How to Improve Speaking Skills in a Foreign Language

There are several ways to improving your speaking skills in a foreign language.

For some, learning to speak a foreign language may be more difficult than learning to write in that language. However, it's possible to speak a foreign language fluently and with confidence with hard work and help from others. If you have a good friend who speaks the foreign language you're trying to learn, it would be a good idea to meet with him or her and ask for assistance in speaking that language.

Instructions

1. Watch TV programs or movies in that language but with subtitles. While watching the programs or movies, get a notebook and write down any phrases or words that you're familiar with as well as any new ones you come across. When the programs end, go back to your foreign-language phrasebook and look up these words and find out how to pronounce them.

2. Read print materials in the foreign language you're trying to learn. Read the paragraphs out loud to yourself and if you come across any words that you're having difficulties with, write those down so you can look up the correct pronunciations later. If possible, get a voice recorder and record yourself as you read and use this as a study tool.

3. Purchase some foreign-language study audiobooks and listen to a few chapters each day. Write down any key concepts about pronunciation while listening to the tapes. Complete any speaking exercises at the end of the chapters.

4. Practice talking with a native speaker of the foreign language. For example, if you're learning to speak Haitian Creole and your sister-in-law speaks this language, call her and request a meeting with her so you can get extra help in speaking this language.

References

• Columbia University: Suggestions on Learning a Foreign Language
• Forbes.com: How to Learn a Second Language