How to Learn Your Dream Language Without Studying (Advice From a Polyglot)

Summary

Buster Moon, a polyglot teacher, shares his 'lazy' language learning routine in this engaging video. He speaks six languages, emphasizing the importance of consistency and enjoyment in language acquisition. Buster recommends using Duolingo for vocabulary and watching YouTube videos to infer meanings, while also highlighting the benefits of having a private tutor for listening practice. His approach challenges traditional methods, advocating for a more enjoyable and personalized learning experience.

Takeaways

• 🌟 The speaker, Buster Moon, is a Korean teacher who speaks six languages and emphasizes the importance of consistency in language learning.
• 👶 Setting realistic goals, such as speaking at the level of a five-year-old native, is suggested as a starting point for language learners.
• 🕵️‍♂️ Schools often teach traditional methods but may overlook the importance of enjoying the learning process for maintaining consistency.
• 💡 Enjoyment is key to consistency; if you don't enjoy the process, like with bodybuilding, you're likely to give up.
• 📝 Memorizing vocabulary is often tedious, and the speaker admits to not finding it fun, despite trying various methods.
• 🚀 Duolingo is recommended for vocabulary learning due to its engaging nature, which helps maintain consistency.
• 📚 Watching videos on platforms like YouTube can be an effective way to learn a language, especially when the content is slightly above your current level.
• 🎥 The speaker suggests not pausing to take notes while watching videos, as it can elongate study time and notes may not be revisited.
• 📱 Using apps like Duolingo daily can help with vocabulary retention and consistency in learning.
• 🗣️ Having a private tutor for listening practice, especially for languages where the speaker is at a beginner level, is beneficial.
• 🔄 The speaker is learning Spanish and Indonesian simultaneously, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing one language over the other.

Q & A

Who is Buster Moon and what is his profession?

Buster Moon is a Korean teacher who speaks multiple languages and shares his language learning routines.

How many languages does Buster Moon speak?

Buster Moon speaks six different languages including his mother tongue, Korean.

What is the first language that Buster Moon mentions in the script?

The first language mentioned is Korean, which is his mother tongue.

What is the traditional teaching method for language learning that Buster Moon refers to?

The traditional teaching method involves setting up goals, building plans, learning grammar patterns, and memorizing vocabulary.

What does Buster Moon believe is the most important aspect of language learning that schools often overlook?

Buster Moon believes that consistency is the most important aspect that schools don't teach.

How does Buster Moon approach learning vocabulary using Duolingo?

Buster Moon uses Duolingo daily for memorizing vocabulary because he finds it fun and it keeps him consistent in his learning.

What language is Buster Moon currently prioritizing in his language learning routine?

Buster Moon is currently prioritizing Spanish over Indonesian.

How much time does Buster Moon spend on learning Spanish and Indonesian daily?

He spends at least 1 hour on Spanish and between 15 to 20 minutes on Indonesian.

What does Buster Moon suggest for learning a language without taking notes while watching videos?

He suggests watching videos to infer meanings instead of looking up words and phrases, and spending more time watching videos rather than stopping to take notes.

What is Buster Moon's opinion on the effectiveness of Duolingo for language learning?

While acknowledging that some people believe Duolingo is insufficient for full language acquisition, Buster Moon finds it effective for memorizing vocabulary.

How does Buster Moon incorporate listening practice for Indonesian?

Buster Moon meets with a private tutor at least once a week to practice listening to Indonesian spoken language.

Outlines

00:00

😀 The Joy of Learning Multiple Languages

Buster Moon, a language enthusiast and teacher, introduces himself and his ability to speak six languages, including Korean, English, Chinese, Italian, Spanish, and Indonesian. He emphasizes the importance of consistency in language learning, comparing it to the traditional school approach and highlighting the need to enjoy the learning process. Buster shares his belief that setting realistic goals, such as speaking at the level of a local 5-year-old, is crucial. He also discusses common pitfalls that can lead to extended learning times and eventual放弃, stressing the need for enjoyment to maintain consistency in language learning.

05:00

📚 Buster's Lazy Language Learning Routine

Buster details his daily language learning routine, which includes using Duolingo for vocabulary memorization and watching YouTube videos to improve listening and comprehension skills. He admits to being a 'lazy learner' by not taking notes while watching, preferring to infer meanings rather than looking up words. Buster also discusses the importance of prioritizing one language over another when learning multiple languages simultaneously, sharing his personal experience with learning Spanish and Indonesian. He suggests that spending more time consuming content is more effective than stopping to take notes, as he found his previous note-taking efforts to be largely unhelpful in the long run.

10:01

📈 Progress and Consistency with Duolingo and Private Tutoring

In this paragraph, Buster talks about his progress with Duolingo, showing his advancement through different sections and word count learned. He admits to not remembering all the words but believes he can recall a significant portion. Buster also mentions the importance of listening practice and how he addresses this by having a private tutor for Indonesian, who speaks only in the target language during their lessons. He underscores the value of being exposed to the language through conversation, even when it's initially difficult, as a means to get accustomed to it and improve listening skills.

Keywords

💡Language learning

Language learning refers to the process of acquiring new languages in addition to one's native language. In the script, the theme revolves around the personal experiences and methods of the speaker, who is learning multiple languages. The speaker emphasizes the importance of consistency in language learning and shares his routine, which includes using various tools and strategies to maintain progress.

💡Consistency

Consistency in this context means maintaining regular practice and engagement with the language learning process. The speaker highlights it as the most crucial factor for successful language acquisition, as it ensures continuous exposure and practice, which are necessary for improvement. The script mentions that enjoying the learning process is key to achieving consistency.

💡Duolingo

Duolingo is an educational platform that offers language learning through gamified lessons. The speaker uses Duolingo as a tool for vocabulary acquisition, finding it effective due to its engaging nature that encourages daily use. The app is mentioned as a part of the speaker's routine for learning Spanish and Indonesian.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to the set of all words that a person knows for a particular language. In the script, the speaker discusses the challenge of memorizing vocabulary and how using Duolingo has helped him overcome this challenge by making the process enjoyable and consistent.

💡YouTube

YouTube is a video-sharing platform that the speaker uses for language learning by watching content in his target languages. The speaker finds it beneficial because of the wide variety of content available, which caters to different interests and language levels, allowing for a more engaging and less formal learning experience.

💡Easy Spanish

Easy Spanish is a type of content on YouTube designed for language learners, making the language more accessible by using simple vocabulary and clear explanations. The speaker mentions watching 'Easy Spanish' videos as part of his routine to improve his understanding and listening skills in Spanish.

💡Inference

Inference in language learning is the ability to understand the meaning of unknown words or phrases based on context. The speaker suggests that instead of looking up every unknown word, it's important to train oneself to infer meanings from the surrounding text or speech, which is a skill he practices while watching videos.

💡Note-taking

Note-taking is the act of writing down important information or words for later review. The speaker used to take notes while watching Chinese content but found that he did not revisit them, making the process less effective. He now prefers to watch videos without stopping to write, focusing on understanding the overall content.

💡Private tutor

A private tutor is an individual who provides one-on-one instruction, often tailored to the specific needs of the student. The speaker mentions having a private tutor for Indonesian, which helps him with listening practice and exposure to the language in a more personalized setting.

💡Indonesian

Indonesian is the language spoken in Indonesia. In the script, it is one of the languages the speaker is currently learning. The speaker discusses his approach to learning Indonesian, which includes using Duolingo for vocabulary and having a private tutor for listening practice.

💡Spanish

Spanish is one of the languages the speaker is focusing on learning. It is mentioned as a priority language for the speaker, who dedicates more time to it than to Indonesian. The speaker's routine for learning Spanish includes using Duolingo, watching YouTube videos, and possibly other methods not detailed in the script.

Highlights

Buster Moon, a Korean teacher, shares his lazy routines for learning six languages including his mother tongue, Korean.

He emphasizes the importance of consistency in language learning, comparing it to the long-term commitment needed in activities like bodybuilding.

Traditional language learning methods are acknowledged, but schools often overlook teaching the necessity of consistency.

Setting realistic goals based on the language proficiency of a local 5-year-old is suggested as a starting point.

The pitfalls of falling into traps that prolong language learning and lead to giving up are discussed.

Enjoying the learning process is highlighted as crucial for maintaining consistency in language studies.

Memorizing vocabulary is described as a tedious task, and traditional methods like using Anki have not been effective for the speaker.

Duolingo is recommended for vocabulary memorization due to its engaging and fun approach that promotes daily usage.

The speaker uses Duolingo daily and invites viewers to add him as a friend for motivation.

Learning two languages simultaneously is the speaker's current practice, with Spanish and Indonesian as his focus.

Prioritizing one language over another is essential due to limited daily study hours.

YouTube is recommended as a rich resource for language learning with content tailored to various interests.

The speaker advises finding videos slightly above one's level to challenge and improve language skills.

Inferencing meanings from context instead of constantly looking up words is encouraged for effective learning.

The speaker shares his experience of taking notes while watching videos, which he later found ineffective due to not revisiting them.

Watching videos without stopping to take notes is suggested as a more efficient method for language learning.

The speaker's routine of watching Chinese variety shows and movies on YouTube has significantly improved his language skills.

Learning a language early in the morning ensures that study time is not compromised later in the day.

For Indonesian, the speaker uses Duolingo and has a private tutor to improve listening skills, emphasizing the importance of consistent exposure.

The speaker's progress in Duolingo is shared, noting the effectiveness of the app in vocabulary acquisition.

The video concludes with the speaker's intention to share more useful tips in the future.

Transcripts

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

hi I'm Buster Moon and I'm a Korean

teacher today I'm going to show you my

lazy routines of language learning just

so you know I speak about six different

languages and the first one is Korean

which is my mother tongue and the second

is English as you can see and the third

one is Chinese and I speak pretty FL in

Chinese and it's Mandarin Chinese and I

also speak some Italian Spanish and

Indonesian obviously I don't speak all

these languages on the same level for

some I'm on the advanced level some I'm

a beginner but language learning never

ends right once you start learning a

language you learn the language until

pretty much you die so I I guess I can

say I'm learning six different languages

right now including my mother tongue

Korean so as someone who teaches a

language fulltime and learns six

different languages at the same time I

would like to talk about language

learning and how I have come to speak

these multiple different

[Music]

languages you know when it comes to

language learning what they taught us at

school is to set up a goal build your

plan and then start learning different

grammar patterns and memorizing

vocabulary and stuff like that right

very traditional teaching method and

they're all very important and they help

you learn a language but I believe the

most important thing that schools don't

teach us is how to be

consistent let's say you're learning

Korean if you think about 5-year-old

Korean kid talking to their parents and

Friends how they speak is definitely not

highlevel Korean right but if you were

to imagine yourself speaking the same

type of Korean the same level then you'd

be really satisfied to speak that level

of career

right so your target language at the

level of a 5-year-old local kid is a

realistic goal but at the same time if

you think about it it took 5 years for

that kid to speak that level of language

obviously we're growing up we know how

to study things so there are some

benefits of that right but then we tend

to fall into some traps that make us

take much longer time to get to that

level often more than 5 years and end up

just giving up so we do understand it

takes a long time at least a couple of

years and could be even five or 10 years

it takes a really really long time to

learn a foreign language and this leads

us to the most important thing when it

comes to learning a foreign language

which is consistency like I said and if

you want to be consistent in anything

you do you have to enjoy the process you

have to to enjoy yourself doing it

otherwise it'll never work just like

bodybuilding right building muscles

going to the gym you have to enjoy it

otherwise you're going to get your pass

and then not go anymore after like a

month so first I'm going to go to gym

[Music]

one of the most boring things you can do

when learning a language is memorizing

vocabulary and I've never really had

much fun with it I've tried using unkey

which is probably the most sophisticated

and uh popular software when it comes to

U memorizing vocabulary and I've tried

writing the words down and uh the

meanings and covering up the meanings

and see if I can recall the meanings of

the words but nothing really seemed to

work and what I mean by that is I never

really succeeded in doing it for a long

period of time like I would do it for 3

Days 4 days or a week and then I would

stop and I would never really look back

at what I've done and what I do right

now to learn these words in my target

languages is surprisingly du lingo and I

see a lot of people saying du lingo

doesn't doesn't work you're never able

to learn a language with du lingo and to

some extent I definitely agree with it

but when it comes to memorizing vocab I

think it works and I use dual lingo

every single day to improve my

vocabulary and the reason why it's

working for me at least is because I'm

having fun with the app like I enjoy

doing the lessons on Dual lingo and it

keeps me coming back to the app every

single day and here again the most

important thing is consistency and du is

the only thing that made me consistent

add me as your friend on dualingo if

you're using it every

[Music]

day so right now I'm learning two

languages one is Spanish and the other

one is

Indonesian I don't know if learning two

languages at the same time is good but

that's what I'm doing anyway I guess it

depends on your situation what kind of

languages you're learning trying to

learn at the same time but uh it's been

working fine for me but more importantly

you have to prioritize one language over

the other you can't really spend the

same amount of time for each language

because there's only so many hours you

have in a day so I usually spend

somewhere between 1 hour and 1 and 1/2

hours uh for these two languages and my

priority is Spanish right now so I would

spend at least 1 hour hour for Spanish

and then somewhere between 15 and 20

minutes for my indonation so the main

thing about my lazy language learning

routine is that I watch videos and where

do I watch these videos YouTube so

what's great about YouTube is there's a

ton of content and everyone's got a

different interest and you can find

whatever interest you have and find

great content and there's going to be a

lot of content for you so these days I'm

watching easy Spanish and I think there

is same type of channel for Italian and

French so if you're learning those

languages you can look up and watch

their content they upload videos every

week so you're never going to run out of

content so the videos I watch from easy

Spanish Channel they're not so difficult

to understand and still sowh challenging

and that's really important here you

have to find content or videos that are

slightly above your level so you're

still learning things you're still

hearing things that you don't understand

but you understand parts that come

before and after and you can actually

infer the meanings of the part that you

don't understand and be able to kind of

guess and it's okay if you don't guess

it right what's important is you have to

keep training yourself to infer meanings

instead of looking up words and you know

phrases is online or in your dictionary

and something I would like to add is

that when I watch the videos I don't

really do anything I just watch like I

don't have my notebook and Pen ready in

front of me and you know write down

words and phrases whenever I don't

understand things right I don't do that

and that's why I'm calling myself a lazy

learner um it's not like I've never used

to write things down actually let me

show you

[Music]

so here it is if you look at this I have

a lot of notes uh these are the notes

that I took when I was watching Chinese

content and like I do actually like

taking notes because it's it's fun for

me so I used to really like doing this

but then after some time I don't look at

the notes I took and when I try and read

this right now I don't really remember

anything so that's why I'm not doing

this anymore and you know when you watch

videos and take notes you're going to

pause and write down whatever words or

phrases and then continue watching again

and then stop again and do this over and

over again and then it's going to

actually elongate the study time much

longer when you compared to just watch

the whole thing all at once without

stopping right so what I think is better

is that spend more time watching more

videos instead of like making stops and

writing things down because you're not

going to go back to your notes if you go

back to your notes very frequently I

guess you could do it but for me I never

really go back to my notes so uh didn't

work for me so I just spent a lot of

time on YouTube watching Chinese variety

shows uh movies and things like that and

then now I can speak very good Chinese

so that's what I do for my Spanish I do

that every morning as soon as I wake up

um and that's another thing if you do

language learning early in the morning

you don't have to find the time to do it

later in the day and let me show you how

I learn my indonation so because my

indonation is not good like I'm still at

biger level I don't go to YouTube and

try and find videos to watch because

they're mostly really difficult for me

to understand so what I do at this stage

is dual lingo so let me show you my dual

lingo page so if you take a look there's

Section 1 Section 2 and section 3 and I

am 27 out of 40 so I'm getting close to

the end of section two and I believe

section two is the biggest section out

of all three so I'm making a good

progress and if I show you my word count

I have 1148 words obviously I don't

remember all 1148 words but I should be

able to

recall I don't know maybe 7 800 words

out of that and that's quite a bit of

words that's quite a bit of vocabulary

I've learned in the past few months like

it's been really effective like I can

recall a big chunk of that word count so

I suggest you try and focus on du lingo

for your

vocabulary so although I'm learning a

lot of words from du lingo I am not

listening to the language as much as I

should so what I'm doing for that part

is I have a private tutor that I meet at

least once a week and I listen to her

speaking Indonesian for an hour every

time and this is also very important if

you're learning your target language

with a tutor tell your tutor to speak in

your target language the whole time and

that's what my Indonesian teacher does

like she talks to me in Indonesian

although at first it was really

difficult because I didn't know any

words right but then I've gotten used to

it and you know during lesson your

teacher is going to repeat certain words

over and over and you're going to get

used to it okay so that's it for today

uh I hope you found what I just shared

useful and I'll come back with more

useful tips do it ASAP as steady as

possible see you guys

[Music]