3 Useful Resources to Improve Your English Language Skills

Whether you are a native speaker or someone who is learning English as a second language, you will very quickly figure out that speaking English is hard! English borrows a lot from other languages, doesn’t follow its own rules, and the rules turn on their heads whenever you are talking to people from different creeds, races, and walks of life.

But it is also one of the most commonly spoken languages in the world, so you need to learn it, especially if you are moving towards an area where the English language is very highly spoken. Thankfully, there are a lot of different resources that will allow you to learn and improve your English language skills, and many of them are free and easy to follow along with. Here are some of the resources you can look at.

The Internet And TV

While you can go on the internet and find countless courses and other resources to help you learn English and improve your skills, it’s also important to understand the value of simply hearing a language over and over again and fully immersing yourself in the language. This is where the internet and television come in handy, because you can find a subject or a topic you are interested in and start watching.

Some people learn language from soap operas, others learn language from watching documentaries, and still more people watch the same show over and over until they memorize what is being said. The important thing is to not passively watch the screen and hope you absorb the language, but to use your senses and actively learn.

Don’t be afraid to analyze the actors on the screen to get the context for what they are saying, or try to figure out why certain words or sentences are said over and over again in similar situations. Additionally, if you are constantly hearing vocabulary words over and over again, don’t be afraid to look them up to see what they mean or why they are being said.

Improve Your Subject-Verb Agreement Skills

Of course, even if you know all the vocabulary words by heart, that doesn’t make you a native speaker. Knowing how to put them together in proper sentences is when you start really having fun and that means you need to learn about subject-verb agreement. Basically it means that a subject and the verb need to either be both singular or both plural.

For example, saying the sentence “My bike was borrowed today” is a very different sentence than “The bikes were borrowed today.” Each sentence follows different rules, and knowing how to make your subjects and verbs agree is an important stepping stone to having better sentences. Often, the best way to do this is to quiz yourself using flashcards and online tests. For example, you can fill out your subject-verb agreement quiz here to see how you do.

Talk To A Native Speaker

But the best way to get your English skills perfected in a hurry is to simply talk to a native speaker. Especially if they are your friend or are dedicated to helping you with learning the language, because they will not only be able to meet you where you are at, but they will also be able to provide real time feedback as you both talk.

Don’t be afraid to be corrected, ask questions, or repeat what they say whenever they correct you. That is going to be the best way to improve, and if you are embarrassed about talking to someone in a language that isn’t your own, don’t be afraid to say “English isn’t my first language” or “I am still working on my English.”

Many people understand that not everyone knows English, and are often very supportive in making sure that you are heard and understood. Plus, there are quite a lot of native speakers who still have trouble speaking perfect English when they have to. Learning any language is tough, but if you make sure that you take the time to practice and learn from your mistakes, you will be speaking like a native in no time at all!