6 Ways to Set Sail for Advanced Language Learning Without Leaving Home

6 Ways to Set Sail for Advanced Language Learning Without Leaving Home 6 Ways to Set Sail for Advanced Language Learning Without Leaving Home Learning a new language is a wild adventure. Youre introduced to new music, new movies, new people  and new cultures!The beginner stage is a particularly heady part of the love affair.Progress is quick, and the rewards are pretty high.There are tons of courses for beginners online, myriad blog posts and reams of books detailing how to get started.Everything about the new language is fresh  and exciting.But what about the intermediate or advanced learners out there? Wheres the support for them?Things are somewhat easier at a higher level, true.While you once stared at target language text with confusion, you now see lucid, beautiful writing! While you used to watch TV shows or listen to podcasts wondering how any human could  utter  such sounds, let alone make sense of them, you now  understand  a surprising amount of whats being said.Along with these successes, however, you cant help but notice that there are still texts out of your reach, and theyre not all exactly high literature e ither. You understand a lot of the spoken language, but you dont get  all  of the jokes, and some movies still fly right over your head.People who know youve been learning a language for a while may wonder why youre not fluent yet. Why you cant translate any phrase someone throws at you on command.It seems like its been weeks, nay,  months, since youve seen any improvement!Whats worse is that many people insist that  living in the country  is necessary to achieve real proficiency in a language.And if youre like me, you dont  quite have the resources for such an endeavor. So is that it for you? Will you ever make progress again?Of course you will! If youre somewhere roundabout the high-intermediate to advanced levels, and youre not sure what to do next, then this post is for you.There are plenty of ways to keep progressing without leaving your house, no matter how much of a challenge you need! 6 Ways to Set Sail for Advanced Language Learning Without Leaving Home1. Deliberately fil l holes in your vocabulary.  Learning vocabulary through media is greatâ€"its carried by context, and its easy to remember. However, you dont have to learn that way only. Sometimes word lists can be great. You can even engineer your reading to fill gaps in vocabulary!While this tip is a little textbook-y, its great for learners who already have a good handle on their target language. Competence in a language only drives further competenceâ€"youll understand and remember individual words better as you progress.This is active learning right here. Think hard about your vocabulary-based weaknesses. Can you talk easily about your job? About your favorite animal? Your hobbies? Can you teach someone to play your favorite sport in your target language? No? Then fix it!For example, scroll down to check out the baby-themed part of this Around the House vocab list  on MedicalSpanish.com.It includes the Spanish equivalents of words like crib, stroller and diaper. You probably knew these words w hen you were four (for good reason), but they dont tend to pop up in your run-of-the-mill language course or immersion environment.  A specific word list like this one is your solution if you suddenly need to talk about  babies!Most major languages have tons of vocab lists online. And its important to realize that even if they seem basic, theyre not necessarily just for beginners. There are lists out there with every household object you can think of (can you say clothespin in your target language?), obscure animals, gaming vocab, etc.One way to find these kinds of lists is to simply Google [topic] word list [target language], if youre learning a popular language.If youre interested in learning the vocabulary youre missing  without having to deliberately seek it out, you can always try  FluentU, an online immersion platform that keeps track of all the language you know.  FluentU takes real-world videosâ€"like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talksâ€"and turns them in to personalized language learning lessons.You can also read Wikipedia articles on whatever subject you like, and look up the terminology you dont know. Its reading, its fun and itll make you into one fantastic conversationalist!2.  Start working your target language into your daily life.Whats the number one benefit of traveling or living abroad? It gives you an environment in which your target language is all around you all the time. You cant ignore it or easily retreat into an English (or whatever your native language is) bubble. If you can embrace that kind of intense environment, your linguistic skills will improve and  fast.But that doesnt mean that traveling abroad is the only way to boost your level. You can easily imitate this in your own home!Move beyond deliberately setting aside time for textbook study, reading or even target language TV. Youre past the beginner stage, so nows the time to mix these things in with your other everyday activities.  Make the language a part of you.  Shape your life so that it mirrors the lives of the most advanced speakers of your chosen language on the planet (native speakers!).Start browsing the Internet in your target language. Look up websites and online communities that talk about your favorite hobbies, your field of study or your work. TV, movies, video gamesâ€"whatever native resources you likeâ€"are doubly important now. Mix them in with the other things you watchâ€"watch target language TV or movies not just specifically while thinking about improvement, but  for fun, just to relax. Change your OS language or your phone settings, if you havent already. Own the language like youve never done before!However, if youre one of those good souls whos been hitting the native resources from the get-go, or even if youre not, trying  upping your concentration level every now and then. Really try to understand everything. See a word you dont know? Dont ignore it, look it up! Write it down or  enter it in your SRS.More input is crucial for advanced learning. Aim for resources outside your comfort zone every now and then, and focus on the parts you dont know.Which leads to3. Get intensive and extensive with your novel reading.In the spirit of focusing on what you  dont know, novels will improve intermediate and advanced language abilities in a very specific  way: They will hand you that elusive, obscure, specialized vocabulary on a silver platter.This is the stuff of fluency! Of eloquence!  Its hard to express yourself if you lack the specific words that express  precisely what you mean. Imagine yourself always having the right word, right at the tip of your tongue. Imagine being able to communicate  exactly what you mean,  exactly  when you need to.Novels will give you all this and more.But come on, why novels specifically? Wont Internet surfing, nonfiction scanning, technical manual browsing or shampoo bottle reading get you there just the same?Not quite. Novels differ from nonfiction in that fiction authors tend to employ a broader and richer vocabulary, all to your benefit. Its poetic! Theyre not just trying to convey information, theyre trying to do it artfully.Really pay attention to the long, descriptive passages in your novel of choice.  Sections like this tend to be more difficult and tend to use less common vocabulary. If youre already into target language novels, you might have skimmed these bits before between easier parts with more action and dialogue, but really concentrating on these passages will serve you well at this stage in your learning.Nevertheless, dialogue is also great for picking up conversational nuances and slang you might have missed in your listening or textbook work.But what should you read?What to readI find that, at the intermediate and advanced levels, middle-grade novels (aimed at children ages 8 through 12-ish) and young adult fiction (aimed at the 12 through 18 crowd) are particularly useful for making progress. The stories tend to be short and engaging without being bogged down with too much flowery language.Try to find your own favorite childhood novels in translation, or look for book bloggers and vloggers and get recommendations from them. (Google or YouTube search favorite books in your target language.)How to readSo besides keeping up with those descriptive passages, how can you incorporate novel reading into your routine with an eye on the advanced level?Try balancing these two methods:Extensive reading: This is reading for pleasure! The goal here is  breadth. You want to be reading lots of novels, skipping what you dont know. You have my permission to ignore unknown vocabulary words and weird grammar constructions! Youll end up picking up a lot of these through context, anyways. Extensive reading is great for intermediate and advanced learners, because a lot more comprehensible literature is available to you. You can pick up things in your favorite genres and just relax and have a good time. You wont understand ev erything just yet, but extensive reading gets you there!Intensive reading:  This is just the opposite of extensive reading. The goal here is  depth. This fits in with  the aforementioned idea of really focusing on what you dont know. Look up words on each page and make note of them or enter them into your SRS. Make mentalâ€"or physicalâ€"note of grammar patterns you havent seen before. This gets tiring, however, so Id recommend limiting this to 2-3 pages or 10-20 minutes at a time. After that, go back to extensive reading for fun!4. Add output to your input!Output (speaking and writing) is often the benchmark of whether we know a language. While this might be a  little  unfair (comprehension is worth a heck of a lot), output is what a lot of us are after.During the beginning stages of language learning, it can be beneficial to stick with input (listening and reading), while you build up your skills. Then, when you feel somewhat confident, you can bounce over to talking and writing!I f you use this kind of input-based method, you can comfortably start speaking and writing practice at the mid-intermediate stage, around when you start to understand sizeable chunks of clearly-spoken media (think news, radio shows, things like that).You can certainly wait longer if you want. Input is still hugely beneficial for speech and writing, even if you wait to speak. And if youre the outgoing type, make sure you still include input even when youre focusing on output!However, what this all comes down to is that practicing output at the intermediate and advanced levels can really make your target language feel natural to you, and youll soon be able to speak and write without stumbling. The main thing to keep in mind when practicing output is that its important to get corrected!Here are a few resources for practicing writing:Lang-8:  Lang-8 allows you to write journal entries in your target language, and native speakers correct you. The turnaround is quick: Native speakers will generally get back to you within the day, sometimes within hours. Because were talking advanced level here, try to use Lang-8 and similar resources on a scheduled basis, say, a journal entry every day or every other day. Additionally, make sure to push yourself. If you just talk about your daily life in every entry, youll be using the same vocabulary over and over. Pushing beyond intermediate and advanced stages means getting a little creative: Try writing book and movie reviews, political opinions, tutorials for sports or games, religious manifestos, you name it!Conversation Exchange:  This site allows you to contact native speakers for Skype calls, live meetups, or pen pal exchanges. While it gives all of these options, I find its best for seeking out pen palsâ€"a lot of people on the site are willing to exchange emails every now and then. This is great because, like Lang-8, it forces you to write drawn-out letters rather than quick texts or chat, and youll get corrections! Again, push yourself out of your comfort zone and talk about a variety of subjects (though political opinions or religious manifestos might not be as appropriate when writing directly to another person).Google searches:  If youre just writing on your own and youre not sure about a particular phrase, try typing it into the Google search barâ€"if it autocompletes, youre probably right! If youre  still not sure, search the phrase in quotes to see if native speakers commonly use it.WordReference forums:  Finally, while many of you might already be familiar with the online multilingual dictionary WordReference,  you may not have taken advantage of the sites extensive forums.  The forums are a fantastic resource because native speakers and learners alike discuss the nuances of all kinds of vocabulary. This is a boon for the intermediate-advanced learner whos moved beyond your standard bilingual or monolingual dictionary!For speaking practice, try:Finding an exchange partner on  italki,  The Mix xer  or any other language exchange site:  italki is a hugely popular site thats geared towards learners who want to practice their languages over Skype (though it has features similar to Lang-8, too). On italki, you can also hire an online tutor if you so choose. The Mixxer is similar, but a little less active. As many of you will know, a Skype language exchange will likely involve speaking one language for a set amount of time, and then switching to practicing the other. So, how do you tailor this to the advanced level? Look for a serious partner on these sites whos willing to brutally correct you and talk about a variety of subjects!Find an online tutor. For a relatively low price per lesson, you can also find a professional tutor. Verbling is a site that makes the whole process of searching for an online language tutor super easy and comfortable. Once youve found a tutor, make it clear that youre there for conversational skills, and a well-trained tutor will be able to help you expand those. Theyll help you target your weaknesses and get you away from talking about the safe subjects you might have a habit of clinging to.5. Forget long-term goals: Set mid-term and mini goals.When youre a beginner, its easy to absorb whats around youâ€"thatll be a lot of the common vocabulary and common grammar, and other basic conversational stuff.When youre at the high-intermediate or advanced stage, you know that there are still linguistic bits youre missing, but doing the same old things that worked as a beginner doesnt necessarily cut it anymore.Sometimes you can get bored. Youve been at the language for a while now, and it might be frustrating for you that youre not further along.Goals are key hereâ€"they can vary widely, from learner to learner, but they help maintain your progress.To make sure you stay on track, set mid-term goals. Your long-term goal is probably fluency in the language, and youre still working towards that. But mid-term goals keep you on track from week to week and month to month.These can include things like:To be able to comfortably have casual conversations within two months.To be able to talk about my work at job interview level within ___ months.To be able to understand classical literature in my language within ___ weeks.Specific goals are bestâ€"you know what reaching the goal should look like, so youll know with certainty when you’re there!Set mini goals tooâ€"these can be things you do on a daily basis. Try to tailor them to your long-term goals, and theyll help you along the way. For example:Skype conversations once a week.Lang-8 journal entry three times a week.6. Relax and accept learning plateaus.Learning plateaus are common amongst learners in the intermediate stage and beyond. You were used to making huge strides as a beginner, but now it may seem like its been a long time since youve made significant progress.The good news is that these plateaus are not caused by your inability to learn a language.  Your stri des might seem smaller, but youre making as much progress and more! In fact, if you harness the power of the intermediate and advanced stages, you can get better at your target language a lot faster. The key to this, as already mentioned, is exposure to native resourcesâ€"once you understand a little, that understanding builds on itself.Personally, Ive found that at the intermediate level, learning starts manifesting as sudden, almost inexplicable jumps in ability.  The fact of the matter is that youve been improving all along, but you only notice the improvement when its dramatic.So dont worry too much about seeing progress from day to day. Just carry on with your reading and listening and watching and talking, and be comforted by the idea that youre surely still on track and youre making progress. And some day soon, youll surprise yourself with fluency!There you have it: Everything you need to know to move up to and beyond an advanced level, all without spending thousands on trave l!Travel is not a necessity for reaching proficiency in a languageâ€"not by a long shot.And getting fluent in a language before you travel can come with some sweet benefits.When you do eventually go, youll be able to talk, read signs and generally relax in the language.Itll make your progress that much more rewarding! And One More ThingIf youre digging these at-home learning strategies, youll love using FluentU. FluentU makes it possible to learn languages  from music videos, commercials, news and inspiring talks.With FluentU, you learn real languagesâ€"the same way that natives  speak them. FluentU has a wide variety of videos like movie trailers, funny commercials and web series, as you can see here:FluentU App Browse Screen.FluentU has interactive captions that let you tap on any word to see an image, definition, audio and useful examples. Now native language content is within reach with interactive transcripts.Didnt catch something? Go back and listen again. Missed a word? Hov er your mouse over the subtitles to instantly view definitions.Interactive transcript for Carlos Baute song.You can learn all the vocabulary in any video with FluentUs learn mode. Swipe left or right to see  more examples for the word you’re learning.FluentU Has Quizzes for Every VideoAnd FluentU always keeps track of vocabulary that you’re learning. It uses that vocab to give you a 100% personalized experience by recommending videos and examples.Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet  or, better yet,  download the FluentU app from  the iTunes store  or Google Play store.