedrops is fantastic for learning lots of vocab, getting the hand of characters, and hearing clear pronunciation. It's got the best character/pinyin system for me. I’ve been enjoying the #90dayswithdrops challenge.
Duolingo @duolingo is good at building up each lesson, and has an interesting way of introducing new words. I'm not finding it as enjoyable as the others. The lessons feel too short. That owl is cute, though.
Lingodeer @lingodeerapp is the most comprehensive and I can see myself using this as a study guide. The stories at the end of each chapter are awesome, though I feel thrown in at the deep end with the characters now and then.
Welsh Language Goals
In Welsh, I usually set goals in 4 areas: listening, speaking, reading and writing. In January I hit a special extra milestone by teaching a few words in Welsh to others. Wow!
You can download my notes and recommendations from the talk by signing up at www.fluentlanguage.co.uk/welshtoolkit
Listening
January was listening month and I tried my best to get more practice in. I listened to Nicky and Lara on Mynd am beint gyda. LOVE the casual feel!
I also listened to the radio a few times, but it didn’t stick. My radio time is the morning, and I’m just not into Radio Cymru’s breakfast shows. If you know any better ones, give me a shout.
Finally, I did listen to the Say Something in Welsh listening practices and parallel.cymru’s spoken news.
I don’t think I’m suddenly twice as good at understanding spoken language, but this listening focus has been a great reason for me to look for new and different audio sources. I’m more surrounded by Welsh audio, and that’s automatically going to add more of it into my routine. Neis!
Reading
I had no goals, but I did read quite a bit anyway. Encouraging!
Speaking
My goal was to advertise for a new Welsh language partner locally, and I can report success! I put a post into a local residents’ group on Facebook. You know the one: “what’s that noise on Jackson street?”…but lucky for me, one out of the many people who read posts in the group referred me to Welsh speaker Jane.
Now I have someone to meet for coffee on a regular basis, and I’ve felt exhausted, excited and abuzz after speaking to her. I can make myself understood on any topic we’ve covered, and her talking speed is definitely adding to that listening practice.
In addition, I completed Say Something in Welsh Level 2, Challenge 22.
Writing
I did have a goal here, which was to write 6 pages using writing prompts. Goal achieved…but I’m not sure how enjoyable I found the topics so far. I prefer writing messages to friends in Welsh, and luckily I do this 3-4 times a week now.
Contact Goal
Every month, I log my “daily contact” with the Welsh language using the Streaks app. January was excellent with 20 days of contact. It’s a habit!
If you’re interested in a printable tracking system for your own language routine, have a look at the Language Habit Toolkit.
Goals For February 2019
Exciting times! I think it’s time to set goals in Chinese.
My Welsh level is comfortable and I’m feeling secure enough to share some attention. I will not set listening, speaking, reading and writing goals in two languages for the same month. That seems like overkill.
Chinese Language Goals
While I get used to easing off on Welsh, my February goals in Chinese are simple:
- Start a Chinese study notebook so I can play with sentences and practice a few characters
- Spend 3 hours studying Chinese in total
- Get a textbook or two out of the library to test drive them
Welsh Language Goals
I’ve been enjoying the structure of having specific goals, and for February I’ll still pick on specific areas out of listening, speaking, reading and writing.
Since I have set up a successful Welsh habit and made lots of friends who speak the language, it’s now fairly regular for me to read and write Welsh in texts and books. Yay!!
Listening is a weakness of mine. I can understand 60-100% of the spoken language now depending on dialect and speed, but I want to feel more comfortable. I’ll aim for 5 days of Welsh audio contact every week, using one of these sources probably:
- Parallel.cymru Newyddion
- Radio Cymru
- Mynd am Beint Gyda
- Spotify Welsh Music
- Say Something in Welsh
Speaking is obviously a key to success at this stage. I want to chat with friends or meet my tutor at least 3 times, and I’ll work on Say Something in Welsh too.
I’d love to make a few videos in Welsh but am struggling for time this month.
Other goals:
- Book a place on another Welsh residential course, this time at the higher level. What could go wrong!
- Say Something in Welsh! I realised today that I’m 3 challenges away from FINISHING Level 2. I can do it!
WOW so there we have it - a big catch-up on my language learning goals and live documentation of how I’m starting to learn Chinese. It’s arguably my 9th foreign language to be studied in some level of seriousness.
What Are Your Language Goals?
It’s time for a new year - are you studying a new language?
If you have ambitions in German, don’t forget to visit www.german2019.com where my free course is launching next month.
How was your January? Leave a comment below and share how you got on.
9 Creative Ways To Power Up Your Language Resources
Sometimes, all resources look boring - or even worse, you just can’t find what you’re looking for. That’s when it’s time to get creative and discover new ways to bring your own abilities into your learning routine.
Today’s episode is based on an Instagram question from Iye, who is learning Norwegian. This is a popular enough language, but not one of the big ones exactly - with 5 million speakers, this language only has official status in Norway.
Anyway, Iye found that learning a lesser known language comes with the challenge of finding great materials for that language. So she wondered
Do you have any tips for how I can go about creating my own language learning materials?
Listen to this episode of the Fluent Show to find out all about making your own materials to power up your language learning routine.
What are the Benefits of Creating Your Own Language Learning Materials?
There is one big and obvious reason to get creative with materials: because there aren’t any.
For example, Ajeng from our FB group is learning Maori and says it’s hard to get good sources especially as someone living away from the country. Fewer websites, fewer videos.
Fran (learning Sicilian) say “It’s such a struggle to keep motivated because you can’t just pick up a book or watch a show or film”
There may even be materials, but they don’t always fall in with your preferred learning style.
Even if you are a learner of a big language like Spanish or French, you will still get so many benefits out of creating your own materials.
How Will Creating Your Language Learning Materials Help You get Fluent?
For this answer, let's look at the science of education. 🎓
It is best practice in the field of pedagogy to work upwards from hearing new information towards creating with it. Trained teachers may remember reading about Bloom's Taxonomy for example, which puts creation at the top of any learning process.
When you go ahead and make your own notes, flashcards and resources, you are adapting language learning to your own personal learning style and needs. Creation is a huge part of the learning process.
The Different Levels of Creation in Language Learning
In the podcast, you can hear about three different ways of starting to create your own language learning materials. So let's take a look at ideas for doing it.
Journaling / Notebooks : Document Life & Study
Try a Language Journal
Make notes on vocabulary, track your studies, write a diary, create your personal notes in this language. Definitely make your own flashcards.
You don’t need to because the internet and your materials have you covered, but do your own notes always make the most sense? HELL YES.
Examples:
- Always write down vocabulary no matter where you hear it - make your own flashcards instead of using pre-made decks
- Copy sentences and lines from any other sources that you find interesting, notes from lessons, document your own learning journey. Annotate with what you need (for example pronunciation notes as long as necessary). It’s YOURS
- Create transcripts (for example using Sonix) or translate sentences into your target language or into English (Andy’s idea)
Documenting Life & Study
This goes one step further from the last step, and means you organise more and start to truly create!
At this level, start curating materials in your target language to produce your own collections. For example, write a vocab list on a specific topic or collect an online folder of recipes to cook from.
This is also where you start creating - making videos or writing sentences, figuring out how to produce more in your target language.
Here's what other language learners are doing:
- John from the forum asks himself “How can I describe this in French/Spanish/German?" and uses these as real-life prompts
- Fran (Sicilian learner) records every Skype lesson and all her notes - she doesn't have a lot of materials available through YouTube, so getting more out of her lessons this way creates materials through conversations
- Fran also copies out texts etc from Italian text books and translates from Italian into Sicilian, or use them as a basis for making up a text for herself
- Ajeng tries to analyse and compare sentences in her target language Maori to figure out the grammar, then writes in Maori and asks for corrections from native speakers
- Lindsay (and I, a little) write using creative writing prompts as you heard on our top tools episode
Dare To Teach Your Language
Once you’re at an intermediate level, you have something to pass on to others. Teaching a language is an incredible way of learning it, and there are thousands of ways to get started.
Why not try to offer a short lesson at your local library - your attendees may even know someone who’s further along than them.
Many apps and textbooks are created from this need, for example HelloTalk and Clozemaster. And for Irregular Endings, the passion for languages became a unique stationery company. If you have the skills and confidence, this could be a way for you to go.
Why You Should Make Your Own Language Learning Plan
Creating your own materials will help you learn faster and better, so it's definitely worth a try. When you plan your next language goals or think about the weeks ahead, ask yourself where you could get a little more interactive.
The best way to get to language learning success is to build your own successful language learning routine. For this, I use the Language Habit System:
- Plan
- Track
- Review
For your personal language learning plan, make sure you have set effective goals and that you know you are tracking all the contact you have with your target language.
Here's more informaiton about learning languages every day.
9 Great Websites For German Beginners
Looking for inspiration and great courses to help you learn the German language? Here are 9 great websites that will help you learn German
Pop quiz - Which one of these is your favourite reason to learn German?
You fell in love with a German speaker
You fell in love with the atmosphere of a beer fest or a Christmas market
You have not yet tasted the greatest bread on this Earth, but you’d really like to, and you’ve heard the bakery only offers it to German speakers
Your company works with German clients and their English is so good it’s embarrassing all you know is jawohl ein Bier bitte
You want to visit Germany and get a taste of the wonderful nature, forests, skiing, castles, Roman history, medieval town centres, comfortable trains, inviting restaurants, fairy tale rivers
There are no wrong answers here. ALL of the above are fantastic reasons to get started learning the German language. I have been teaching and sharing German language and culture for five years, and today I’m sharing some of my favourite resources for beginners.
Make Your German Sound Amazing
My free mini-guide to speaking German is out now. It's called Make Your German Sound Amazing and will give you the best tips and 26 key phrases to make you ready for any conversation. Pop your details into the form below to join my email list and get the guide immediately!*
Check out 2 or 3 of these resources and make sure you bookmark them to visit again and again!
Great German Learning Websites
Beautiful German castles and Germany.travel
Sometimes it's necessary to check out of verb tables and remember why you chose to learn this language in the first place. What better way than to dream of hiking up beautiful hills and discovering romantic castles? Castles beat cases, after all.
Mein Weg nach Deutschland
This is a great project from the Goethe institute. Where would we be without them! Follow the story of Nevin, a newbie in Germany (who excitedly photographs pretty much anything on her mobile phone). The videos are available with and without subtitles and each episode has practice exercises too!
Deutsch Plus and Jojo sucht das Glück
There are some truly great telenovelas out there, designed especially for German learners. Lovers of retro Germany will like Deutsch Plus, the story of shy TV intern Nico from Romania - it's vintage 1996 work. Even better - it's suitable for starters from day 1. For improvers, Brazilian student Jojo will be a fun resource.
Listening: Radio D
Another suitable resource for beginners right from day 1 - Radio D is an audio course. Nice plot and a very well supported website with grammar hints and word lists make this resource a go-to page for German learners of any age.
Dictionary: LEO
No German learner can do without LEO - it must be one of the best online dictionaries around! Language searches available in both directions, 7 supported language pairs with German, audio pronunciation and a well-attended forum finding even the most obscure expressions make this a bookmark no-brainer.
TIP: Read more on how to use a dictionary like the most successful language learners
German Uncovered
Learn German the natural way without complex grammar explanations and boring lessons. This course is based on a story, so you’ll be reading and having fun as you progress to level A2 at high speed.
Speak German Like a Native
If you find spoken German hard to understand, you need this course. This is my 5* masterclass course for all levels. No other course digs into the sounds of the German language, giving you the confidence to even say Eichhörnchen and Wechselstrom like a native.
Got More To Add?
The German learning community out there is always growing, and I’d love to hear what you’ve uncovered online.
Leave a comment if you know where to go for grammar that makes sense, or the best Swiss expressions.
Before You Set Your 2019 Goals, Here's What You Can Do To Get Ready
Don’t leave good lessons on the table - listen to this podcast episode to learn about the most important language lessons from 2018 with special guest Shannon.
Plus: More resources you can try right now!
Happy New Year, hurrah, welcome to 2019!
I bet you've been itching for January to kick off so you can go full steam ahead in lots of new language projects! But before that, let's not forget the year that's just gone by.
That's right, there are some goodies and lessons in the old year that can make a huge difference in how successful you'll be in 2019.
We'll find them with an annual review! For this purpose, I hung out with my friend and 10-language polyglot Shannon Kennedy to talk through her experiences of language in 2018, and how to set the best possible goals so your year goes better than ever.
Hit play to listen to our podcast:
In our conversation, Shannon shared her stories of how 2018 went as a language study year.
A New Language Learning Routine
Shannon's language learning routine changed away from setting specific task goals like "learn 30 new words". It is now more free and focuses on time spent with the language, which allows space for inspiration and still means a lot of productivity.
Shannon also had to deal with big routine changes like the loss of her 2-hour commute which used to provide lots of focused language time. She quickly learnt how to make up for that loss and now pairs her activities with more intention, for example using household chores as a great opportunity to put on an audio course or a podcast.
The Value of Discipline Over Motivation
Shannon also talks about how motivation can be a bad friend for language learners. It's just not as reliable as you would want it to be. She discovered just how valuable discipline is instead, and the difference it can make when you make discipline a value in your study routine.
How To Set Great Language Learning Goals
Finally, we discussed the way Shannon sets herself goals and works with the structure of Vision Goals and Path Goals. She shares a few of her own Vision Goals and I promise you, they're among the best I have EVER heard from a language learner. These goals are your "why", your source of all the mental energy you may need to focus on your language and keep moving forward.
TIP: If you can anchor your goal in real life and make it about a real situation you'd like to experience, it will be a more powerful and helpful Vision Goal.
Here Are The Year Review Questions
You can use them to conduct your own review of 2018 and set goals for the next year.
- How would you sum up the year in your languages?
- What changed in your life and in your languages in 2018?
- What lessons do you think you learnt from the year 2018?
- What surprised you?
- What will you change going forward?
- Looking forward, what are your language learning goals for 2019?
Shannon's top 3 books of 2018
- Grit by Angela Duckworth
- The Organised Mind by Daniel J. Levitin
- Courses from the Assimil series
Shannon's top 3 apps of 2018
Shannon's top 3 courses
- The Add1 Challenge
- Yoyo Chinese
- 90 Day Korean
What Were Your Top Books, Apps, and Courses?
And do you set yourself regular vision goals?
Share them in the comments below!
Struggling with listening? Discover realistic tips, challenge prompts, and the best tools for improving your listening skills as a self-guided language learner