How to learn a new language online?

December is just around the corner and one cannot deny the endearing shift of hope and joy in the air.

This year's Diwali was especially a delight with colorful stories flooding our Instagram feed that secretly ignited our hearts with hope. From Dalgona coffee to Diwali sweets, the journey has not been easy on any of us but we've made it!

I have tried my hands on a lot of things in this lockdown but the one thing that really prevented me from losing my sanity and borderline obsessive online shopping was learning a new language.

 

I started learning the Korean language on my own and here's how I did it:

• First things first I started by watching a lot of youtube videos online to learn 'Hangul', the Korean alphabet. Getting restless to learn and read new words and sentences is only natural but make sure to take as much time as possible to strengthen your basics or Joey's French and your new language won't be that different.

• Focus on the basics first, period.

• I downloaded an app called 'Duolingo', which made it easier for me to hear the sounds and remember alphabets. You can learn a variety of languages on this app and it teaches you in the form of games and quizzes. It also ignites your competitive personality so trudge lightly. 

• Make a notebook and write down whatever you understand in your own words. Seriously, this technique really helps you to comprehend and memorize at a faster pace. Make sure to use different colored pens to ensure that your notebook does not resemble a colorless soul. 

• You can find amazing sites online that help you to learn languages. For example, I used https://www.howtostudykorean.com/ and https://talktomeinkorean.com/ to study Korean.

• Learn vocabulary on a daily basis. You can follow various Instagram pages where people post brief and helpful posts (seriously, bless their souls) so that you can learn while scrolling through your feed. (I am waiting for the day when I will understand Korean memes, sigh)

•  Watch movies and shows of the language that you want to learn. This will help you to understand the culture and daily conversations of the language that you are learning. Focus on the word pronunciations here. Also, If you watch Kdrama, don't lie and fear god. Everybody knows that we watch Kdrama for Korean men.

• Don't be scared to practice and pronounce the words. You might look stupid and your family might start hating you but you will learn easily, so keep going.

• If you are someone who faces trouble falling asleep, I have a great hack: Listen to some language podcasts in bed and kill two birds with one stone. You can learn some new things and will also fall asleep in no time. You can try the Talktomeinkorean podcast on Spotify for Korean. Search for podcasts online for any other language that you want to learn.

• Practice and practice and practice some more every day. You can find a lot of helpful stuff online to help you along the way. Surround yourself with the language that you want to learn and you will see the results in no time.

Learning a new language is a great decision and it will never disappoint you. It gives a boost to your confidence and opens doors to new opportunities for you so don't give up.

I have now joined online classes because I want to learn at an advanced level but you can always try this method as a beginner and become the polyglot star that you strive to be.