Sometimes, the smallest adjustments are all you need to raise the effectiveness of your language learning efforts. Here are some little tweaks that can pay off for you:
- Get your lessons first thing in the morning. According to some researchers, your memory retention is at its peak at this time. If that’s true, then the stickier your lessons will likely become. On top of that, your mind is typically fresh in the morning, allowing you to take to your language software with a clear head.
- Add five extra minutes of practice time. Instead of wrapping up your daily session after 30 minutes, add an extra five minutes for practice. While that may sound like an insignificant time investment, that extra effort might be what helps you commit new knowledge to memory.
- Read one book in the target language. Just one. You can read it for as long as it takes, provided you promise to read at least one page a day. Use the tools you have at your disposal — language software, translation program, etc. — when certain passages confound you.
- Learn a song in the target language. Apart from potentially being fun (and a nice break from the straight-up lessons of your language learning software), doing this will help you learn new words with native-like pronunciation. The music should also make new words easier to remember.