Keywords for foreign language learning

   It seems to me that this article can be helpful for those people who study foreign languages and who want to achieve success in this difficult process.

   Today more and more people learn foreign languages owing to globalization, international relations between countries and open borders. Many people travel all over the world and foreign languages help them a lot in communication. Among my friends there are plenty of those who learn Spanish, German, Italian and even Chinese. I personally study French and English. I devote a lot of time to learning these languages and I certainly have my small secrets how to facilitate this process.

   You know, nothing can come natural to you; good knowledge of any language is the result of hard work and constant perfection. I consider that the most difficult point for a person who learns a foreign language is that any foreign language differs from his or her mother tongue. A person's natural language has a powerful influence on him and his understanding of the world, as he has been speaking and he heard this language since his birth. Besides, learning a language requires constant practice, everyday practice. You shouldn't think that if you have seen or heard a word or a phrase once or even five times you really remember this word and know how to use it correctly, if you are not sure it's better to use a dictionary (as my professor in French says "a translator that doesn't use a dictionary is either a lazy translator or a self-assured one"). Some people believe that if they memorize long lists of new words they will learn the language, but THEY ARE MISTAKEN! Learning a language is much more than that. It seems to me that the most important thing in learning a foreign language is patience. If you keep working on a language, day after day, constantly practicing it and using this language every time you have an opportunity, you are sure to learn to speak it well.

   But let me give you some practical advice.  

   First of all you should find your prime time - time when you can work better and when your work is more fruitful than usually. As for me, my prime time is from 7 p.m. till 11 p.m., that's why I try to devote time for studying mainly at that time. 

   Then you should find the most useful way of learning vocabulary for yourself. Different people organize their vocabulary learning in different ways.

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  Some of them put words in groups like vegetables, furniture, etc, and make grammar pages in their notebooks; others remember word families (I think that this way of learning vocabulary rather effective because you won't have any problems with word formation). 
• My younger cousin has a small notebook where he writes new words with translation and short sentences that serve as examples and help him to understand in what cases he can use this particular word. But at the same time it seems to me that it isn't very convenient because he can't include thousands of words in one notebook (and even if he could I consider that he wouldn't look through this notebook all the time) and also I'm sure that to use such a notebook isn't practical because the words are put not in alphabetic order and it's difficult to find necessary word. 
• Until recently I tried to learn new words with the help of small sheets of paper which were hung all over my house. But frankly speaking it didn't give me the results I expected because I didn't pay attention to these sheets of paper.
• Now I practice other ways of learning foreign words: I write new words on little pieces of paper in English on the one side and in Russian and French on the other (it helps me to learn two foreign languages at the same time). Then when I have some spare time, for example when I lie on the sofa in the evening I look through these papers and try to remember new words. If I remember the words they go to my right pocket and if I don't they go to the left pocket. Words that had gone to the left pocket I try to learn once more. 
  " From time to time I can record sentences with new words on a disk and then listen to them on my MP3 player while going somewhere or jogging. I find this way of vocabulary learning quite convenient and rather successful.
• I also read books in the original, but I want to admit that it's better to start with books that are easy for comprehension (even with fairy tales, why not?). Watching films without translation into your native language can also help a lot.
• But it goes without saying that the best way to learn a foreign language is to communicate with its native speakers; don't get upset if you don't have an opportunity to go to the country where native speakers of the language you study live - the Internet can help a lot! I managed to get acquainted with Russian and French people owing to ICQ and Skype. With some of them at present I communicate for more than three years and we have become loyal friends. 
  
     As you see everything depends on us! If you want to perfect your knowledge in this or that language there are many ways to do it. So! Don't be lazy! And GOOD LUCK! ;)