How to Speak English Fluently Tips and Tricks for English Learners Janet Gerber How to Speak English Fluently Copyright © 2014 by Janet Gerber All rights reserved. No part of this book can be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the author. Reviewers may quote a brief passage in their review. Disclaimer No part of this book can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, includ- ing photocopying and recording or by any information stor- age or retrieval system or by email without written permis- sion from publisher.
While all attempts have been made to verify the information provided in this book, neither the author nor the publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions, or differ- ent interpretations of the subject matter herein. Neither the author nor the publisher assumes any respons- ibility or liability on behalf of the reader of this book. This book is for entertainment purposed only. The views ex- pressed are those of the author alone and should not be taken as expert instruction or commands.
The reader is re- sponsible for his or her own actions in regards to the in- formation in this book. Any perceived slight of any individual or organization is not intentional. A Free Gift for You! As a way of saying ‘Thanks!’ for your pur- chase, I’m offering a free 5-Day e-course that is exclusive to my book and blog readers. The free 5-Day e-course is on speaking and understanding English better.
In this e- course you will learn a variety of ways to help you improve your English speaking and comprehension. This 5-Day e-course is in video format and you can access the 5-Day e-course by going here.htm Table of Contents: Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Five Limiting Beliefs about Learning English Chapter 3: Your Mindset Chapter 4: Goals Chapter 5: Reevaluate How You Are Learn- ing English Chapter 6: Language as a Tool Not a Science Chapter 7: Improve Your Speaking Chapter 8: Improve Your Listening Chapter 9: Improve Your Reading 6/129 Chapter 10: Improve Your Writing Chapter 11: Immerse Yourself in English Chapter 12: Achieving English Fluency Chapter 13: Learning English Fluently Will Change Your Life Chapter 14: Take Action Today One Last Thing… Chapter 1: Introduction Have you been learning English for a long time but still struggle to understand native English speakers? Have you been taking English classes for years but do not see much progress in your English speaking abilities? Do you get nervous and make mistakes when you have to speak English with other people? Do you get confused and overwhelmed when listening to people talk in English? This book was designed to teach you: • How to make specific goals related to your English learning. • Tips to improve your speaking, listening, reading and writing skills in English. • What resources are available to help you learn English in your own time.
It is frustrating to be studying English and not see results. You deserve to learn why you may not be seeing results and what you can do to see your English language skills improve. 9/129 There are so many classes, teachers, books and websites that try to give you advice that is “the best way to learn English” In this book you will learn that only you know the best way you learn. In this book, I will provide you with many different ideas, tips and resources that you will find helpful and will be able to use and try right away.
Why do you want to speak English fluently? Each person has a different reason as to why they want to speak English fluently or profi- ciently. Some many want a better job and others may want to travel or make new friends. No matter what your reason for learning to speak English is, you need to commit to learning English. There is no magic formula or method to make you learn English in a day.
You need to set a goal and stick to how you plan to im- prove your English language skills. Since each person has different goals, some of the methods in this book will not work for 11/129 you while others will. The most important thing is that you try. Not that you try once in a while to improve your English but that you commit to 10, 15 or 30 minutes a day to im- proving your English.
This book is very practical and highly action- able. You will find many links and ideas within that will help you find a way that helps you improve your English. My goal is to help you speak better English by giving you different tips, tricks, resources and ideas. Who Am I? My name is Janet Gerber.
I run the website English Tonight (http://english-to- night. I am a teacher and language learner. On my website and in this book, it is my goal to give you practical advice, tips and activities that allow you to improve your English. One thing that challenged me when I was trying to learn my second language was find- ing information, techniques and activities to help me improve.
I spent a lot of time surfing the internet and finding resources. There were so many and at times I would get over- whelmed and not know which way was the “best way” to learn a new language. Chapter 2: Five Limiting Beliefs about Learning English Many people have beliefs that limit their lan- guage learning. It hinders their learning be- cause they think they can’t learn English be- cause of the belief or thought that they keep telling themselves over and over again.
Below you will read about five common lim- iting beliefs that students that are learning (or want to learn) English have. Many people say… 1. I’m too old to learn English. You are never too old to learn something new.
It is not true that there is an age limit for learning a new language. It may however, be more difficult as time goes on but you’re up for a challenge, right? Instead of making up excuses of what you aren’t learning, keep track of what you know or have learned. You could try to learn one new word a day, write a paragraph a day or spend 10 minutes fo- cusing on English. If you take small steps to learning English; you will learn.
Make a list of words you know or just learned. Don’t get stuck on what you don’t know. The more positive you are about your learning and English language acquisition, the better it will stick in your mind. I can’t speak English proficiently without traveling.
This is not true. I have met a lot (like thou- sands) of people that speak proficient Eng- lish and they have never traveled to any Eng- lish speaking country. They speak and un- derstand English. You too can learn English without jetting off to New York, Sydney or London.
Instead of focusing on what you can’t do right now, focus on what you can. You can learn English where you live if you have access to a computer and are determ- ined. There are plenty of free resources, web- sites and classes on the internet that can help teach you English. I have no one to speak English with.
That’s ok! You can learn to speak English no matter where you live in the world as long as you have access to a computer. It doesn’t matter if you live in a remote village in the 16/129 mountains of India or in the jungle in the middle of South America. You can find other English learners, just like you online that want to learn English and would love to practice speaking with you. Many people are in the same situation as you are.
There are many language exchange and language learning websites that will connect you to someone that wants to practice English or that wants to learn your native language. With the advances in technology, you can lit- erally learn to speak English without ever leaving your home. I can’t remember all of the English grammar rules. No one can remember all the grammar rules.
Learning a new language is not about learn- ing rules, it is about learning words that al- low you to communicate with other people. Your grammar does not need to be perfect or even near perfect to be understood and start 17/129 communicating. Native English speakers do not know all (or often times a lot) of gram- mar rules and make many grammar mis- takes. They don’t care.
I assume that since you are reading this book you want to learn to speak English fluently. Focus on speaking and listening not on being the English gram- mar police. Let’s pretend your grammar isn’t great but you try speaking anyway. You could say ‘I yesterday banana eat.’ And I as a native speaker might say back to you, ‘Oh, you mean… you ate a banana yesterday?’ At that point, if you were paying attention you would have heard what you were trying to say, stated correctly and could rephrase (or resay) what you heard.
‘Yes, I ate a banana yesterday.’ Just like that, you were able to communicate with someone while making grammar mistakes and learn the correct way to say something…. without studying a gram- mar book or rules about past tense. You can 18/129 drastically improve your English grammar by practicing speaking. Stop wasting your time memorizing verb tenses and grammar rules.
This will not help you become a better English speaker. It in- stead will make you insecure about speaking because you are thinking about rules instead of thinking about talking and communicat- ing with a new person. I’m afraid to make mistakes. Mistakes are good; no…EXCELLENT! The more mistakes you make the faster and more you will learn.
Everyone makes mistakes all the time. You should try not to get hung up on feeling bad about making mistakes. In my class, I had two very different stu- dents. One never said anything and if I forced her to speak she would look really nervous and whisper her answer.
She was 19/129 obviously terrified that something bad could happen from her mistakes. Another student that was in the same classroom talked a lot (sometimes too much). His English was far from perfect but he kept trying. He made a lot of mistakes but everyday kept trying his best and approached learning English as a positive and fun thing.
He liked that he could communicate and talk to more people. The difference between these two students is that one was terrified of making mistakes and the other did his best. By trying your best and focusing on learning more, you will learn English. If you focus on the negative, like telling yourself that you don’t know how to say something or that people will laugh at you if you pronounce something wrong, you are hindering or stopping your learning.
Going Forward… Stop making excuses and telling yourself that you can’t learn English. Learning to speak English is something that is totally possible and realistic. You just need to approach your language learning in a positive manner and stop your negative thoughts. Chapter 3: Your Mindset Did you know that your thoughts directly in- fluence how successfully you learn English? What is your mindset? Mindset is the atti- tude or disposition that you have towards something.
Negative Mindset & Fear Imagine that you are trying to learn English. Every time you go to English class, you don’t participate because you think you can’t learn. Every time someone says something to you in English, you say “I don’t understand.” Every time you think about learning English you get nervous or anxious and think negat- ive thoughts like ‘this is too hard’ or ‘I will never learn to speak English fluently.