You've probably heard that learning to think in english it is the best way to start speaking the language fluently. You have certainly also wondered how this is achieved and what tools you can use to speed up the learning of the target language.
Putting aside the fears that hold you back with the new language and practicing frequently are the first steps to start talk fluid English. To do this, you will need to incorporate into your study routine some strategies that will help you internalize and infer syntactic structures. In this article we tell you some so you can speak English without fear.
Think in English or translate to understand?
Translating from Spanish to English in your mind before speaking is a habit acquired after years of academic education focused on memorization and theory. For this reason, it is important that you have the willingness to learn the language as infants do, that is, like a blank page, without prejudice, without fear of making mistakes and with all the desire to experience new knowledge with all your senses.
If you learn to think in English, your conversation will be much more fluid, natural and confident.. You will better understand concepts in English, as well as build sentences and ideas in the same way you do with your mother tongue (naturally and instinctively).
On the other hand, if you are content to speak English using the previous mental translation, you will inevitably feel stuck, respond more slowly to questions and dialogue, and have trouble grasping the gist of more abstract concepts. This is because there is no real translation between any language, only interpretations, which severely limits your ability to explore the full meaning of messages in the original language.
Any teacher or experienced English speaker will suggest that you take an interest in the process of "thinking in English", since It is the only way to achieve a level of English comparable to that of a native speaker.
But how to learn to think in English?
Keep reading this article to find out...
Do you feel insecure when speaking English with others?
Feeling fear is normal, especially when it comes to new challenges, or doing things that we still don't feel safe with, such as speaking and thinking in English. The most important thing to move forward is to identify what is holding us back so we can work on overcoming it.
Do you remember when you were learning to ride a bike or to multiply in school? It's no different when it comes to a new language. The learning process is not instant. Progressively new knowledge is acquired, you begin to know different learning methods and it takes a lot of practice to reach a good skill level.
However, many people forget this process. Fears begin to appear when they must use the language, they avoid situations in which they must converse because they feel that they will not be able to function properly or they do not understand why they do not speak English fluently after taking classes.
If you are facing a similar situation, you may be experiencing one of these failures:
Think too much about what you are going to say or how you are going to say it
One thing is to prepare for a call or a conversation, and another is to give too much thought to what you want to communicate, creating situations that may not happen, but that only make us more nervous.
It is common to do it in your mother tongue, but he tends to do it more when he must speak English. In this way, he begins to doubt his ability. These moments of insecurity are the worst enemies you can have when you are trying to think in English.
Gets frustrated when you can't understand something
There are always times when we don't understand what another person is saying. If it sometimes happens when you speak your native language, it will also happen in any other language.
He immediately feels bad when he does not understand something that was said to him, he blames himself for the situation, he is paralyzed by the fear of asking his interlocutor to repeat or explain better what he is referring to. It sure has been there.
Worry about what others think
Am I pronouncing correctly? Will that be the correct structure for the sentence? Will they understand me correctly? Is my accent too noticeable? Among so many doubts, he cannot think in English and ends up confusing his tongue.
You don't want to make a fool of yourself, be judged, go blank, or say the wrong thing. But this attitude is sabotaging him, so he will take any mistake disproportionately and lose the confidence he had gained in speaking English. Until the cycle repeats.
Learn to think in English, the secret to speaking fluently
There are no magic formulas or instant solutions to become fluent in English immediately. The real secret to learning to think in English is to put aside your fears and start practicing the language in your day to day life. To do this, here are some tips:
Train your listening comprehension
You can review audiovisual material, with topics of your interest. Currently, it has available series, videos, tutorials, movies, documentaries and podcasts for it. With this activity, they are exposed to the use of the language, and it will also be useful to become familiar with the codes of oral communication.
With this strategy you can also expand your vocabulary, improve your intonation and perfect your pronunciation by doing exercises.
Goodbye to the bilingual dictionary
Prefer to use 100% English Pocket Dictionaries. When you look up a word, turning page after page, you naturally repeat it in your head. By the time he finds the meaning, he remembers the word naturally.
go step by step
It is impossible to think in English and have perfect pronunciation when we are just learning the language. This attitude takes away the confidence necessary to converse fluently. Don't be limited by it. Of course, learn to identify the errors to be able to adjust them.
Talk to yourself
It is a very useful practice to develop fluency. When you are alone, speak out loud to practice. Try to think in English, pay attention to your pronunciation and intonation, this will help you gain confidence and improve your conversational English.
speak naturally
when i should speak English, say the first thing that comes to mind to continue the conversation. It may seem risky, but it will sound more natural and fluid, you will begin to relax when you see that you can manage well, as well as gain confidence.
It is common for people to try to organize their answers or even mentally translate from Spanish. This action takes time, so they take longer to follow the conversation, produce unnecessary pauses, and end up generating more doubts and nerves.
Learn vocabulary in phrases, not individual words
Nourishing your verbal repertoire with idiomatic expressions, connectors, sayings and common dialogues will give you agility when responding; Likewise, it is advisable to accompany the memorization of new words with sentences that make sense by themselves or draw your attention in some way.
In this way it will be easier for your brain to store the information in your mind and bring it out whenever it is needed. If you notice, this is a pattern that also applies when you communicate daily in Spanish.
Ask them to repeat
If you don't understand something they say, ask them to repeat it or explain it better. Most people have no problem adjusting their comments to make sure they can communicate properly.
Don't blame yourself or get frustrated during the learning process. Many times external factors, such as noise, environment, even your interlocutor's accent or word choice can affect your understanding.
Learning to think in English is essential to speaking the language fluently. This skill will help you avoid unnecessary pauses that interrupt the naturalness of the conversation and erode your confidence as you converse.
It may seem difficult at first, but with some strategies it is possible to work towards the goal. When you lose the fear of speaking in English, you begin to gain confidence and develop your language skills.
Are you ready to improve your communicative level in English? Identify your fears and let them go. Then put these tips we gave you into practice and you will begin to notice the difference.
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