At English Steward, we have classes for both American kids who need to improve their reading and writing skills and for kids from other countries who have come to visit or live here, and need to learn more English to thrive in school.  But we also have adult students who need to learn English to live and be successful here.  

The biggest worry I hear from adult students is that they are not learning English quickly enough.  My response?  Learning English takes time.  That is obvious.  For adults it takes much longer than for children.  I've taught a wide age range of students and found that young children can remember the pronunciation, meaning, and spelling of a word after just seeing the word once or twice.  Late Elementary and Jr. High students take four or five times.  And High School students can remember more than adults, but definitely must work harder to learn than young Elementary students. 

So, what does this mean for adults who are learning English?  They must remember a few things:

1. Language is a living thing and has a mind of its own.  I didn't believe this when my Spanish teacher told me in High School, or when my French professor said that in college.  It took my personal experience with learning many languages to learn this.  Language is like a person you have to build a relationship with.  You have to learn more about it through experience, working with it, talking with it and getting to know it over time.  Learning English takes time, but it's well worth it, because the more you learn it, the more opportunity it provides.
2. Therefore, an English learner must study, hear and use their English every day, even if it is in a small way or for a short time.  I learned Spanish for six years, but remember very few words right now.  But when I was in Guatemala, within a week, some Spanish words that I thought I forgot came back.  I realized it was because, in Guatemala, I heard Spanish all day, every day. 
3. Don't be scared to speak English, even if your grammar or pronunciation isn't perfect.  Some people will be understanding that this is not your first language and some will not.  It is easy to get paralyzed by your fear or bad past experiences in speaking English, but you have to be "thick-skinned."  This means, you need to be strong, and not worry about people who are rude to you when your English isn't perfect.  Remember, this is not your first language.  It's okay to make mistakes.
4. Also, "a watched pot never boils."  This is an American idiom that means, if you think every moment about something, you will not see it happen.  This is the same with learning English.  You need to just study and live a life which involves English.  Don't think about when your English will be perfect.  If you just focus on learning the language and culture, you will find yourself being able to communicate with and understand American people better.  And really, that is the goal.

Don't give up in learning English.  Even if you just study one new English word or phrase a day, over a year you will learn so many new things.  Keep trying!  :)
  

In our advanced Business English ESL class, we have been reading Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell.  In chapter 5, he uses the phrase, "...we're getting ahead of ourselves."  For those who are ESL students, what does this idiom mean?

Usually, when someone wants to explain something that has more than one point, they have to explain it in steps.  Sometimes, they get to the end before explaining the earlier points well enough.  So, they say, "I'm getting ahead of myself."

• Example 1:   If a scientist was trying to explain the benefits of an experiment, without explaining well what the experiment was.
  
• Example 2: If a child was thinking about all the gifts they would get at his/her birthday party, even before the party happened.  A parent might say to the son or daughter, "You are getting ahead of yourself."  
  

On Freedictionary.com  they explain it like this:  

          get ahead of oneself  Fig. [for someone] to do or say something sooner than it ought to be done so that 
                                                   the proper explanation or preparations have not been made. 
                       
                                            I have to stick to my notes or I will get ahead of myself in my lecture.             
                                            When he bought a new little bicycle before the baby was born, he was getting ahead 
                                            of himself.


I hope this short explanation helps you to understand this phrase better.  :)

Over the years, the biggest complaint I've heard about writing is, "I'm not a good writer."  The truth is very few are naturally good at writing, and those that are usually write fiction.  Being a writer has much more to do with practice than talent.  The more you write, the better you become at it.  

I really like the Erasmus quote above, because I think it's so true.  The more you write, the more it becomes an expression of your own thoughts, feelings and what you want to communicate to others.  The more you write, the more you appreciate how it can increase your faculty for clearer thinking and communication which enables a more accurate expression of what you want others to understand.

For most people, the difficulty with writing comes from intimidation by the idea that their writing must be perfect.  But most, if not all writers will tell you that good writing requires editing, revision, editing, revision, and then more editing and revision.  This process naturally builds a skill to sort through immense amount of words that you encounter every day, not only in your own writing, but in what you also read and hear and helps you determine what is most meaningful.

If you want to learn how to write, but can't seem to get around to it, start with something simple.  Write just a couple of sentences a day about your thoughts.  You'll be surprise to see how that develops!  Bonne chance!   

Language is organic.  It is like a living creature whose growth needs continuous nourishment from various resources.  For a tree, nutrition comes from water, sun and rich soil.  For English nutrition comes from reading, writing and practice.  Irvine's challenging academic environment requires students to strive in their growth to thrive in articulate writing and speaking.  At the same time, southern California's friendly and relaxed environment provide the ideal situation for ESL learners to learn and practice their English. This blog is here to assist and provide resources to encourage students to grow in their English knowledge and thinking.  We hope you enjoy!  .