Recommended Learning Tools
The right tools
Nowadays, it has become easier than ever to find apps that promise:
”Learn English effortlessly” or ”Learn English with 5 minutes per day”.
From games to vocabulary challenges, there are many options available. Even so, many learners find out that they aren’t making the progress they expected.
Are you one of them?
It’s important to understand that tools by themselves won’t solve your difficulties, but with the right tools and a well-structured studying program, your results will can be effective.
However, you may ask yourself: “Which are the best tools?”
Let us check together Alpha Idiomas’ Recommended Learning Tools.
Dictionaries
Using English-English dictionaries can be one of the best habits you develop in order to avoid relying on your mother tongue – your comfort zone.
For that, a complete dictionary is very useful, for instance;
This is one of the best dictionaries for English learners, as it offers; clear definitions, example sentences, grammar information, phonemes for both British and American English. The are also pictures and illustrations of some words you search, helping you learn without the need of translation.
Merriam-Webster explains the meanings of a word, provides the pronunciation, examples of usages in sentences, synonyms, and more.
The dictionary can be accessed as an APP for your smartphone, or even throught your browser, where you’ll also find games and fun ways of practicing!
Thesaurus is an excellent tool to expand your vocabulary by suggesting synonyms, antonyms and related words. It can help you express your ideas more precisely instead of using the same vocabulary over and over again.
This one is a complete dictionary. However, its best feature is that you can listen to the pronunciation of each word in UK, UK-Yorkshire, UK-Scottish, US, US-Southern, Irish English, and Jamaican English!
Another great usage for WordReference is its “English collocations” dictionary, where you can find common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the selected word in different contexts.
Oratory
Learn English Sounds Right (app)
This app introduces English phonemes — the individual sounds that make up the language. As the English pronunciation doesn’t always match spelling, learning these sounds can make a huge difference in your pronunciation and listening comprehension.
Thus, this app is a great tool to improve your oratory!
All English Idioms & Phrases (app)
Idioms and everyday expressions are an important part of how native speakers communicate. They appear constantly in conversations, movies, songs, and TV shows.
This app helps you understand those expressions through explanations and examples, making your English sound more natural. This will also help you practicing and improving listening comprehension.
Some English words are pronounced in different ways depending on the region or country. Forvo helps you become familiar with these variations through recordings from native speakers around the world.
It is one of the largest pronunciation dictionaries in the world, and can be useful when learning names, places, vocabulary and even less common words.
Originally designed for musicians, Pro Metronome can also be a valuable tool for those learning languages!
By repeating words and sentences at a steady rhythm, you develop better pacing, clearer pronunciation, and greater fluency.
Try repeating sentences along with the metronome, then, gradually increase the tempo as your confidence grows.
Reading
Reading the news is a remarkably good way to learn vocabulary in context while staying informed about the world. A wide range of topics can be found in CNN, like technology, science, sports, entertainment, business, and international news.
BBC News is known for its clear writing style. Its articles are well organized and cover themes from world events to health, culture, education, and science. Reading it regularly is a great way to become familiar with formal written English.
It provides thousands of free audiobooks recorded by volunteers all over the world; many of those are classics that are now public domain.
Listening while following the written text is a prime exercise for improving listening comprehension and reading fluency.
Make use of its powerful search engine to see real life examples and usages of specific vocabulary.
Instead of memorizing definitions, you can see how words are naturally used in many different contexts.
Both the app JW Library, and the webpage JW.org offer articles, short videos, animations, movies, talks, dramas, songs, interviews, studies, the Bible and Bible publications in more than 1 thousand languages, including English, all done by volunteers!
Due to its content being carefully translated and organized, it’s an exceptional resource for learning vocabulary, seeing English being used in everyday situations and topics, listening to professional audio narration with the finest pronunciation, and watching videos that can help you learn English while enriching your life knowledge.
Games
If you enjoy SHMUP games, Z-Type turns typing practice into an exciting space adventure. To defeat enemy ships, you must quickly type the words appearing on the screen.
It’s a fun way to improve both your typing speed and your spelling.
It turns spelling practice into a game of Tetris! You’re challenged to recognize, remember and correctly spell English words while the clock is ticking.
It’s an awesome way to practice vocabulary.
This game combines crossword puzzles with visiting tourist spots around the world. By connecting letters, you’ll form words while gradually expanding your vocabulary.
It’s ideal for those who enjoy solving puzzles, and is exceptional to practice and learn new vocabulary.
Challenge yourself to find the single secret word that connects four different images!
This classic game is a fantastic exercise to to build visual association and context with vocabulary while you connect meanings behind images to find a specific idea as a single word – a very important skill for learning a language like a native.
Will they work for you?
These tools are like shortcuts that are going to help you getting to your destination – English Fluency. However, just like a car, you need more than just shortcuts, you need to be moving.
Remember… Every little bit of practice brings you closer to your destination.
So, try out those free resources, check which ones work best for you and pair them with an efficient studying program on Alpha Idiomas!
Não perca mais tempo!
Conheça nossa metodologia de aprendizagem acelerada e conecte-se ao mundo.
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