A majority of people use social media sites so why not use them more productivity to meet goals.
Firstly set your language settings to your target language on social media and your mobile, but I would not recommend this for complete beginners and also ensure you know how to get back to the language settings should you need too.
Firstly post that you are learning a new language. Not only will this help with accountability, but you may also find that you have some potential study buddies or language exchange partners on hand too! Secondly make the most of customising your news feeds to aid in language learning. For example:
- ‘Like’ several pages that are in your target language, comment and like the posts.
- Start posting some items that are in your target language.
Make a tweet in your target language keeping in mind that you have a 140 character limit, and see if your pupils can strike up a conversation with you. Impose a non-English only reply and retweet rule.
You Tube
Make some vlogs speaking about hobbies, thoughts or opinions on topical news stories, but speaking only in a foreign language. You don’t have to make it public, but hearing yourself speak the language is not only a good way to document progress, but also hear the areas you need to focus on.
Pinterest/Instagram
Take some pictures of prompt cards, post-it notes or even objects with their description in another language and ‘pin’ them on your boards or give them the Istragram treatment! You could even look for photos of the country, or infographics on your target language.
Tumblr
Dedicate it entirely to publishing content in the language you teach. Show your pupils why you love the language and inspire them to do the same. Ask them to write something, however small, and post it for the whole world to admire.
Other
There are many other sites that could be used too. It is finding those that best suit you and your learning style. I would recommend checking out:
- Future Learn, Coursera or EdX to see if they are offering any FREE courses in your target language.
- There is also a course by a fab lady called Lindsay that will help you to get the best out of using Social Media for language learning. The course costs about $50 and details can be found here. http://www.lindsaydoeslanguages.com/sms
Also don’t forget too…
If using a PC or MAC make use of your desktop! I have optimised mine for language learning. My background is the British Sign Language (BSL) alphabet. I have direct shortcuts to Memrise, Duolingo and Language Transfer. I also have sticky notes with the key phrases/words I am currently learning. Plus a shortcut to my language learning file.
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