The time is now! Be Active when Studying English

Communicating in a foreign language can be scary. No one wants to make a mistake and feel it is embarrassing to make simple errors. You have taken a big step and decided to study English, but you still feel nervous and keep your answers short and simple. It's natural and you are not alone in this. But you are making the task more difficult than it needs to be.

As a long term teacher, I will let you in on a little secret. We don't care if you make a mistake. We don't think less of you. Sometimes we understand what you were saying anyway. The professional in front of you is there and ready to help you. I know I am. In fact I sometimes get happy when students make mistakes because it gives us a chance to find the areas you need to grow. Some of my best students might not be grammatically excellent, but they speak with no fear. And that brings me to the main point of this post.

They key to growing in English is being active. Of course, I mean taking notes and reviewing as teachers have probably told you since you were young. I also mean that you need to be active in the class. You need to make every effort to explain your idea and express yourself. If you don't know the word, talk around it, try to explain the word. Every mistake you make, take note and review it, then make a promise to yourself to try to use it next time you study. You won't regret it and you will be amazed at how a small change goes a long way!