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 Language Learning Forum : Advice Center |  | |
| Mert87 Triglot Newbie Joined 5753 days ago 19 posts - 25 votes Speaks: Turkish*, English, German Studies: Latin, Ancient Greek | Message 1 of 6 24 November 2012 at 10:26am | IP Logged |
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I've been working on German for sometime now. And i finally had the chance to visit the
country. But ı'm just lost. I can converse in German but i do make lots of mistakes cause you just don't get enough time to form a proper sentence in daily life situtations. Everyone has been saying just get there you will learn. But I have no idea how can you guys recommend me something. I'm going to take part in a language course which will start in February I would like to start improving myself until then. Suggestions are welcome 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| druckfehler Triglot Senior Member Germany Joined 4679 days ago 1181 posts - 1912 votes  Speaks: German*, EnglishC2, Korean Studies: Persian | Message 2 of 6 24 November 2012 at 12:35pm | IP Logged |
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I think as long as you spend most of your day with German, you will see definite improvements. It sounds like you just need to get up to speed and get used to speaking spontaneously. You don't have to be afraid of making mistakes, but it's good that you know you're making them. As long as you're aware of your mistakes you can gradually fix them.
Generally, the best thing you can do is to surround yourself with as many German speakers as possible. It could also be beneficial to find a language tandem - maybe you'll be more comfortable with speaking in that context. If you find a good tandem, ask the person to tell you about mistakes you frequently make and how to say it correctly. Good luck! 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Ari Heptaglot Senior Member Norway Joined 6393 days ago 2314 posts - 5695 votes Speaks: Swedish*, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Mandarin, Cantonese Studies: Czech, Latin, German | Message 3 of 6 24 November 2012 at 4:40pm | IP Logged |
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Study. Hanging out in Germany will be great practice and will solidify and make more fluid what you already know, but as a method of improvement, as in learning more material, it's very inefficient. So do hang out with Germans, but don't forget to memorize vocabulary (that you can then try out in conversation), work on your grammar, etc. It's a mistake to think you'll automatically get great German just because you're in Germany. You'll still have to work on it.
Try this trick: Imagine a conversation you're likely to have tomorrow. Now sit down and write down some dialog between you and your interlocutor. Write down the things she's likely to say and the things you're likely to want to respond with. Use a dictionary and Google to make sure you write your German as well as you can. Now read through it a few times and memorize some words and phrases (the ones you had to look up). Then tomorrow try it out. If you get corrected or get told something you don't quite understand and have to ask about, try to remember it afterwards and make a note of it. Add it to a flashcard deck or whatever you do for memorization later. 5 persons have voted this message useful | |
| beano Diglot Senior Member United KingdomRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 4433 days ago 1049 posts - 2152 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: Russian, Serbian, Hungarian | Message 4 of 6 25 November 2012 at 12:33pm | IP Logged |
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It really is just a question of time and patience. I had similar problems and found it useful to learn filler words and phrases like "echt?", "kann nicht sein", "ja, stimmt" etc. This allowed the conversation to flow (albeit with the native party dominating) while I grappled with the speed of the dialogue.
The bottom line is you just have to work at it. Being in Germany own its own doesn't improve your German, but it does give you a fantastic opportunity. Embrace the fact that you will make mistakes, the important thing is to have a go. Edited by beano on 25 November 2012 at 12:35pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Jinx Triglot Senior Member Germany reverbnation.co Joined 5504 days ago 1085 posts - 1879 votes Speaks: English*, German, French Studies: Catalan, Dutch, Esperanto, Croatian, Serbian, Norwegian, Mandarin, Italian, Spanish, Yiddish | Message 5 of 6 25 November 2012 at 4:07pm | IP Logged |
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I feel your pain, man! It definitely takes some getting used to. Even after a year of living in the country, I still have trouble with it sometimes.
One of the techniques that ended up working best for me, surprisingly enough, was to make friends with other non-Germans and establish a relationship in which we would only communicate using German. Since they weren't native speakers, they would speak more slowly and use less slang, and I would also feel less intimidated because I knew we were roughly on the same level. Other foreigners are also great for language practice because you know they're not just being patient with you, but actually trying their best to communicate. See if you can find a language practice meetup group in your area, where anyone learning German can find others to practice with. I found it quite fun! Plus it trains your ear to deal with lots of different foreign accents speaking German. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Mert87 Triglot Newbie Joined 5753 days ago 19 posts - 25 votes Speaks: Turkish*, English, German Studies: Latin, Ancient Greek | Message 6 of 6 25 November 2012 at 10:01pm | IP Logged |
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Thank you all for the advice. I think ill get a grammar book,try to interact more with
people :) 1 person has voted this message useful |
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