Whether for work, for study reasons or because you are planning on moving to Germany, learning German is a life experience on its own. Few courageous people pursue the learning of the language for mere delight. Although seemingly impossible at first, these 5 advices can be of great help (if coupled with good will and determination).

1.Don’t expect to be perfect

The first encounters with compound words, not to mention the peculiar gender allocation, can be absolutely demoralizing. But more than deciding to learn all of the new vocabularies by heart, and shyly wait for years of courses before attempting to mumble a few sentences, the advice is to throw yourself with no shame nor fear. True for every language, this is particularly pertinent to German.

2. Read your favorite books in German

To read a text, whether a book, short story, poem or what not in German can be of great help to learn new expressions that we wouldn’t have otherwise been able to learn. For beginners even children’s’ books can help to find confidence with the language. Even more, a bilingual edition of the text could be more helpful for others. If instead you want to throw yourself in a fully German translation, don’t get discouraged if having to run to the dictionary often.

3. Listen to songs and watch movies in German

If you still don’t know German bands or singers, the time has come to route around Youtube. The lyrics of a song as we all know are easier to learn and allow us to expand our vocabulary. Regarding movies, as for books it would be advised to start by watching those that we already familiar with. We already talked about 5 useful TV series that can help to enhance our knowledge of the language. If the sounds might sound incomprehensible at first, don’t give up, with a good dose of determination you will start to understand bits and pieces and trust us, it will be a great satisfaction.

4. Watch tutorials on Youtube

On Youtube there are several video-courses on pronunciation and grammar tips. Even following videos on topics that interest us can help us develop a specific lexicon and enhance our interest. It doesn’t matter whether they are ‘serious’ videos or not, the important thing is to be motivated by curiosity and not only be a sense of duty.

5. Get out of your shell and make friends!

Although it might be hard at first, it is very important to seek for German people with whom you can converse, overcoming the initial obstacle of embarrassment and the lack of appropriate terms for the occasion. Alcohol in these contexts is known to help dissolve and lose many inhibitions, but everything must start with the willpower and the desire to open up their own horizons, to confront and integrate into the new environment in which you want to live.l

Another option out of the list that we feel is advising you, fundamental to learning the basics of grammar and to melting in the conversation, is attending a German course. If your choice falls on this option (obviously in addition to the others), you can write to info@berlinoschule.com, Berlin’s Berlin Magazine German School. You will be provided with all the information to enroll yourself in a course with qualified teachers and an international environment to start practicing this beautiful language directly on the field!

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