FAQ: Learn Russian - Best Tips?
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Subject: Learn Russian - Best Tips?
Hi, I came across your website when googling on memory. The reason I'm writing is that my son's taking Russian this semester. He's been in class one week, and called last night to say he's struggling already.
Do you have any suggestions on how to make it easier for him to learn Russian? When I look at all the information on the web, it is quite overwhelming.
Thank you for your help.
Sue
My Answer:
Hi Sue,
As it happens, I know a little Russian myself. I've traveled to Russia four times in the last five years on personal business. I've been to Moscow and to Khabarovsk (in the Russian Far East).
Here are some suggestions that may help your son learn Russian vocabulary in particular:
1) Keyword Memory Technique. Have your son use the Keyword Method to memorize each Russian term (or at least the harder terms). Here's a link to a page on my site that briefly describes the method: http://www.memory-improvement-tips.com/memorizing-languages.html .
The way this method works is you take the phonetic sound of the foreign word and convert that into a mental image of an object or action. Then, in your mind, your create a subsequent mental picture that "links" that image with another image that represents the English definition of the word.
The stranger the images you think of, the better you will remember them, because the mind easily recalls the unusual but of course forgets the normal and everyday.
Read through my examples and you'll see how this works.
2) Memory Book. Get your son a copy of the book, "Super Memory, Super Student" by Harry Lorayne. You can find a link to it on my website here (second book on the page):
http://www..memory-improvement-tips.com/resources.html.
Chapters 8 and 10 (of my edition) explain how to use the Keyword Method to memorize English vocabulary, while Chapter 9 explains the same for foreign languages. (Lorayne calls his method the Substitute Word method but it's basically the same thing.)
Chapter 9 is particularly valuable because Lorayne includes several pages of exercises (using Spanish and French vocabulary). If you son carefully works through those exercises he'll know enough to apply the same technique to learn Russian vocabulary.
3) Flash cards. Most people hate rote memorizing, including me. The only thing that makes it tolerable for me is when I use flash cards. Have your son buy several packs of blank 3"x5" index cards. These are very inexpensive.
Every day of the semester, he should flip through part or all of his stack to test himself. One day practice English to Russian, the next day Russian to English.
I love flash cards because you can't cheat (either you know what's on the other side or you don't) plus you can review a large number of vocab words very quickly.
I leaned heavily on my Russian flash cards when I was in Russia and wanted to be able to use simple phrases, greetings, etc. with the people there.
4) Study Buddy. Can he find someone in his class to practice with? Learning a foreign language is a lot more fun (and memorable) if you can actually use what you learned with someone.
5) Listening Tapes. I'm sure his school has a language lab where he can listen to language tapes. It's really critical that he use those frequently if he ever wants to be able to learn Russian even at a basic level.
6) Russian Newspapers. After he learns the basics he should start reading Russian newspapers online in his free time. I would even say start now because it will help him get the general look and feel of the Russian language. He should already be able to pick out the individual letters and maybe the simpler words.
This will be hard at first since he won't know most of the words or expressions, but because everything in the paper is in-context (i.e., in the context of a narrative thread in a story), he will be able to figure out what many of the other words mean.
Here are links to a few Russian newspapers:
- Moscow Pravda: http://www.mospravda.ru/
- NEWSru: http://www.newsru.com/
- Gaudeamus (student newspaper): http://www.gaudeamus.spb.ru/
- Sobesednik (scandals, sensations, stars): http://www.sobesednik.ru/
There are obviously lots more you can find on the web.
7) Think Positive. A lot of people struggle with foreign languages. Tell you son to keep his chin up and just put in the effort.
Nobody said was going to be easy to learn Russian, especially for someone never exposed to it before. He's only a week into the class. It's too early to be getting overly discouraged.
I'm sure you son can overcome this by putting in the extra time and effort - and by using extra-mile techniques like those I outlined above that most of his classmates probably don't even know about.
I hope these suggestions help! Tell your son good luck for me.
If you have other questions, just let me know.
Best regards, Douglas
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