Baburra

I think this is a great idea, especially the word of the day part which I have to say helped me a lot while learning English when I was younger. It's very interesting, at least to me, to learn new words this way as it allows you to really let it sink in throughout the day and it allows for better retention. As for some advice on what to add, I'd say just giving out your experience would probably help a lot since it would allow people to see the personal side of learning a new language instead of just seeing it from a purely academic point of view, which I think would offer a more unique spin to you site that can separate it from others.

I I think it would be a little bit more difficult for an English speaker to learn Spanish because let's face it, English is already everywhere and chances are that foreigners in one way or another have already been exposed to varying amounts of British and American entertainment and media. Though at the end of the day it still depends on how much the person really wants to learn so either can prove to be as easy or as difficult as a person can make it, regardless of nationality.

I think almost any method can help as long as you are actively trying to learn. If you are paying enough attention to the subtitles, especially if it's enough to make you look up the words then I'm guessing it will be helpful. I think learning a new language has more to do with the attitude of who's trying to learn than the method he or she uses.

I have an American friend and he has some accent but not really any of the ones that is more prominent like a. Boston or Southern accent, and I always joke that I wish he did have one of those accents just because I find those strong accents amusing and it would be a hoot to hear it in person.

I have some problems with keeping attention as well, but I've found that when the subject I'm listening to is interesting enough for me then I need a lot less conscious effort to listen. If you can find some interesting talks on the same subject that might not catch your interest as quickly then it would be helpful I think. Also listening to the same session twice over helps as well since you get to focus on things you might have missed the second time around.

I agree, I think Russian language is a little bit easier to pronounce than some because the words don't really have any specific pronunciations for letters like R like in some other languages, or at least as far as I know. I feel the same way about Spanish wherein you could just read the words almost verbatim from how they are written and they would be comprehensible, as opposed to some languages like french wherein you'd have to learn to pronounce R the way they do first.

I think metaphors are just more precise and brief whereas extended metaphors probably expound a bit more on the idea. For example, a whole paragraph could be used as allegory or metaphor to convey what an object, event, or experience could possibly relate to, whereas a basic metaphor would convey that idea in just one sentence.

I don't have any rare languages but I speak Filipino which I'm guessing is at least one of the less sought after languages to learn since it would be more practical to learn something that is more useful in a wider scale like English or Chinese. I think it is a very beautiful language though and I especially love the slang that people here come up with.

I have my own formula when it comes to organizing sentences in paragraphs and I think I picked it up subconsciously from reading a lot growing up. I'm not exactly sure how precise they are in terms of technicalities of rules but I'm fairly sure it's good enough to at least be comprehensible. What I do is to just try and use which sentences help build up the idea and put it up first and when the topic shifts, I tend to put the next sentences in a new paragraph.

My current favorite short stories are written by non professional writers just doing it for fun. By this I'm referring to creepy pastas which have already spread online as a trend years ago. For the unfamiliar, it's basically just any creepy story that's about a few paragraphs long and at first I was skeptical but after reading my first few ones I was really impressed with the way these supposed amateurs write. I was really affected by the stories and could feel myself getting creeped out and even afraid.

I think it depends on what you're translating. Some phrases might have an easier time transitioning from one language to another but some might need a little more deviation from the literal translation. I find that this is most applicable when encoding subtitles because usually you not only have to find the most accurate way of translating text but also you'd need to be as brief with it as possible since the words are only up on screen for seconds at a time so you really have to get creative.

I once tried my hand at teaching some Koreans English and I was somewhat successful at it. I had no formal training but I just thought I could teach them the way I was taught in elementary school so I did just that. I found that using pictures is a good way to start as well as just starting out with the alphabet to have a better foundation. Also having a word of the day helps tons.

I was taught Chinese by immigrants at school and I guess by the time they were teaching my class most of them have already been living here for decades so they must have already lost some of their accents. It's why when I go to other Chinese speaking countries where their accents are very thick it's still very hard for me to understand but fortunately my lessons were enough to give me enough of an idea of what they are talking about.

I think OP is right, the sentence doesn't sound correct. I think the word "does" should be replaced with "should" so it reads - "how should language x be taught?". That's how I understand the post at least.

I think the last one is the only active sentence. The way I do it is by trying to pinpoint where the subject is and if it's not there then it's likely you can add "by ____" at the end so you can more easily determine which ones are passive. All three previous options, for example, make sense when you add on an imaginary subject at the end while the last one doesn't.

This is a very extensive and well made list, thanks for sharing. From skimming the article it sounds like most of the tips he gives are just common sense but it surely does help to hear it from someone who is able to expand on those ideas further and also to give some precise tips on what to so. I guess it also helps to be just as passionate as he is to learn new languages.

I think it's useful, if not for the preservation of history or even for the art or beauty of the writing, then at least for easier learning because it's much easier to learn the language when you have a firm grasp of how they are spoken and written due to the fact that they both contribute to how well you can memorize and understand the language.

I have a language bucket list as well but I'm a title loose with it. I would already be content with just being able to speak these other languages with some sort of fluency in a way that I'd at least be understood. I already have learned a second and third language so I consider it a bonus to learn more.

It's happened to me before and i usually just stay out of it and if i really wanted to talk to them in their language then id just wait for a better time. If i somehow felt from their conversation that they would welcome someone jumping in then I'd consider it but generally speaking, I wouldn't.

As many as possible would be the best but for a minimum two or three would already be nice enough. With only one other language apart from your native language you could already make a good living as a translator or at the very least it should already feel enriching enough in terms of broadening your perspective on different cultures.

I can't pronounce french either and it's very frustrating because I love the way it sounds. I guess like all other languages it really helps if the country you're from already speaks similarly but I'm from far away so unfortunately I'd have to force myself too much to deviate what my tongue has grown used to.

Yes, it is now inhabited with more people from different countries now more than ever, probably because it's only gotten more and more famous and popular as the years went by. I also agree that it's best to learn the language of the people nearest to you because it helps with communication as well as offers a more instant form of gratification since you could practice your new conversational skills almost immediately on others as opposed to if you learned a new language from countries that are far away.

Iagree, I think that is one of the best reasons to learn a new language. Often people are just way too stuck inside their own bubble so they never gain enough perspective by comparison with other cultures. Also, I think a good reason to learn a new language is personal enrichment. There is just a great sense of accomplishment from knowing that you know another language and it then gives you a bit more confidence that you can talk to people outside your own race.

Here it would be said as "ano Ito" or "ano 'to" for something more informal. Ano is the Filipino word for what and this is translated as ito. If you are speaking to elders though it is considered to be much more polite to put in "po" in the middle - "ano po Ito".

Aside from selfie, hashtag, and crowdfunding, I think they shouldn't have considered the other ones because they sound more like fads or slang to me and I don't think they are even that much widely used. If they added it then there must be a good reason I'm not seeing though so I will trust them on this one, but I'm really skeptical about twerp and gamification. I haven't even heard or read anyone saying that ever.