3 Fantastic Ways to Practice your English Conversation Skills!

When I talk to English learners, most of them tell me the same thing: "I want to improve my English conversation skills". And the reason so many people ask about this is because they don't know how or where to practice their speaking.

The good news is that the internet has made learning languages easier than ever before, especially when it comes to finding speaking practice. It's now easy to find teachers online or other students to practice with using Skype and social media. There are so many opportunities to practice speaking English that you really have no excuses! You just need to know where to start.

So, here are my 3 favourite ways to get speaking practice:

1. Go to a language meet-up in your city

Did you know that in major cities all over the world there are groups that meet-up just to practice speaking languages? There's nothing more fun than getting to use your English skills in a relaxed, social situation and in most cities you can!

Most of these groups meet in bars or cafés so you can relax and have a drink while you speak some English. It's a great way to introduce some socialising into your language practice and meeting other learners is always good for motivation.

Try searching for events near you on meetup.com. Just search for words like 'English' or 'language exchange' and you're sure to find options close to you

2. Find a language exchange partner online

Of course, nowadays you don't even need to leave your home to practice speaking English! You can do it right from your computer using Skype, Google Hangouts or any other video call software.

The concept of language exchanges is simple. First, you need to find a native English speaker who wants to learn the language you speak. So for example, if you're from Germany you should look for native English speakers who want to learn German. If you're from Spain, you need to look for a native English speaker who's learning Spanish. Then you can connect with this person on Skype and each of you spends some time practising the language you're trying to learn.

I've used this method to practice Spanish, French and Russian and it was very helpful. I improved my speaking skills and learned a lot about different countries and cultures at the same time.

There are lots of places to find people to practice with but the biggest is italki. Italki has over 1 million users, which means it's really easy to find people to practice with! The only problem is that the people you find on italki might not always be as serious and reliable as you are about language learning. Make sure you explain exactly what you are looking for in your first message to people so that you don't end up wasting your time.

Setting the rules for a language exchange

When I do language exchanges, I normally suggest some rules at the beginning. You should try this too. Here's an example:

• We'll speak for 30 minutes in English, followed by 30 minutes in [the other langauge]
• We'll meet to practice once a week on Skype.
• I only want to be corrected if I make a major mistake because I'm working on my fluency.

These are just guidelines and the rules you use will depend on your learning preferences. I like to work on my fluency first, so I would ask my partner to just write down my mistakes and send them to me afterwards instead of interrupting me. However, once you reach an advanced level, you may need more correction. It's really all up to you. After you've done a few language exchanges, you'll start to get a better idea of what works for you and you can adapt your rules.

3. Hire a tutor online

We're all really busy, and sometimes it's hard to find enough time to practice speaking regularly. That's why hiring a tutor is a great option.

The big disadvantage about language exchanges is that you only get to practice English for half of the time. When you hire a tutor, you can practice speaking for the entire session.

The other big advantage of working with a tutor is that you get more feedback from a professional who understands English and can show you how to improve. If you struggle with grammar, pronunciation or sentence structure, working with a teacher is the most helpful way to improve quickly.

Yes, it's more expensive than the other options, but practising with a tutor is also more efficient. You save time in the long-run because you're spending the entire session speaking English. You could do 2 language exchanges in a week but only end up speaking English for 1 hour in total. If you did lessons with a tutor instead, you'd speak English for 2 hours. That's a big difference and it directly affects how quickly you can become fluent.

Do you want to improve your English conversation skills? Why not start today?

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In this powerful 30-minute session leave with:

• New knowledge of how to take advantage of 'garbage time' throughout your day to learn new vocabulary
• A renewed sense of energy about learning English
• A 'Next Steps' action plan so you can continue to make rapid progress towards fluency.

Book your free 30-minute trial session now >> https://www.linguamaterna.com/learn-with-me/