# Fun ways to learn English **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 20, 2002, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763 "2002-08-20T17:30:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/1 "2002-08-20T17:30:02Z")
I have this kid cousin who’s 18 but he knows very little English as he’s Chinese. Maybe the level of a six or seven year old native speaker. Anycow, do you know of any fun ways to teach English as a second language? I don’t like go through the rote memorisation route, because that’s boring, painful, and doesn’t work very well. All suggestions are welcome. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![MrVisible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@MrVisible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrVisible)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/2 "2002-08-20T19:34:28Z")
Oddly enough, I learned Spanish from a dictator. I was an American kid at a Spanish elementary school, and I knew almost no Spanish. I had a teacher who used to read a couple of pages a day of a biography of Galileo, and we were all supposed to write it down. Fortunately, the teacher was patient and good at explaining himself, and the dictation I got back was thoroughly corrected, without being mean. I learned fast. Find a book you think he’d like, and read it out loud, and have him write it down. It helps with comprehending the spoken language and the written language. And it was fun; I have a fondness for Galileo to this day. ---
**Author:** ![Coilean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f6c823/32.png) [@Coilean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coilean)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/3 "2002-08-20T20:28:42Z")
Music! Whenever I make an attempt to learn a language the first thing I do is grab a few of the current chart toppers (learn the language and a bit of pop culture) and put them in the cd tray. Spend enough time singing along and you’d be surprised how much you pick up. Reading the newspaper is also a good idea. They tend to be written in plain English and it keeps the learner up to date with current affairs. The big benefit of the two ideas above if that they give your learner access to casual conversation. What music do you like? What do you think about (well not much happens in August but you get the point)? Having conversations like this is a nice way to sneak in the odd grammar lesson that would otherwise be a real pain in the ass. If you need help building vocab., this may sound silly but I swear it works, have him label everything in the house with Post-it notes (in the target language, not both). And don’t forget the holy grail of learning methods, a native speaking boy/girlfriend. Arrange for that and you’ll see language skills go through the roof! ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/4 "2002-08-20T21:54:14Z")
If he’s in the US, put the closed captioning up while he’s watching TV. It’ll help with reading and syntax, that sort of thing. StG ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/5 "2002-08-20T21:58:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MrVisible \* > **Oddly enough, I learned Spanish from a dictator.** You learned Spanish from Francisco Franco?!? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![MrVisible](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/46a35a/32.png) [@MrVisible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrVisible)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/6 "2002-08-20T23:01:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by h.sapiens \* > You learned Spanish from Francisco Franco?!? 😉 Kinda. And the closed captioning, he said, neatly returning to the OP, is a great idea. Maybe even on movies in Chinese, on the DVD player. It can be a great way to brush up on your vocabulary, especially with movies that bear repeated viewings. ---
**Author:** ![Dragonblink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Dragonblink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragonblink)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2002, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/7 "2002-08-20T23:10:32Z")
DVDs are an incredible help – I listen to French audio tracks and/or turn on French subtitles all the time, to see how they translate stuff. Also, English translations of Chinese books that your cousin likes might also be helpful, as long as they’re fairly simple books. It helps show how idioms change between the two languages, and if you already know basically what’s being said it’s easier to read them, since you’re not lost in a sea of incomprehension. ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/8 "2002-08-21T01:23:00Z")
Is there any camp kind of thing he can do? I know you said he was 18, but something like Shad Valley (offered in Canada - look into it and see if theres an equivalent where you are) is offered for kids that age. My SO went (I’m just an “honorary shad” because I go to all the reuniun parties) when he was 17, barely speaking a word of English (he’s French Canadian). It was a month immersed in the language, but also a kind of science/engineering camp…I don’t know how to describe it really, but he, and everyone who has ever been there, seem to think it was the greatest thing ever. My SO basically learned to speak English there, and it was what prompted him to go to an English college and university. ---
**Author:** ![Cougarfang](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c67d28/32.png) [@Cougarfang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cougarfang)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/9 "2002-08-21T04:10:12Z")
Full immersion works, but it’s not all that fun… Where does your cousin live? ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/10 "2002-08-21T04:23:15Z")
Thanks all. 🙂 I forgot to mention that he lives in a Chinese city where full immersion is, well, impossible. If he had grown up in a North American city he’d speaking English just like the natives. ---
**Author:** ![Eva\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Eva\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eva_Luna)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/11 "2002-08-21T13:38:35Z")
My personal favorite: have him fall head over heels for a native English speaker who doesn’t speak his own language! I imagine there’s somewhat of a shortage of these in his neighborhood, though. Internet radio, then, maybe? ---
**Author:** ![irae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f0a364/32.png) [@irae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irae)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/12 "2002-08-21T16:45:26Z")
One of my students a bit younger than that responded really well to Mad and Cracked magazines. They’re full of slang and cultural literacy stuff, and not ::ahem:: over anyone’s head. Of course, if he overdoes it the rest of his mind may turn into tapioca, and ‘Spy vs. Spy’ does **not** count as a page. Are you there teaching him, or sending him materials/ideas, or what? ---
**Author:** ![irae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f0a364/32.png) [@irae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irae)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2002, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/13 "2002-08-21T16:47:16Z")
Oh… and the GF idea, if you can arrange it, is a sure bet for _someone_ learning a second language. ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/14 "2002-08-22T05:50:39Z")
I don’t think I can arrange him a GF, at least not yet. And yes I am teaching him English. It’s a good thing that he wants to learn, instead of feeling foisted upon by his parents. ---
**Author:** ![jmpride62](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@jmpride62](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jmpride62)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/15 "2002-08-22T12:35:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by StGermain \* > \*\*If he’s in the US, put the closed captioning up while he’s watching TV. It’ll help with reading and syntax, that sort of thing. > > StG \*\* I would definitely agree. My first college roommate was an ESOL student, and found closed captioning very helpful. One thing, you might want to mention is that it’s not always accurate, especially with live news programming. ---
**Author:** ![irae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/f0a364/32.png) [@irae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/irae)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/16 "2002-08-22T15:21:01Z")
Teaching other subjects in English can be interesting, too. I taught one student to play the bass, and we talked about music, gear, etc. Taught another of my students Photoshop, and we worked through some projects together. Getting away from the desk can be fun. Maybe have him take you on a guided tour of the local sites? Finding something that interests him is going to give him the subject-area vocabulary he needs, and he’ll retain it better than words he doesn’t use often. ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2002, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fun-ways-to-learn-english/124763/17 "2002-08-22T17:42:12Z")
All good ideas, except that there’s no closed captioning. ☹