If someone were to ask me “How did you become fluent in English?”, I would simply answer “I started learning it one day and I never quit. I just kept going”.

Persistence.

That’s how it happened. I was persistent and I never gave up.

I genuinely believe that motivation and persistence are the most important things when learning a language.

Giving up is the only thing that will prevent you from speaking a language fluently or speaking a language at all.

If you stick with the language and put in the hours, you’ll get there.

Sometimes, though, life makes it hard to focus on language learning.

You’re pumped at first and you’re going steady for a while, and then something gets in the way, be it university, work, family, you name it.

I struggle with this problem all the time.

I find myself going through phases where I’m super excited to learn French and I’m full of great ideas, and then I’m suddenly too busy or too lazy to do anything.

Truth to be told, I’ve been feeling like this recently.

I’ve been working so hard to create an online course that my French has been put on the back burner.

My motivation slowed down and my commitment to la langue française has fallen a bit to the wayside.

I knew I had to find a way to refocus and reassess my goals.

That’s why I jumped at the opportunity to try the Language Habit Toolkit.

What is the Language Habit Toolkit?

The Language Habit Toolkit is all about getting organized and creating a language routine.

It is designed to track your progress and it includes five wonderfully designed worksheets to evaluate and plan.

First Things First: Visualize.

“The most important thing you need to become fluent is a reason.” – Kerstin Cable

This is why the Vision Goals Worksheet comes first in the Language Habit Toolkit.

Imagine this.

It’s 9 am on a Sunday morning.

You are abroad – in a foreign country, deeply immersed in a foreign culture, and you can effortlessly interact and connect with the locals.

Doesn’t it feel good to think about that? That’s the power of visualization.  

Now, perhaps this is not your dream.

Perhaps this is not the reason why you’re studying a foreign language in the first place.

That’s fine.

All that matters is that you have your own reason, your own why.

Something that resonates with you and that will push you through the difficult times that you may face when learning a language.

Whatever that reason may be, you need to keep it in mind. You need to write it down and go back to it once things get rough.

Put Your Vision + Your Mission Into Practice

“If you trust the process and trust yourself, you can count on the fact that progress is inevitable.” – Kerstin Cable

Vision Goals are simply stepping stones on the path that will lead you to success.

What really helped me to get unstuck was what comes next, the Language Habit Tracker.

You see, tracking is something that I have overlooked in the past.

No wonder I had been lacking motivation!  

It wasn’t until I started tracking my progress with the Language Habit Toolkit that I realized what I was missing.

Seeing everything laid out this way made it easier for me to focus and plan ahead. It got me back to that long-lost excitement I used to have.

The tracking also made me aware of what was working and what not. By tracking my activities, I realized that I would skip reading in French over and over because I wasn’t involved at all in the reading materials that I was using.

In a nutshell then, the kit provides you with clarity, focus, and direction which are essential if you want to build a language learning habit for the long haul.

Want to take a peek at the routine that I created?

There you go.

My Path Goals for May:

Listening: Listen to the first six episodes of the podcast “Change ma vie : Outils pour l’esprit” by Chocolate & Zucchini.

Speaking: Record myself speaking French for two minutes.

Reading: Read one article per week on Paris ZigZag.

Writing: Watch “Sous Les Jupes Des Filles (French Women)” and write down new vocabulary words (the film was sooo disappointing, by the way!).

Quick tip: Don’t go overboard when you set your path goals. Only choose the number activities that you realistically have time to complete each month.

Fancy getting yourself a copy of the the Language Habit Toolkit?

Awesome! Click here to grab it + check out all its features.

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P.S. Consider yourself lucky if you’re reading this before 2nd June 2017 because that means you can join the giveaway to win your copy of the Language Habit Toolkit.  Yay!

Full disclaimer: Some of the links above are affiliate links, meaning that if you purchase I will make a commission at no extra cost to you. This allows me to keep Runaway Daydreamer up and running so if you do like the blog and want to support it, then this is a great way – thank you SO much!

Rest assured, I only recommend products that I myself use.

The post How I created my ideal language learning routine with the Language Habit Toolkit appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

There are some Christmas traditions I never ever break.

Putting up the Christmas tree on December 8. Not a day before, not a day after.

Eating lentils on New Year’s Eve. It is said that lentils bring luck and prosperity if eaten on that day, so… you get the point.

Stuffing my face with Italian Christmas delicacies.

The sweet taste of Pandoro gets me every time. As soon as I smell that vanilla-scented powdered sugar, I feel like taking a slice. And another one. And then one more. Yum.

But I digress.

Traditions, as I was saying, are quite a big deal for me. That’s why I created my own language traditions to go with the holiday spirit. Who says you can’t keep your language skills sharp during Christmas?

Let’s dive in!

1. Reading about holiday customs in foreign cultures

This sets the vibe right from the beginning.

Did you know that in Hawaii Santa is known by the name Kanakaloka? What about the Spanish leyenda (legend) of Los Reyes Magos (the Three Kings)? Go read about it en español and you’ll satisfy your curiosity while practising your reading skills. A win-win.

2. Watch Christmas films in your target language

Two words: Home Alone.

Yes, you’ve seen it a thousand times.

Yes, you know you wanna see it again. Go for it and watch it dubbed in the language you’re learning!

Fun fact: “Home Alone” in both Italian and French is translated as “Mom, I missed the plane!”

“Maman, j’ai raté l’avion” is the French title and “Mamma, ho perso l’aereo” is the Italian one.

However – here comes the fun bit – the funniest translation I’ve stumbled upon is the Argentinian one, “Mi pobre angelito” which equals to “My poor angel”. *puzzled face*

3. Listen to Christmas songs in your target language

I know, I know. You can’t have Christmas without having Mariah Carey streaming on the radio. Don’t worry, I’m not asking you to ditch your entire discography of Christmas songs in English. I wouldn’t do it myself.

Just add a touch of foreign Christmas carols to your playlist. Mix and match, you know. Michael Bublé on one side and a French tune on the other.

Speaking of French, I’ve got some suggestions for you which I have gathered in a playlist called “Noël” on Spotify. Check it out!

My favourite one? “L’enfant au tambour”, a.k.a. the French version of “Little Drummer Boy”. Génial!

4. Learn Christmas-related vocabulary

Regalos, regali, cadeaux… you may want to memorize different ways of saying “gifts” to spice up your letter to Santa! Way to boost your vocabulary, right?

5. Make a Christmas recipe from a foreign country

Eating sweets probably takes up most of your time at Christmas (I feel you), but you could spare some hours to go all-out and prepare traditional foreign recipes from all over the world.

Awaken the chef in you and get busy in the kitchen! Watch video tutorials and read recipes using the language of the country you’re interested in.

If you’re a Francophile like me, there are plenty of dishes to try but the Bûche de Noël and Galette des rois are an absolute must.

Looking for more tips on how to learn a language over the holidays?

• Festive Fluency Tips: How to Learn German This Holiday Season (Fluent Language)
• How to Organise Language Learning At Festive Times  (Lindsay Does Languages)
• Christmas Holidays: How will you keep up language learning over the break? (italki)

Christmas is all about giving, sharing and caring, right? Right! So, share this article with your amigos. It would mean a lot to me.

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How to keep learning a language during the holidays
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What is the best way to learn a language? I’ve tried various methods with varying degrees of success over the years. My spoken Italian came on pretty quickly from six months of immersion, whilst my German is nothing less than scheisse after a year and a half of university lectures, and I have no words for how inexcusably poor my Dutch is after a few months of now-abandoned Duolingo practice; at least, no words for it in Dutch.

This year, I had my first opportunity at trying what Roman philosopher Seneca the Younger termed “Docendo discimus” – learning by teaching.

A word of caution: this technique doesn’t work with learning a language from scratch. Rather, it’s useful for fine-tuning and developing a language with which you have some fluency, but not complete mastery.

The Hebrew Challenge

I spent this year as a teaching assistant in Italy. Technically I was an English assistant, but there were three students who wanted to learn Hebrew, and nominally Hebrew is my mother tongue (although very much my second in terms of fluency). After a year, I’m still not sure exactly why they wanted to, but then again, many people ask me “why Italian?” and I don’t have a good answer for them either, so I just accepted it.

The problem is, while Hebrew is, as I mentioned, my mother tongue, I learned it from hearing it as a child, and later as a new oleh [immigrant] to Israel aged 13.
As a result, I simply never bothered with most of the grammar rules, which are unnecessarily complicated anyway, preferring instead to just learn by rote.
English is similar; if you ask most English people to explain the “past perfect” or “present simple” they would have no idea what you were talking about, even though they use them all the time. It’s automatic.

Back to Hebrew grammar though, and to take just one example of the complexity, Hebrew doesn’t have vowels. Instead, it has a series of dots and dashes under the letters to indicate which “vowel sound” they make (so for example, to indicate whether a “d” should be pronounced “do”, “du” or “da”).
Written Hebrew though almost never includes these dots and dashes, because they are only used to teach children, and are then removed in grown-up literature.

To a foreigner, this makes learning to read like one of those fill-in-the-blanks psychology tests. Imagine trying to teach someone a basic phrase in English without vowels… “hll, my nm s Jhn, nc t mt y” It’s more cryptic crossword clue than reading practice.

Learning by Teaching

The most valuable gift that learning by teaching gives you is making you think about not just *what* the correct way of saying something is, but *why*. Every language learner will, at some point, have come across the teacher who, when questioned about why something is the way it is, replies “that’s just the rule”.

The fact is, the “why” is the single most important question for development, hence why small children learn by asking it all the damn time. Once you understand the why, it’s like finding a master key instead of needing a large keychain; it opens up every other word that follows the same rule.

Another side-effect of learning by teaching is that you find the quirks in your language. In Hebrew, for example, the plural form (masculine) is formed by adding the letters “im” to the end of a word. So et [pen] becomes etim [pens], or kadur [ball] becomes kadurim [balls].

Yet words that have no plural at all in Hebrew, also often have “im” at the end of them. Why, for example, is our word for life, chayim, in the plural, even though it is only ever singular?

These quirks which we take as read raise all sorts of questions, such as: why does the verb lehagid [to say] have an infinitive and a future, but no past or present (there is a synonymous verb, lomar, that is used for past and present)?
These are questions I had never considered, but learning the answers helped to improve my own Hebrew. And every language has them, once you start exploring.

As I said at the start, a certain level of fluency is required for this. But it can work even without, by learning in pairs or in a group. Learning with a friend, for example, where you take turns being the teacher and teaching new concepts to the student (where the “student” has to rely solely on your explanations), is one way of making this work.
Who knows, maybe if I’d been forced to teach my friends German instead of learning it in a dreary classroom far too early in the morning twice a week, I could be blogging in German today. I consider it a missed opportunity… schade.

About the author:

Sahar, better known as The Wandering Jew, is a writer and blogger who loves travelling, and tends to divide his time between Italy, Israel and the UK. He has written for the Jewish Chronicle of London and the Jewish Week of New York among others. Follow him on Twitter @WanderJewBlog, and he’s just added a Facebook page too, so like the page here: www.facebook.com/WanderingJewBlog/

Don’t forget to tell him that Chiara sent you!

The post Learning to Teach, and Teaching to Learn appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

She is studying Business with Marketing and working in the marketing department at Livety.com – a young startup whose purpose is to help students from all around the world find the best and most suitable accommodation in the UK.

Over to you Samanphy!

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Once you have secured your hard-earned degree, a great way to enhance your skills is to learn foreign languages. This will enable you to work in your chosen field virtually anywhere in the world, opening up exciting travel opportunities. When it comes to choosing which languages to learn, here are the top 5 that will help your career to reach new heights.

1. Don’t be shy, learn Mandarin Chinese
This language may seem daunting. However, when you consider that it’s the world’s number one language with 870 million people speaking it as their mother tongue, you can see why learning Chinese is a smart move. The International Monetary Fund has ranked China’s economy as the second largest in world markets by nominal GDP and the largest according to its purchasing power. It’s not surprising, therefore, that mastering Chinese will give you many different career and business opportunities. As for the alleged difficulty in learning the language, don’t be put off as experts say it’s not as bad as it seems!

2. Speak sparkling Spanish
There are 21 countries who class Spanish as their official language and Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the world after Chinese. Speaking Spanish will open many doors for you to work in Spain, South America and anywhere in the world where a company needs a Spanish speaker to join their team. An estimated 10% of companies posting jobs online are looking for bilingual or multilingual applicants and having Spanish as part of your language portfolio will not only look good on your CV but will also stand you in good stead in the jobs market.

3. Learn eloquent French
Across the world’s 500 continents, more than 200 million people speak French and there are 68 states and governments who belong to The Francophonie, which is an international organisation for countries who speak French. Those who learn a foreign language choose French after English, as it’s relatively easy to learn and ranks ninth in the world’s most widely spoken languages. If you can speak French, you’ll have a distinct advantage when it comes to applying for international jobs. Prominent French-speaking countries include parts of Canada, Belgium, Switzerland and, of course, France itself. You could even apply for a job in North or sub-Saharan Africa! France is ranked as the fifth largest world economy and is in the top three countries favoured by foreign investors. It’s plain to see why learning French is such a good idea and will enhance your career options no end!

4. Master romantic Italian
Italian is a beautiful Romance Language and being able to speak it has many benefits for graduates in all industries. An estimated 80 million people speak Italian and more than seven percent of foreign language jobs require Italian speakers, which helps to explain why it’s the fourth most chosen option when it comes to studying a foreign language. Italy is leading country in many prominent areas, including cooking and fashion and is considered as an important world cultural and business centre. Nobody does it quite like the Italians do!

5. Be smart and study German
German is in high demand when it comes to learning second languages and almost a quarter of foreign language jobs advertised on online recruitment sites ask for those who speak German to apply. Germany has the largest European economy and is also the continent’s most widely spoken language. The country itself is famous for some premium brands such as Aldi, Audi and BMW and studies show that those who speak German can potentially attract higher salaries than those who don’t. All the signs are showing that the demand for German is likely to grow, so jump on the bandwagon and learn German now!

The post 5 foreign languages to learn to boost your career after graduation appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

This workbook was designed for beginners but despite the word “débutant” displayed on the cover it assumes some knowledge of the language. As a matter of fact, it is completely written in French – grammar explanations included – so if you use no other book or dictionary, you may find yourself a bit lost at times.

You can still be a beginner and use it, but I believe it works better as a refresher for upper-beginners or intermediate French learners. If you have studied French in the past and are looking for a quick and efficient reminder of things once known, you certainly won’t be disappointed.

I was already able to understand French when I started using this workbook, so I was actually glad that there was no English at all. I enjoyed being fully immersed in the language while reading grammar points, rules and related exercises.

“Niveau Débutant” is divided into 60 chapters and eight sections. It takes you right from the basics – introducing yourself, telling the time, describing common situations – to the use of verb tenses (including le present, futur, passe compose, imparfait).

Brushing up on my previous knowledge with this workbook turned out to be a great idea since it’s packed with exercises (440 in total). Keep in mind that the grammar explanations are pretty concise, even if very clearly laid out, hence it’s best to use it to supplement your studies, not in isolation.

Preview of the workbook

Strong Points

What I love about the “Niveau Débutant” workbook is that you can work through it sequentially or skim through pages and use it as a reference manual.

In addition, I applaud the choice of including an audio CD. The accompanying audio contains 38 exercises that you can load onto your iPod and listen to whenever you want and wherever you are.
The Downside

It should be noted that you’ll need to buy the answer book separately which is quite a bummer but it is necessary if you are going down the path of self-study.

Further Studying

Grammaire progressive du français is a series composed of three volumes. The one I’ve just reviewed, Niveau Débutant, is the most basic one. Once you’ve made some progress in French, you may be interested in advanced textbooks like Niveau Intermediaire and Niveau Advanced.

The post Review: Grammaire progressive du français – Niveau Débutant appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

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Learning Mandarin Chinese has become an increasingly popular endeavor in recent years, with more people undertaking the challenge every day.

There are as many different reasons to learn Mandarin Chinese as there are people who take up the language.  Some people learn Mandarin Chinese in order to get a new job, a promotion, or a raise.  Some are planning a trip to China or another area where the language is widely spoken.  Some people take up Mandarin Chinese just because they love learning new languages, or perhaps because they enjoy the sound of Mandarin.  Many people take up learning Mandarin Chinese for a combination of reasons.

Just as there are many different reasons for learning Mandarin Chinese, there are many different ways to go about it.  Some people like the flexibility of online classes, while some like the personal interaction of traditional classes.  Some people choose tutoring, while others learn on the go from audio files.

Our mission is to help you learn to speak better Chinese.  We hope these ten do’s and don’ts will help you familiarize yourself with the Chinese culture and provide you some insight into how the culture shapes the language.

It is our opinion that gaining some insight into the Chinese culture will help you deepen your understanding of the Chinese language.  We hope that a greater understanding of the issues relevant to Chinese culture will help improve your understanding of the language.

We hope these tips will spark your interest and get you looking for more tips on how to learn Chinese, or to talk with someone who has been down the road you are now travelling.

Happy learning!

Profile: Yang is a serial web entrepreneur whose latest website is www.learnmandarinnow.com. Yang is passionate about learning new languages and cultures.

The post Improve Your Mandarin Chinese with These 10 Cultural Tips appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

Native speakers play a huge role in your language learning journey.

You can buy all the textbooks you want, watch all the foreign movies you like, but nothing beats conversing directly with native speakers. It’s undoubtedly one of the most important steps in acquiring a new language and yet one of the most dreaded ones!

The problem is… where do you find someone to talk to, especially if you’re not in the country where your target language is spoken and won’t be in the near future?

This is where the HelloTalk App comes in.

WHAT’S HELLOTALK AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

Finding a language exchange partner is not always an easy task. It can be frustrating, to say the least, due to completely different time zones and different lifestyles. HelloTalk makes it easier.

I’ve been using this app for quite a while now and I’ve really enjoyed it thus far. Since I’m focused on French at the moment, I’ve only looked for French native speakers but HelloTalk gives you the opportunity to connect with language exchange partners in over 100 different languages. Not bad, uh?

But wait! There’s more…

The app has several strong points that make it particularly good to use.

1. It’s user-friendly: The design is intuitive and appealing, hence engaging with other users is incredibly easy.
2. Personalized: You can totally customize your profile by deciding whether or not to display your age or gender.
3. There’s a huge community: 2 million users worldwide. ‘Nuff said.
4. It’s safe: The app has a privacy filter function that allows you to block any undesired incoming calls and limit those who contact you to a certain gender, age range or location.

My Favorite Features:

The thing I love the most about HelloTalk is that it’s an app particularly interactive.

I took my time to test every single feature and I found them all very useful. Two features, in particular, caught my attention:

1. You can send both text and voice messages to other learners as well as you can send doodle and photos or take instant pictures to make everything more fun and personal. In this way you can learn more about your fellow language partners and their country/culture.
2. You can correct your partners’ writing mistakes by using Correct Sentences function.

HelloTalk is free but it should be noted that you can only add one native language and one language that you’re learning on your profile. You need to pay an extra ($1.99) to add more languages.

There are also other optional paid upgrades such as unlimited translation, transliteration and voice recognition.
If you want to unlock everything and use the app as a paying premium member, there is a small fee of $9.99 per year (or $0.99 per month or $2.99 per 3 months). Pretty convenient, if you ask me!

Wrapping Up

As you can tell from my previous words, I’m completely satisfied with the app and I will continue to chat with French native speakers through HelloTalk. I have yet to find a flaw, to be honest…

Now it’s up to you to download HelloTalk and try it out if you haven’t already!

The post HelloTalk App Review: Practice Your Target Language On Your Smartphone appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

During the past few months I struggled to keep the blog updated. I had lost my motivation, I couldn’t find the time, I thought I wasn’t making any progress…

DOES IT SOUND FAMILIAR TO YOU?

I bet it rings a bell to all language learners. That’s because the keys to succeed in blogging and language learning are pretty much the same.

I realized how much maintaining a blog relates to language learning while I was trying – and failing – to do both.

I FELL INTO A TRAP

I fell into the same trap language learners usually fall into. I thought I wasn’t going anywhere with my blog and so I almost sabotaged myself and my project.  Needless to say I didn’t feel good about myself.

But rather than let all this keep me down I will simply count it as a learning experience.

And this is what I’ve learned: whether you’re writing a blog or trying to acquire a foreign language, the same principles apply.

“The only real failure in life is one not learned from.” – Anthony J. D’Angelo
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THE DO’S AND DON’T’S OF A LANGUAGE LEARNER AND A BLOGGER

• DO  Find your purpose

First things first – why are you doing it?
What’s the reason behind your effort? By asking yourself this question you’ll set a roadmap for staying consistent on the road. You’d better not skip this step!

• DO Create a routine  

What routine works best for you? Take your time to experiment and find your own blogging or learning style.

After all, you know yourself better than everyone else.  We are all different and what is simple and comfortable for one person might be difficult for another. Do whatever is most comfortable, workable, sustainable, enjoyable for you. This is a key rule, don’t ever forget it.

• DO Be clear about your goals

No matter how good our intentions are and how diligent we intend to be, life often gets in the way. You can make things easier by setting up manageable goals and breaking them into small daily or weekly objectives. Mini-goals are the path to success, especially if you work toward them every day.

• DO Keep track of your progress

One of the things that I always recommend to everyone is keeping a journal – either physical or digital.

By frequently recording what you are doing, you’ll notice how far you’ve come. Hence, you’ll be able to stay motivated and keep going.

• DO Have fun

Any task that takes up a lot of your free time has to be fun – be it managing a blog or tackling a new language.

You’ll eventually abandon everything that’s boring and unpleasant for you. So, enjoy the process.  Enjoy yourself. Having fun will ensure that you choose to do it again and again.  We all know that time flies when you’re having fun…

• DON’T Be Impatient

You don’t become fluent overnight as much as you don’t become a successful blogger in a minute. It takes time. Don’t be afraid to go at your own pace. Always remember that you’re not in any rush because – as mentioned above – you want to enjoy the process.

• DON’T Compare Yourself To The Others

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” – Theodore Roosevelt
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Comparing yourself to others is not healthy. Seriously, stop doing it. It’ll just make you feel anxious, jealous and frustrated. Therefore, you’ll let your negative thoughts and insecurities take over. Everybody has their own way of doing things, so there’s no point in worrying about what others have accomplished. Focus on your achievements and celebrate them.  Be proud of yourself for all your hard work, determination, and perseverance.

• DON’T Be Too Hard On Yourself

I am always extremely hard on myself when I procrastinate. I feel guilty for days and then I end up doing even less than usual because I’m in a bad mood. It’s a vicious cycle. Beating yourself up it is the worst thing you can do. Don’t take me as an example. Be smarter. Be confident that you’ll do better next time.

• DON’T Give Up

Granted, there will be times where you’ll experience frustration. There will also be times where you’ll think that you’re terrible at what you do. Do not, under any circumstances, let discouragement interfere with getting what you want. As long as you keep going, you are on the track to success. You can only fail if you give up. And you’re not a quitter, are you?

Do you have a similar experience to the one I’ve shared in this article? If so, I want to hear from you in the comments.

Massive Black Friday 2015 Bundle

Psst! If you’ve made it all the way down here then I have something for you!

It’s the season of giving. To celebrate, I have made a list of the best  language learning deals found around the web, so you can get a present for yourself or for a friend in time for Christmas! Hooray!

 40% OFF until Monday with code BLACKFRIDAY – Speak German like a Native

If you’ve been thinking about improving your German, now is the time to do it. Truth to be told: If I was learning German, I would grab this offer before it expires.

 40% OFF until Monday with code BLACKFRIDAY – Fluent Language Guides Box Set

I love, love, love Kerstin Cable’s approach to language learning and I can’t believe she’s offering two of her best guides at $14.39 only! It’s a total bargain and I wouldn’t think twice.

50% OFF this weekend only Mastering English Phrasal Verbs Through Story

Normally, this course sells for $97 but this weekend you can have it for the magically low price of just $47. If you know Lindsay and her blog, you know it’s worth it.

FREE until Monday How to Learn French in a Year, Kindle version

It’s free. What are you waiting for? ‘Nuff said.

MORE TO COME…

I suggest you to bookmark this page and keep an eye on it since I’ll update it with more exclusive language offers!

Some of the links above are affiliate links. By purchasing via them, you’ll support Runaway Daydreamer. I will earn a little commission that will allow me to invest more time and money into the blog.

I only join affiliate programs when I truly believe in the value of the product offered.  I would never be an affiliate of something I didn’t believe in.

Happy weekend, happy blogging and happy language learning!

photo credit: brunorocha.org

The post How Blogging and Language Learning Are Very Much Alike appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

Runaway Daydreamer has been nominated for the second year in a row in The Top 100 Language Lovers 2015 competition hosted by bab.la and Lexiophiles. Hooray!

That’s a wonderful accomplishment and I have to thank all of you for your support. Merci beaucoup! Now it’s time to vote and I need your help to make it to the Top 25.

WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME?

I’m writing an Italian language guide at the moment and I’m working on many other useful resources.

I’d love to publish them for free on the blog once I get a wider audience. I’d like to reach as many language learners as possible. By supporting the blog, you’d give me the chance to share my work with a huge community. You will help my little activity immensely by enabling me to get recognized for the content I create. It would be a spur to go on writing and blogging.

Plus… *drumroll*… It’s my birthday on Sunday! Yep, 24 candles. If you can spare a moment to vote for Runaway Daydreamer, I’d be a happy birthday girl. Very, very happy indeed.

SO HOW CAN I VOTE?

There you go.

Scroll down to find Runaway Daydreamer and click ‘Vote’. Easy-peasy. Don’t forget to vote for your other favourites as well.

The voting phase lasts from May 26th to June 14th. The winners will be announced on June 17th. Good luck everyone! Bon courage, buona fortuna y buena suerte!

PS: If you’re feeling particularly generous, spread the word and share the link on your networks – either over Twitter or Facebook or Instagram – anywhere you like. You’d do me a huge favour.

The post Top 100 Language Learning Blogs: it’s time to vote! appeared first on Learn a new language while having fun and exploring the world | Runaway Daydreamer.

There was an interesting discussion on Twitter last night during the Eurovision Song Contest 2015.

Lindsay from Lindsay Does Languages hosted a very entertaining live chat using the hashtag #EuroLangParty to celebrate one of Europe’s most popular TV traditions.

Bloggers, language lovers and people from all over the world reunited to tweet their opinions and talk about their favourite songs throughout the contest.

We had a lot of fun!

So many thoughts were shared but there’s one particular topic I’d like to mention. It sparked a debate.

Why so many songs were performed in English?

You see, we’re talking about an European competition here. This year 40 countries were taking part and 33 of them were using the English language instead of their own native one. Boo! Quite a bummer, huh?

Parlez-vous Eurovision? 

Eurovision more like Anglo-Vision?

Honestly, it felt more like Anglovision instead of Eurovision. I know that English is understood by most people and performers who sing in English are more likely to win. Still, the best thing about Eurovision is its international flavor. The contest starts losing that flavor when everything is in English, don’t you think?

The diversity of Europe is something we should acknowledge and celebrate.
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Kerstin Hammes blogged about this last year and I can totally relate: Eurovision is letting language learners down.

I’m voting Montenegro because they’re not singing in English #Eurovision #EuroLangParty #esc2015 #mne

— Alex Rawlings (@RawLangs_Blog) May 23, 2015

@kerstinhammes @trysty True. That’s exactly what I thought. The songs are pretty nice so far, but I’d love to hear some non-English music.

— Runaway Daydreamer (@runawaydaydream) May 23, 2015

And the winner of the night: The English language. The losers: all other European languages. #ESC2015 — Alex (@inglesenhuelva) May 23, 2015

That being said, I’m still a fan of Eurovision and I’d like to go to Stockholm to watch the show live in 2016. Who’s with me? I hope there’ll be some more multilingual entries and a real international vibe!

In the meantime, let’s take a look at the countries that decided to submit an entry in their native tongue this year. Thumbs up for them!

• ITALY: Il Volo – “Grande Amore”

Il Volo, winners of the Sanremo Music Festival, with their song “Grande Amore”.

• SPAIN: Edurne -“Amanecer”

Edurne was chosen to represent Spain with her song “Amanecer”.

• FRANCE: Lisa Angell – “N’oubliez Pas”

Lisa Angell was chosen to represent France with her song “N’oubliez Pas”.

• MONTENEGRO: Knez – “Adio”

Knez was chosen to represent Montenegro with his song “Adio”.

• PORTUGAL: Leonor Andrade – “Há Um Mar Que Nos Separa”

Leonor Andrade was chosen to represent Portugal with her song “Ha Um Mar Que Nos Separa”.

• FINLAND: Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät – Aina mun pitää

Pertti Kurikan Nimipäivät (PKN) is a Finnish punk rock band and they were chosen to represent Finland with their song “Aina Mun Pitää”.

• THE WINNER: SWEDEN Måns Zelmerlöw – “Heroes”

Special mention for the winner.  Måns Zelmerlöw of Sweden has won the 2015 Eurovision Song Contest with his song “Heroes”.

YOUR TURN: What do you think about English taking over Eurovision? Did the right song win? Should Eurovision songs all be in the national language?

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