Today we’ve got a guest post from Lucia Leite, a Portuguese native speaker who has a degree in English and German. At the moment she's taking a Master’s degree in English as a second language for young learners, while improving her Spanish and French. I’ll leave you with her now... - … [Read more...] about Music as a Learning Tool: Sing Your Way to Fluency!
Guest Post
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Writing in a Foreign Language: How to Do It and Why
The guest post you'll enjoy today was written by a Greek man who is currently studying Norwegian in Norway. His name is Dimitris Polychronopoulos. He blogs on yozzi.com in his eight strongest languages. In this article he will talk about how to become a better writer. Enjoy! --- Sometimes we reach a certain level of a foreign language and we just want to keep going. Maybe we’ve lived and worked in the target country for a long time. Maybe we work academically or professionally in the language. Maybe we haven’t gotten as far along as we would like to in the target language and we have long-term goals for a particular language. It may be that we need to pass a proficiency test in the language for a variety of reasons. … [Read more...] about Writing in a Foreign Language: How to Do It and Why
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Learning to Teach, and Teaching to Learn
I'm so happy to welcome my friend Sahar, a.k.a. The Wandering Jew, on Runaway Daydreamer. I was delighted when he offered up a guest post on his experiences about teaching his mother tongue to others and learning from it. I’ll leave you in his hands... --- 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 … [Read more...] about Learning to Teach, and Teaching to Learn
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5 foreign languages to learn to boost your career after graduation
Today’s guest post was kindly written by Samanphy. Samanphy is currently based in London, coming from Hong Kong. Along with speaking Cantonese, Mandarin and English, she has been learning Spanish since 2010, lived and worked in Spain before and is a fluent speaker. 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! --- 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 … [Read more...] about 5 foreign languages to learn to boost your career after graduation
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Improve Your Mandarin Chinese with These 10 Cultural Tips
Today’s guest post comes from the very talented Yang, who has already previously written about Mandarin Chinese on Runaway Daydreamer. --- 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 … [Read more...] about Improve Your Mandarin Chinese with These 10 Cultural Tips
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Why Should You Make the Effort of Learning a Foreign Language?
Today’s guest post comes from Akansha Arora and I'm sure it will encourage you even further to embark on a language learning journey. --- A common observation shows that most people take a foreign language course because it’s one of the hobbies they want to pursue. But it’s amazing to know that learning a foreign language can do so much benefit for the brain. The following article lists some benefits that learning a foreign language can bring. … [Read more...] about Why Should You Make the Effort of Learning a Foreign Language?
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In Defense of “Like”: It’s, Like, Actually a Pretty Great Word
Though the English language contains many unsavory four-letter words, perhaps the one with the worst reputation is “like”. Indeed, there’s no faster way to make yourself seem vapid or incompetent than to constantly utter the word “like” in your conversations. Though “like” has many accepted uses, most people think that misusing it is a sure-fire indicator that you’re, like, kind of stupid. But “like” is more than a meaningless filler that indicates stupidity. In fact, the word “like” has evolved to take on a variety of uses that are not only useful, but also semantically rich. Moreover, the word “like” fills lexical gaps in the English language, conveying sentiments that its alternatives simply can't express. Let’s review some of the uses of the word “like” to show that it’s not so bad … [Read more...] about In Defense of “Like”: It’s, Like, Actually a Pretty Great Word
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Brush Up on Your French Grammar Through Music
It’s no secret that there’s an abundance of excellent French-language music. From timeless vintage classics by stalwarts like Edith Piaf and Charles Trenet to more modern French-language tunes that have infiltrated the mainstream (Stromae, anyone?), there’s really nothing quite like French music. But in addition to producing deep, memorable, and marvelous songs, these French artists have also -- albeit inadvertently -- given learners of French a great opportunity to practice their grammar. Here are two excellent French-language songs that will help you tackle some of the trickier aspects of French grammar. … [Read more...] about Brush Up on Your French Grammar Through Music
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Are Some Languages Faster than Others?
I’m thrilled to announce that Paul Martin will be Runaway Daydreamer’s first ever Guest Editor. Paul is an English teacher currently living in Buenos Aires and he will take over the blog for the current month. He agreed to write a series of articles and in-depth features for us. I shall leave you in his capable hands. Enjoy! … [Read more...] about Are Some Languages Faster than Others?
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Mandarin Chinese is easier to learn than you think
Lots of people dream of studying and then speaking Mandarin Chinese but they're too scared to give it a try. Are you one of them? Today's post is by Yang who will give you the encouragement you need to pursue your language learning goals. Enjoy! - - - … [Read more...] about Mandarin Chinese is easier to learn than you think
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