3 tips on how to learn more efficient
learning a new language and only thinking in terms of time is the wrong way about it
There is no right way to use your time when learning a new language. However there are some methods, which can help you to use your time more efficiently. The overall aim should be to not drop your life in order to learn a language, instead you should try to make it a part of your daily life. Also the amount of time which needs to be invested vary from person to person and from your skill level.
The Less is More Principle
Let’s say you have an hour each day in which you can study your new language. Now there are two ways to use your hour. The first would be to obtain it in one big chunk. This might sound logic, but it can get really frustrating, especially when you are just beginning to learn a new language. Another way to look at the hour is the “Less is More” Principle. There you will break the hour down into three small chunks: 15/30/15. The first chunk should be obtained in the morning hours, maybe before you’re going to work or at your first break at work. This chunk is great to look over your notes from the nights before and see how much you can remember. On any words or even phrases that you struggle with should be placed extra focus on in the next session.Your next chunk can be obtained around midday. There you should take the time to learn new words, new phrases or even new grammar. Generally this is the chunk where you continue with your course. This chunk often feels like the most productive one.Lastly the last chunk should be done in the evening hours. This is the time where you review your stuff from midday. There you can see whether or not the informations are still fresh. Additionally this is a great wind-down exercise before going to bed.
3 on 4 off routine
This is a great routine for those who have an irregular schedule or for those who feel like that learning everyday is too much for them. The name is already showing you how this routine is working. Throughout your week you need to find three days in which you can study. For example this can be done in 3 days in a row or at any given days in the week. The most important thing to remember is that on your on days you should continue your language course. The off days are your time to comprehends your new information you gained throughout the continuation of your course. A great way to make your off days even more efficient is to take some minutes out of your day and review your stuff you have learned.
Once or twice a week
This routine is only advisable to people on an advanced level. Learning once or twice per week doesn’t sound like a lot. However, now your level requires you to learn more complex sentence structure, words or grammar. Therefore the information can’t be processed at the pace as at the beginning of your studies. It requires more time to actually understand what you have learned. Furthermore how you learn changes. At this level it isn’t very efficient for example to break an hour down into smaller chunks, instead you should learn for an straight hour or two as the complexity increases. Similarly to the 3 on 4 off routine, your off days should be used to review your information gather on your actively learning sessions.
Bonus tip: When to take breaks
Knowing the right time when to take breaks are very useful to improve your learning. If you already have implemented a good routine into your life, taking a break for one or two weeks seem counterproductive, however this intentional break can be used to your advantage. This break will definitely help you to feel refreshed & energiezed when returning to your course. Moreover when you return to your course, you will remember much more than you thought you would. This further increases your motivation to keep on pursuing your new language. Lastly, taking a break is also a great way to balance your life so you can use the time for other hobbies. The perfect timing fo taking a break, is to do it after you have reached a milestone. Then you can plan and refocus on your next milestone.
