Part 26
During the 30/30 Challenge your ears and brain will adjust to the sound of English and you will become more and more receptive to the language. The 30/30 Challenge is an exercise that serves many purposes, one of which is to overcome your inner resistance to authentic spoken English and your fear that you "don't understand native speakers". As we have discussed before, when it comes to learning a language there are two definitions of the verb 'to understand'. Most people think that to understand a word means to know its meaning. This is merely half the truth because you can only learn the meaning of a new word if you first understand it 'phonetically'. You need to be able to recognize the sound patterns of new words and phrases if you want to learn them. This is where the vast majority of English learners fail. They never get enough exposure to spoken English.
They limit their listening activities to just a few hours of classroom English or a couple of ESL audio sessions. Your approach should be different because you want different results. You want to be winner and make the very best of your potential. So let's get back to your typical 30/30 Challenge day. After you woke up you switched on the telly and tuned it in to English. If you don't have access to TV programmes in English, you can use an audio book instead. Whatever resource you are using, make sure that you get exposed to spoken English right after you wake up. Feed your ears with English while while you are having breakfast. If have a spouse and kids they probably want to talk to you in the morning and you might get distracted if you have an English audio recording play in the background. Explain to your family that you are on the 30/30 Challenge and that it is vital that they support you. Ask your family if they want to try the challenge together with you. If this doesn't work, then you should simply get up 15 minutes earlier than usual so you have a little time for yourself before the rest of your family awakes.
If you have any English grammar or vocabulary questions,
please post them on this English Grammar Forum.
