Picture from wikipedia.org
I just got back from a lovely little camping trip with my family. There were many things about this trip that I loved. I loved playing with my kids in a river and in a lake and spending time with my sister and brother-in-law, but the thing I like the most about the trip was that I was unplugged from the world for several days in a row. I was able to relax, think, and basically clear my mind of things. There is some type of healing that goes on when you totally walk away from things. You get a fresh start and a clearer picture of what is most important to you. It’s something you can’t do on a weekend. You need a “vacation” to help you step away from your world, so you can see it better.
How this applies to language learning
Up to this point I have spent my weekends focused on Thai. Since figuring out how to learn two languages at once, I never really stop learning Thai or Spanish, but I always spend my Weekends Focused on Thai. This allows me to both improve my Thai and start my Spanish language anew and refreshed.
What I realized this weekend was that I need to do that, but I also need to take a regular “holiday” from my Spanish. Spend a whole week, just doing something other than Spanish. So from this point on I will spend the last week per month, doing something other than actively learning Spanish. For me this means I will work on my Thai, but for anyone it could mean reading a book or practicing an instrument that you really want to learn. It doesn’t matter what it is, just take a vacation from your language.
We will see how this changes when I start another langauge project, but for now my final week of the month will be spent doing something other than Spanish. How will you spend you language vacation?
Related articles
- Another Guest post at Women Learn Thai (want2speakthai.com)
- How to Type in Other Languages Online (want2speakthai.com)
- Where I Stand (want2speakthai.com)
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