When Learning A Language...?

Question

How do you start? And, what part of the grammar do you learn first? I've already learned the alphabet, numbers, the stem changes, etc. The languages I'm referring to are French and German. **how did you master all the cases for german? lol. It's giving me a headache. dativ, accusativ, nominativ...etc =/ **

Answer 1

Get lessons.
If you can not find a course near you you might be able to find a native speaker or an on-line course.

In a classroom situation you have to study or you stand out as the dummy, so you get a reason to learn all those words and exceptions.

Once you have learned the basics, try meeting native speakers. If you can, get into a situation where you have no choice but speaking in it.
Like meeting or having telephone conversations with native speakers who do not speak your language, or who are willing to not to speak your language to make you use theirs.

All the cases and all exceptions on all rules have to be learned, but are useless if you are afraid to use the basics. So you might be better off speaking a simple version of German first and study all the rows of words later.

Answer 2

When I was studying Arabic, since I had a 1-on-1 teacher I was taught by total immersion (once the door closed, no English was spoken until after class) but this is the general structure:

We started vocabulary and phonetics simultaneously. (There were about 200 pictures on the wall.)

Next came simple sentences.

At this time I also started on the alif-ba (alphabet) and all of the variations depending on where a letter was located within a word.

Next grammar and sentence structure.

During the entire time I was also learning etiquette.
(Such things as NEVER eat with your left hand and ALWAYS convey the peace when you enter a room.)

Speaking the language will not do much good if your manners are socially unacceptable!
.

Answer 3

I love studying new languages and utilising them with natives, i journey plenty and i have discovered kinda many, english, norwegian, swedish (they're virtually equal, and as i talk norwegian i comprehend additionally danish), french, spanish the ones are those i have studied. I'm local finnish speaker so that is now not situation to me. I could like to be taught extra languages! I ain't no college learner i be taught via motion, excellent method is to transport to nation and are living with locals and be taught language and paintings there. Write some thing? What you desire? I have Mercury Capricorn in sixth condo. Other method i am emerging Leo. Wow Michael R, have you learnt Finnish!! So cool any person learns it!

Answer 4

I think that before trying to imbibe more and more grammar, you should learn complete sentences in German. Practise them until they come naturally to you. This way the cases will gradually sink in and you will get used to them. That is how small children learn and I think that it is the natural progression of things. Here is a link for German which makes things more palatable than simply sitting down and battling with grammatical concepts. http://www.quia.com/pages/germangrammar.html

I would recommend the same approach with French. Learn and practise complete sentences. Vary the contents with extra vocabulary which you come across. This is the approach adopted by the Linguaphone course, which has worked so well for so many people. http://www.jump-gate.com/languages/french/idioms.html

http://www.fodors.com/language/

Answer 5

get lessons OR buy a grammar book which works through the rules in lesson format.

Other than that, theres really too many grammar points to suggest an exact order in which to learn them, but you've done the right thing by learning verb stems first off. make sure that while you're learning the verbs you use sentence examples to build your vocabulary while you work.

lastly, a general tip for learning grammar and vocab, read, read, read! you'll soom pick up the structures that you see in the written languages.

Answer 6

There is your answer:
http://french.learning-languages.info
http://german.learning-languages.info