Psychologists recognize several principles the can help learning and efficient use of memory. Among these principles the following seem to be particularly significant: Meaning Organization Association Visualization Attention In this post, I want to focus on the role that Meaning has on learning and memorization. Why when we have to chose […]
Read MoreGeneral Language Learning
Why learning a language increases your creativity and why the most difficult is the language, the better it is
Few months ago I stumbled upon a research paper that discussed the relationship between living abroad and creativity. The authors suggest that somehow living abroad may increase your creativity. Why so? Living abroad and creativity If you think about it, it does make sense. When we live abroad we come in […]
Read MoreLearning a language to learn how to learn anything else
In this post I will explain how learning German has helped me to learn to identify medicinal plants used in the Amazon. These are apparently two unrelated skills but here I want to show how the principles of learning can be relevant in different fields such as botany and languages. […]
Read MoreThe difference between skills and knowledge and why this matters in language learning.
One of the most common errors, when people want to learn a new skill such as speaking a language, is to focus too much on theoretical knowledge rather than on methods to acquire the skill. That is often why people tend to not clearly differentiate between these two aspects of […]
Read MoreUsing random words to generate creative ideas and how to apply it for language learning.
Creative ideas are ideas that somehow fall outside the norm and the usual patterns of the mind. In this post I will describe a technique used to generate creative ideas and apply it to learning languages but it can be applied to find creative solutions to any kind of problem.Author […]
Read MoreHow to become a polyglot by finding and using your own Rosetta Stone.
The Rosetta Stone, photo by Elisabeth BeersThe Rosetta Stone is, as the name suggests, a stone inscribed with the same text in three different languages: Ancient Egyptian, Demotic (Another form of Egyptian), and Ancient Greek. Researchers used the trilingual text in the Rosetta Stone as a key to understanding Egyptian […]
Read MoreHow to use lateral thinking to learn creatively a language
Thinking laterally. Photo by Rose-Zhang.Lateral thinking is a term created by Author Edward de Bono to describe a way of thinking that promotes creativity. Lateral thinking consists of solving a problem by using and generating as many solutions as possible instead of just the first obvious solution. By creating many […]
Read MoreDo not forget The Forgetting Curve when learning a language (or anything else)
The Forgetting Curve Forgetting: A common experience It is the beginning of the summer, you are sitting on your chair staring the questions on your exam sheet and you realize that you have forgotten all the information that you have frantically read in the last week. “How is this possible? […]
Read MoreTesting the reading & listening method (R-L)
In this post, I am discussing the reading & listening method to learn languages. I came across this method on the language forum “how to learn any language” a great source of inspiration for language learners. The reading & listening method (R-L) consists of reading a text while listening to […]
Read MoreLearning a language while learning something else: the obliquity method to learn languages
The method I explain in this post can be applied only if you leave in a country where people speak the language you want to learn. In a recently published book Author John Kay argues that goals are often best achieved indirectly. Similarly, I think that we can often learn […]
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