The method of studying English on serials and films combines several invaluable advantages. First of all, you are not acquainted with literary, but with real spoken language. In addition, the video sequence complements the speech with an audiovisual context: combinations of intonations, gestures, facial expressions and other details on the screen involve several senses of the viewer at once, attract his attention, improve memorization of words. Finally, you can just enjoy the process itself.
At the same time, it must be recognized that even this method requires considerable effort on the part of the student. And without hard work on yourself learn the language will not work.
I hope these simple but useful tips will help you organize a pleasant learning process and achieve real results.
1. Do not try to learn the language on TV shows and movies from scratch
Without elementary knowledge of grammar and the basic stock of foreign words, it is hardly worthwhile to get acquainted with the language of works of art. You simply can not isolate the necessary constructions and individual words from the heard speech and systematize them, not knowing what rules all these elements interact with each other.
Begin with structured learning materials: classes with the teacher, textbooks, courses. They methodically, step by step explain how the language works, and form an idea of its features. Study several textbooks or courses, fix the rules and vocabulary learned with their help, and then continue to learn the most used and useful words. Separately, learn the common idioms, phrasal verbs and other constructions.
Only after gaining basic knowledge of the language, start studying it through serials and films.
2. Choose videos that you are interested in and correspond to the current level of language proficiency
Approach the selection of serials and films in sequence: start with works with a simple set of words and gradually increase the complexity. If you do not understand the meaning of most of the replicas, then this video is not yet for you. Look for something simpler, and then return to the complex. For the beginning children’s films and animation well approach. When there is a desire to revise your favorite movie, then do it in English. If you already know the plot, it will be much easier to perceive the foreign language version.
Also, take into account the pronunciation and the cultural environment reflected in the film. If you focus on American English, see pictures from the US, prefer the British – choose something that was shot in England. When you feel confident in one of the language options, fill in the blanks in the knowledge of the other.
In addition, learn from the series and films that you really like. This approach will increase your motivation and involvement in the educational process and will have a positive impact on results.
3. Use the subtitles correctly
Start with double subtitles. If you do not know, for one video you can synchronously output two text streams in different languages. So, choosing English and your native language, you can always compare the translation and the original text of the replicas when you do not understand the pronunciation of the actors or hear unfamiliar words.
To use double subtitles, find the right player. For example, KMPlayer, where this option is included in the settings. Just download pre-text files for both languages on TVsubtitles.net, Opensubtitles.org or any other resource. Online services like Ororo.tv also show double subtitles and do not require anything to download.
As you progress in learning the language, try to increasingly manage only English subtitles. Translation includes in extreme cases, when you can not guess the meaning even in context. Only in this way, in isolation from your native language, you will be able to get as much English.
After reaching a high level, turn off all subtitles. Address them only when absolutely necessary. Such tactics will help improve the perception of speech by ear.
4. Do not be lazy to come back and deal with difficult moments.
Rewind back and revise scenes that you can not understand the first time. Listen to speech to catch the subtleties of pronunciation. If this greatly spoils the pleasure of viewing, record the time of attention-requiring moments and return to them after the end of the video. Or use the function of video bookmarks for this. You can also slow down too fast speech, slightly adjusting the playback speed. All these options can be found in the menu of the above mentioned KMPlayer player.
5. Record and regularly repeat new phrases and words
Purposefully study unfamiliar words, and not just passively skip through the video with subtitles or without them. Otherwise, the rate of replenishment of the lexicon will remain extremely low, even if you look at the film every day. Write out the new words and constructions heard in the movies, teach them and repeat them regularly. Modern services for replenishment of the vocabulary in this you will help.
If you want to minimize interruptions for writing words or reading subtitles while watching, teach unknown language from a particular video in advance. You can quickly extract new words from the subtitles using the WordsFromText service.
If you have any questions about the content of the article, leave them in the comments. Or share with us advice from personal experience.
