Friday, April 3, 2020
The Advantages of Learning English As a Means of Writing an Essay
The Advantages of Learning English As a Means of Writing an EssayWhen it comes to writing an essay, the most beneficial aspect of learning to write an English essay is the fact that it teaches students to express their thoughts and ideas in a more natural way. Students will be able to avoid phrases like 'my bad', 'I don't know' and other vocabulary that can be used as negative expressions. The more used an essay is, the easier it will be for the student to complete his or her work.It is also important to understand that English is a common language that many people in the world speak fluently. In addition, English is one of the most widely taught languages around the world. Many colleges and universities have large numbers of students, which means that writing an English essay can really be a challenge.Because English is such a popular subject, writing an essay is often done at a school or college. This is usually the best way to learn English, because students learn better in a clas sroom environment than in a computer class. Students will be able to hear their instructor speaking their language and practice the English grammar at the same time.If you are someone who needs to write an English essay for a grade, or to compete with others, your first objective should be to write an essay that is clearly explained. Students need to get the point of an essay to be clear. Remember that essays are read by the university or professor, so if there is any ambiguity, you will need to ensure that the essay is well written.Because of the popularity of English, many people use the English language as a jumping off point to write an essay. These essays will be evaluated by the university or professor. They are also required in most high school courses.Another advantage of learning English as a means of writing an essay is that it can help you overcome language barriers. Many people from different countries can be paired together, which means that there will be words that the y do not both use. However, learning English can help an individual to interact with people who are not English native speakers.English is used in a number of forms for business, academia and entertainment. Because of this, English is more commonly used than Spanish. Therefore, learning English will definitely give you an advantage when it comes to writing an English essay.
Monday, March 23, 2020
Budgeting for Beijing
Budgeting for Beijing How Much Does it Cost to Visit Beijing? ChaptersHow Can You Find Cheap Flights to Beijing from the UK?Unavoidable Expenses when Travelling to BeijingThe Cost of Transport in BeijingThe Cost of Tourist Attractions in BeijingâIf you expect great things of yourself and demand little of others, youâll keep resentment far away.â - ConfuciusWhether youâve visited Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, and Taiwan or not, thereâs always Chinaâs capital city, Beijing, which literally means the capital of the north. Chinaâs capital city is home to 21.54 million people, has a metropolitan area 4 times the size of New York, and has over 5 million cars driving around it.For two people on a modest budget, you can expect to pay around £35 per day per person for accommodation, £15 each day eating in restaurants, and £300- £400 for return flights from the UK (if you travel at the right time), and £200 for high speed trains if you decide to travel elsewhere in the country (Beijing-Xiâan, Xiâan-Shanghai, Shanghai-Guangzhou).H ereâs how much you can expect to pay for a short stay in Beijing?In this article, we'll look at how you can find cheap flights, the expenditures you won't be able to avoid, the cost of transport around Beijing, and how much you can expect to spend on tourist attractions.Learn Mandarin London from this trusted site. NingChinese Teacher 5.00 (10) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors LorraineChinese Teacher £10/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors YuweiChinese Teacher 4.33 (6) £19/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors JoyceChinese Teacher £15/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors NicoleChinese Teacher £60/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors KatyChinese Teacher £16/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors YangChinese Teacher £18/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ChengChinese Teacher £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutorsHow Can You Find Cheap Flights to Beijing from the UK?Are you interested in Chinese culture, history, food, or just the c ountry itself?You best get to comparing the costs of flights then...If you travel at the right time, getting to China doesn't cost a fortune. (Source: Free-Photos)The first thing you need to consider when travelling to Beijing on a budget is the cost of flights:From which airports can you travel to Beijing on a budget?Which airlines offer the best prices?How much are domestic flights once you get to China?If youâre flexible on dates, retired, freelancer, or having a sabbatical, get yourself on Skyscanner and find when the cheapest flights to Beijing are.Of course, Skyscanner isnât the only site. Thereâs also Momondo and plenty of sites for comparing the prices of hotels in Beijing.The People's Republic of China is made up of 23 provinces, 4 municipalities, 5 autonomous regions, and two special administrative regions: Beijing is one of the municipalities and even though the cost of living in China is quite low, the capital isnât cheap.On Skyscanner, you can find return flight s for as little as £300. You can also check out Holiday Pirates for cheap deals. The comparison site Momondo also has cheap flights to Beijing in the low season.Once you get to China, you might need to get internal flights. A flight from Beijing to Canton will cost around £280 in August, £100 to get to Nanjing, £160 Guilin, and £120 for Shanghai.Unavoidable Expenses when Travelling to BeijingWhen we say âunavoidable expensesâ, weâre talking about things that youâre definitely going to have to pay for.Given the size of Beijing, there's no lack of accommodation. (Source: zhjsun)In this case, weâre referring to food and accommodation.Staying in Beijing can cost a lot and accommodation can cost between £500 and £2000 for a month in the city centre. Of course, this is for longer stays (working or studying abroad, for example) and this price will vary depending on how close you are to the city centre and the comforts you can afford. For short stays, you can find inter active maps on Airbnb and HomeAway, for example. After all, Beijing is huge.In some cases, any money saved on accommodation will be lost on public transport.Prices can vary massively. For example, you can find youth hostels (with beds in dormitories) for £15- £20 per night and private holiday flats costing between £200 and £300 a night!Donât forget that accommodation in the very centre of Beijing is quite expensive. For short stays, you can get accommodation in the Sanlitun neighbourhood and there are plenty of amenities such as hotels, guest houses, bars, restaurants, and modern shopping centres.Accommodation costs between £40 and £60 up to £100 per day for two people. This means youâll be paying £20 to £30 each but itâs alright since your other expenses will be lower.When it comes to food, Beijing, like many of Asiaâs biggest cities, is an open-air restaurant! Jiumen Xiaochi and the Guije Street Night Market are some of the most popular places to eat authentic C hinese food in the city.You can eat for between £5 and £10 a day each. This would only add up to between £75 and £150 for a fortnight.The Cost of Transport in BeijingSince the Chinese capital is absolutely huge, youâre going to have to factor in the cost of transport.Itâs a 30-minute walk from Tienanmen Square and the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong to the old city and the Forbidden City.Bicycles are the quintessential way of travelling around China. (Source: 12019)How much you use public transport will also depend on your budget. To go from one district to another, you can use the metro, bus, taxi, bike, or walk. Cycling and walking can be enjoyable but not during days where pollution is at its highest. While the Chinese government is trying to curb pollution, overpopulation and industrialisation are working against them.Find out more about Beijing's different districts.Between 5:10 and 23:40, you can take the metroâs 18 lines connecting 370 stations. Expect to pay between 3 and 9 Yuans (between £0.35 and £1.00) depending on the distance covered for one of the worldâs cheapest metros.While buses only cost between 1 and 6 Yuans ( £0.12 and £0.70), traffic jams are common.There are 68,000 taxis in Beijing and hailing a cab isnât difficult. Itâll cost you 10 Yuans for the first three kilometres and 2 Yuans for each kilometre after that. Youâll also be charged for standing time in traffic jams.Make sure you take official taxis with a meter and a licence.Youâll need between £250 and £350 per person if you plan on taking Chinaâs high-speed trains. If you want to head to the centre of China, Sichuan, Tibet, Yunnan, Yangshuo, Tianjin, Suzhou, Shanghai, Chengdu, Xiâan, or Shenzhen, trips in China are long and costly.In any case, avoid trying to travel during the Chinese New Year when itâll be packed and expensive.Find out more about the best time to visit Beijing.The Cost of Tourist Attractions in BeijingOnce you get to Beijing, you can visit T iananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the ancient imperial city of the Ming and Qing dynasty, and plenty of UNESCO World Heritage Sites:The Great Wall of ChinaThe Jingâ"Hang Grand CanalThe Summer PalaceThe Imperial Palace of the Ming and Qing DynastiesThe site of Peking Man, dating between 730,000 and 300,000 ago.The Temple of HeavenThe imperial tombs of the Ming and Qing dynastiesThe Miaoying TempleIf you go to Beijing, you have to take the time to go visit the Great Wall of China. (Source: gmshtwjl)You can expect to pay between £150 and £600 for activities and between £150 and £400 for bars, nights out, etc.This is a budget based on two people spending a fortnight in China with:A visit to the Great Wall of China from Beijing: £50 each.Visiting tourist sites in Beijing: £35 per monument.Souvenirs, gifts, etc.: £1.50 per item.Buying items in upmarket stores: £25 per item.Packets of cigarettes: £10 per packet.Visiting a café or bar: £3.50 each.Other Chinese cities, such as Chengdu, Chongqing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, etc. tend to be cheaper than Beijing with the exception of Hong Kong and Shanghai. It all depends on your budget and what you do.Are you staying for a while?Make the most of your time in China by getting Mandarin Chinese lessons! Before you go to China, consider getting private tutorials in Mandarin Chinese. On Superprof, there are three types of language tutorials available: face-to-face tutorials, online tutorials, and group tutorials.Face-to-face tutorials are bespoke lessons with one tutor and one student. As the only student in the class, this is the most cost-effective type of private tutorial. Your tutor can spend all their time focusing on you, rather than having their attention split between you and other students. In most cases, the tutor will travel to you.Online tutorials are similar with the main difference being that the private tutor isn't there with you in the room. Thanks to the internet and programmes such as Skype, you ca n learn Chinese from anywhere with a decent internet connection and from tutors from anywhere in the world. Your Chinese language tutor may even be in China! With no travel costs and fewer expenses, the tutor can pass their savings onto their students.Finally, group tutorials are closer to traditional lessons at school with multiple students and a single teacher. This is usually the cheapest type of tutorial since the cost of the tutor's time will be shared amongst all the students in attendance. If you and your family or friends are planning a trip to China, you could all get Chinese lessons together from a tutor before you go.Each type has its pros and cons so it's up to you and your budget to decide which type of private tutorials you want.
Friday, March 6, 2020
How Online Tutoring Improve Educational Success
How Online Tutoring Improve Educational Success 0SHARESShare Traditionally, school learning has numerous distraction and disturbances which diminish core intention of imparting quality learning. Often children do not get proper attention to solve their queries and clarify their doubts. The students may feel shy or embarrassed about asking questions in the presence of their peers. As a result, they feel frustrating when they are not able to complete their lessons, homework, assignments with unsolved questions in their mind. Online tutoring is the solution to above described problems has become more demanding these days. It fulfills the gaps in understanding with one-to-one tutoring sessions resulting in guaranteed educational success. Unlike school academics, online learning offers peace of mind taking one-to-one classes from the comfort of their home, individualized attention facilitate learning at their own pace. The student does not feel inhibited asking questions in an online class. No peers will share your online tutoring sessions. Online tutoring websites improve educational success to both academically weak and strong students. Weak student is benefited by learning at his own pace. The tutor plan session analyzing studentâs grasp capabilities and aptitude towards learning the subject. The academically strong students get the benefit of in-depth knowledge solving each little complexity of the subject. The students get immediate support on learning the textbook lessons, completing their homework, assignments and test preparations. Often tutoring online provides library help programs where higher education students can seek online guidance on library resources. To conclude, online tutoring service is a guarantee to boost your child confidence, dedication and motivation towards attaining better grades in school academics. [starbox id=admin]
Thursday, March 5, 2020
How to Cultivate Self-Esteem to Always be the Best Version of You - Introvert Whisperer
Introvert Whisperer / How to Cultivate Self-Esteem to Always be the Best Version of You - Introvert Whisperer How to Cultivate Self-Esteem to Always be the Best Version of You Being the best versions of ourselves can seem like an overwhelming, anxiety-inducing feat that is full of âshould haveâsâ and âhave toâs.â In reality, learning to love yourself, listen to your heart, and cultivate your self-esteem should be an excellent opportunity to get to know yourself better and experience a fantastic journey. One of the hardest things to do is to learn to listen to your instincts. Your instincts are who you are at your core; they are what will make you happy and listening to them will lead you down a path of self-discovery where you will find out just how far you can go. Finding self-worth and having it even in the lowest of times is a hard act to follow through with. The idea that we have been given, for the last eighty years (at least), is that material possession can be the way to happiness. Unfortunately, that only provides us with instant gratitude that fades away quickly, especially when we see the next thing, which is usually right around the corner. Take a moment to reflect and listen to the small voice inside your head, heart, or gut, which will give you an idea of what you want. Gathering the initiative to chase after it is a different story but is intertwined. Taking action is where you will begin to make strides toward cultivating your self-esteem. And even when the strides feel small, taking them is an essential step on your path to becoming the best version of yourself. So, what are a few steps to take? How do you move into action? What do you do first? Start small. Permit yourself to start small. Having one small goal for a few weeks and being able to complete it will give you some clarity on how goals work instead of setting the lofty goals when the habit of cultivating hasnât been set yet. Take your time. How many times have you set yourself up to experience something fantastic in an unrealistic timeline? Working at a dream job, finishing up school, learning about yourselfâ"these all take time. When you rush to finish something, you miss the journey. And you can also get burned out quickly. When we burn out, chances are we will get stuck in the cycle of âwe canât do it.â Instead of realizing that we can do it, but the timeline we created for ourselves was unrealistic. Learning how to run a marathon and come in first doesnât happen in a few weeks. First, you have to build up the stamina and endurance to go the distance. Then, you build up your speed. Use Positive Affirmations. Having daily, positive affirmations to say to yourself is a great way to start small. The problem is that if you think you are going to feel comfortable doing it at the beginning, youâre wrong. It takes time to learn to say nice things to yourself, and also, in the beginning, it feels bizarre to say these things (even when writing a note). The reason it feels so weird is that our brains are hard-wired to tell us the bad things about ourselves before realizing the best in ourselves. A good trick to implement is to catch yourself in the act of saying something negative. In other words, if you wouldnât say it to your friend, donât say it to yourself. Again, make sure that your affirmations are something attainable and real. âIâm going to love myself todayâ is a great starting point, for example. Find What Your Passions Are and Take Action. Nothing is harder than taking action. Doing something that you want to do when you want to do it is one of the hardest steps a person must take, and it is one of the fewest roads taken. So many people get stuck in the idea of âcanâtâ that they never realize that they can. Just because something seems hard doesnât mean that it is hard. The practice of taking action, even if it is a small step, is one more step toward your goal. You want to go to school for music but are afraid to put all your eggs in that basket? Take a fall-back major and begin by taking a few music credits to get your feet wet. Then figure out how to incorporate it into the fall-back course and marry that career together. You can be a musician, but figuring out how to make it work for you is the key. Something to remember is that there will always be people telling you that you âcanât.â These are the people that are telling themselves that they canât as well. The word âcanâtâ is fear-based. Fear is something that screams in our head, but when you challenge it, youâll see how small it really is. Remember that you can if you truly want to. Everyone can. Find Self Compassion. Another hard thing to do, besides take action, is to be nice to yourself. Giving yourself daily and realistic affirmations, learning that âfailureâ is not a bad word, and realizing that success will come to you if you keep going are tough habits to get into. When you fail, you learn. Learning is how we find out new things about ourselves and how we figure out how to do things right. Failing is not a bad thing, but being kind to ourselves when we do fail is tough. Being kind to yourself when you are down, have failed, or are learning something new is one of the best things you can do for yourself, your esteem, and the people around you. When you get into the practice of saying kind phrases to yourself like âItâs okay,â âIâll get it soon,â or âThis is what I learnedâ when you fall is a great way to start accepting who you are. Conclusion Finding the best version of you takes years of training yourself to start small, be patient, act kindly, and take action. It isnât something that will come to you overnight. Realizing the negative thoughts and fears that come with being human are only thoughts and concerns is something that needs to be erased with positive affirmations and kindness. Going for your goals and listening to your instincts is a great place to start. The most wonderful thing is, once you get on the ball, fall of the ball, and get on the ball again, you will be able to pass along the knowledge you learned to others. And that will be the greatest gift you can give to yourself. ~ ~ ~ BIO: Kara is a professional writer, editor, and graphic/web designer. She spends her days working from home with her husband, two children, a dog, her cat, and her hedgehog Chester Copperpot. Nothing makes her happier than when she can burrow under the covers at an insanely early time of day to read a book. Resources: Psych Central, TED Talks Go to top Personal Branding starts with how well you speak about YOU. I want to help you accelerate your career by connecting you with your Free Instant Access to my eBook â" The Definitive Guide to Creating and Using an Elevator Speech. In this guide, I give you simple to follow instructions for creating a âwardrobeâ of ways to talk about you â" to leave a lasting impression. Get your copy now! Brought to you by Dorothy Tannahill-Moran â" dedicated to unleashing your professional potential. Introvert Whisperer
10 Reasons Why You Should Learn to Speak Italian [Infographic]
10 Reasons Why You Should Learn to Speak Italian [Infographic] Brooke Neuman Are you considering learning a new language, but youâre not sure which one to choose? For many people, the hardest step in learning a foreign language is actually choosing which language to learn. Weâll make it easy for youâ"choose Italian! Italian is a romance language spoken by over 60 million people around the world. Not only is it a relatively easy and fun language to learn, but itâs also one of the most beneficial languages to study. Donât believe us? Check out these 10 awesome reasons why you should to learn to speak Italian. Share this Image On Your Site pstrongPlease include attribution to takelessons.com with this graphic./strong/pbr /br / pa href=/blog/speak-italian-ten-reasons-z09img src=/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/01.png alt=10 Reasons Why You Should Learn Italian width=720px border=0 //a/pbr /br / p Now that weâve convinced you to learn Italian, itâs time to hit the books! Itâs never been easier to learn how to speak Italian. There are a number of online resources that you can leverage. So what are you waiting for, get started on the path to becoming smarter, healthier, wealthierthe list goes on. Interested in Private Lessons? Search thousands of teachers for local and live, online lessons. Sign up for convenient, affordable private lessons today! Search for Your Teacher
Online Science Tutor Teaches You for Top Exam Scores in 2020
Online Science Tutor Teaches You for Top Exam Scores in 2020 0SHARESShare Preparing for Science exams is intricate and mind boggling. Once your ground knowledge in the subject is shaky and unclear. Doing your exam prep with the help of a Science online tutoring website is the way to gain scintillating scores in the subject. Learn how Online science tutors will improve your exam scores in 2020 Mnemonic methods Scientific terms are difficult to remember and the formulas and concepts are ever intriguing. While Physics proves dry, Chemistry tends to be confusing with its symbols and Biology is ever noted for its lengthy chapters and names. Using mnemonic methods to remember ideas in all these areas is the right method to prepare for Science exam without struggle and confusion. Online Science tutor makes it easy for you with his mnemonic techniques and instructions to follow them. Using flashcards Using flash cards to remember concepts and their interlinks makes things easy for a Science student while preparing for exam. Still, proper methods to prepare flashcards and the way to organize them are important to keep in track of the ideas noted in the flash cards. All these are possible through an online science tutor who teaches how to prepare flashcards, organize them and learn through them on the eve of exam. Using homework tasks as a study material Homework reassures oneâs knowledge and develops good study skills in a student. Science homework is essentially useful for reconnecting ideas and solving problems. Still, students find many loopholes while revising their homework tasks and need assistance like Science homework help from established tutoring sites like Tutor Pace. Once they get rid of their homework hassles while revising for their Science exam, they find their Science knowledge doubly strengthened and also their problem solving skills improved. Revising the assignments to understand the core ideas better Assignments help students understand topics well. When students go back on their Science assignments, they realize how they have researched the topics and related the core concepts. By doing so, their general understanding of chapters improves and they are able to connect ideas between chapters. Suppose they have missed their assignment topics and need some feedback and help, they can seek Science assignment help from the expert tutors of Tutor Pace and face their exams with clear cut ideas about topics. Thus, learning for Science exam with online tutoring help is the easiest way to see your performance skyrocket.
Hands-On Learning More Effective, Hands Down - Heart Math Tutoring
Hands-On Learning More Effective, Hands Down - Heart Math Tutoring Hands-On Learning More Effective, Hands Down Hands-On Learning More Effective, Hands Down March 11, 2015 A recent post on Parent Toolkit echoes HEART Tutorings curriculum that encourages students to learn through hands-on experience with the numbers rather than memorizing procedures or facts. HEART uses all seven tips that Parent Toolkit suggests. One of our favorites on the list: Play math games and point out math relationships in real life. For instance, while your child is racing toy cars, you might show him that each car has 4 tires and ask how he could quickly figure out how many tires are on all 6 cars without counting each one. Then, ask him how he came to his solution and make math something that you talk about together every day.â Our Combinations to 10 and Multiplication Fluency units give students hands-on experience with parts of numbers, eventually leading them to know the basic facts within three seconds. This approach is more effective than forcing students to collect memorized, arbitrary knowledge that has no concrete meaning to them, says Emily Elliott, HEART Tutorings Executive Director. Interested in learning more about HEART and its Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools partners? Click here. And if you or your business or community organization would like to volunteer, click here. Click here to read the full post on Parent Toolkit. The website, produced by NBC News Education Nation, is a great one to bookmark.
Junior Year Checklist to Get Ready for College
Junior Year Checklist to Get Ready for College In the journey toward college, junior year is pivotal. This is when your teen should start buckling down and doing serious work to get ready: registering for college entrance exams, preparing for those exams, researching college options and much more. Theres plenty to do between now and next summer. Heres a checklist to keep you and your teen on track: Schedule a time to talk with the guidance counselor. This goes for both of you. The guidance counselor likely has a list of college to-dos and deadlines for the school year. Your teen should also discuss the best classes to take to stay on the right course for college. Take your teen to college fairs. The National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) College Fairs all around the country are a great option to learn more about different colleges and universities and their campus lives, majors and more. The NACAC website says each fair draws representatives from 175 to 400 colleges. Start having more serious conversations about what your teen seeks in a college. Your teen should approach the college conversation with diligence and care. Discuss the aspects of college that might matter to your teen, including location, student body size, variety of majors and campus life. Talk about the cost. Now is the time to begin researching college scholarships and financial aid. The U.S. Department of Educations Federal Student Aid website is a great resource, as are the websites of the colleges financial aid offices. And here are several to-dos that are your teens responsibility: Sign up for the PSAT/NMSQT in October. Registration is handled through the guidance counselor. More information is available at www.collegeboard.com. Discuss and sign up for any Advanced Placement (AP) classes. Your teen should talk with the school AP coordinator about upcoming dates for AP exams and which, if any, to take. Visit the guidance counselor. This is the year when your teen must stay in good contact with the guidance counselor, who can keep share what is on the horizon for college and make sure your teen is doing everything needed. Register for the SAT and/or ACT. Spring before senior year is a good time to take these exams for the first time, but your teen might even want to do so in the fall. Upcoming SAT 2019-2020 dates are October 5, November 2, December 7, March 14, May 2 and June 6. Upcoming ACT dates are October 26, December 14, February 8, April 4, June 13 and July 18, 2020. Develop an SAT/ACT prep plan. Now that your teen is an upperclassman, it will take discipline to find time to study for the SAT/ACT. This must be a priority, though, so encourage your teen to call Huntington. We offer three levels of exam prep: premier, 32-hour and 14-hour programs. Make a list of colleges of interest. Early junior year, your teen should make a list of colleges and start doing some research (some might even be at career fairs or high school campus visit days this school year). Then, your teen can narrow this list throughout the year before doing more intensive exploration the summer before senior year. Keep a list of important milestones from high school. These poignant moments and turning points in your teens high school experience might come in handy when its time to start applying to colleges and working on the personal essay for those that require one. Create a resume. Your teen will continue to add to the resume graduation nears, but its a good year to start putting one together in anticipation of applying to colleges. Build good relationships with teachers, coaches or other mentors. Your teen should make letter of recommendation requests early senior year, if not sooner. Remind your teen that letters are best written by teachers and others who can confidently speak to your teens abilities, ethics, character and more. If your teen doesnt have strong relationships with teachers yet, this is the year to cultivate them. Want to help your teen navigate the college research process successfully? Need help getting your teen prepared for the SAT/ACT, SAT Subject or Advanced Placement exams? Call Huntington at 1-800 CAN LEARN to learn more about our learning and exam prep programs.
Write On! 3 Cool Ways to Get Solid Foreign Language Writing Practice
Write On! 3 Cool Ways to Get Solid Foreign Language Writing Practice Write On! 3 Cool Ways to Get Solid Foreign Language Writing Practice Speaking gets most of the press, but writing is a major part of learning a language.The benefits of writing while learning are majorly neglected, too.While writing, you have all the time in the world to think, correct yourself and polish your work.Its a great flip side to the adrenaline of speaking!Not only that, but itâs one of the four major skills involved in becoming proficient in a language, along with speaking, reading and listening.Writing does come with its own challenges. However, itâs super easy to get started learning.So, you wanna get started writing in your target language? Well, let me tell youâ"there are plenty of exciting ways to do that! No need to limit yourself to classroom essays or textbook exercises, especially if those arenât your cup of tea.Follow these tips, and soon youll be taking advantage of awesome online resources and interacting with native speakers in order to improve your writing skills! Write On! 3 Cool Ways to Get Solid Foreign Language Writing Practice1. Journaling OnlineEver wish you could get your attempts at writing corrected by native speakers? Well, with sites like Lang-8 and italki, you can! Thanks to amazingâ"and freeâ"resources like these, you donât need a tutor or teacher in real life to correct your compositions.Both of these sites allow you to write a journal entry in your target language, but with a social media twist.Sign up, make an account and get to writing! Native speakers will correct your grammar and vocabulary mistakes. Turnaround is fast, even for less commonly spoken languages.If you want a professional eye, italki is the ideal platform to hire a paid tutor.How to Get the Most Out of JournalingLang-8 and italki are great resources in and of themselves, but we can make them even more effective for learning how to write clearly and correctly.Write ConsistentlyThis can mean very different things for different people, so donât feel bad if your writing schedule looks different than some one elseâs. For example, a busy person with a full-time job and kids might be able to write only a post or two on weekends. A student with a more flexible schedule might be able to write a post three times a week, or even every day.The key here is to be consistent.If you write on Saturday mornings, always write a post on Saturday morning. If you make the commitment to write every day, then stick with it. The consistency will pay off far more than binge writing every now and again.If remembering is an issue for you, try setting an alarm on your phone or computer to remind you to get those words in.You can also ask questions in the comments sections to clarify any confusing points you may have in mind.Add Some VarietyAdditionally, you can get the most out of journaling by writing about a wide variety of topics and in a number of different styles. Changing it up forces you to learn and use new vocabulary and grammar. It also keeps things interesting for you! For instance, you could write:Movie/book synopses or reviewsFriendly letters (you donât have to actually send them!)Personal essaysShort storiesPoetryEach of these suggestions has different requirements for style, so youâll probably end up learning more than you bargained for. Try not to fall back on writing diary entries on your daily life too oftenâ"those can be great, but theyâre limiting in terms of style and content.Remember Those CorrectionsFinally, make sure to practice the corrected words and phrases you get back with an SRS (Spaced Repetition System). SRS is a great tool for remembering vocab and grammarâ"it forces you to review concepts that you struggle with or that have faded into the background of your memory.For one, you can use the unique SRS built into FluentU by importing any bits of your writing that have been corrected online. Youll get to practice it using FluentU multimedia flashcards and interactive games, and youll even get to hear how those words, phrases or grammar patt erns are used by natives in authentic videos from within the program.Alternatively, you can try out a more conventional flashcard app like Anki or you can write out your own cards by hand. To get the most out of your corrections here, enter the whole corrected sentence (in the target language) on the front of the card and your English/native language translation on the back. That way, youâll be reminded of the correct grammar and word usage over and over.2. Venture into the Wild World of ForumsYou thought forums were a thing of the early 2000s? Think again!In many circles, online forums are alive and wellâ"and theyâre a fantastic way to practice a new language. Find a forum focused on an interest of yours (a hobby, profession, game, sport, etc.) in your target language and have at it!There are tons of forums on every subject imaginable. For example, check out this French video game forum or this Spanish movie forum. You could even just participate in general question and an swer forumsâ"hereâs Japanese Yahoo Answers! Simply Google âname of your hobby + forumâ in your target language to see whatâs out there.Forums are great places to get started interacting with native speakers. The low-pressure atmosphere combined with people who share your interests makes for a relaxing yet motivating learning experience.Youâll be interacting with folks outside of the world of language learning, which makes for more interesting conversation than you would find when just sticking to learning circles. To everyone else on the forum, youâre just another person who shares the same interest.However, this comes with a caveatâ"while you can ask for corrections, your fellow forum-goers may not be as enthusiastic about teaching the language. Just remember to be polite and say youâre learning!How to Get the Most Out of ForumsKeep It SimpleAt first, depending on your level, youll want to start out posting short, simple responses. Lang-8 or italki are the places t o practice long, flowery language. Here, just try to write without making too many mistakesâ"and this usually means sticking with what you know really well. As people respond and you get the hang of it, youâll end up writing longer responses.Imitate!By copying how other people write, youâll learn plenty of slang words and casual sentence structures. This ainât how your textbook teaches writing! Look up new vocab and familiarize yourself with terms about the subject matter of the forum.Participate in ChatroomsAnother relic from the past, right? Again, a lot of places online still have chatrooms, and theyre often in the same online communities as these forums. Chatrooms are a wonderful way to see people talk in something close to real time. Participating in a chatroom is great for learning to think on your feet in preparation for speaking with natives.You can also download HelloTalk on your device to get your own personal chat going with a native speaker.3. Get a PenpalPenpals bring with them even more benefits for learning to write. Find one on sites like Conversation Exchange where you can specify that you want to practice writing (email or snail mail) rather than live speaking.Penpals will correct you, just like the native speakers using other online resources, but it will be a much more personal interaction. On Lang-8 or italki , your post will be corrected by whoever finds it first. With a penpal, you get to know one person over time, and theyll become familiar with the types of mistakes youâre prone to making.Once you get to know one another, you can comfortably ask questionsâ"or ask for brutal honesty about your writing. And considering that this isnât a social media experience, a good penpal will take the time to answer you!How to Get the Most Out of Your PenpalBe Discriminating in Your Penpal SearchWhen youâre beginning your penpal search, try to find someone whoâs just as committed as you are, someone who wants to practice English (or another language you speak natively) and is serious about writing regularly. When you find someone with similar goals, make a schedule so youâre always exchanging letters and emails!Youll also have better luck in establishing a long-term friendship if you look for someone who shares something in common with you. Shared hobbies, profession, life stageâ"these can all provide subject matter to write about!Write Letters in Both LanguagesSince these interactions are generally set up as language exchanges, your penpal probably wants to practice English or another language you know well. This is fine! Simply write your letters twiceâ"once in your target language, once in the language your partner wants to practice. Ask your partner to do the same. This way, you get corrections on every letter, rather than taking turns writing in different languages.Pick Your Penpalâs BrainFinally, use your new friend for detailed info on grammar. Theyâll be more able to tell you what âsounds ri ghtââ"the kind of nuance thatâs always elusive to the language learner! Itâs this kind of detailed learning thatâs difficult to do on a learning site or casual forum, so take advantage of your penpalâs insider knowledge! And, of course, provide them with the same helpful details on the language they want to practice, too!Thereâs a way to practice writing for every personality, so settle down and write something in your target language.After all, the only way to improve is to practice!
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