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Unlock Fluency: Reading To Master A Foreign Language

Author: Carl

Your Language Learning Expert!

We always think about speaking and listening first but reading to master a foreign language is an underrated but very effective way of learning. We often find it easy to speak and listen, and forget about other important skills such as reading and writing. Learning languages can be made easier by reading in your target language and the more commonly practiced listening and speaking. Of course, writing is also an important element of learning a language, however, the focus of this article will be reading. To learn effectively, all of these skills should be worked on and improved.

To improve your language skills, reading books should be practiced alongside the other skills. To do this well, however, it is best to know what books are best for you while learning a new language. There are a variety of book types to consider first: textbooks, grammar books, language story books, magazines or newspapers, workbooks, as well as traditional reading books

But what is the best book that you should read to learn a language? Are these books always the same or do they change per person? There several considerations to make before diving into the bookshop or the library. Below I have listed some things for you to think through to give you the best chance of finding the best book for learning a new language for you.

This post is going to look at specifically reading books. If you want to know how using textbooks and grammar books makes you master a foreign language, you will need to go to this post that can be found here.

Consider Your Skill Level Before Finding A Book

There are a lot of books out there, and it can be easy to feel overwhelmed when trying to find a book. To know if the book you are planning on reading will make you master your foreign language, you should first consider your own skill level. Don’t base this on your reading level in your native language, because you will know so many more words than you will in your target language.

Finding your own skill level is relatively easy. For finding your German language level, for example, you can simply find some well-known organizations such as the Goethe Institute for this. You can find a language skill level test here.

Once you have discovered your language level, you can consider the type, and difficulty, of the book that you wish to use.

Considerations Of Language Books

Language skills are similar to maths skills. You may be great in one area of maths, such as algebra, but when it comes to statistics, you just can’t seem to make it work. Similarly, with languages, your vocabulary or grammar knowledge may be top-notch in a particular area, but not as strong as you’d like in another. This doesn’t mean you’re failing at language learning. It simply means that you, like all humans, have strengths and weaknesses, as well as areas of interest and areas that you just don’t really like learning about.

This means that when finding a book, you should try to be aware of areas of weakness or places that you want to improve. Are you looking to; improve your general grammar knowledge, improve your reading ability, learn more about the country(s) your language is in, or perhaps read some classic literature? This will change the book(s) you want to find.

If you are looking for a grammar book, do you want exercise questions included, and do you want grammatical information to be in English or your target language?

Magazines And Newspapers

If you’re learning a new language, magazines and newspapers are a great resource to help you learn. Magazines and newspapers can help enhance language learning by ensuring your interest in the topic – you can pick the magazine or newspaper based on what interests you. This will make it more likely that you’ll read it more often and get more exposure to the language.

Magazines also help with cultural aspects of learning and show what is important in the country you are in. For example, if you’re learning Spanish, look at what’s popular with teenagers or young adults in Spain, like music or movies or football (soccer). It will give you an idea of what kinds of things people talk about and how they act in their everyday lives. Newspapers give you current events as well as expose you to a more formal vocabulary and grammar which is helpful for speaking with native speakers

The internet has become the most widely used resource for learning languages, but it’s not the only one. Magazines and newspapers are still popular among language learners, and they can help enhance language learning by ensuring your interest in the topic – you can pick the magazine or newspaper that interests you most. Magazines also help with cultural aspects of learning and show what is important in the country you are in. Newspapers can give you information on current events as well as expose you to a more formal vocabulary and grammar.

Magazines can be found at most bookstores, newsstands and libraries. You can also find them online through websites such as Amazon or eBay. Newspapers are a little harder to come by unless you live near a foreign country where they are sold locally or have access to an international airport.

Magazines and newspapers are helpful for language learning. Magazines can help you learn the vocabulary of the topic and give you some context. Newspapers can give you information on current events as well as expose you to a more formal vocabulary and grammar.

Magazines are generally easier to read than newspapers because they have shorter articles and tend to use simpler vocabulary. This allows learners to focus on the content while still getting exposure to new words. They also have photos or illustrations that can help learners understand what they’re reading about.

Newspapers are often written by professionals who know how to write in a way that is easy for native speakers, but that can be very challenging for non-native speakers. They often use complex sentences and difficult vocabulary, which makes them hard for learners to understand at first glance. However, once you get used to reading newspapers, they become an amazing source of information on current events in your target language country — especially if you subscribe to one!

If you consistently read a magazine or newspaper, you are more likely to be socially up to date with events and points of conversation, so that when you do travel to the country, you’ll have more to speak about as you’ll be aware of what is going on and be able to contribute to those conversations. It will result in an experience of feeling more like a local who already knows what is happening in the country, rather than a visitor who needs to be told what is happening and why the population feels the way they do about it.

Language Learning Reading Books

If you’re just not sure where to start with reading a book, I suggest that you start with Harry Potter. The reason this is such a popular suggestion is for several reasons. It is at a relatively low skill level that the language in your target language won’t be impossible to decipher. This means it will likely be around your skill level, particularly for the first book or two. After this, your language skills will be likely keeping up with the books themselves so you will be improving at the same speed as the books increase in complexity.

You have most likely already read Harry Potter. This is a good thing! It means you know roughly what should be happening in the book. If a unicorn appears, or chess pieces are used, you’ll be able to roughly get the gist of what is happening before you even need to look up many words. This will mean you’re able to tackle such a bit piece of text without giving up after the first few pages.

Finally, Harry Potter is translated into just so many languages. It’s actually surprising how many languages it is now translated into. I’ve listed below several popular languages that the Harry Potter series can be found in, as there is an almost limited supply of these.

You get the idea. This is certainly a very viable way to start your path in reading to make yourself a master of your target language.

Reading a language learning book is actually part of my tips for learning a language at home. This is because it’s such a powerful method of learning your target language, while being relatively simple in what you need to do.

The Classical Literature Of Your Target Language

One of the lesser-considered benefits of reading in your target language is that you get a better feel for the culture and way of thinking of the people you will be interacting with. If you have ever read some of the classic literature of English, you get a feel for how British people of yore lived. The way they thought of things, their values, and what they believed come to light within these pages. The same is true of all cultures.

One book I would recommend if you are learning Spanish is the book titled “One Hundred Years Of Solitude” or Cien Anos de Soledad. This offers great insight into a completely different way of thinking, as well as background into a different historical context compared to English speakers.

This is where the beauty of language learning comes to light. It’s not just learning the words, but it’s understanding a whole different view on life. People who speak another language don’t just say different words. They see the world differently and understand their history differently from yours. It’s an incredible experience, that reading can help enlighten you on.

I have also written some further information on the way that reading makes you master your foreign language, with particular reference to German literature here, if you want further reading on the topic.