First steps in the foreign language First steps in a foreign language are always difficult. It seems that you don't understand the things you are told and you cannot express yourself with clarity. The thing you need not to do is to withdraw into yourself, waiting the time your vocabulary will be larger. You need to start speaking as soon as you begin to study foreign language with somebody who is patient and understanding. On the one hand, absolute beginner seems like a newborn who is pledged in the strange sounds of the language. And you should be armed with some children's ability that we often lose with growing up. On the other hand you understand your problem and you can overcome it faster than children do. 1. Be curious. Don't say yourself "It is so difficult!" but say "It is so interesting!" 2. Repeat and repeat words and expressions that you find good and enjoy them go out from your mouth. I remember my son jumped on one leg reciting poetry he loved. He repeated it ten times! Enjoy saying new words! 3. Listen to foreign language as more as possible. Enjoy how it sounds. The most effective listening is while you make any monotonous work or activity that need your concentration without active thinking is very good for listening. Going in metro on the job, cleaning the room with earphone on your head will be effective for training your ear. Most of drivers say that the concentrate on the road better when they listen to music or radio. If you learn foreign language, it should be music, listen materials on the language you are learning. 3. Imitate sounds you hear. Don't say that you cannot pronounce some sounds. Imitate. I met hunters that call ducks, moose imitating their clacking, yelling. All hunters I met could do it and animals believe them and approach. It is possible for all of us. The tongue muscles need some training, like your biceps and triceps. Don't avoid special pronunciation training if your teacher propose it. 4. Make effort to understand by intuition, facial expression and gestures of your language partner. Be like a mirror reflection and echo of your partner. Try to ask as a children do, repeating the words that you did not understand, not a question words. So you train to only new words, but also the intonation. For example. Teacher: Ты ходил сегодня в университет? (You did not understand the word ходил). You: Ходил? Teacher: Да. Ходил в университет? (Teacher shows the gesture "go"). You: Да, ходил.