How to teach a language to adults

Many adults think that learning a new language in adulthood is impossible. A new foreign language can be difficult to learn, and linguists agree. Here are some ways to stay motivated.

Learning a new language in adulthood is difficult; nothing can replace the childhood environment, much less the childhood brain. But with patience and persistence, it can be done. Speaking a new language requires more than lips, teeth, and tongue; it requires ears, eyes, and mental agility. You must listen carefully and then imitate.

Language is like jazz: both are spontaneous compositions derived from a finite set of elements. But the jazz analogy may compel people to think that they simply don’t have the talent. What they don’t realize is how obsessively John Coltrane practiced, repeating scales and arpeggios over and over again to build up the skills he would need to make that freeform composition on the stage seem so effortless.

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Learning is a gradual process

Regular practice is by far the most important element of learning a new language. Students often try to cram as much into their heads as fast as they possibly can. While an admirable approach in terms of effort, it often only leads to frustration and fatigue. If you’re taking a class, students are exposed to the language only one to three times a week, plus the time they spend on homework.

It’s far more helpful to spend five minutes twice a day, every day, thinking, reading, and speaking in the language. Where and when, though? As you learn, practice out loud whenever you are alone. While you walk to the train station, review your vocabulary with yourself. Start simple: “I go to work. I am in the car. I live in Vilnius.” Repeat these basics over and over, and then vary the subject. “Steve goes to work. He is in his car. Steve lives in Bangkok.”

Repeat, repeat, repeat. You’ll eventually feel the thrill as you graduate to compound sentences, tenses, and modal verbs (should, would, must, may). “I am going to work, because I have to. I live in Montevideo, and I love it here.” Those steps beyond baby talk are exciting.

Enroll in a class

If you live in any medium-sized city, language classes shouldn’t be too hard to find. If you’re in a big city, you’ll be spoiled for choice. Plenty of universities offer language classes, even for those who aren’t actually attending the school. Look into resources provided by your local or national government; they often have language classes or broadcast television or radio programs with simple, clearly-spoken dialogue intended for children or language learners. Cultural promotion organizations also offer classes to anyone wanting to learn more about their country.

Attending a class is the single best way to motivate yourself. The desire to impress a teacher and classmates will help keep you on task. If you have the means to get a private tutor, even better. But be sure to get a recommendation from a knowledgeable friend; not every native speaker is a good teacher.

Kickstart your self-study

Learning a new language all by yourself is extremely difficult, and probably not a good idea if it’s your first one. However, if you decide to go the autodidact route, make sure to use top-notch resources.

A good book can get you far in a language with straightforward rules for spelling or sentence composition. Consider Routledge’s Colloquial Series as a book series to start. But for languages with irregular spelling (French or Danish, say) or unfamiliar sounds (e.g., Chinese or Hindi), it’s better to invest in a book that comes with audio examples. Random House’s Ultimate Series has a straightforward, building-block structure, with practical vocabulary and lucid explanations.

There are plenty of language-learning apps that have something to offer, as well, but don’t expect miraculous results. Rosetta Stone, for instance, teaches grammar and vocabulary quite well, but it seriously lacks when it comes to practical speech; that can be disappointing considering the enormous price tag. On the other hand, apps such as Duolingo or Clozemaster are great at instilling new vocabulary to learners. Languages have unique, difficult parts to them; as a result, not every app will teach the Arabic dual number or the Russian verbal aspect system in the same way, so it’s best to diversify your sources of learning.

Immerse yourself

Whenever possible, bring the language into your immediate world. Use small stickers to attach to items all around your home with their name in the language you’re learning. This is an excellent vocabulary-building technique. If every time you reach for your coffee mug you see чашка and you say the word to yourself, it will stick in your head.

Make sure you can also hear the language everywhere. Try learning a language through music by listening to radio stations or popular artists in that language. If you’re using a streaming service like Netflix, enable subtitles in your target language if they’re available. You don’t need to understand absolutely everything, but this helps acclimatize you to the way native speakers use the language in everyday use. You’ll get a crucial psychological boost when you can make out a few words. Do this every few days and you’ll be surprised by your progress.

Reading also helps. Tucking into an article about unfamiliar material can be a struggle, but it’s also one of the more rewarding methods. If you’re familiar with the topic, you’re more likely to pick up vocabulary. You’ll start out with a dictionary, but once you learn frequently-used words, you can go without it and guess the things you don’t know. After you feel comfortable tackling reading a newspaper article on your own, try a short novel.

Last, befriend a native speaker. Practicing the basics at the grocery store is fine, but mastery of a language depends on the amount of conversations that you have. If you’re lucky enough to have a friend, housemate, or partner who is a native speaker, take advantage of them. Don’t wait until you feel totally comfortable, or you’ll never start. Make it fun, make it a routine, and do so early.

Just relax

The biggest hurdle to learning a new language is psychological. If you’re nervous about blundering through a new language in front of strangers, the best way to relax is to start slowly. At your local coffee shop in Łódź, taking your coffee away while saying dziękuję instead of thank you is a baby step that shows you’re trying. Your pronunciation won’t be perfect; it might never be and that’s perfectly okay. Eventually, you’ll feel confident enough in speaking Polish that you greet the staff, ask them how their weekend was, or talk about the weather.

When you’re ready and have the chance, smile and try speaking with your teacher in the corridor, your co-worker, the man who sells you cigarettes, or the waiter at your favorite restaurant. See that grin? Most people love to see you make the effort, and they’ll be delighted to see you break out new vocabulary and longer sentences.

If you kick yourself for every little slip-up (and you will make plenty), you’ll never progress. If you relax, simply communicate, and most of all enjoy, you can, with patience and effort, learn any language you want.

Have you ever said:

• “You can’t learn languages as an adult, it’s for kids!
• “I think this language hates me, I can’t remember anything.”
• “I’m giving up. Languages are just not for me.”

Learning a new language – even as an adult, or perhaps especially as an adult – makes us feel like we are back to being children. We feel vulnerable, exposed, ridiculous and incapable. So what is the answer? Waiting for years until you develop your confidence and then learn the language? Not quite.

Our writer, Maria, is here to share her personal tips on how she inspired her students to continue their journey with English, and how she, a passionate and often frustrated student, deals with the challenges of learning a new language.

10 key changes to learn a new language as an adult 

1. Enjoy being ridiculous

Ever since I’ve started learning languages, I’ve accidentally insulted my entire nation, had sweaty palms when meeting new people, gone blank several times during lessons and smiled back awkwardly when I had no idea how to reply. The lesson? You will be ridiculous. There’s no way around it. Don’t avoid it, don’t hate it, don’t fear it. Being ridiculous is one of many ways your brain has to remind you that you still care about your own development and that you still have room to be a better version of yourself!

How often have you heard that listening to music is a great way to become fluent? Or that memorising lists of verbs is what you need to be a better speaker? Here’s the truth: if you need to improve speaking, you need to start speaking. All else will undoubtedly help make you a better communicator, but it is only complementary and enhancing, not the core practice you should be following. The same goes for all other language skills, depending on your goals. Speaking of which…

3. Do not mistake reception for production

There is a difference between receiving language and producing language. Speaking and writing force you to produce language. Reading and listening are comprehension skills. They are intimately related and can help improve the other, but doing one exclusively means the other will necessarily suffer. It will then take longer to reach an advanced level. Decide which language skills matter the most to you, and create a plan around those skills. If your goal is to learn a language overall, I always advise to start speaking now!

4. Make your learning as personal as possible

My students can recite an entire list of jobs in a second language: “engineer, actor, teacher, singer, waiter”. But as soon as I ask them: “What’s your job?” or “What’s your mother’s job?” they come to the realisation that they had never thought about it or how to say it. I’ve stopped following the typical structures, I recommend to choose what topics you’re interested in. 

This is directly related to making your learning more personal. Choosing your own images for your flashcards, copying a text with your own handwriting, creating a collage of your favourite song lyrics or writing a short poem with new words you’ve learnt is not only more creative, but more memorable overall.

Well, not exactly “what they taught you”, but rather “how they taught you to do it”. See, school is a fantastic thing but it can teach us to obsess over exams and lists of verb conjugations. Most language learners keep self-sabotaging as adults because their main focus is still showing others how much you know and “being prepared”. That is not how real life works, especially not with language learning.

If you need to develop your language fast for any particular reason, it’s time to create a sense of urgency. Join a class with actual teachers who will keep you accountable, as this will force you to show up and you’ll receive immediate feedback. You can also commit to tracking and sharing your progress online by joining language communities on social media and participating in language challenges. 

8. Understand what is useful and what is wasting your time

Avid language learners tend to love detailed journals, huge manuals, countless grammar materials and hanging out with other language lovers on Twitter (cough cough…me!). It’s alright to dedicate time to your community and materials you love, but be careful not to waste your time on things that aren’t…well…learning your target language! Sometimes we create the illusion of learning when we are actually just relaxing or asking for tips, which means staying in our comfort zone. Actual learning comes with practice and making lots of mistakes!

9. Learn chunks, not words

Language teachers often advise their students against memorising words in isolation. I agree. It is much better to learn how native speakers use these new words in context. In order to avoid speaking like Tarzan next time you have an encounter with a native speaker, use chunk learning, which focuses less on grammar and way more on expressions people use every day and how they use them.

My adult students often ask me “When will I be fluent?”.  What do you mean by fluent? If you are committed to learning a language, accept that language is a living being that has been developing for centuries and continues growing. That’s the beauty of learning a language – it is never over, and millions of people before you have brought it to this point.

What small habits can you change to take you one step further?

You have the tips, now all you need to do is sign up for a Lingoda trial. Visit our website today and start your language learning journey.