There are four language skills that you need to work on whenever you learn a foreign language. These are reading, writing, listening and speaking. Two of these (reading and listening) are known as 'receptive' skills, as they require the receiving and interpreting information. The other two skills (writing and speaking) are known as 'productive' skills, since they require you to produce the language yourself.
As an example, imagine you are using a textbook and there is a short passage you need to read and translate to English. This is a test of your reading skills. Now imagine that the book gives you a short passage in English, and asks you to translate in to German. This is a test of your writing skills, which requires you to think of the correct words and grammar to produce it in a written form. Naturally, the receptive skills of reading and listening are easier, since you are given the words and only need to translate them. Often you can correctly guess the meaning even if you only understand a few of the words. In contrast, the productive skills of speaking and writing are more difficult since you need to correctly remember all the words and grammar forms so that the listener or reader will be able to understand you.
It is very important when learning a language to make sure that you give equal attention to each of the four skills. Many students make the mistake of focussing only on the skills of the type of study materials they first purchase. If this is a textbook, then they will be working only on reading and writing. If it is an audio course, then speaking and listening are obviously the focus. You need to cover all four skills. Here are some ways you can do that and become highly skilled in all areas of the German language...
Reading and Writing
- Purchase a good German textbook with exercises as a great starting point for learning to read and write.
- Practise reading with German websites such as news or sports.
- Sign up for a daily German email, such as a horoscope, for a nice short reading practice that you can easily fit into your daily routine.
- Practise reading with German cartoons and books. (Start with children's books and work up to easy novels.)
- Practise writing by creating your own exercises... Think of words and phrases you spoke about today (or topics that you would like to talk about), then translate these to German. This is a great way to tailor your study to your particular areas of interest.
- Practise reading and writing at an online language community, which is a great place to find German penpals.
Listening and Speaking
- Purchase a good German audio course for listening and speaking practice.
- Practise listening to native speakers by watching German movies, cartoons and television shows.
- Set up a language swap with a German speaker (either in person or using an online language community).
- Get yourself a private tutor for intense practise listening and speaking with a native German.
These are just a few of the better ways that you can use your study time to cover all four of the language skills. Get creative and look for other fun ways to practise these skills and you'll soon find yourself becoming very proficient in the German language. Good luck, and have fun learning German!
Steve Galvin is a language teacher and owner of leading German site http://www.easygermanlanguage.com, which is packed with free resources for anyone wanting to speak German the fun, fast and easy way. To ensure you get off to a good start, visit the website for all of our tips and tutorials on German language for beginners.
