I have been busy making friends with Spanish speaking people here in Vancouver, one of whom seems to like me. I don’t mind, it is all in the name of …
Inspiring Language Quotes from Famous Polyglots
This week I thought I’d write something a little different. As you may know by now, I write this blog to keep myself – and hopefully anyone who reads it …
Adapting To Canadian Culture
Years and years ago I watched an episode of South Park – the cartoon about four American middle-school boys that are incredibly rude, but also very insightful. The episode was …
The 1000 Word Challenge
A few years ago the British Council started a project called the 1000 word challenge. They did this in the hope that more people in Britain would try to learn at …
Learning Chinese Through Comprehensible Input
My name is Ryan Arp. As Steve Kaufmann recommends in his Youtube videos: words, words, and more words!
I originate from a small farming community in Iowa. During my time (I am 26 years old now) at the University of Iowa, I befriended lots of foreign Chinese undergraduate students; it was through them that I was introduced to Chinese culture and, of course, the Chinese language.
1 Min read
8 Steps To Overcome Fear Of Speaking Your Target Language In Public
Some people are shy and don’t feel like speaking in their target language while others have no problems getting right into a conversation, even with a small vocabulary. I’m a …
Think You’re Bad At Learning Languages?
Like me, you may have had a bad experience with learning languages in school. This may have affected your self-confidence, and perhaps as an adult you’ve given up on language …
Subtitles versus Dubbing – Which Is Better For Language Learning?
Growing up in Denmark, I learned the English language through music and TV for the most part. The vast majority of the movies I watched had subtitles. Apart from some …
Why Learning A Language In Your 30s Is The Perfect Time
If you are hesitant to learn a language or studying overseas because you think it is something only people in their late teens or early 20s do, you should think …
Go Bananas! And Other Food Related Idioms
Warning: The following post might make you hungry. I have written about idioms before, their meanings and how they come about, but the other day (as I was buying chocolate) …
4 Min read