Mastering a Foreign Language: How To Become A Brilliant Speaker, Part 2 of 7

by Teresa Bolen

‘Become Like A Child -- The Greatest Language Machines On Earth’

You’ve probably been told that the best time to learn a foreign language is when you’re small child, and you may have even been told that learning a foreign language to a high level of mastery is impossible after a certain age. What you may not know is that it is only true for you if you choose to believe it.

You have to option to choose to believe that you can use some of the same resourceful beliefs and behaviors that children use, and get the same great results in mastering a language. So, what can you discover from the way children approach learning a language?

Children are indeed the greatest language machines on earth. How do they do it? There is all kinds of research explaining the mechanics of how they work the wonderful language magic that they do, but let’s set that aside and learn from what their attitudes and behaviors that can serve older learners of foreign language equally well.

Children understand the importance of feedback, and do whatever it takes to acquire the skill. It never occurs to a small child that s/he may not master the language, does it? They just keep experimenting until they get the result they are looking for.

Children have no need to do things perfectly. If they can successfully communicate their ideas, they are satisfied and feel good about their achievement. And when you do successfully communicate an idea with another person in a foreign language, it is an achievement, isn’t it? Celebrating your achievement is a good thing to do.

Children keep working with language until they get the desired result. If something doesn’t work within the first few tries, they keep at it for however long it takes. It is common for toddlers to make hundreds of attempts to get the results they are looking for, right? If you have been around small children for prolonged periods of time then you know exactly what I’m talking about. They can drive you a little nuts with their repetition as they are mastering a language.

When a child is listening to someone, s/he doesn’t freak out if s/he doesn’t understand every single word -- s/he makes her best guess, or asks for clarification, and then she moves on.

The final area of genius children have is that they play with language. They don’t sit down to memorize it all at once. They play, and through playing and enjoying life the language comes to them naturally.

So, how childlike would you like to become in learning and mastering a language?

Here’s to Your Success!

Teresa Bolen

Copyright 2006 by Teresa Bolen. All Rights Reserved.