Getting to grips with the grammar and wording of a new language requires practice, but how do you do this in the simplest way possible? The answer: work smart!
How to Learn English Grammar
You probably have a smartphone with you most of the time. This is an excellent and quick way to practise your English grammar. There are many ways a phone can help you practise. There are apps designed specifically for you to learn English and help with grammar.
The best thing about an app is that you can use it like a game, by trying to beat your high score, while practising and getting better. You can fit in a few minutes here and there and build your grammatical knowledge.
There are a lot of apps out there but here is a list of some of the most popular for learning English grammar.
https://www.educationalappstore.com/best-apps/5-best-apps-for-english-language-learners
Don’t forget that any app, game or piece of software can be turned into a language booster, simply by changing the language of the apps you use the most to English. If you use social media you can easily change the language to English.
Facebook can be a useful tool to meet other English learners and create groups to share knowledge and tips. There are also helpful pages on Facebook and Twitter designed to help with common grammar errors.
Grammar Girl is a page devoted to helping you learn some of the harder English grammar tricks.
https://www.facebook.com/GrammarGirl/?fref=ts
https://twitter.com/GrammarGirl
If you search on Facebook for English grammar pages, there are plenty that update daily with new links, pictures, or quizzes to test your knowledge. Here are a few examples. If you regularly scroll through Facebook this is a great way to also have a quick practice.
https://www.facebook.com/GrammarUpdates/
https://www.facebook.com/EnglishGrammarClubs/
https://www.facebook.com/LearnEnglishGrammar123/
Your phone can give you access to technology all English people use day to day. BBC iPlayer is free, and it will let you listen or watch any radio and TV programme. A useful tip is to watch TV with subtitles, so you can read any words you don’t understand the first time. You can also rewind a couple of seconds to hear it again. If you really enjoy a programme, you can watch it a few times to get the hang of how they use English grammar in their speech. This will need you to be curious, to think about what you’ve recently studied and try to listen out for examples of grammar being used in context. It’s also very cool in England if you can quote lines from famous films – so try and memorise the funny bits!
YouTube has hundreds of English grammar videos both by English speakers and English learners. These can be long and short so depending on how much time you have to spare, there are so many options, but if you’re struggling with a certain grammar point, you’ll almost certainly find someone out there that has recorded a video on it! Over time you’ll find someone you really relate to and enjoy watching, who you’ll want to follow.
Most newspapers and magazines are now available to download directly onto your phone as an app. The news stories refresh every couple of hours, so there is no shortage of content. Again, though, try and spend some of the time really looking for the examples of English Grammar you’re looking to practise. Can you spot the present perfect, maybe being used with a verb you didn’t know? What about interesting conjunctions, or complicated use of clauses?
There are a lot of Podcasts for English language learners too, which you can download to your phone and listen to on the go. These are free and there are so many of them to choose from. Here are some of the best for English learners:
https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/esl-english-podcasts/
6-minute Grammar is a great free podcast from the BBC and is a quick and easy way to practise.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02pc9wq/episodes/downloads
Most of these things are free so there is no extra cost to you. Owning a smartphone lets you have the chance to browse the web and find new ways to teach yourself. Make sure to download the suggested apps to give you all these learning tools for free.
Connect with Other People in English Schools
A great way of learning quickly and effortlessly is to chat to other people learning English. Studying in an English language school surrounds you with like-minded students who want to socialize and, like you, are trying to learn a new language. Make friends, connect with new people and throw yourself into interesting conversations in English. Create a message group and start encouraging each other to talk in English.
Meeting new people can start so many new conversations. Finding out where people are from and more about their lives are easy conversation starters. Communicating with different people in English is a great method to progress your grammar skills. If you are all learning English, it will give you more motivation to practise and encourage each other.
Make Studying a Routine
Studying can be a challenge but also fun. While living in the UK you can take advantage of the culture and places to visit where you live. The more you connect language learning to what you love doing, the better and easier it will be. Visiting some of our famous cities, taking advantage of the shopping, nightlife, history and arts while you’re here will expand your grammar and knowledge of the culture and society of the country you’re staying in. Go on trips with English learners, join clubs and societies to help meet new people.
The more you immerse yourself in the language, the more you see grammar in action. Before long, you won’t need to think about the rule, as you’ll be using the language effortlessly!
Grammatical Errors
Don’t forget, whilst you’re on this journey to grammatical perfection, that mistakes are a natural part of learning. Don’t worry, the best advice is to keep going, and keep practising. Everyone will make mistakes and once you’ve learnt from them, you will progress further.
Achieving means nothing without the failures along the way. Stick to this list of tips and tricks, and before you know it you’ll be fluent!