1. Write down your questions.
There are plenty of times when all of us wonder how to express something in another language, but then do nothing with those questions! When you are unsure of how to say or ask something in English, write it down so that you can ask a native speaker, google it or post your question to an online forum (like at iTalki!).
2. Keep a running vocabulary list.
Be organized. Write down a vocabulary that you want to look up but don’t have time to at that moment. Make a habit of reviewing vocabulary. If you don’t do this, you can easily forget new words before they are locked into your long term memory.
3. Think in English.
I understand this is VERY difficult for non-native speakers, and often comes with a lot of practice and time invested. But, do your best to be aware of your conscious thoughts, and slowly try to shift them towards an English thinking perspective.
Why should you do this?
Because English syntax and word order is typically something that cannot be translated from another language.
4. Talk to yourself out loud at home.
Talking to yourself out loud will help you in the process of thinking in English instead of translating to English from your native language. Get in the habit of speaking freely without the worry of being heard or criticized.
Play with the sounds and write down the ideas you want to express, but don’t know how to.
5. Train your Ears
Listen to a lot of English in the form of podcasts, television shows, movies and radio. You can always listen to the free podcats on iTunes to listen to a variety of native speakers’ voices and accents to hear how the the music of English stays consistent.
Train your ears like a musician does!
And those are five MORE tips on how to improve your English pronunication. To see my previous five, please enter this URL in your browser: http://www.italki.com/discussion/70114 .
What are your thoughts on these tips? Do you agree or disagree, and why?
