Why you must train 4 skills to achieve fluency

Ask most language learners what they are hoping to achieve, and you will come across a recurring ambition: fluency. The word fluent comes from the Latin language and indicates a sense of flow, because that's what conversations often do: they flow. So what you're hoping to achieve is a point where using another language becomes so easy that you won't have to hesitate, you won't look for words all the time and won't feel stuck.

If you are an independent learner, have you ever found yourself off balance? For example, you find yourself becoming a real expert in understanding spoken language, but a wall comes up in your brain as soon as you try to say the simplest of things. Or sometimes you have picked up a lot of spoken language and you'd be ok at the shop, but you can't read a single label!

Four Core Skills

As a language tutor, I make my students aware that there are four core skills to language learning: Speaking, Reading, Listening and Writing. You have got to become good at all of them and keep your levels balanced to prepare for true fluency in a language.

One example: Audio-based systems, such as CDs or podcasts, will put a lot of emphasis on speaking and listening. This is excellent for basic travelling or conversation. But it is enough if you really want to find that elusive fluency in your new language? Personally, I don't think so. Neglecting two of the four skills can really affect your confidence!

Since these core skills are ever so important, why don't we get to know them a little better:

Writing doesn't just refer to how good you are at composing a letter, note or blog post. It also includes your sound recognition. For example, how good are you at making notes based on what you're hearing, spelling them correctly and writing something legible in your target language.

Speaking, now that sounds hard doesn't it? It's not all about producing free-hand sentences and word order. Speaking starts when you meet the sounds of your target language. Pronunciation and accent work breed confidence, and putting that speaking practice in right from the start is key to helping you feel like communication is possible.

Listening is the skill of piecing together all the foreign sounds, analysing them in your mind and making sense of them as words and phrases. Listening helps you get the idea of what's going on, but more importantly it teaches you important pronunciation skills. All language production depends on what you hear, so don't underestimate this one.

Reading looks like a simple task after all those others. In any target language, the essence of this skill is in training you to spot patterns. Reading a lot will bring you in tune with the way sentences are built in a different language, and exercises engaging with a text are among the most useful you can work on for becoming fluent.

On top of learning those, you should engage with the culture, civics and geography of your target language. It really is a tall order, but trust me, it's worth it. You'll finally get over those "errrrr" moments.

How to test yourself

Ommm...find your balance, young deshi.​

Here is an exercise I work on together with a lot of my learners. It's perfect for exposing a training rut or giving you inspiration for a new challenge. Draw yourself a diagram of all the skills you're hoping to train. Think about them and rate yourself out of 10 in each one. Then consult someone like a teacher or language buddy - what do they think? The outside perspective of another learner or a native speaker adds real value to the assessment.

Write your numbers on the diagram - are they balanced? Do you have a particular weakness or strength? Then think about how you have learnt your language so far, and what kind of exercises you've done most, and perhaps what you've been missing. For more exercises getting you ready to target your core skills, please check out my forthcoming ebook.

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The 6 Best Techniques for Learning Vocabulary

Vocabulary is one of the pillars of language learning and especially significant for the advanced learner. Once you are familiar with the basic structures of your target language, you'll want to start saying and understanding more words! One of my students recently asked me:

I'd like to get some system for vocab learning in place. Have you any recommendation?

..and I thought this makes an awesome blog topic. So here are my top techniques for learning vocabulary.

1) Write, Look, Cover, Repeat (WLCR)

This is the ultimate classic. For me, vocab learning has always been a notebook and pen type exercise. The physical motion of writing something down is very useful as it satisfies the needs of haptic learners. Take a pad, draw a vertical line in the middle and write the word on one side in your native/source language and on the other side in your target language. Memorise the list, then cover one side and tick off all that you remember. Then repeat.

Supercharging your WLCR

• Add another Write step for all the words you couldn't remember first time round, then start again. And repeat. The list of words you can't remember should get smaller every time.

• Satisfy your aural learning style through the version write, mumble, cover, repeat - speaking out each target language word every time. Or record them all and listen back to the vocabulary list a few times.

• Colour code your list, for example to highlight different genders or word types. (Thanks to David Casey on Facebook for this tip!)

2) Get them all

This technique is very well suited to learning by immersion. You acquire new words by carrying a dictionary everywhere (anything electric has them on these days) and then making a note of new words wherever you come across them. These form your daily vocabulary list. Learn the words, revisit the source, move on to a related text or video for repetition. Keep going until you remember all (or 80%, 70%...it's your choice!) of the words from your list, then find a new source. Your memory will build the connection between source and vocab, allowing you to remember the word by where you learnt it from.

3) Flashcarding

Flashcards are great for learners who work very well with visual clues. You can either make sets combining an image with a word in the target language, or just write the words in source and target language. Different colours come in handy here, and many online products also offer to make life easier for you (e.g. Anki and Quizlet).

What makes Flashcarding different from WLCR is that you cannot rely on memorising words by order - they come at you at random and you must be ready for anything. Personally, I perceive this as a hurdle and it's never been my thing. But on the other hand, what better way of preparing for real life?

4) Work in a Context

Memory research tells us that building links between data helps us remember things and the way to make sense of that is to put the vocab into use. A classic memory technique would be to connect every word with a strong image (imagine the grumpy ticket clerk huffing and handing you два ьилета). Alternatively, come up with a story that includes all your vocabulary.

Tried to get the partner involved with bilingual vocab stickies.

I also like to to work in blocks of different topics, for example you can focus on cookery for a few weeks. That way, the most common words will reoccur and you learn not only the word, but how to use it.

Again, immersion is key here and make sure you produce language in context. Write a full sentence using your new word. Update your Facebook in the target language. Use it 5 times in a conversation. Whatever it takes, just make sure you have satisfied both repetition and context.

5) Stickies Everywhere

Sticky notes were made to serve as reminders, so we shall use them for that! Put contextual vocabulary in strategic places, or write yourself little messages in the target language. After a week of "Guten Abend, Gute Nacht" on your mirror, it might just sink in.

If you have flashcards or prefer larger pieces of paper, why not put your pieces of paper into a clear plastic envelope and stick them in the shower?

6) Study Linguistics

Many words are made up of parts of other words. So this one requires a bit of study, but it will make your vocabulary learning the smartest it has ever been. Become familiar with prefixes and suffixes, word roots and common sources of target language words. For example, many European languagesare Latin-based and their words change through little add-ons. James at EngVid has a great way of explaining the concept through "Vocabulary Pyramids". The results can be staggering: one simple root can change in 10 ways, yet you only have to learn half of a new word.

Finally, how do you know which words to learn?

Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered with my free PDF guide to the essential vocab topics for beginners. This guide is your handy checklist to help you have successful conversations in any language. Download it right here!