learning a language is one of those things where the more you know, the more you grow to understand the depth of your ignorance.
YES. So well said. I've been reading/studying Italian on and off for over 15 years, and I swear I feel like I get dumber at it every year. I know that's not true, but as you say, it is so hard to break out of that intermediate level. My vocab is decent, but I wonder sometimes if I'll ever master the usage of all those verbs conjugations.
Reading has been my primary form of exposure as well, and I suffer for it when I try to communicate orally. You have to add the listening, and you have to construct your own sentences in the language to begin to really get a grasp of it. My Spanish teacher in high school made us keep a daily journal... because it works. Google is a huge help there. I'll type in a sentence or phrase the way I think it would be constructed, and the correct construction usually (eventually) comes up. Best you can do when you don't have someone to correct you.
I've not heard of Duolingo, so thanks for that rec! I'm sure you already know about it, but Word Reference is also an invaluable tool for learners.
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Date: 2015-05-04 09:01 pm (UTC)YES. So well said. I've been reading/studying Italian on and off for over 15 years, and I swear I feel like I get dumber at it every year. I know that's not true, but as you say, it is so hard to break out of that intermediate level. My vocab is decent, but I wonder sometimes if I'll ever master the usage of all those verbs conjugations.
Reading has been my primary form of exposure as well, and I suffer for it when I try to communicate orally. You have to add the listening, and you have to construct your own sentences in the language to begin to really get a grasp of it. My Spanish teacher in high school made us keep a daily journal... because it works. Google is a huge help there. I'll type in a sentence or phrase the way I think it would be constructed, and the correct construction usually (eventually) comes up. Best you can do when you don't have someone to correct you.
I've not heard of Duolingo, so thanks for that rec! I'm sure you already know about it, but Word Reference is also an invaluable tool for learners.
Best of luck with your studies!