What is the best way to learn a language when you learn by yourself?

[14-year old girl]

Can you give me some tips, tricks, websites, anything that will help me learn Tagalog, also how many languages do you know and how did you learn them? I can't afford to buy Rosseta stone or those things as I am only 14 but I really really want to learn Tagalog over the summer... Thank you.

[Cody Becker]

Rosetta Stone. It's AMAZING.

[Svetlana]

The fact of the matter enhancing ones linguistic skills is a vastly exhaustive endeavor. One lingual factor (such as speaking) cannot strengthened while ignoring the other aspects. All dimensions must be covered.

Language learning must be made fun to evade discouragement. Lessons are vital , but as are these:

1) Listening/watching: Keep listening to radio stations as well as watching TV shows in the target language. (Subtitles are crucial here)

2) Writing/reading/communication: Discover discussion forums on things that you find interesting and FUN (music/various artists, hobbies, etc.) and start communicating there with other people using only the target language. Start using instant messaging systems in case you find some new friends or start emailing them. Do NOT fear making mistakes or hesitating, because even native speakers do make mistakes and do hesitate at times! The more enjoyable the experience, the more proneness to success.

3) Purchase a bilingual dictionary with your native language and the target language. Upon encountering a new word, search it up in the dictionary. Placing words in their context is one of the greatest antics to increase one's vocabulary and grammar knowledge. The more skillful in reading and writing also, the better. Memorizing in itself isn't the best way to go with learning vocabulary, grammar or any other language brackets! For idioms, you should buy a dictionary which explains the words and shows you examples of how to use the words.

The most crucial point is to make it as fun as possible for yourself. Try to locate interesting topics. Read online newspapers, listen radio stations online, if you find a discussion forum for e.g. your favorite hobby or your idols in music do participate there, etc. The essential word here is context, which indicates that it is simpler to learn new words and their usage as well as grammar when you use/see them in their real context . The more frequent you see and hear the new words in their context and the more you use them in your speech & writing, the easier it becomes to remember their meanings and correct spelling. Although don't fear making flaws since native speakers do make mistakes at points.

I apologize, but there isn't an easy method.

Finally but not least: Never ever use online translators. They are inaccurate and useless. Do refrain from overrated, overpriced language gimmicks such as Rosetta Stone.

Good luck!

[BobOng]

If you really want to learn tagalog on your own , watch tagalog tv shows , thats the easiest way i know

[Aya]

Hello!

I don't know if you would find these helpful, but I've been trying to learn a foreign language myself and they work pretty well for me:

- Listening to songs done in the target language

I find it easier to remember song lyrics than plain words. I can easily forget words that I have picked at random, say from a dictionary, but I have a fair chance of remembering from which song I have heard a certain word and how it was used. For this, I find websites that display the song lyrics in the original language in one side and the English translation of the song lyrics on the other side quite handy since I can use them for comparison. This method works well for me since I play a song I like over and over again, so even if I don't make much effort memorizing the lyrics, I'm bound to remember a couple of words after some time, especially those that often appear in songs.

http://tagalogsongtranslations.blogspot.com/
this might not be a very good source, it's actually my blog (which I haven't updated in ages), but you can start from there if you like. ^^;

- Watching subtitled films or TV shows done in the target language

I'm fairly used to watching subtitled videos, so it works well for me, but trying to pick random words in a foreign language while catching up with the subtitles might prove to be a bit tricky if you're not used to watching with subs at first, but once you have gotten used to it (if you haven't tried it yet) it can actually be fun. You'll just have to find something that you enjoy watching or at the very least something you can stand to watch. Just like the case with song lyrics, you might not remember all the words you hear immediately, but over time, you're bound to pick up some words. Plus, you also get to hear how native speakers use the words in different settings and circumstances.

- Playing games designed for language learners

I like trivia and things like those, so I find these games fun and interesting since I get to play and learn at the same time. Also, most of these sites are user-friendly so you won't probably get bored that easily.
Here's one of the sites I use:
http://iteslj.org/v/t/

- Finding a language partner

Personally, I think the best way to learn a language is to learn from a native speaker. You will not only get to hear how the words are pronounced, you can also learn words/phrases/sentences that you can use in casual conversations (as opposed to overly formal ones that would be awkward to use in casual situations)
Aside from that, you can also get some feedback real time, so you can seek clarifications or ask for an evaluation before you move on to the next topic. That, plus you can exchange information about your country and culture while learning the language at the same time.

If you haven't tried language exchange, try a site that facilitates it. There are a handful that does it for no charge at all. You'll find a lot of people who will be more than glad to exchange languages with you, especially if you are a native English speaker.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=26…
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=23…

I'm comfortable with two languages, Tagalog, which is my mother tongue, and English which is my second language. I can understand some basic Japanese, but I'm still struggling with composing whole sentences on my own right now. I learned English from reading English books when I was a kid. I loved all sorts of stories, so I would patiently read books even if I don't understand what they say. I started with asking my mom to translate them for me, but when she got busy, I had to learn the language by myself, which I managed to do by reading the books over and over again until familiar words started popping up. I learned/am learning Japanese through the methods I mentioned above.