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Don’t stop at Duolingo, set realistic goals, balance skills: how to start learning a new language
Language experts say you should learn in the right order and shift to a growth mindset
TL;DR
- Learning a new language enhances cultural understanding, social connections, and cognitive functions such as memory and creativity.
- While children learn languages more easily due to greater brain plasticity, adults can overcome challenges by focusing on habit and mindset over innate talent.
- Effective language learning involves making the process enjoyable, setting clear and realistic goals, and understanding how the brain processes new linguistic information.
- Experts recommend a learning order starting with extensive listening, then learning the writing system, and finally covering basic greetings and sentence structures.
- Focusing on high-frequency language chunks rather than complex grammar rules and balancing all core skills (listening, speaking, reading, writing) is crucial for effective communication.