5 Speaking Rules you need to know!

1. Don't study grammar too much

This rule might sound strange to many ESL students, but it is one of the most important
rules. If you want to pass examinations, then study grammar. However, if you want to
become fluent in English, then you should try to learn English without studying the grammar.

Studying grammar will only slow you down and confuse you. You will think about the rules
when creating sentences instead of naturally saying a sentence like a native. Remember that
only a small fraction of English speakers know more than 20% of all the grammar rules.
Many ESL students know more grammar than native speakers. I can confidently say this with
experience. I am a native English speaker, majored in English Literature, and have been
teaching English for more than 10 years. However, many of my students know more details
about English grammar than I do. I can easily look up the definition and apply it, but I don't
know it off the top of my head.

I often ask my native English friends some grammar questions, and only a few of them know
the correct answer. However, they are fluent in English and can read, speak, listen, and
communicate effectively.

Do you want to be able to recite the definition of a causative verb, or do you want to be able
to speak English fluently?

2. Learn and study phrases

Many students learn vocabulary and try to put many words together to create a proper
sentence. It amazes me how many words some of my students know, but they cannot create a
proper sentence. The reason is because they didn't study phrases. When children learn a
language, they learn both words and phrases together. Likewise, you need to study and learn
phrases.

If you know 1000 words, you might not be able to say one correct sentence. But if you know
1 phrase, you can make hundreds of correct sentences. If you know 100 phrases, you will be
surprised at how many correct sentences you will be able to say. Finally, when you know
only a 1000 phrases, you will be almost a fluent English speaker.

The English Speaking Basics section is a great example of making numerous sentences with
a single phrase. So don't spend hours and hours learning many different words. Use that time
to study phrases instead and you will be closer to English fluency.

Don't translate

When you want to create an English sentence, do not translate the words from your Mother
tongue. The order of words is probably completely different and you will be both slow and
incorrect by doing this. Instead, learn phrases and sentences so you don't have to think about
the words you are saying. It should be automatic.
Another problem with translating is that you will be trying to incorporate grammar rules that
you have learned. Translating and thinking about the grammar to create English sentences is
incorrect and should be avoided.

3. Reading and Listening is NOT enough. Practice

Speaking what you hear!

Reading, listening, and speaking are the most important aspects of any language. The same is
true for English. However, speaking is the only requirement to be fluent. It is normal for
babies and children to learn speaking first, become fluent, then start reading, then writing. So
the natural order is listening, speaking, reading, then writing.

First Problem
Isn't it strange that schools across the world teach reading first, then writing, then listening,
and finally speaking? Although it is different, the main reason is because when you learn a
second language, you need to read material to understand and learn it. So even though the
natural order is listening, speaking, reading, then writing, the order for ESL students is
reading, listening, speaking, then writing.

Second Problem
The reason many people can read and listen is because that's all they practice. But in order to
speak English fluently, you need to practice speaking. Don't stop at the listening portion, and
when you study, don't just listen. Speak out loud the material you are listening to and practice
what you hear. Practice speaking out loud until your mouth and brain can do it without any
effort. By doing so, you will be able to speak English fluently.

4. Submerge yourself

Being able to speak a language is not related to how smart you are. Anyone can learn how to
speak any language. This is a proven fact by everyone in the world. Everyone can speak at
least one language. Whether you are intelligent, or lacking some brain power, you are able to
speak one language.

This was achieved by being around that language at all times. In your country, you hear and
speak your language constantly. You will notice that many people who are good English
speakers are the ones who studied in an English speaking school. They can speak English not
because they went to an English speaking school, but because they had an environment
where they can be around English speaking people constantly.

There are also some people who study abroad and learn very little. That is because they went
to an English speaking school, but found friends from their own country and didn't practice
English.

You don't have to go anywhere to become a fluent English speaker. You only need to
surround yourself with English. You can do this by making rules with your existing friends
that you will only speak English. You can also carry around an iPod and constantly listen to
English sentences. As you can see, you can achieve results by changing what your
surroundings are. Submerge yourself in English and you will learn several times faster.
TalkEnglish Offline Version is now ready for download. In this package, you can utilize
over 8000 audio files to completely surround yourself in English. There are over 13.5 hours
of audio files that are not available in the web form. All conversations and all sentences are
included, so even if you don't have many English speaking friends, you can constantly
surround yourself in English using your MP3 player. This package is available at the English
Download page. Take advantage of this opportunity and start learning English faster. Click
on the link or go to http://www.talkenglish.com/english-download.aspx.

5. Study correct material

A common phrase that is incorrect is, "Practice makes perfect." This is far from the truth.
Practice only makes what you are practicing permanent. If you practice the incorrect
sentence, you will have perfected saying the sentence incorrectly. Therefore, it is important
that you study material that is commonly used by most people.

Another problem I see is that many students study the news. However, the language they
speak is more formal and the content they use is more political and not used in regular life. It
is important to understand what they are saying, but this is more of an advanced lesson that
should be studied after learning the fundamental basics of English.

Studying English with a friend who is not a native English speaker is both good and bad.
You should be aware of the pros and cons of speaking with a non native speaking friend.
Practicing with a non native person will give you practice. You can also motivate each other
and point out basic mistakes. But you might pick up bad habits from one another if you are
not sure about what are correct and incorrect sentences. So use these practice times as a time
period to practice the correct material you studied. Not to learn how to say a sentence.

In short, study English material that you can trust, that is commonly used, and that is correct.

Summary

These are the rules that will help you achieve your goal of speaking English fluently. All the
teachings and lessons on TalkEnglish.com follow this method so you have the tools you need
to achieve your goal right here on TalkEnglish.com.
https://www.talkenglish.com/extralessons/speakingrules.aspx

3 English Speaking rules every Non-Native

Speaker should know
Here’s a little exercise for you. Think of all the people you know who speak
really good English.

How did they improve their English?

You will find that almost all of these people have being exposed to the
English language at a high frequency, either at home, school or at work.

The key to improve spoken English is immersing in English. This is why

Spoken English Practice lessons are 100% conversational.
 Learn more about our Spoken English Classes

Here are 3 English speaking rules that you should never ignore.

1. Learn new words but don’t try to memorize everything

It is surprising how little words you need to have a conversation.

Remember, the whole point of communicating is to express, not to impress.

You don’t have to talk like Tolstoy!

Many non-native speakers struggle because they go on the fruitless journey

of memorizing thousands of words. It is important to learn new words, and
to expand your vernacular, but do this in small doses. Learn 2 new words
every day, instead of 50. And try to use those 2 words in a real life
conversation or presentation. The more you do this, the wider your “active”
vocabulary would be.

2. Grammar is overrated!

This rule might sound counter-intuitive, but it is probably the most

important rule. If you want to perfect your written English, then study
grammar.

However, if your goal is to be fluent in English, then try to learn English

without focusing too much on grammar.

Think of how you spoke your first language? Did you learn grammar first or
did you just speak? The same rule applies to speaking any language.

When you put too much emphasis on grammar, you naturally over-think and
over complicate English in your head, instead of naturally talking like a
native.

Remember, only a small fraction of English speakers know more than 20% of
all the grammar rules. Many non-native know more grammar than native
speakers.

English Speaking rules from one of our Native

English Teachers
Note: if you want to improve your grammar, there are tons of great, free
resources on the internet.

Also, you need to only know about 5 main grammar concepts to be able to
speak English fluently.

For example you should have a basic understanding for sentence structures.

Every sentence includes a noun (a person, animal, place or object), a verb

(an action/doing word), together with in many sentences an adjective
(describes a noun and includes for example colour eg brown hair with brown
being the adjective and hair being the noun) and adverbs (describes a verb
for example he ran quickly with quickly being the adverb and ran being the
verb).

Examples:

I will go to the beach on Saturday.

He visits London today.

She plays the piano well.

The dog is running quickly.

Fetch the blue and red ball.

She has long blond hair.

Remember, even if you make a small grammatical mistake, most people will
still understand you. The most important thing is to speak clearly and
confidently.

I will give you one more example in grammar that will make you realize how
easy it is to learn English an use correct grammar.

Think of how tenses are used in English. Don’t think of these as English
speaking rules but rather as patterns of the English language.

Start learning the present tense which describes actions happening now.

Examples: I walk
 He runs

She swims

It moves

We dance

You see

They sail

Learn the future tense which refers to actions that will take place later
today, tomorrow, next week, next month or next year.

Examples: I will play tennis with you tomorrow.

He or she will visit over the weekend.

It will happen on Friday.

We will go on holiday next week.

You will go the theatre next month.

They will go on a skiing holiday in January.

Learn the past tense which took place yesterday, last week, last month or
last year.

Examples: I played tennis yesterday.

He or she went to the cinema last Wednesday.

It happened last month.

We went on holiday last summer.

They visited Edinburgh last year.

Learn Irregular past participles of verbs

When using the past tenses of regular verbs, we add an ‘-ed’ at the end.

Examples:

Present tense Past tense

I walk I walked

He visits He visited

She dances She danced

It snows It snowed

We smile We smiled

You fetch You fetched

There are irregular past participles of certain verbs in the past tense.

Examples:

Present tense Past tense

I swim I swam

He comes He came

She drinks She drank

It becomes It became

We eat We ate

They begin They began

I am I was

He/she/it is He/she/it was

We are We were
They are They were

Remember, grammar should not be something that holds you back from
speaking English. You should think of grammar as a framework that helps
you speak English, not something that will scare you away. Never let
grammar make you lose confidence in speaking in English.

3. Maximize your conversations in English with people who are

fluent

Practicing speaking English with a friend who is not a native English

speaker has both pros and cons.

Practicing with a non-native person will certainly give you practice. It might
also give you confidence, that you are better than most.

However, you might pick up bad habits from one another if you are not sure
about what are correct and incorrect sentences. This could be contagious,
and could be something difficult to course correct over time.

At Spoken English Practice, we believe the best way to improve spoken

English is to have conversations with native speakers as much as possible.

Improvements in spoken English (or any language) for that matter comes
over time. Be persistent, but be logical as well. Remembering these English
speaking rules will allow you to focus your energy on what is important.

https://www.spokenenglishpractice.com/3-english-speaking-rules-every-non-native-speaker-should-
know/

How to Learn English if You're a

Non Native Speaker
Author Info | Reader-Approved

Updated: April 10, 2019

Explore this ArticleStepsQuestions & AnswersRelated Articles
Everybody wants to learn English and improve their communication skills these
days. They know exactly what they need in today's highly-globalized world.
Controversies abound though regarding the best technique of learning the English
language. Plus, if you are a non-native speaker, you probably think of this language
as ESL (English as a Second Language). Read on for some help.
 Steps
1.

1
Change your wrong impression of grammar. If you're a non-native speaker, chances are
your grammar isn't that bad. In fact, you studied a lot of English grammar in your elementary,
middle school, and high school. Now the first thing you need to do is to unlearn the bad
impression of grammar that you got. Grammar isn't dry, useless, dead, only paper-based,
strict, and boring. Quite the contrary! Grammar is fun, practical, dynamic, situation-based,
free, and exciting. That is, if your teacher had known how to teach it right. Grammar isn't
something you can run away from in English. And grammar isn't some scary, dictatorial
 monster anyway. You should start seeing grammar as a friend who only gives you guidelines
- not rules. In short, real grammar says: "Do," not "Don't."
2.

2
Forget the myth of listening. The myth of listening says that listening is a zero-sum game:
either you get it 100% or 0%. This is simply not true. If you're having a hard time making
sense of what the other person (maybe a native speaker) is saying, don't be discouraged.
More importantly, don't stop listening and thinking! In home economics, there's a saying that
goes: "There won't be a dollar without a cent."
 This is true in listening as well. Just because you can't make sense of what someone is
saying in English, you don't have to drop everything and throw away the few things that you
do hear. Instead, concentrate on them and gather as much as you can.

 Think about the context (the situation around the speaker) and try to connect the separate
words that you can catch. Try to fill the gaps that you don't hear. Why? Because, believe it or
not, that's what everybody's doing - even the native speakers.
3.
 3
Speak. Speak and speak. Practice! This step is connected to No 1. Because of your wrong
way of learning grammar, you have unconsciously developed an aversion to practice and
real application. Somehow, you believe that English is a skill that's best used only inside the
four corners of your classroom - or quietly by yourself. And because you've undergone years
and years of this sort of training, it's a tough habit to break. This step goes deep down to
your inner confidence. You've got to learn to surmount the shyness and the voice inside your
head that keeps telling you: "You'll just make a fool of yourself!". If you can't overcome this,
then you won't be able to learn English. Remember: English is a language, a form of
communication meant to be practiced together with other people.
4.
 4
Learn vocabulary by heart. Learning Vocabulary by heart means you should stop
cramming your head with the translation of English words in your native language. No matter
how many words you memorize everyday - 50, 100, 200! - they're all useless if you don't
know what type of word you're learning, how to use it in a sentence etc. Non-native speakers
of English are known for mechanically memorizing a lot of information. But in terms of the
long-term goals of language-learning, it isn't so much the quantity that counts, only the
quality.
5.
5
Accept what can't understand. Eventually, you'll have to admit that some expressions and
parts of English don't have the perfect grammar explanation that you are looking for. For
instance, idioms, infinitives vs. gerunds etc. You'll just waste a lot of time trying to force a
logical, iron-clad rule. Of course you should try your best to learn grammar, but keep in mind
that grammar doesn't have the answer to everything. In those cases when Grammar doesn't
work, start repeating the sentence and expression. Pretty soon you'll realize you're getting
comfortable with it and you don't really need a grammar explanation to use it.

6. 6
Read in English. Reading is one of the best ways to learn grammar and vocabulary, and
you'll learn more about English culture along the way.
 You don't have to read a book. Any text, whether it be a newspaper or an online article, will
work.

Community Q&A
 Question

Non-native speakers of English need to learn only informal English, is this statement
true or false?
Community Answer

False. Non-native and Native speakers alike should learn Formal English in order to be
respectful to superiors, authority figures, or elders.

Not Helpful 0Helpful 3

Ask a Question

Submit

Tips
 STOP looking for a "silver bullet" technique that will let you learn English overnight. There is
no such thing. Every learner is different. What works for you won't work for another and vice
- versa. There are too many English-learning techniques out there that promise the best
results. But what it all boils down to is: You as an individual learner. Do you have what it
takes - the dedication and the patience - to get to the finish line?

https://www.wikihow.com/Learn-English-if-You%27re-a-Non-Native-Speaker

How to Improve Spoken English

(Without a Speaking Partner!): 14
Incredible Methods
We all want to know how to improve spoken English.

But for some of us, there’s a big obstacle.

To improve English speaking, the best thing to do is to talk with a native

speaker. But not all of us have that option!
What if you don’t know anyone who speaks English? What if you don’t
have time? What if you simply don’t feel confident enough yet to practice
with a native?

How can you practice speaking English without anybody else to

help you?
Don’t worry. You can still improve your spoken English, even without a
speaking partner.

We’re going to explain how.

No speaking partner? No problem!

Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF

that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)

How to Improve Spoken English (Without a

Speaking Partner!): 14 Incredible Methods
1. Think in English

Sometimes the difficult thing about English speaking isn’t the language
itself, but how you think about it.

If you think in your native language and then try to speak English, you’ll
always have to translate between languages. Translating isn’t an easy
thing to do! Even people fluent in two or more languages have trouble
switching between languages.
The solution is to think in English.

You can do this anywhere, anytime. Try to use English when you’re
thinking about your day, or when you’re trying to decide what food to
order. Even try to use an English-to-English dictionary to look up words.
That way you never have to use your native language and translate
words. You’ll notice that when you think in English, it’s easier for you to
speak in English.

2. Talk to Yourself

Whenever you’re at home (or alone somewhere else) you can improve
English speaking with your favorite person: yourself.

If you’re already thinking in English, try speaking your thoughts out

loud. Read out loud, too. Practice is practice, and even if you don’t have
anyone to correct your mistakes, just the act of speaking out loud will help
you become more comfortable speaking English.
3. Use a Mirror

Whenever you can, take a few minutes out of your day to stand in front of
the mirror and speak. Choose a topic, set a timer for two or three minutes
and just talk.

The point of this exercise is to watch your mouth, face and body language
as you speak. It also makes you feel like you’re talking to someone, so
you can pretend you’re having a discussion with a study buddy.

Talk for the full two or three minutes. Don’t stop! If you get stuck on a
word you don’t know, try expressing your idea in a different way. You can
always look up how to say that word after the two to three minutes
end. This will definitely help you find out what kinds of words or sentences
you have trouble with.

4. Focus on English Fluency, Not Grammar

When you speak in English, how often do you stop?

The more you stop, the less confident you sound and the less comfortable
you become. Try the mirror exercise above, but challenge yourself to
speak without stopping or stammering (taking pauses between your
words) the entire time.

This might mean that your sentences won’t be grammatically perfect, and
that’s okay! If you focus on speaking fluently instead of correctly, you’ll
still be understood and you’ll sound better. You can fill in the correct
grammar and word rules as you learn them better.
5. Try English Tongue Twisters

Tongue twisters are series of words that are difficult to say quickly.
One example is: “The thirty-three thieves thought that they thrilled the
throne throughout Thursday.” Try saying this a few times! It’s not easy.

Word games like this will help you find the right placement for your mouth
and tongue, and can even help your pronunciation. You can find a list
of great tongue twisters here.
6. Listen and Repeat
Do you watch TV shows or YouTube videos in English? Use them to
improve your fluency. Choose a short part of a show and repeat it line by
line. Try to match the tone, speed and even the accent (if you can). It
doesn’t matter if you miss a few words, the important thing is to keep
talking. Try to sound just like the native speakers on the show.
FluentU is a great way to practice listening and repeating.
FluentU takes real-world videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news
and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning
lessons.
Whenever you watch a video here, you’ll see all of the spoken words right
there on your screen.

This makes listening and repeating even easier. Just turn off the subtitles
when you want a challenge!

If you see a word you don’t know, tap on the word to see an image,
definition, examples, and other videos in which the word is used.

For example, if you tap on the word “brought”, then you see this:
 FluentU lets you tap to look up any word.

You can learn any video’s vocabulary with FluentU. Swipe left or right to
see more examples for the word you’re learning.
 FluentU helps you learn fast with useful questions and multiple examples. Learn more.

At FluentU, you can decide how you learn. You’ll have the freedom to
choose which videos are most interesting to your personal learning
experience.

The more you listen to this authentic English, the better you will
understand how to speak English naturally.

Start using FluentU on the website with your computer or tablet,

or download the FluentU app from the iTunes store or Google Play store.
7. Pay Attention to Stressed Sounds
English uses stresses in words and sentences. That means when you
speak English you’ll need to stress, or emphasize, certain words and
syllables (sounds) to give words and sentences different meanings.
Listen to where native speakers place the emphasis when they speak. Try
to repeat it the same way to improve English stress in your own speech.

This won’t only help you speak English well, it might even reduce
misunderstandings. Sometimes the placing the stress on the wrong
syllable completely changes the word. The word ADdress, for instance,
isn’t the same as the word adDRESS. ADdress refers to a physical location
where someone lives, and adDRESS means to formally speak to a group of
people.

Learn to hear the difference!

8. Sing Along to English Songs

Singing along to your favorite English songs will help you become more
fluent. This is a tried-and-true language learning method that’s backed by
science.
Once you can sing along to Taylor Swift and Jason Mraz, you can test your
skills with something a bit more difficult: rap!

Rap is a great way to practice English because often the words are spoken
like regular sentences. However, the rapper uses a stronger rhythm and
faster speed. Some of the words might not make sense, but if you can
keep up with the rapper then you’re on your way to becoming fluent!

9. Learn Word Forms with New Words

Some practice comes before you even open your mouth. Make speaking
easier by learning the different forms of any words you learn. You should
do this when you’re learning new vocabulary. For example, if you just
learned the word write, you should also learn some other forms
like wrote and written.

Knowing the correct way to use a word in any kind of sentence is

important. This knowledge will help you while speaking. You won’t have to
stop and think of different words—you’ll know exactly when you need to
use that word while speaking.

10. Learn Phrases, Not Words

An even better idea to improve English is to learn word phrases, not just
words.

You might be using correct grammar and vocabulary, but it’s still not how
a native speaker would say it.

For example, you can say “how do you feel today?” but a native speaker
might say “how’re you doing?” or “what’s up?” instead. Phrases and
expressions can be helpful for sounding more natural when you speak.

11. Learn Your Most Common Sayings

Take some time to really notice how you speak in your native language.

What words and phrases do you use the most often?

Learn how to say your most commonly used phrases and words in
English. Knowing them in English will help you speak as well in English as
you do in your native language.
12. Prepare for Specific Situations
Are you learning English speaking for a specific reason? For example, are
you learning English so you can get a job in an English-speaking
company? In that case, practice English that will help you in an
interview. Are you learning English so you can make friends in America?
Then you would need a different kind of English.

Before you go to a place where you have to speak English, you can
practice what you might have to say. If you’re preparing to go to a
restaurant, what might conversations in a restaurant sound like? Answer
the questions a waiter might ask you. Try talking about food and menus.

You’ll feel more confident if you’re prepared!

13. Relax!
You can be your best helper or your worst enemy when learning to speak
fluently! We know it’s hard, but you should try not to worry about how you
sound when you speak. Just relax!

If you get stuck or confused, just take a big breath and start over. Speak
slower if you have to. Take time to pause and think about your next
sentence.

Do whatever it takes to become more comfortable with speaking English.

14. Tell a Story from Your Language in English

Here’s a fun way to test how well your spoken English has developed:
choose a story that you know really well and tell it in English.

Remember to think in English as you’re telling your story. Focus on

speaking fluently instead of correctly. Say every sentence out loud to
yourself.

Even if you have nobody to talk to in English, you can still build confidence
and master fluency on your own time.
In some ways, practicing speaking is even easier by yourself! Now you
know exactly how to improve spoken English by yourself and should feel
confident doing so!

Is it Possible to Achieve English Fluency While

Living in a Non-English Speaking Society?

By Robby

If you are new here please read this first.

Personally I’ve been living in an English speaking country for ten years
now, and during this time I’ve gone from a struggling to a fluent English
speaker.
Has living in an English speaking country helped me to achieve
spoken English fluency?

Well, there’s no doubt about that!

Has being part of an English speaking society been the crucial element in
the process of my fluency acquisition? Would I never have achieved
my current level of English fluency if not speaking with native
English speakers for hours day in, day out?

Well… I’m not so sure of that. You see, I haven’t always worked
among English speakers, and I’ve also spent quite some time out of work.
But did I stop improving my English skills during those times? No way!
There’s plenty of ways you can improve your spoken English skills
without living in an English speaking country, so let’s analyze the
importance of being part of an English speaking society and its impact on
your fluency.

What Makes a Fluent English Speaker?

I’m sure we all know foreigners whose English is excellent even though
they’ve spent their whole life in their home country with very little
exposure to natural English speaking environment.

Personally I know a Latvian girl who arrived to Ireland a few months ago,
and despite having never lived in an English speaking country before,
she landed a job in a cell phone shop. The next thing I heard, she was
promoted to a shop manager’s position, and I guess I don’t have to be
telling you that her spoken English skills played a significant role in the
recruitment and career growth process.

I’m also quite sure that on every such foreigner there are ten other
foreigners who find themselves struggling with English fluency just
because they’ve been following the traditional education guidelines. Too
much focus on the written word and writing – and the end result is
an individual who’s unable to maintain a fluent English
conversation just because he or she keeps preparing speech in
their head before actually speaking it out.

I could tell you of at least a half a dozen job interviews I’ve blown over
the years while I struggled with my English fluency, and it all happened
despite having lived in Ireland for years.

So much for being part of an English speaking society, ah?

Surprisingly, it took me years to figure the simple truth that in order to

speak English fluently, one needs to spend most of their time learning the
English language while being engaged in speech related activities ❗
It’s not so much about WHERE you’re based in terms of your
geographical location.

If you’re willing enough, if you possess lots of willpower and you persist
with your spoken English practice, you can achieve English fluency
having never actually spoken to a native English speaker face-to-face.

Of course, if you live in an English speaking country and speak in English

with natives all the time, you’ll find it an awful lot easier to reach that
stage of your spoken English improvement when you think and speak
English fluently.

But that’s not the point I was trying to make here.

What I was trying to do here is – I was trying to make you arrive to a

conclusion that SPEAKING is the crucial factor that makes a foreigner a
fluent English speaker!

No matter WHERE you are and WHO you speak with, it’s going to
contribute into your English fluency improvement. To heck, you
can even spend your evenings shadowing DVD sets of popular TV dramas
and then following it up with some spoken English self-practicing – and I
bet it’s going to make you into a quite a capable foreign English speaker!

Does Being Part of English Speaking

Society
Give You The Edge?
Sure it does!

I’ve experienced most of my spoken English improvement in the last few

years during which I’ve spent 8 hours every day speaking English with
native English speakers at work. Anything I’ve been practicing with
myself, any new words and phrases I may have learnt – I can try it all out
in real life during real conversations!

And of course, we can’t underestimate the importance of having an

English speaking friend – it’s really an invaluable asset for any foreign
English speaker to have. I have a friend at work, and it’s given me
thousands of opportunities over the three-year span to talk about any
imaginable matter – starting from politics, and ending with discussing
rock-bands and the fact that modern mainstream rock music is rather on
the soft side.
Surely the most effective and most natural way of immersing yourself
into the English language is speaking with other English speakers as
much as possible, and I can only agree with this notion ❗

However, the reason why I’m writing this article isn’t to discourage you
from improving your English while living in a foreign country.

Yes, it’s going to be tough, but IT IS POSSIBLE.

You can find a hundred reasons why NOT to improve your English, but
all it takes is a little bit of determination and consistency to see
significant improvement to your English fluency over a longer
period of time.

Read this blog post I wrote about passive ways of achieving English
immersion.

And here’s an article I wrote about active English immersion.

By the way, those articles just scratch the surface of the activities a
foreign English speaker can engage into, and it just goes to show how
much you can do to improve your spoken English even if you don’t live in
an English speaking country and you’re not part of an English speaking
society.

Believe it or not, speaking with other English speakers is only ONE OF

ways you can achieve full English immersion – just read those two
articles above and you’ll get the drift.

Here’s the bottom line.

Yes, living among other English speakers you’ll have a definite advantage
over those who have to go the extra mile to immerse themselves in
English.

Yes, speaking with other English speakers all day long for months and
years will take your English to the next level and make you really
comfortable when communicating with others.

All the aforementioned, however, shouldn’t deter you from working on

your English fluency while living in your home country or having limited
access to other English speakers.

You can achieve high fluency levels by:

 speaking English with yourself

 chatting with English speakers online
 reading English fiction
 shadowing English movies and TV series
  learning song lyrics and singing along

… and this list is not exhaustive by a long shot, my dear foreign English
speaking friends!

Robby

P.S. Would you like to find out why I’m highlighting some of the
text in red? Read this article and you’ll learn why it’s so important to
learn idiomatic expressions and how it will help you to improve your
spoken English!

P.S.S. Are you serious about your spoken English

improvement? Check out my English Harmony System HERE!

P.S. Are you serious about your spoken English

improvement? Check out the English Harmony System HERE!