The one thing that learners tell us all the time is: "I want to practice my speaking skills"
"I want to speak. Speak Speak Speak Speak".
We hear it every day.
Now, I understand that it's difficult for many of you because you might not have the opportunity
So that's why I'm gonna tell you three ways that you can practice your speaking skills on your own.
That's coming up.
So I think that just about everybody out there would like to improve their speaking skills
because when we're practicing our speaking skills, we're kind of taking everything that we've learned
And trying to put it together, and think quickly, and have that natural
free-flowing conversation.
And it really makes us feel like: Yeah, we're making some progress.
We're improving our language skills.
So I understand why everybody out there would love to practice their speaking skills.
But I also realized that it's not possible for many of you because you don't have a language partner
or maybe you're not taking English lessons and
getting that opportunity or the opportunity you would like to have a conversation and practice speaking
That's why I want to talk to you about three ways that you can practice your speaking skills on your own
and try to improve, so that way the next time you DO get the opportunity to speak with somebody else,
you'll maybe feel a little more confident and ready to have that conversation.
Now, before I talk to you about these three amazing ways to study on your own,
I want to address one thing- because many of you might be thinking:
Well, I don't know how valuable this could be because nobody is able to correct my mistakes.
And that's true. Nobody is going to correct your mistakes,
but I want to say that that should not be your primary focus,
especially when you're talking about your own self-study.
The idea is just to get that practice and to start using and speaking the language.
Don't worry about making mistakes,
Don't worry about trying to correct all of your errors.
The goal is just to use the language and practice and practice and practice
because practice makes perfect.
The first way to practice your speaking skills, (and I know you might think: "Well this is just ridiculous", but it's not)
is to talk to yourself.
Have a conversation with yourself.
I do this when I'm learning other languages.
I try to create a conversation in my head and maybe I ask myself a question about a certain situation
and then think: well how am I going to respond to that question?
What words or phrases do I need to use?
and then you're having this conversation in your head
And then all of a sudden: Wow, I'm actually thinking in another language!
That's one of the first steps to start thinking in another language
is to actually start using the language on your own, in your mind, in your head.
So have a conversation with yourself!
It doesn't have to be a conversation that you wouldn't have in real life.
Think about: how would I talk to somebody about their job?
How would I talk to somebody when I first meet them?
What are some things I would ask? What would I say? How might this other person respond?
and then keep the conversation going.
Or maybe you think about the things that you need to do in your daily life:
things that you are doing at that moment
If you're preparing some food for dinner, think about the steps you're taking
What do you need to do? What other food do you wish you had in order to make the meal better?
Have that conversation with yourself.
First because at some point you will have that conversation
with somebody else for real,
And then you'll be a little more familiar with this topic and the words or phrases that you might want to use
to express your ideas and opinions.
So talking to yourself is a valuable way to practice on your own.
The next way to practice speaking on your own is to read out loud.
I used to have an instructor who told me that reading out loud: it is not a reading skill, it is a speaking skill.
mostly because you're listening for people's pronunciation
And it is true. This is a speaking skill.
Reading out loud, pronouncing the words, using the language correctly
is an important way to practice those skills
Also, when you're reading out loud, you're really practicing the rhythm and flow of speech.
You're able to practice your cadence, which is the inflection in your voice
because you are following the punctuation that you see.
For example, if there's a comma, you're taking a short pause.
If there's a period at the end of the sentence, then you'll take a breath.
And because you're able to follow the punctuation,
It's going to sound like a more natural conversation.
And I would suggest reading out loud books that have dialogue in them
that actually have conversation and you're speaking.
You're actually saying that conversation out loud,
as well as maybe capturing the mood of what's going on in the story.
So reading out loud can be a very valuable way of practicing your speaking skills.
The final way to practice your speaking skills is to speak to a video.
And that is actually your practice for today.
We are going to have a very short conversation
And I want you to respond to my questions speaking out loud.
As crazy as this may seem, people actually do this.
For example, a lot of language exams:
They can't always have somebody speaking to you, so you have to record your answers on the computer
And you're basically speaking to the computer.
So, we're going to try that and this is our practice for today:
I'm going to ask you a question and then a follow-up question, and I want you to give me your answers out loud.
All right, this is just a very simple short conversation.
Are you ready? Here's your first question.
So where did you go yesterday?
Okay, well why did you do that?
So I hope you gave an answer out loud.
Again, just a short sentence answering that question.
Now, to check if maybe what you said is correct, think about the question that I asked you:
Where did you go yesterday?
I'm talking about the past, so you should have answered using the past tense;
using that past simple because we're talking about something that happened yesterday.
Are you ready for another question?
All right, here we go:
What will you do tomorrow?
Well, do you think that'll be fun?
For these answers, you should have used the future tense because again we're talking about tomorrow
I was asking you: What will you do tomorrow?
So you should have responded using "will" or "be going to" because those are the two ways that we talk about the future.
So you can go back and practice again and practice giving different responses
and pretend like we're having a conversation and think about:
Well, what do you want to say?
How can you describe these things?
It's all good practice.
Also, if you actually did practice and say your answers out loud
I want to know, so:
If you did, I want you to write the word SPEAKING in the comments below
So that way I know that you were actually speaking and using the language
and giving your answers out loud.
I hope that you're able to use my suggestions to practice your speaking skills
and be prepared for the next time you really do have a conversation.
If you enjoyed this lesson, please give this video a thumbs up
and share it with anybody else - you know- who's trying to practice and improve their English skills.
Thank you guys so much for watching, and we'll see you next time.