--- /dev/null
+---
+.title = "How to 'Actually' Learn a Language on Your Own",
+.date = @date("2026-05-30T00:00:00"),
+.author = "Alexander Goussas",
+.layout = "post.shtml",
+.draft = false,
+---
+
+I speak 5 languages and I'd say 4 of them fluently, with a fifth one that I'm
+working on right now. All of them I've learned on my own, almost for free. In
+this post I'm going to show you how you can _actually_ do that as well, using my
+experience with my latest language, German, as an example.
+
+For some context, I started learning German January 2026 and as of today, May
+2026, I can understand almost everything that is being said on podcasts and
+YouTube videos, I can some read books and communicate both in spoken and written
+forms, albeit not yet 100% comfortably. I would say I am _competent_ in the
+language, with perhaps a B1 level. This, after ~5 months of learning. My goal is
+to have a strong B1 (voire B2) by the end of 2026. So, how have I been learning?
+
+## Vocabulary
+
+To understand or produce a language, you need to know its words. Therefore, your
+goal the first few weeks is going to be acquiring as much vocabulary as
+possible. For this purpose, I recommend using an SRS tool such as [Anki](https://apps.ankiweb.net/).
+
+There are many tutorials on Anki on the web, so I'm not going to explain how to
+use it here, perhaps in another post. Nonetheless, I can point you, dear reader,
+to a video I made some time ago showing how to create your own cards for it:
+https://youtu.be/-AUE10GSBUo?si=1OQlY40DTXkEHIkh.
+
+If you are just getting started with Anki, I recommend searching for a [shared
+deck](https://ankiweb.net/shared/decks) and use that one for your learning. You
+can ask online after good decks for your target language. I recommend the query
+"Anki deck for Language X Reddit." The last bit is so that you get actual
+recommendations from human beings and not self-promoted or AI-generated
+information. For French, for example, I can recommend [this deck](https://ankiweb.net/shared/info/893324022).
+
+A word of warning: Anki drills _are exhausting_. I myself have many a time had
+difficulties keeping my streaks. Nonetheless, it _really_ works. Even if the
+first few days all is pain and no gain, after a couple weeks you are going to
+start noticing that you understand the language a more and more
+
+Talking about understanding, let's move on to how to train your comprehension
+skills.
+
+## Comprehension skills
+
+There is a lot to be said about input, and [comprehensible input](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Input_hypothesis)
+specifically, but I'm not going to bombard you with information here. Instead,
+know that focusing on getting as much input as you can in your target language
+is a battle-tested technique for improving both your ability to understand it
+_and_ produce it. So, without further ado, let's see how you can get your input.
+
+### Listening
+
+With a rather reduced pool of vocabulary, any podcast or video that you might
+listen to will sound like gibberish. Nevertheless, it is of utmost importance
+that you do start listening from the very beginning. The process works as
+follows:
+
+1. You learn new words through an SRS system like Anki.
+2. You listen to the words as spoken by the natives and learn to recognize them in
+ speech. This, in turn, reinforces your memory.
+3. You slowly start to widen your acoustic pool.
+4. Repeat from step 1, with more complex material.
+
+For example, I might learn the word "melden" in German through Anki, but I have
+a hard time recalling it or putting it to use. Then, while listening to a
+podcast, the hosts use it in context. Now I have a real example of how a native
+would use this word, and I can create an emotional connection because I am
+invested in the topic of discussion. This process is _very_ effective.
+
+The best thing is, this type of listening does not need to be a separate,
+dedicated part of your learning routine. You can listen to a podcast while
+cooking, going for a walk or any other activity.
+
+Now, the specific material that you use will largely depend on your target
+language. For German, I listen to the [Easy
+German](https://www.easygerman.org/podcast) podcast and follow YouTube channels
+in German as well, such as the Tagesschau or the DW news. The Easy Languages
+folks have a podcast for [many
+languages](https://www.easy-languages.org/podcasts), so you could start there.
+
+Many YouTubers dedicate their channels to slow spoken language as well. For
+example, one channel I used to watch for German is
+https://www.youtube.com/@eleoscorner. It worked great at the beginning, but now
+it's way to slow for me. The same should happen to you.
+
+### Reading
+
+Ah reading. Some dread it, others love it. Be that as it may, if you are serious
+about learning a language, you are going to have to read. Books and other
+written media are, after all, a wonderful source of new words and expressions.
+
+As with listening, you are not going to be able to read much of anything barely
+knowing any words in the language. Luckily, there are resources specifically
+made for language learners that include transcriptions in your native tongue, or
+English most likely, and word definitions.
+
+Examples of these are [Olly Richards' Short Stories
+series](https://www.amazon.com/s?k=olly+richards&crid=2B5D2TAG6FAG8&sprefix=olly+richar%2Caps%2C191&ref=nb_sb_noss_2)
+or, for German specifically, the [Dino lernt Deutsch
+series](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074C9X8ZP?binding=kindle_edition&searchxofy=true&ref_=dbs_s_aps_series_rwt_tkin&qid=1780148233&sr=8-1).
+These are by two different authors, but I found both to be good resources for
+beginners learning a language. The stories are engaging enough not to get bored
+and to actually want to know what happens next, and the language is specially
+tuned for the reader's level and to include useful native expressions. The
+former has short stories in a bunch of languages, so I recommend checking that
+one out.
+
+Once you have acquired enough vocabulary, you can move on to reading stuff
+that is more interesting to you. For example, when learning French, I started
+reading Camus' works because Camus is famous for using a direct prose and simple
+vocabulary. I've heard the same is true for Kafka in German, but haven't yet
+tried reading him.
+
+While reading, I recommend a feedback loop similar to when listening. Mark any
+words that you do not recognize and create Anki cards for them. This step is
+optional. Through repeated exposition to the same word in context you will end
+up learning it anyway. Using SRS only speeds up this process significantly.
+
+In terms of tools, if you can afford it, I would recommend using one such as
+[LingQ](https://www.lingq.com/en/). LingQ tracks your reading statistics and allows
+you to create "lingqs" from words that you do not know. This means that you can
+use the tool to create a database of words that you want to learn. This database
+can then be exported into Anki. What I particulary appreciated of LingQ was that the
+words that you mark appear in a different color everywhere, so that you can
+recognize them and pay special attention to them, which is a bit harder to do
+when you are in the flow of reading and there are no special markers.
+
+I used LingQ for a time and was pretty happy with it, but for me the benefits
+did not justify the price. After all, by reading on my Kindle I get access to
+translations and dictionary definitions as well. So, the recommendation stands,
+but I invite you to evaluate it and see if it's a good fit for yourself.
+
+## Production skills
+
+For the first few weeks, you don't need to produce the language to actually
+learn it. Moreover, there are programs, such as the [Dreaming
+Languages](https://www.dreaming.com/) one, that recommend not focusing on
+production of the language for _months_. I kind of agree with that posture.
+
+For example, when learning French I did not product the language at all for at
+least 8 months, and I still could communicate semi-comfortably when I started to
+speak.
+
+Nonetheless, for German my approach has been another one, and I actually prefer
+starting to produce from the start. It's just more fun as well.
+
+### Writing
+
+There are many ways in which you can practice writing. One of the simplest is
+journaling. Perhaps you already keep a journal in your native language. You can
+just switch to writing it in your target language instead!
+
+Otherwise, I have two specific resources to recommend. The first one is the
+[WriteStreak subreddits](https://www.reddit.com/r/WriteStreakEN/). I have linked
+here the one for English, but there is one for almost every language. The cool
+thing is that native speakers will read your texts and suggest corrections. You
+can also tag your posts as "Don't correct", but that would defeat the whole
+purpose in my opinion.
+
+If you don't know what to write about, you can look for writing prompts on the
+Internet, or you could use something like
+[LangCorrect](https://langcorrect.com/), the second resource I recommend. This
+is a site similar in spirit to the WriteStreak subreddits, you even have a
+writing streak associated with your profile! On the other hand, LangCorrect is
+more structured. You register yourself as native speaker of X language, and can
+pick up to 2 learning languages in the free tier. There are pre-made prompts
+that you can answer to if you don't know what to write about, which is what I
+personally do. The "downside" of LangCorrect is that you have to correct other
+people's text as well if you want to receive corrections, which I personally do
+not mind, but I can understand why some people would not want to spend time
+correcting texts.
+
+Whatever you decide to do in the end, I encourage you to try and get your texts
+corrected by someone with mastery over the language. What I do is I try to
+answer 1 prompt per day on LangCorrect. I've found this extremely valuable,
+because many times I've been corrected and given useful tips on little nuances
+of the language.
+
+As a final note on corrections, keep in mind that the people doing the
+corrections are normal people like you and me, not linguists or literature
+professors. That means it is possible that the corrections they suggest are
+wrong or misleading. That's why you should use your common sense and what you
+already know about the language when evaluating corrections.
+
+### Speaking
+
+I don't know what your goal with language learning is, but for many people it is
+to talk with other speakers of the language. In my experience, other than for
+fun, people learn a language for one of two reasons: either they are moving to a
+new country or they need it for a job. In both cases, it's speaking the most
+important skill to develop.
+
+Now, as I said before, by solely focusing on input for the first few months, you
+should naturally start to develop your speaking competence as well. What I mean
+to say is that, once you understand enough of the language, you _will_ be able
+to speak it as well. It's just not possible not to.
+
+Nonetheless, what will also happen is that you will stutter, search for words
+and lack confidence while speaking. And this is precisely what we want to tackle
+when practicing speaking. And this is also precisely why speaking _must_ be
+practiced with another human being, not with an AI tool.
+
+In terms of free resources, you could use [Tandem](https://tandem.net/) to look
+for a speaking partner. That's never worked for me though. What has worked for
+me is looking for speaking partners on Reddit. There are many language learning
+and language exchange subreddits where you can go and explain your situation
+and explain what are you looking for in a speaking partner.
+
+For instance, I met a person from Russia with whom I used to practice French and
+another one from China. I also met a person from Egypt with whom I was
+practicing German up until shortly. It might take some time, but I honestly
+think Reddit is a good place to look for language partners.
+
+You might try and look for someone to practice with in your town or city, but in
+my case I've not been able to find anyone that way. If you have any tips for
+that, then I'm all ears.
+
+Moving on to paid options, I can wholeheartedly recommend
+[italki](https://www.italki.com/). italki is a platform where you can look for a
+tutor to practice speaking with. Usually you just go in a call with someone and
+speak about whatever. Some tutors may have more structured approaches. Price are
+quite cheap, ranging from 5 USD per hour for the cheapest community tutors, to
+50 USD per hours for professional tutors. I've only had good experiences there.
+One thing to note is that cheap tutors do not equate low quality. They are
+just trying to compete in a saturated market, so I would encourage you to give
+them an opportunity.
+
+So, how often should you practice speaking? Again, that would depend on what
+your goals are, but ideally, every day. If you are using a paid service, then it
+depends on your budget. Usually I take one conversation session per week. If you
+have an upcoming exam in a few weeks or months, then I think investing more
+with a tutor is worth it. There are tutors specialized in tests such as the
+IELTS that can help you running simulations, for example.
+
+For me speaking is not a priority since I learn mainly in order to be able to
+read works in their original language.
+
+## Grammar
+
+
+
+Different languages have more or less complicated languages, and perceived
+difficulty also differs from learner to learner. For example, German grammar is
+way easier for me than French grammar. Yes, German has cases, but they make
+sense! In French, on the other hand, there are a lot of corner cases and weird
+stuff that you just have to memorize, and I mean _a lot_ of them. Also, as a
+native Spanish speaker, for the longest time I could not get my head around the
+partitive article.
+
+Anyway, all that is to say, grammar is not necessarily hard in and of itself. So
+there is no reason for you to fear it. Quite the contrary, knowing your
+language's grammar allows you to bend it to your will and speak with confidence
+knowing that what you are saying is sound according to the rules of the
+language.
+
+It _is_ possible to speak correctly without knowing grammar rules. It's what
+most native speakers do in their own language after all. So you don't _have_ to
+learn grammar, but I still recommend it nonetheless.
+
+Besides, at least for me, learning grammar is fun. Each time I learn how to use
+a new construct or a new rule, I feel like I'm unlocking a new ability in an
+RPG. It gives me new powers in the language.
+
+Moreover, studying grammar counts as input, and, as you know, the more input you
+get, the better.
+
+So, I encourage you to go ahead and get your hands on a grammar book and
+incorporate that into your routine. At the moment, I study 30 minutes of German
+grammar and 30 minutes of French grammar per day. Small steps every day is what
+eventually gets you to where you want to go.
+
+Remember my friend, language learning is a marathon, not a race.
+
+Happy learning :)
projects / frustrated-functor.dev.git / commitdiff
