Learning foreign languages is not a picnic

Don’t you hate those in-service training courses for teachers? It’s really great to learn some new tips, but who invented all those graded final assignments ?

Just imagine, you are a busy teacher in the middle of the never ending process of planning, pre-planning, re-planning, test grading, parents' meetings,  answering phone calls, messaging, e-mailing and in the middle of all that you are supposed to hand in a short piece of something, just something, no matter what.

  All your traumatic school experience with tons of obligatory homework blocks your mind. Your brain announces a termless strike. Noooo!!! The deadline approaches, the deadline passes and, nothing to do, you should, you have to, you must.

Ok. Once upon a time…

I was four, when My mom (R.I.P.) decided to teach me reading. It was not easy at all. I wasn't a little genius. No matter how hard I tried, nothing moved forward.  One day my Mom lost her patience and called me stupid. I took offence, sat in the darkest corner and started to read alone.

I was seven when I started to learn English. It was the time when the grammar-translation method was the prevailing one:  tons of texts on specific topics, long lists of vocabulary and grammar structures to memorize, hours spent on homework. I wasn't so excited about learning a new language;I just followed the path of doing what I was supposed to do, like a little pony. Apparently I was doing not bad and at the end of the year I was moved to a third year group. It was my first success. I felt like a superstar and it motivated me to move forward.

My first success with English encouraged me to pursue my education . Years of language studies and hours of hard work resulted in adding Spanish, French and Hebrew to my list. Today I use three languages out of four in my daily life and feel free to travel around the world.

When my students ask me about the best ways to progress in foreign language studies, these are the tips I give them:

- learning a foreign language is not a picnic, it’s not supposed to be a non-stop fun adventure;

- don’t expect to be motivated, just keep doing as much as you can, one small step at a time;

- If you feel bored with practicing, if you feel that nothing works, no matter how hard you try, just don’t give up, keep doing.In the end, learning languages is not about getting points at the matriculation exam. It’s about communicating and expressing ideas. Once you are able to talk to the locals, no matter where you are on Earth, you will feel at home wherever you go.