How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

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Xenops
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How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby Xenops » Tue Mar 28, 2017 2:37 pm

Something I've been wondering is: do most people learn their first language through a class or tutoring, rather than self-taught? As much as I believe in the possibilities of self-learning, I realize that I could not fathom self-learning if I hadn't taken Spanish classes in high school for my first foreign language. I really feel that I needed guidance in language learning before I could branch out. In college I contemplated learning Japanese on my own, but I was intimidated by the particles, and I knew I wanted to be held by the hand, so to speak, as I took a year-long class in college Japanese.

And a point a member mentioned in another thread:
mcthulhu wrote:I did have formal training in a few languages, e.g. a double major in Russian and Spanish in college. Those proved to be good foundations for branching out into related languages on my own. Oddly enough, I think I spent the majority of my career working with languages in which I was self-taught, and in which I had gotten to the point where I could pass translation tests and become employable, even though my original motivation was just to be able to read books in those languages..


Like this gentleman, once I took some guided language classes, I feel more confident in my ability to self-learn. After some experimenting with what works and what I like, I'm confident in my ability to self-learn, even if the languages are different from ones I've been previously exposed to.

Is it normal for polyglots to take a class for their first language, and then branch out from there? Or do some pick up a German book at age seven and pour over it? How did you guys learn your first foreign language?
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby jeffers » Tue Mar 28, 2017 2:52 pm

The first language I learned apart from my native English was Hindi. I think I had one lesson a week in grades 4 and 5, left India, and then went back an learned Hindi again for 5 lessons a week in grades 9 and 10. (In between I was back in New York and failed Spanish 10 out of 12 school quarters). I'll admit that I didn't learn much Hindi in either period, but I managed to learn the Devanagari script pretty well. I'm probably a good example of a student who was failed by teaching in school, but the foundation I gained then certainly made later attempts to learn Hindi easier. And unlike my Spanish lessons, my Hindi lessons in school left me wanting to learn more... "some day".
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby tomgosse » Tue Mar 28, 2017 3:01 pm

My first second language was Latin. I took it for two years in Junior High School. I did terrible because my first choice was French, and I didn't get into that class. My next second language was Russian. I purchase a book named Look And Learn Russian. I looked but didn't learn. :(

Currently I am studying French on my own, but I did start by taking a course at night school. I am one of those people who need the structure of a class to get started.
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby tarvos » Tue Mar 28, 2017 3:05 pm

I learned French and German in high school, long, long ago. Actually I think I learned a few words of French even before that.
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby neofight78 » Tue Mar 28, 2017 3:22 pm

tomgosse wrote:My next second language was Russian. I purchase a book named Look And Learn Russian. I looked but didn't learn. :(


You should have bought a copy of Suffer And Learn Russian. I've I heard it's the only effective book for learning Russian. ;)
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby sillygoose1 » Tue Mar 28, 2017 3:34 pm

Took two intro classes my freshman year of college in French and German then bought Assimil
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby rdearman » Tue Mar 28, 2017 3:36 pm

neofight78 wrote:
tomgosse wrote:My next second language was Russian. I purchase a book named Look And Learn Russian. I looked but didn't learn. :(


You should have bought a copy of Suffer And Learn Russian. I've I heard it's the only effective book for learning Russian. ;)

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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby reineke » Tue Mar 28, 2017 4:26 pm

Xenops wrote:Something I've been wondering is: do most people learn their first language through a class or tutoring, rather than self-taught? As much as I believe in the possibilities of self-learning, I realize that I could not fathom self-learning if I hadn't taken Spanish classes in high school for my first foreign language. I really feel that I needed guidance in language learning before I could branch out. In college I contemplated learning Japanese on my own, but I was intimidated by the particles, and I knew I wanted to be held by the hand, so to speak, as I took a year-long class in college Japanese.

Is it normal for polyglots to take a class for their first language, and then branch out from there? Or do some pick up a German book at age seven and pour over it? How did you guys learn your first foreign language?


Watching anime, haha. At seven, I was furiosly trying to adjust the TV picture. I am not a polyglot, though. Kato Lomb started late and she took classes but she also did strange things like hopping into advanced Chinese. It is "normal" for polyglots to take classes since they get processed by the educational system like everyone else.
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby William Camden » Tue Mar 28, 2017 4:43 pm

Apart from some heritage Polish, my first L2 was German, I picked up some words in Germany as a child, enough to do some shopping. Then I took German in school, and worked my way through 1,000 Vis-Ed German vocabulary cards. It definitely made a difference. I started being able to hold simple conversations in German with the school's German assistant.
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Re: How Did You Learn Your First Foreign Language?

Postby Ani » Tue Mar 28, 2017 5:20 pm

I'm still working on French but I did try as an 9 year old to learn it as my fist foreign language.*

I begged parents to learn French and they gave me a cassette with dialogues. I poured over it until it broke but somehow still couldn't speak French :)
The second option they gave me was immersion boarding school 4 states away. I probably should have done it. I ended up at boarding school eventually but I wasn't ready at age 9 and my dad is not a middle ground sort of person so that was that.

I took 3 years of Latin in high school and did some self study of French but barely made it past greetings and colors until I found the old htlal about 4 years ago.



*I did speak Italian as a kid but I am assuming you mean deliberate learning.
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