How to keep your Foreign Language Skills Sharp
Learning a foreign language is difficult enough, but if you don’t continuously use your foreign language skills, it’s possible to lose knowledge of your second (or tenth!) language. Here are some helpful ways to ensure your foreign language skills stay sharp.
Passion
Remembering your passion for the language you learned is one of the key ways to keep your foreign language skills sharp. Know what motivates you to learn and do well. A great way to keep your passion strong is to set goals for yourself. Having a goal gives you something to work towards. What better way to motivate yourself to learn a language than a trip to France, or Spain!?
Practice, practice, practice
After spending the time (and perhaps money) on learning a new language, be sure to practice it continuously. Read foreign books and magazines, watch foreign movies and listen to music. Be sure to practice your foreign language skills in a variety of ways and get as many of your senses involved as possible. By saying a word or phrase out loud and then writing it down, there’s a better chance you’ll remember what you’re learning.
People
One final way to keep your foreign language skills sharp is to surround yourself with people who speak the language. A great way to do this is by joining a social network that speaks the language you are practicing. By actively involving yourself in learning the new language you have a higher chance of becoming socially and culturally adept to the language. Also, by socializing you are forcing yourself to think on the ball and will learn through watching others’ interactions.
Of course, everyone is different when it comes to learning a language, so be sure to do what works for you!
References
http://www.fluentin3months.com/never-forget/
http://www.umich.edu/~lsastudy/foreignlang.html
http://blog.esl-languages.com/en/esl/how-to-retain-a-foreign-language/