4 fun ways to start thinking in English!
“The mind is everything. What we think we become” Buddha
Do you want to become a more fluent English speaker? It is the big goal for everyone, isn’t it? If you can be fluent, you can feel confident speaking to native speakers.
But what is this word, FLUENCY?
Fluency is defined as:
“the ability to express oneself (in a foreign language) easily and articulately”
How do we do this? Many students learn lots of vocabulary, take English classes and learn the grammar, but still find it difficult to express their thoughts clearly and smoothly when speaking.
What do we need to be fluent? Yes, we need a wide range of vocabulary, we need to be able to make clear, accurate sentences BUT we also need to speak with SPEED.
What slows many English learners down is that they think and translate in their native language.
If you can start to THINK in English, without translating, you are on the way to becoming a fluent English speaker.
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Here are 4 FUN WAYS TO START THINKING IN ENGLISH.
- Use WORD ASSOCIATION
What is this? WORD ASSOCIATION is when you choose a word, any word, and let your mind make associations to it. You can think out aloud (speak out your thoughts) and expand into many topics. You do this in English, of course.
Example;
TREE – green… big…beautiful… parks….dogs… families…children…I would like to have children someday….
TREE – nature…natural…wind….blowing…winter….no leaves…I like summer time…I feel better in summer…I love going to the beach…I haven’t been to the beach in a long time……
You can keep coming back to the original word and expand. Make a list of English words and then start doing Word Association. Remember to try to just think only of words you know in English.
This will help you THINK in English and think and speak FASTER.
- TALK TO YOURSELF IN ENGLISH
We all talk to ourselves in our native language! Maybe we don’t tell anyone ;-P, but it is actually healthy to talk to you and get your thoughts and feelings out (You might want to do this alone). So try doing this in English! Take some time each day, just 15 minutes, and walk around your house / room, do some activities, such as cleaning etc. and speak your thoughts aloud in English. This will be difficult at first, but after some time you will start thinking and speaking much faster. Also, doing an activity while you are talking (such as cleaning or cooking) will help you distract yourself so you don’t think too much. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes!
- Use STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS writing.
What is this? Stream of consciousness is when you write freely on any topic without stopping to think about grammar and spelling etc. Of course, it is important to be accurate with grammar and spelling but in this exercise, you have permission to make mistakes! Lots of them! J No one is going to read this. Do this in your personal journal.
Set a timer for 10 minutes and just keep writing. You can choose a topic, such as FOOD / MOVIES / FRIENDS / YOUR DAY AT WORK / YOUR WEEKEND. Or you can just write anything that comes into your mind.
The best time to do this is before you sleep. It may help you to DREAM in English – which is a good thing! It will also help you to sleep better because you can release all your worries and problems onto the paper.
- SPEAK WITH NATIVE SPEAKERS
Are you taking group classes but still having problems speaking? This is because you are only speaking with other foreign speakers and hearing their mistakes over and over again! Ahh!
To become really fluent, you need to practice with native speakers. You will learn much faster this way and pick up many new, common phrases that you won’t learn in classrooms. This will give you confidence!
Try to find ways to connect with native speakers. You can join a group to practice your speaking (if you live in an English speaking country) Find an interest group to meet like-minded people. You can find many interest groups on www.meetup.com. Find a conversation partner. You can listen to podcasts or practice English conversation online with us on Skype.
Do these everyday and you will move faster toward becoming a fluent English speaker! Have fun!
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