Reading when learning a foreign language is an aspect no less important than speaking. Reading helps us expand lexicon, memorize the rules of spelling and punctuation and has an impact on fluency.
But on low levels knowledge, students are too tough for literature in the original, and many take up reading books according to the method of Ilya Frank and the like: when there is either a page-by-page translation (on the left in English, on the right in Russian) or step-by-step (after each semantic group of words). But this method is extremely useless. We tell you why.
Scroll below and find out why what is in the picture is harmful.
If you have been learning a language for 15 years, but cannot speak it, then in most cases the problem is not in learning, but in how you learn the language. The human brain is capable of learning throughout life. In childhood, the learning process goes faster, with age it slows down, but you will always be able to learn something.
Why, then, do you not speak at least one foreign language fluently? Because you learn the language by raids: then go to an intensive course, then teach, teach, and then quit for a year. Effective learning of any foreign language requires systems approach and immersion. You need to surround yourself with the language you are learning: translate your phone and applications into the same English, start listening to podcasts and reading in the language. It can be professional articles or fiction - that's not the point. The main thing is that the process is continuous.
Reading helps you from childhood. IN primary school you did not know many words: neither their meaning nor how they are spelled correctly. But literature lessons helped you master your native language. Foreign without reading, too, will not be given to you.
The catch is that at the elementary level (especially if you learn the language as an adult) it will be very difficult to read. Many give up almost immediately because of the need to constantly look into the dictionary. And then you suddenly find out that there is adapted literature. Yes, and with Russian prompts! It would seem that here it is, happiness. You can read first in English, and then read the same line in Russian on another spread. You can resort to the method of Ilya Frank and read with the translation of semantic groups. Ilya Frank even gives an example on his website:
I must have slept for more than nine hours (I probably slept for more than nine hours; to sleep) because when I woke up (because when I woke up; to wakeup) it was daylight (it was quite light; daylight - daylight ; daylight hours).
The issue of readability in this way is purely subjective. But from a translation point of view, such things look extremely strange. Of course, when adapting the original text, it is extremely simplified. But what if you come across an idiom, a phrasal verb, or an idiom? Even experienced translators struggle with an adequate translation of such expressions into Russian. Adapted text can either completely get rid of the turnover, or put you in a dead end: one thing is written, but the translation is completely different.
Let's start with the fact that it is impossible to fully translate the original text and make it a full equivalent in another language. The task of the translator is to make the equivalent as close as possible to the original. People who scream about the fact that there is no expression in the translation or that it is not translated as it is written are mostly non-professionals who do not understand that a huge layer of expressions simply cannot be translated. And what is not translated as written in the original may be a phrasal verb, idiom or phraseological unit, which in literal translation just lose their meaning.
In translation, there is the concept of equivalence. Here is the definition given by V. Komissarov in his work Theory of Translation:
“The equivalence of individual words in the original and in translation implies the maximum possible closeness of not only the subject-logical, but also the connotative meaning of the related words, reflecting the nature of the speaker's perception of the information contained in the word. The greatest role in conveying the connotative aspect of the semantics of the original word is played by its emotional, stylistic and figurative components.
In simple words, the equivalent tries to accurately convey the meaning of the word or expression in the original, while maintaining its meaning and emotional coloring. There are five types of equivalence, where the fifth is the simplest (for example, the word “cat” in English fully corresponds to the word “cat” in Russian), and the first is the most complex, which includes difficult-to-translate phraseological units, proverbs and sayings.
For example, a typical idiom that is probably familiar to many of you: “It’s not my cup of tea”. If we translated such a phrase literally, then it would come out "This is not my cup of tea." However, the correct translation of the idiom is "It's not my type", "I don't like it". Or a more complex option - “call it a day”. This is not "call it a day", but "finish work", "finish some business". In adaptations, such expressions are often explained, but if you read according to the method, where the text is in English on the left and in Russian on the right, then you definitely will not see the correspondence.
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Sometimes it is difficult to find an example due to the lack of a word with a similar connotation. For example, Americans everywhere use the word “excited” in phrases like “I’m so excited!”, “It’s really exciting.” The feeling itself, excitement is an anticipation, an excited state before some kind of event. Remember how you were waiting for your birthday and gifts as a child. This is excitement, pleasant excitement. However, in Russian, the phrase “It is pleasantly exciting” will sound very strange. Most often, excited is translated as “in anticipation”, and exciting is translated as “exciting” or “exciting”. In turn, the word “exciting” for a Russian person will be associated with something not very pleasant, because we are most often worried because of some kind of problem. Thus, in adaptation, of course, you will see the translation, but you will lose the shades of meaning.
In the method of Ilya Frank, several translations are given to one word at once. For example: “My long, thick hair was tied down in the same way (my long and thick hair was exactly the same: “in the same way / way” tied / to the ground /; thick - thick; thick, frequent; way - road ; way; method, method)". Sometimes this is effective - you see many options and better understand the shade of meaning, which, as we just found out, is easily lost in translation. However, this example is also indicative from other points of view.
First, it does not explain in any way why "hair" in the original is written in singular. According to the Frank method, you will immediately memorize the correct construction, but practice shows that many students are confused by such small, but unexplained moments.
Secondly, in English the word order is fixed, in Russian it is free. In English, “in the same way” is at the end of a sentence, but in Russian it is at the beginning. This is correct in terms of translation, but for students English order words and so presents a difficulty, but here you still do not see a clear structure in the translation.
Thirdly, due to a few words that seem to help in translation, students begin to misuse them in English. Regarding the British accent, the word thick is often used: “He spoke with thick accent”. Only this is not a thick, thick and frequent accent, but a “pronounced” or “indistinct” one, and that depends on the context.
So how do you read then? Very simple. Without translation! Our brain is lazy, it is easier for it to perform routine and habitual actions, so you will always latently look for a way to make your task easier. If you have a Russian text in front of your eyes, you will inevitably peep into it, and not try to understand anything from English text. In addition, as we found out, the translation can sometimes puzzle you more than the original.
Adapted literature is actively produced by foreign publishers (for example, Macmillan, Cambridge, Pearson and Richmond). These books are written in plain language, have explanatory footnotes, dictionaries with explanations of words (not translations!), and exercises to help you practice vocabulary and work on understanding the text. Moreover, in a number of such manuals there are discs on which you will find a recording of the text (sometimes even in two versions: American and British), as well as many interactive vocabulary exercises. Books are released by levels, so choosing the right one is quite easy. Remember that at first your task is to strain your brain and read with the benefit of your vocabulary. And in no case be afraid to read in a foreign language, because the originals are always better than the translation.
Any modern person should know English and be able to read in this language. Why?
In many areas of activity, information changes at such a speed that without knowing the language, you simply cannot use it. recent achievements in your work.
After all, 80% of new information is published only on English language. And until it is translated into Russian (if it happens at all), it will simply become obsolete.
In this article I will talk about 6 mistakes that are most often made when reading. English books. And of course, I will give tips that will help you read English books correctly and efficiently.
Mistake #1: Taking Material That Doesn't Meet Your Level
Very often, when choosing a book, you want to take the material more difficult, because you don’t want to read something too simple. And some even take the original work, which does not correspond to the level of a person.
You can't do that.
If the material you are reading is above your level, then you will find in it:
- unfamiliar grammatical structures
- Many unknown words
To understand at least something, you have to deal with the text a lot. Therefore, most likely, you will give up reading.
It is very important that the material you read matches your English level.
Therefore, I advise you to take adapted books (especially if you are just starting to read). In such books, the meaning of the work is preserved, but complex constructions and words that you would not know at this level are removed.
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Mistake #2: Reading stuff that doesn't interest you
So that you do not stop reading, reading should bring you pleasure and benefit. Often, especially at the initial levels, people take the first material they come across, thinking that they simply won’t find anything interesting for their level.
Therefore, reading becomes a real test, and they have to force themselves to read something that is not at all interesting.
Reading in English should be fun, so read what interests you.
Just because you're a beginner doesn't mean you should read children's stories.
You can find something that will be of interest to you:
- Adapted literature of various genres
- comics on different topics
- small light stories
In addition, by reading what you are interested in, you will learn useful words that you can use in your speech.
Mistake #3: Not using a dictionary while reading
The most common mistake in reading books is not using a dictionary.
Often people think that the meaning of unfamiliar words can be guessed from the context (meaning). Therefore, there is no need to constantly look into the dictionary to find out what this word is.
In addition, if you look at the words in the dictionary, reading stretches for a long time, and you cannot fully immerse yourself in it.
However, without understanding individual words, you will not be able to understand the entire text.
Let's look at an example:
They saw a scarecrow.
The saw...
Can you figure out who or what they saw without knowing the word scarecrow? No.
Perhaps they saw a ghost, a ship, a vase, or a chest. In fact, the word scarecrow is translated as "scarecrow".
It is essential to use a dictionary while reading. After all, in order to understand the meaning of the text, you need to understand the meaning of each sentence of which it consists. And for this you need to understand all the words in this sentence.
At the same time, some words are key - that is, without understanding the meaning of the word, you will not understand the meaning of the whole sentence.
I advise you not to miss incomprehensible words and immediately look them up in a dictionary. Otherwise, you can just get confused in the text. Especially if you are a beginner.
Please note that in the dictionary you need to look not only for the translation of the word, but also for its meaning.
The meaning of a word is the meaning it carries.
For example:
Scarecrow is a human-shaped object designed to scare away birds.
This will help you understand the words better, because sometimes words with similar translations mean different things. And some words are difficult for us to understand, even knowing their translation.
Mistake #4: Not looking at all the words in the dictionary
Some people who use a dictionary while reading think that not all words need to be clarified after all. And only those that are often repeated and greatly interfere with the understanding of the text.
However, this is also not entirely correct.
Imagine that you are reading fiction but some tutorial article. Skipping words in it, you simply stop perceiving information and get confused in the material.
In addition, there are cases when people think up the translation of an unknown word themselves, and therefore distort the meaning of what they read. But even worse, this translation gets stuck in their head, and they begin to misuse the word.
Of course, it is correct to look at all the words you do not know.
Indeed, in literature very often those words are used that we do not encounter in life. By skipping a word, you can only guess about its translation and meaning.
Maybe this sentence will not be so important, but you will not understand this until you look up the word in the dictionary.
It is especially important to look at all the words when you are just starting to read books in English. At first it will take a lot of time, but than more books you read, the faster and easier it will be to do it.
In addition, if you choose a book of your level, then there will not be very many words unfamiliar to you.
Mistake #5: Don't Pay Attention to Grammar
Grammar These are the rules for how words form into sentences.
When reading, people concentrate all their attention on words, therefore, when they encounter incomprehensible grammar, they simply skip it.
But to understand a sentence, you need to know not only all the words in it, but also the rule according to which it is formed. For it is only thanks to grammar that we can determine whether this action has taken place or is just about to take place, whether the action is a fact or Long procces etc.
When reading, be sure to pay attention to the rules for constructing a sentence.
This is a very useful exercise.
If you come across a grammatical construction that is unfamiliar to you, you need to fully understand it. Please note that if there are a lot of such constructions in the text, then you need to take the book easier.
Mistake #6: Just writing down words and not working with them
What do people usually do with unfamiliar words encountered in the text? They either sign their translation or simply write them out.
If when reading you are pursuing the goal of replenishing your vocabulary, then such actions will not help you with this.
You can try it yourself, write down 15 words, and the next day try to remember them. Most likely, you will remember only 2-3 words. And then try to remember them in a week, and look at the result.
To really build up your vocabulary, just writing out a word is not enough. You need to practice using it in your own speech.
How to do it right, I told.
Please note that it is worth working only with those words that you will need in life. That is, it makes no sense to learn rare and obsolete words that you will never use.
So, we have sorted out how to read correctly in order to get the most out of English books. And now I want to give you some links to useful resources for reading:
What to read?
Note: To expand the text itself, click on "Transcript".
Here are collected news on completely different topics. All news are adapted by 3 levels:
- Level 1 - for beginners
- Level 2 - Intermediate and above
- Level 3 is news in the original.
The lower the level, the simpler words in the text.
This site contains non-adapted literature by English-speaking authors. Therefore, it is suitable only for the level of Intermediate (medium) and above. The site presents 8 popular genres: children's literature, detective story, science fiction, horror, humor, non-fiction, novel, science fiction.
Choose a resource right now and start reading. And, of course, do not forget about the tips that I gave you. Happy and useful reading.
Millions of people study a foreign language first at school, then at universities for several more years. But the result is like a carbon copy: many are unable to speak, let alone write in a foreign language, they understand the text only with a dictionary, and only a select few can freely read foreign literature.
But here, it would seem, an inexplicable paradox, many people declare with aplomb: they say, you need to read books only in the original, otherwise I just stumbled upon a phrase and was dumbfounded at how carelessly, if not illiterate, the translation was made. ... And let's read only in the original from then on! Hehe!
I believe that a few people can read books in the original, while knowing the language perfectly, together with everything they have lived for several years in the country of native speakers and perceive, understand a foreign language through the prism cultural heritage this country.
It is naive to believe that if a person knows a foreign language, he can automatically claim the title of a translator. The latter must speak at a high level two languages at once - native and foreign. Possess a large vocabulary of the language and, of course, understand all the intricacies of using the language. And, of course, without knowledge of the culture behind a foreign language, there is nothing to even think about a skillful translation.
Quote: "...I can't compare my translation because I don't have it! I don't translate the text mentally when I read it, I just understand it."
Quote: "... reading is not a translation, for example, I do not understand all the words, and this is not necessary. reading is sliding through the book ... with stops for reflection."
You can always hide behind a saving speculation: "I learned to think in a foreign language, so there was no need to translate back into my native language! ..". And it is not forbidden to add, even in a whisper: "But I understand, as I can, as God has given."
Quote: “When I read a book in a language I know, I don’t translate anything (unless I want to savor a pun or some other language “goodies”, and I’ll look for an equivalent in my native (or in another) language).
When reading foreign literature, a person understands the work as much as his vocabulary allows. It is possible that he can catch a little "goodies", but it is difficult to understand, to convey the shades.
Learning a foreign language does not mean that you will be able to see the world through the eyes of a native speaker of this language, but in order to read fiction, you need to be fluent in it.
For example, a professional translator first carefully analyzes the original, comprehensively comprehends it, pays close attention to all the nuances and allegories in its content. It is not enough to know a foreign language: a translator must have broad philological knowledge, "be able to interpret a play on words, a sense of linguistic form, the ability to convey an artistic image."
But what do you care about professional translators!.. You do not need to translate the text - you initially think in the original language!
N. Gal (translator, literary critic, translation theorist, editor): "What is it - a modern realistic translation? The best masters prove it in practice: you can completely preserve the style and manner of the original - and, moreover, the book will be read and perceived as if it were created in the target language. As if Burns and Heine, Bernard Shaw and Hemingway, Cervantes and Maupassant wrote in Russian."
Indeed, you can get real pleasure from a great translation and never remember that the text was translated from a foreign language. With poor-quality translation (of which there are many), it happens that the essence is lost, not to mention the beauty of a literary text.
E. Vitkovsky (fiction writer, literary critic, poet, translator):
Learning a foreign language, like a native language, is not easy - you have to do a huge amount of work, about 12-13 years, about the same time we learn to speak Russian. But "mastering literary language occurs throughout human development.
Quote: "From the fact that a person does not know how to competently express his thoughts in Russian, it does not follow that he does not understand a foreign language and cannot read it."
Quote: "... And imperfect knowledge of English does not prevent me from thinking in it and speaking fluently."
Oh how! Do you really not know that everything is interconnected: if you do not know your native grammar, you will not be able to master how words are correctly linked in foreign sentences. Speaking on mother tongue, we take practical skills as a basis, adjusting them along the way in accordance with the theory ... the grammar of the language.
If you have mastered English-Russian dictionary- you know English-Russian. But the one who comprehended the logic of English grammar has a chance to speak English and ... even read fiction. Hehe!
So, in order to think in a foreign language and read, "you need to know not only the actual meaning of the word, but also as much as possible about what is behind the word, about the subject-concept (thing meant), about its place and functions in in a world where the language is used as a real means of communication".
A person thinks only in the language that is the main one in his life. Even knowing an excellent foreign language, you will not think in it, living, for example, in a Russian-speaking environment. The main thing - at least do not lie to yourself (- the beginning).
Quote: "... Unfortunately, writers have a large vocabulary! Of course, if you skip unfamiliar words, then you can get pleasure - after all, after three pages you no longer remember what exactly you did not understand, but you only remember what you understood."
Note. Dear sirs, why do you leave comments in a post a year ago?.. Perhaps you do it automatically by clicking on the link at the end of the "fresh" post, but really, the discussion that took place has already exhausted itself. Please post comments here.
- Current Music: Queen - You Take My Breath Away
What do you think, is there any difference between reading any foreign work in the original and getting acquainted with its own version, but already subjected to a kind of filter and released from the translator's pen?
As practice shows, the difference is simply huge!
According to those who have knowledge, reading books in the original is a grandiose source of emotions and impressions, which, unfortunately, are very often simply lost when getting acquainted with the translation of the work of one or another author.
We will give you the arguments of those who do not use translations, having the knowledge to get acquainted with the storylines, as they say, firsthand.
What is a translation? A translation is a presentation of the original information in a language other than the original language. Of course, the main task of the translator is the most accurate presentation of the original meaning of the article or the whole work of art.
Is it always possible to make a translation that is an ideally accurate reflection of the original information, and in such a way as to completely preserve not only the meaning, but also the emotional coloring of exactly the strength and direction that the author intended? Of course not! There are two main reasons for this.
Firstly, the Russian language is one of the richest languages in the world, and at the same time a language with redundancy, which, according to experts, reaches 75%. This means that the same word in Russian can have two, three, or four semantic meanings.
When using words and phrases in the course of translation, the emotional coloring of the original informational message of the author may change slightly. The choice of certain phrases and turns in translation is entirely the merit of the translator. To a certain extent, this is his view and his vision of the situation, his subconscious characterization of the plot.
Secondly, when translating, the translator's vocabulary, his experience and skills of accurate translation are of great importance while preserving not only the meaning, but also the emotional background of the work.
Thus, it turns out that the translator is an intermediary between the author and the reader, who conveys the original meaning through the prism of his intellect, worldly wisdom, the ability to select the exact phrases and the available vocabulary.
Since translation is a subjective process, depending on the specific personality of a particular translator, in any case, interpretations are possible that may not accurately convey the original meaning of what was said. Give the task to two translators to state the text of the same story into Russian. Their translations will be different anyway. At least a little, but they will. Because translation depends on who does it.
In this sense, reading literature in the original language is a direct immersion in the plot written by the author. All experiences, all emotions, all feelings are primordial, that is, exactly the ones that the creator of the work planned to evoke in the reader.
For many, the very thought of starting to learn a foreign language seems scary. Such people are sure that even long courses of study foreign languages will not give them the opportunity to read not only books, but even informational notes in another language.
This misconception is refuted by those who started learning foreign languages simply by enrolling in courses located close to home. According to them, the main difficulty in learning foreign languages is to take the first step and come to the first lesson. And that's all. After that, every day it will be easier and easier.
Do you know about the CEFR system? This is a system for assessing the level of knowledge European languages. So, if we talk, for example, about the English language, then those who know it note that they read literature without problems, having a Pre-Intermediate level. This is just the third level of six in the overall hierarchy of language proficiency! To reach this level, you will need 100-120 academic hours. As you can see, there is nothing scary or complicated here!
Moreover, it is still much easier than it might even seem at first glance. Effective language learning You can start right now if you can at least read the alphabet in a foreign language.
Yes exactly! Just take any informational article and try to understand the essence of the text. It is likely that without practice you will be able to understand only two or three words. Now read the same article again. Is there at least one word that you remembered while reading it again? If not, then look at the translation of any word from the article and try to read it again. So gradually, step by step, you can master the skills of reading and understanding the meaning of what you read. This process will also lead you to be able to read fluently after a while.
Do you know what is the strongest incentive to learn a language? The desire to read a book that has not yet been translated! In this situation, your language learning process will go much faster! It is this book that is the strongest incentive to learn a language, and not some three-page children's books that someone advised you to start learning from.
Another secret from those who can already read books in the original. For the majority of those who have just begun to comprehend all the delights of acquaintance with works without the help of translation, everything often ends in a few days. Why? Yeah, it's just boring. Tired of the monotonous work of translating each word and compiling a meaningful phrase.
This is exactly what you shouldn't do! No need to try to translate every word! The absence of such obligation guarantees that, firstly, you will not lose interest in learning the language, and secondly, each time you will begin to understand the meaning of what you read more and more!
According to practitioners, at the very beginning they were able to read no more than 10 words on the entire page! But the main thing is to start!
In the future, you can sign the translation above the keywords directly in the text. This approach will literally “drive” words into your mind, each time improving the level of understanding of the entire text.
Further, you will begin to get used to referring to the dictionary only in those cases when you meet exactly an unfamiliar word, and not when you just want to remember the translation of those words that you have already read a hundred times, but have forgotten again. If there are a lot of new words in the process of reading, just skip them and read on. After a certain time, you will rest and then you can repeat everything again.
Why read even if almost all of the text is incomprehensible? In addition to the fact that you will receive the skills of reading and recognizing individual words and whole phrases, you will begin to effectively learn the grammar of the language.
Those who have already studied foreign languages are advised to work with paper versions of dictionaries, and not use online translators, so as not to simply drive in entire passages when translating, because this does not contribute to learning a foreign language.
Of course, at the first reading of the book, you will understand no more than a third (or maybe less) of everything written, but in any case, this is more than nothing. In addition, repeated reading is guaranteed to increase this percentage. This is the meaning and beauty of learning a foreign language.
In the future, you will be able to decide for yourself whether to continue studying foreign languages by simply reading books, or to develop skills and knowledge in specialized language courses.
The ideal option is the practice of daily reading (for 10-15 minutes) in combination with the study of foreign languages in the courses.
It is difficult, of course, to read books in the original. In any language other than English. However, it's worth trying. Many argue that this language is just a rocket!
I have always loved the poetry of Rudyard Kipling. I recently took up reading these verses in the original and was surprised how much of the meaning of these amazing verses has simply disappeared in translation. Even if it is a very good, closest to the original translation.
And before you think that in order to read in the original, you need at least an Upper-Intermediate level of language proficiency, I will please you - my level is no higher than Pre-Intermediate.
Many do not dare to read books in the original, considering it an incredibly difficult and demanding task. high level knowledge of the language. I thought so too for a long time, until I wanted to read Last Chance To See by Douglas Adams. There is no translation of this book into Russian, and it is not planned.
So I took the book and started reading. In this book, humor and amazing sarcasm are found on almost every page, and I even dread to think how much of this would be lost when reading in translation.
While reading the book, I experimented with different approaches to the text that I read about or that came to my mind as I read. For those who do not dare to take the path of reading in the original, I wrote 13 conclusions that I made while experimenting with different approaches to read in the original.
- You can and even need to start, regardless of your level of English. If you know the alphabet, then you can start reading.
- Do not read adapted books or books that someone recommends for first reading. Choose the book that YOU want to read! Then you will be interested. Better yet, take a book that you really want to read, but it has not yet been translated.
- The main problem that reading in the original is exhausting and annoying is that we are trying to translate every word. As a result, after a couple of pages, fascinating reading turns into terribly boring and annoying.
- Conclusion: do not try to translate every word! Does it really matter what the monkey does with a stick - knocks or beats, the main thing is that the monkey does something!
- Translate no more than 5–10 words per page. It seems that this is not enough, but believe me, this is more than enough! So you do not get tired of constantly tearing yourself away from the text to dive into the dictionary. And besides, you will remember much more words and do it faster.
- If you translate too many words, they will all get mixed up and not stay in your head for a long time.
- Many people think that if they take a book of 50,000 words, they will have to learn 50,000 words, and this, of course, is not feasible. But the fact is that most of the words and expressions are repeated in the book almost on every page! When you see such words in the text, write their translation above. And so on until the end of the book. This kind of repetition just hammers words into your vocabulary.
- If at some point in your reading you don’t want to go into the dictionary, skip it. Skip paragraphs and even pages. Just read it, even if you don't understand a word. You will rest, and after a couple of pages, I guarantee you will again want to translate some word that particularly interested you.
- While reading, the grammar of the language is very well absorbed. If you don't know her or don't know her well, it's not a problem.
- Use an audio or video language learning course (I used Dmitry Petrov's Polyglot). Listen or watch the course while reading the book.
- When translating words, do not use online translators. It is better to take a paper version of the dictionary. This way you avoid the temptation to translate entire passages by simply typing the text into an online translator. I used the Oxford English Dictionary.
- To assimilate the text by ear, you can listen to the audio recording of the book in the original, if available, in parallel with reading.
- At the first reading, I understood no more than 30-40% of the book. But it's 30-40% more than if I hadn't tried at all. On the second reading of this book, I will understand 60-70%. And after reading the book for the third time - already 100%.
http://lifehacker.ru/
I will only add on my own that there are no BEST methods for learning a language. Language is a fortress, for the capture of which all means are good. So, experiment, play the language!
