Improve Your English Fast

Tips to Improving Your English – FAST!

Write a Journal

Improving your English is like exercising to get fit. You wouldn’t (and shouldn’t) go to the gym for 8 hours a day, everyday. Nor would you spend only a little time only once in a while exercising. Getting fit requires a regular, frequent training schedule. You should take the same approach with studying English. Just start doing a little everyday – start with three sentences per day. Write down thoughts, feelings, make a historical record etc. Anything is fine; just write it down in the same place every time. You should be trying to establish a habit, and habits become part of your routine sooner with repetition and without breaks. Use a notebook or make a journal on your computer. Writing will reveal the gap between what you WANT to say and what you CAN say, as well as grammatical mistakes and word choice issues. When you discover what you don’t know, THAT’S what you should prioritize, memorize and utilize. TRY these expressions in real conversation with someone to test how well it expresses what you want to say.

Read Books

Read simple, elementary school or Jr. High school level books. Now, some of you will not believe me on this and go and read trade magazines or other (difficult) things that interest you. But take my word when I say that you’ll improve faster my way. Novels and short stories either fiction or non-fiction are best. Stories will contain the kind of natural, daily English you’ll want to know and use. Memorize the organization of sentences and how thoughts and expressions are written. Then TRY these expressions in real conversation with someone to test how well it expresses what you want to say. This will help you become comfortable with simple grammar and make good word choices.

Watch TV & Movies

Start slow. I repeat, start slow. I suggest a routine of 10-15 minutes per day. Again, some of you won’t take my advice and you’ll watch for hours and hours. That’s fine, but I don’t think it’s the most effective way to study. Don't just watch to be entertained. Watch with a pen, paper and dictionary. Turn on the “captions for the hearing impaired” also know as the subtitles. English subtitles should be standard on American DVDs. Pause often to get the word or rewind to hear it again. Watch it once or repeat the same section many times. The key is to understand it. Movies and TV are another good way to get new words and learn how things are said by native speakers. TRY these expressions in real conversation with someone to test how well it expresses what you want to say.

Make Everyday an English Lesson

One step out the door means you probably have the opportunity to make conversation with English speakers. But be careful. Don’t wait for someone to speak to you. You have to be proactive. Leave the house every day with a goal to speak at least a little of the English you’ve been studying. Even one or two words are fine. It’s surprising how much easier it is to remember something after you’ve actually used it once successfully. Making mistakes isn’t bad either. If you try and fail, ask the person to correct your English. Then write it down and try it again until you get it right. Think about the English vocabulary you have now. How do you remember it? Your vocabulary is probably limited to the words you must use or like to use everyday. It’s called your comfort zone. The problem is, your “zone” is probably very small and you’re not breaking out of it because you’re not trying to learn anything new. Moreover, the words you’re comfortable with and use daily may even be incorrect, but you don’t know it.

Live like an American

This could be the hardest thing to do on the list. Naturally you’re most comfortable with your native language. I’m sorry to say that you have to let go! Living in a foreign country might feel at times like being thrown off a ship into the deep cold water of the ocean all alone. The water is dark and unfamiliar. You’re afraid that sharks below will devour you and a non-stop flow of giant waves crash in your face as you struggle to keep your head above water. As the ship sails away in the distance you see a lifesaver floating in the water near you. You swim to grab it and hold it tightly to your body. At times you panic and forget you can still swim, but you have the floating device and now the ship is out of sight and left you alone in a huge ocean. The sun is going down and you can see a glimpse of the shoreline as the huge waves carry you up and down. Let’s compare falling into the ocean to the shock of living in a new country with a new lifestyle, culture, language, diet, time zone etc. The ocean and what lies beneath represents your fear of the unknown and what might happen if you make language or cultural mistakes. The waves are the spoken English you can’t catch or understand that you hear daily and mentally pushes you down, makes you tired, and makes you feel like you want to give up. The ship represents your home country and the lifesaver or floating device is the lifestyle, culture, language that you left behind. You feel it’s the only thing keeping you alive. The irony is you have to let go of the floating device to survive. The reality is that you can swim, the water is safe from sharks during the day and the beach is only a few minutes away – if you decide to swim. You can swim faster without the lifesaver and you have to hurry before the sun goes down –before you go back home! Live life, as much as possible, like Americans do. Hanging on to Japanese life, culture and language will only slow you down. Go to American grocery stores, American restaurants, join a club at the YMCA, fitness club etc. where there aren't many Japanese. Watch less Japanese TV, fewer Japanese movies, and read fewer Japanese newspapers. Don't cling so much to Japan and the Japanese way. You will not have a rich, full experience living here if you do.