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Chit-Chat: In which we welcome back Shining Raichu from his extended vacation

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It's the best way to learn them, when they are very young. I did French when I was 13, but I'd forgotten most of it. If I had did it much younger (and actually got to use the language a lot) then maybe it would have stuck in. I am gonna teach my young second cousin some basic Spanish/French, if there is ever a time that we (as a family) go to Spain or France.
 
Scarf said:
If I ever had kids I'd really try to get them to learn a second language when they'd be young and it's easiest for their brains.
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That's exactly what my mom did, and her mother as well. My mom speaks 7 languages, and I speak 4, mainly because of that multilingual household.
 
Airbourne Bubblun said:
It's the best way to learn them, when they are very young. I did French when I was 13, but I'd forgotten most of it. If I had did it much younger (and actually got to use the language a lot) then maybe it would have stuck in. I am gonna teach my young second cousin some basic Spanish/French, if there is ever a time that we (as a family) go to Spain or France.
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13 is young enough, I started learning german when I was 15....
I can speak Spanish, English and German.

It's never too late to learn a language, if my grandma got around german (and she's 68), there's really no excuse but being lazy.
 
danks_ said:
It's never too late to learn a language, if my grandma got around german (and she's 68), there's really no excuse but being lazy.
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While I do agree with this statement, I will say though that it seems more difficult to retain any language if you try to learn it as you get older. However, I'd say for your grandmother, it probably has a little bit to do with being in Germany herself and learning it, at least that's how I see the situation.
 
droomph said:
easiest way to learn something is to live there.

so yeah
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I don't really agree. Loads of people live in other countries and fail to learn the language because they don't really need to - they just speak their language and talk to tourists in their language and wander around until they find someone who speaks their language for help. That's not gonna help them learn anything no matter where you're living; the best way to learn one that I've come across is to make sure that you actually need to use the language. That means stuff like writing notes to yourself in the language, changing your computer's language to the target language, if more than one person is learning it speaking exclusively in that language, going on forums in that language, even trying to think in that language, etc. Just surrounding yourself by it no matter where you are. It's easier to need the language ofc if you live in another country but that's not an opportunity that most take. Personally, I'd not say that living in the target country = knowing the target language. You've got to need it. That's the easiest way.

I mean, I only managed to learn English way back when because I had to. If we'd have had it our way we'd have never spoken it for the sake of sticking with what we knew, but we needed to because no-one over here spoke it. That can be applied anywhere, not just in your target country.

...I went overboard there. 8D
 
ZachLMedia said:
While I do agree with this statement, I will say though that it seems more difficult to retain any language if you try to learn it as you get older. However, I'd say for your grandmother, it probably has a little bit to do with being in Germany herself and learning it, at least that's how I see the situation.
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Well, my grandma doesn't live here, she lives back in venezuela, with most of my family. She just started learning it at the same time I did when I lived in venezuela.
 
Razor Leaf said:
I don't really agree. Loads of people live in other countries and fail to learn the language because they don't really need to - they just speak their language and talk to tourists in their language and wander around until they find someone who speaks their language for help. That's not gonna help them learn anything no matter where you're living; the best way to learn one that I've come across is to make sure that you actually need to use the language. That means stuff like writing notes to yourself in the language, changing your computer's language to the target language, if more than one person is learning it speaking exclusively in that language, going on forums in that language, even trying to think in that language, etc. Just surrounding yourself by it no matter where you are. It's easier to need the language ofc if you live in another country but that's not an opportunity that most take. Personally, I'd not say that living in the target country = knowing the target language. You've got to need it. That's the easiest way.

I mean, I only managed to learn English way back when because I had to. If we'd have had it our way we'd have never spoken it for the sake of sticking with what we knew, but we needed to because no-one over here spoke it. That can be applied anywhere, not just in your target country.

...I went overboard there. 8D
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Living there ≠ taking a vacation.

If you truly live there you would need to at least start learning the language.

And what about the grandparents that won't speak the language? That's because they're technically hired and have all their expenses paid.
 
Razor Leaf said:
I mean, I only managed to learn English way back when because I had to. If we'd have had it our way we'd have never spoken it for the sake of sticking with what we knew, but we needed to because no-one over here spoke it. That can be applied anywhere, not just in your target country.
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Question, RL, hope you don't mind me prying, but if English wasn't your first language, what was?

I never had to deal with learning a new language because I actually needed to, thankfully. Only language I ever actually had to learn was Spanish, and that's cause my high school forced me to, in order to graduate. The only other language I picked up on was Bengali, and that's cause my parents speak it. I learned it entirely by way of hearing, and when I was really young. I can speak it decently enough to hold small talk, but I can't read nor right it. Which is something my grandmother always scolds me about. :c

Also. French just seems like a sexy language. Js.
 
I can speak English. That's all I'm fluent in. I can, however, say various phrases / words in Spanish. I have no use of that knowledge, though. Only time I've used it was to loudly fight with a friend in Spanish in a public place to confuse people. :D Even if anyone there knew the Spanish words, it would've still made no sense because we weren't using actual sentences. Just random words and phrases mixed in with gibberish stuff.

I used to know a bit of French but can't remember nearly any of it now. And what I did know I could just spell. I used to go on another website and talk to people there in French, which was fun.

I learned some basic Spanish stuff before quitting the class. I was just wasting my time with it and the teacher was obnoxious. We were forced to converse with people in Spanish. D:
 
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I worked with a Bengali dude and an Afghan woman who knew like six different languages (including Bengali!).

We learn French here just like you learn Spanish. But it kinda loses its novelty after a while.

---

you open your mouth:
but man speaks with just a smile,
much more than you think
 
Bengali person knowing more than English and Bengali? Color me impressed, I've actually never seen that.
 
Dunno bout Bengali, but Indian, oh yes.

Spoiler:


Aishwarya Rai right there.
 
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I'm echoing Razor Leaf on this one, I had to get into an environment where I was forced to use the language in order to use it, because I was a young school kid in a new country and I needed to learn the language if I wanted to survive, which as you can tell, I did! Funny thing is though - I have barely spoken any French since I was 13 and as a result, I barely know anything of French and instead my second language is now my main language, lol. Oops :(
 
That's interesting. It's kind of the opposite for me. I left China when I was 3, but I went to Chinese school and all that and eventually gave up. I still know Chinese pretty well, although it has become comparatively worse as I'm in university now and I can't express my more developed thoughts and different vernacular using the Chinese I have. I wish I had more Chinese friends so I could speak Mandarin and improve it :\
 
Harlequin said:
I'm echoing Razor Leaf on this one, I had to get into an environment where I was forced to use the language in order to use it, because I was a young school kid in a new country and I needed to learn the language if I wanted to survive, which as you can tell, I did! Funny thing is though - I have barely spoken any French since I was 13 and as a result, I barely know anything of French and instead my second language is now my main language, lol. Oops :(
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Funny thing is, my first clear memory is me trying to speak english to the supervisor at my preschool, and I distinctly remember my sounding like an immigrant.

Also I love Chinese, but not the boring-ass teachers who teach it. If they would get half-decent teachers to teach Chinese, I wouldn't be so afraid when anybody mentions "Chinese School", but so far, no such luck.

BlahISuck said:
That's interesting. It's kind of the opposite for me. I left China when I was 3, but I went to Chinese school and all that and eventually gave up. I still know Chinese pretty well, although it has become comparatively worse as I'm in university now and I can't express my more developed thoughts and different vernacular using the Chinese I have. I wish I had more Chinese friends so I could speak Mandarin and improve it :\
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ALSO WHY IS EVERY OTHER CHINESE PERSON I KNOW IN CANADIA? is america like too impolite or soemthing lol
 
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audacious of you:
the way you spell canada,
unconventional

of all the places,
this gathering of chinese:
interesting, no?
 
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