Museum Of Knowledge, Learn German in 10 months, top 5 tips 16022018
Learn German

How to learn German in 10 months, Museum Of Knowledge top 5 tips

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16th February 2018
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Language learners are always keen to expand their skills and learn a language as quickly as possible. Students often ask the Museum of Knowledge team for best practice techniques that will enable them to learn German within 10 months. This is a broad question and is dependent on many factors such as the student’s natural pace and capacity to learn a language. Every student learns at a different speed and their ability to master a language such as German will be dependent on various dynamics. Here are the top five tips the Museum of Knowledge team has highlighted that we believe directly affects a student’s ability to learn German within 10 months.

Best Practice 1: Time and dedication

To learn German within ten months will take time and dedication on behalf of the student. Students should outlay between 3-4 hours a week for one-to-one tuition or group tuition. If group tuition is chosen, students should study in small groups of no more than ten students in total at any one time,

Best Practice 2: Structured learning

Students who wish to learn German must remain highly focused during this timeframe of 10 months in order to meet the objective to learn German quickly. The key to successful language learning is structure and students will need to organise their language learning effectively with a mixture of grammar, syntax and comprehension exercises included. It is also helpful for the language to be further divided into the four main areas of learning prose. These include, reading, writing, listening and speaking. Developing each one of these skills is paramount so that a more comprehensive understanding of the German language can be obtained.

Best Practice 3: Practice makes perfect

Although it may seem obvious, the importance of practising German on a regular basis cannot be underestimated. The German language may be complex for those who are more accustomed to Latin based languages and of course the grammatical differences between Germanic and Latin languages are considerable. Repetition may sometimes be perceived as an old fashioned language learning technique, but it is one that the Museum of Knowledge team stands by. The more a student practices speaking, listening, reading and writing in German, the more their skills and understanding of the German language will develop to a high level and within a ten month timeframe.

Best Practice 4: Visiting German-speaking nations

A very productive way of speeding up your understanding of German and to ensure that a student reaches his or her goal of gaining a reasonable level of competency in German within ten months, is to visit a German speaking country. The primary countries that may be visited by those students who wish to learn German within ten months include Switzerland and Germany. The accent of the Swiss population differs from that of the German population, however it is still useful to become accustomed to both dialects.

Visiting Germany or Switzerland enables students learning German to put into practice what they have learnt in theory. Students can practice ordering meals at restaurants, asking for directions as well as booking their travel around the German-speaking city. It will open the mind and improve cultural awareness as well as facilitate understanding of responses in German for any face-to-face dialogue undertaken.

Best Practice 5: Social interaction

An important element for those learning German is social interaction. It may seem at first glance, that a language is understood simply by reading text or listening to dialogue however it is the social interaction that will determine the extent to which the language a student is learning is understood. Social interaction can include speaking with German speakers online or via the telephone as well as face-to-face dialogue. Social interactions are key for better understanding and improvement of listening skills as well as speaking skills in particular.

Musuem Of Knowledge, Speak Spanish Granada Spain blog 09022018
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What you need to know when speaking Spanish in Granada, Spain

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9th February 2018
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Travellers are often bemused when they take the first step towards speaking a language abroad. What do travellers need to know when speaking Spanish in Granada, Spain for example? The Museum of Knowledge highlights two key factors to consider that should help all language learners speak Spanish with confidence whilst in Granada. Spain.

The first consideration students learning Spanish need to bear in mind is that the Spanish accent in Spain varies region to region with the Granada accent being typical of Andalusia. It may be more difficult to understand the Andalusian accent compared to the accents in the North such as in Burgos or Galicia. The speed and pronunciation of words differs between the Andalusian accent spoken at speed with some words pronounced without accentuation of consonant letters or vowels. For example, a word that ends with the letters “ado” may not be pronounced as such. The word “ocupado” (busy) would be pronounced as written by a Spanish speaker from the North, however a speaker from the Granada region would not pronounce the last two letters, the consonant letter “d” and vowel “o”. This would mean that the word “ocupado” would be pronounced as “ocupaw” with no emphases on the last two letters of the word when spoken by a speaker from the Granada region.

Pronunciation aside, it is important to note that as a city that is famous for its historic beauty, it is helpful to learn a few words and phrases that relate to the city of Granada. Historic sites include the town’s cathedral (catedral), the Alhambra Palace and Generalife Gardens. Other activities famous in the region include skiing in the Sierra Nevada mountains, and during the summer months, swimming and diving in the hillside water theme park Aquaola that certainly deserves a visit. With these sites of interest, language learners can develop their linguistic skills for the purpose of tourism and perfect their general knowledge and communication skills from asking for directions to developing and learning the vocabulary they will use when visiting historic sites and monuments.

 

 

Museum Of Knowledge, Listening to a language, how long to fully understand it blog 02022018
Learn a Language for Business

After listening to a language, how long will it take to fully understand it?

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2nd February 2018
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The Museum of Knowledge team is often asked, after listening to a language how long will take to understand it? Best practice for language learning most certainly includes adopting well-known techniques such as immersion learning. Immersion learning can include listening to audio descriptions, radio excerpts and verbal conversations. The benefits of learning a language by listening to structured dialogue include;

  • Understanding how words and phrases are pronounced
  • Understanding and being able to express yourself using different accents
  • Becoming familiar with intonations in the spoken language form

Learning a language by listening to various dialogues should not be carried out in isolation. Listening and repetition is imperative in order to ensure successful comprehension and rapid progress. Listening skills, based on structure is also important so that words spoken can be fully understood. These words are utilized within a context, a topic or key subject area. Because of this, it is helpful to become familiar with some words and phrases in respect of a specific subject area prior to listening to dialogue.

Taking into consideration topical subject matters such as business meetings for example, an area of focus could be negotiating contracts, in which case, understanding the terminology and vocabulary used in such dialogues and subject matters would be preferential ahead of engaging in listening to the dialogue. The more vocabulary known and understood in advance, the quicker it will be to fully understand spoken dialogue. Advanced knowledge of a language would also enable listeners to understand such dialogue with high levels of competency within three months.

Museum Of Knowledge, 5 Tips Learn French French accent blog 26012018
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Five ways to speak French with a French accent, @MOKKnowledge guide

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26th January 2018
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Students often ask the Museum of Knowledge for its top tips for language learning, so we explore five ways to learn French and speak French with a French accent. One of the most challenging aspects of learning French is acquiring the right accent. Of course there are many types of French accents, from the standard Parisian accent, the accents of the South of France, the French accent of Quebec in Canada, the Swiss accent as well as the accents of the French Caribbean, just for starters.

Here follows the five great Museum of Knowledge tips and guidelines to help students speak French with a French accent.

  1. Speaking French with a French accent is achievable by learning how to accentuate tones. The French accent is very sharp so achieving this technique is important.
  2. To speak French with a French accent, language learners must learn to roll the letter “r” and also work on pronunciation differences between the letter “e” and letter “é” with accent aigu.
  3. As French is a very emotive language and highly accentuated there is more importance attached to the movement of the mouth when compared to other languages such as Spanish for example.
  4. Listening to French radio, documentaries, news bulletins and debates can also help French language learners improve their spoken French skills. Understanding how words are pronounced, how phrases are constructed and recognising the differences between spoken and written French are key skills that can develop the student’s accuracy and enable him/ her to speak French with a French accent.
  5. Confidence is the next step that will assist students to speak French with a French accent. Confidence will enable French language learners to project their voices, accentuate and combine all skills they have learnt.

In conclusion, the Museum of Knowledge has highlighted some of the main tips that are most likely to enable French language learners to succeed. In particular to speak French with a French accent, French language learners must perfect the skills of accentuation, precision and the rolling of the letter “r” in order that French speakers sound as natural as possible when they speak French.