By Robby
If you are new here please read this first.
Learning to speak as a native English speaker is a difficult challenge in itself, yet when it comes to writing, you’re entering a whole new world of the English language. Not only will you need to fully understand grammar and sentence structure, your writing must make sense! That’s why I’ve found 5 useful tips international students can use so they too, can start writing like native English speakers.
Read Different Material for Different Purposes
Reading a wide range of different materials will help you understand when and where to use certain sentence structuring and grammar. For example, you will more than likely see a casual written style on say, a blog or personal website. In the case of brochures or professional sites or print works, you will see a more formal written style.
Being exposed to a wide variety of different written works will help you better understand the English language as a whole since you will see formal, casual, and sometimes even slang, English words being written. Make sure you read as many different materials as you can that can include: brochures, blogs, magazines, newspapers, reports, or even books.
Taking advantage of all sorts of printed material will help you to recognize how to use the different structures, grammar, and writing styles that are part of the English language.
Build Your Own Dictionary
As you learn more and more through your English language studies, you might find that some words will slip through the cracks. Keep a personal dictionary for yourself to reference at any point in time.
In this dictionary include idioms, popular phrases, slang, and especially any irregular verbs. Not only will writing it down allow it to be easier to remember, but you will have a great reference point to go back to when you write something. Not to mention, using your own dictionary can be better than online translators, as they are not always correct.
Just make sure to keep a pen or pencil on hand, along with your new self-made dictionary. That way, you can write down any additions to the dictionary when you read or hear them. Writing in your dictionary in the moment will help you with accuracy as well as prevent you from forgetting to add the new words or rules to your dictionary later.
In addition to a personal dictionary, you can also keep a thesaurus on hand. A thesaurus will help you to become familiar with the different uses for words as well as finding other words to use instead of the same ones all the time. The purpose of the thesaurus is to help provide variety in your language since there are many words in English that have the same meaning. As you learn new words and put them to use in your spoken or written English, you will have a better command of the English language as a whole.
Engage in Real-Time Conversations Online
Getting online in chat rooms or joining a popular forum is an excellent way to practice your written conversation with others. Practicing your writing skills will only seek to improve after you have learned how to think in English. Engaging in real-time conversations is the best method to train your brain to do just that.
Because forums and chat rooms occur in real time, your responses will need to quick. This training will not only hone your English thinking skills, but also your writing skills- and eventually you will be able to hone your pronunciation skills.
After you have been able to practice your pronunciation skills, you can put that to good use in areas of life such as a job interview or maybe even translating. At the end of the day, engaging in real time written conversation will be vital for your overall English language skills- especially reading and writing.
Write on Your Personal Blog
Those who are avid niche blog readers are sticklers for the rules of grammar in the English language. They view any spelling errors or mistakes in grammar as unprofessional and a waste of time on their part.
However, starting a personal blog is a great way to share your story with the world while being out of the line of fire from strict readers. Your readers will be able to understand that you are learning English just so long as you share that bit of information on your blog!
Writing on a personal blog will also help you to practice your writing skills, tell a story, share personal experiences, or even your own opinions. Whatever it is you decide to write about on your personal blog, just make sure you write as often as possible. Writing on your blog regularly will enhance your writing and your speech skills as well. It also helps to write about something you are interested in so you feel motivated to continue writing on your blog as often as possible.
Stay Humble
Now, one thing you must absolutely remember no matter which stage you are in of learning the English language, is to stay humble. There will always be someone who wants to offer constructive criticism and you need to keep in mind they are just trying to help.
While some people may come across nicer than others, anytime you receive constructive criticism, you should take it to heart, but not offense. As you learn, you will need to be able to share your work with others. This could be your teacher, fellow students, or even a close friend. Make sure to have the confidence to share your writing and expect to hear a little constructive criticism.
No matter how long you have been studying English, mistakes and errors happen, even to Native English speakers. Make sure you are humble and grateful for those who happen to correct any mistakes and/or errors you have made. Not only will it help you to correct the mistake or error, you will be guided in the right direction from then on out. Chances are, once you’ve had a mistake pointed out to you, you won’t make it again.
Be thankful for those who are taking the time out of their day to read and review your work. Their advice can be extremely helpful to advancing your English language skills. Keep an open mind and heart and be open to any constructive criticism, it will only serve to help you improve in the long run.
Learning English can be a great experience for your personal life and even your career. Make sure you have taken the time to make an effort to learn all the different jargon, rules, and writing styles involved in the written English language. You should also make edits to your work and re-write your pieces often. Editing and re-writing will not only keep you practicing, but it will help you to hone your writing skills even further as you remove any errors and correct any mistakes.
When you keep the above five tips in mind in addition to practicing every day and seeking advice from native English speakers will help you along on your journey to becoming fully fluent in spoken and written English!
Laura Carter is an academic enthusiasts that loves writing more than everything. Check her site Writing Service where she creates honest reviews on most popular academic writing companies in the world.
P.S. Are you serious about your spoken English improvement? Check out the English Harmony System HERE!
