Hello! Welcome back to my third article in this series of testing out Duolingo! I said last time that I managed to study twenty five out of thirty days, and I gave my opinions on things I like and don’t like about Duolingo. Well, here we are now after two months of study and I have to say that I was not consistent at all this month. Between Christmas, New Years, and Midterms, it was very hard for me to find time to study. I think that I only managed about 7-10 days this month. So, I don’t really have any new opinions on the language, but next month, I will have more to share with y’all! So, for this article, I’d like to talk about ways that you could increase your language learning pace or intensity, if Duolingo is not at your speed or doesn’t fulfill your intellectual needs.

1. Find music in your target language

Music is a great way to challenge your language skills. When you listen to a song in your target language, not only are you dealing with the new language, you are also dealing with a rhythm, slang words, and accents. It is a great mental workout, and the more you listen to them, I guarantee you’ll be able to sing along soon enough. You might not understand what they’re saying, but the more you get used to the sounds and are able to mimic everything they’re saying, you’ll start to understand what the song’s about without even using a translation or dictionary!

2. Read news in your target language

We live in an age where we have access to any newspaper we could ever imagine. And although The Medallion is your preferred news source, we are an English newspaper, so you’re going to have to find a new newspaper in your target language to practice. Online newspapers tend to have videos alongside the article that you can watch, and of course, they’ll have articles on lots of different topics, so you can most definitely find something that interests you and is at your level! I personally enjoy reading articles about new technologies, opinion pieces, and news that is happening in America.

3. YouTube

YouTube is another great source that many teachers use as well. Google, “Youtubers that speak –blank-,” and you’ll get a good list of ones to start with. Find ones that have channels that interest you and go! You can even subscribe to their channel to always stay up-to-date on what they’re posting and talking about. Also, YouTube has built in subtitles for most of their videos, so use those to your advantage!

4. Get a Grammar Workbook (In English!)

Go on to Amazon or to your local bookstore and purchase a grammar workbook, but make sure the explanations are in English. The last thing you want as a beginner is trying to read explanations of a foreign grammar in a language you don’t understand. These books give lots of different examples and scenarios, and a beginner workbook will cover everything you could possibly want to know at your level. I suggest going through page by page at your own pace!

I hope that these suggestions can help you in your journey to becoming fluent in a language, but if you’re reading this article and not currently learning a language, I totally encourage you to start doing so, but whatever you’re trying to learn, Youtube and books are always a great starting place!

Until next month!