This One Exercise Made Me Fluent In French (In 30 Days!)

Summary

In this video, the host introduces a powerful language learning exercise that contributed to their fluency in French. The method involves recording oneself telling a personal story in the target language, identifying and learning unknown words and sentence structures with the help of DPL and Anki apps. The process is repeated multiple times to build vocabulary and improve speaking skills. The host also suggests using Anki for memorization and finding a language partner for corrections and practice, emphasizing the importance of practice and context for true fluency.

Takeaways

• 📚 The video suggests a single exercise using two apps, DPL and Anki, to significantly improve language fluency.
• 🎥 Record yourself telling a personal story in the target language for five minutes, even if it's not perfect.
• 🔍 After recording, review the video to identify unknown words and sentence structures.
• 📝 Use DeepL to translate unknown words and create an Anki deck specifically for those words from the story.
• 📋 Record sentences with incorrect structures in a Google Sheet for further review.
• 🔁 Repeat the storytelling exercise, improving upon the previous attempt by incorporating new vocabulary and sentence structures.
• 📈 Practice the storytelling for a week until it becomes automatic, then move on to a new story to expand vocabulary.
• 📚 Anki is used to internalize new words by reviewing the deck multiple times a day.
• 🤝 Get a language partner to review and correct the story, improving grammar and natural language use.
• 🌐 The speaker found language partners on HelloTalk, an app for language exchanges.
• 🔑 The key to fluency is the ability to use known words in various contexts, not necessarily knowing a vast number of words.

Q & A

What is the main exercise recommended in the script for learning a new language?

The main exercise recommended is to record oneself telling a story in the target language for five minutes, using two free apps called dpl and Anki.

What are the two free apps mentioned in the script that can be used for language learning?

The two free apps mentioned are dpl and Anki, which are used for recording and reviewing language learning content.

What should the story be about when performing the language learning exercise?

The story should be about the learner themselves, something they feel comfortable telling to others, and that they know very well.

What should a learner do if they don't know a word or sentence structure in their target language while recording the story?

If a learner doesn't know a word or sentence structure, they should say it in their native language and then try their best to guess the structure in the target language.

Why is it important to experience discomfort during the language learning exercise?

Experiencing discomfort is important because it indicates that the learner is pushing their boundaries, which is necessary for making speaking progress and ultimately achieving fluency.

How should the learner review their recorded story to improve their language skills?

The learner should watch the video, noting down words they didn't know and sentences they couldn't structure, then translate these into their native language and create an Anki deck and a Google sheet for review.

What is the purpose of creating an Anki deck and a Google sheet after each recording session?

The Anki deck is for memorizing new words used in the story, while the Google sheet is for recording sentence structures that the learner struggled with, aiding in language retention and improvement.

How often should the learner repeat the storytelling exercise with the same story?

The learner should repeat the storytelling exercise with the same story for a week straight, then move on to a new story the following week.

What is the significance of using Anki to internalize the words learned from the storytelling exercise?

Using Anki helps to reinforce the memory of new words by reviewing the Anki deck multiple times a day, which aids in faster recall during subsequent storytelling sessions.

How can a language partner help in improving the learner's fluency and understanding of the target language?

A language partner can provide corrections and suggestions on the learner's story, helping to improve grammar and find more natural expressions in the target language.

What platform does the script recommend for finding language partners?

The script recommends using the app HelloTalk to find language partners for practice and exchange.

Outlines

00:00

🗣️ Mastering Language Fluency Through Storytelling

This paragraph introduces a unique exercise to enhance language learning, specifically French, by emphasizing the importance of speaking practice. The speaker suggests using two apps, DPL and Anki, to record oneself telling a personal story in the target language for five minutes. The process involves recording, identifying unknown words and sentence structures, and revisiting the recording to improve. The discomfort experienced during this exercise is highlighted as a crucial part of the learning process, which most people avoid, leading to stagnation in language acquisition.

05:03

📈 Progressing Language Skills with Repeated Storytelling

The second paragraph builds upon the initial exercise by encouraging repetition of the storytelling process over a week, gradually moving on to new stories. The aim is to develop a personal vocabulary through storytelling, making it easier to use words in different contexts and conversations. The speaker emphasizes the importance of practicing with the most frequently used words in everyday life to achieve fluency. Additionally, integrating the use of Anki for memorization and reviewing sentences in a Google Sheet is recommended for better retention. Finally, the paragraph suggests getting a language partner for further improvement and provides a platform suggestion for finding one.

Keywords

💡Fluency

Fluency refers to the ability to speak a language smoothly and effortlessly, without having to think too much about the structure or vocabulary. In the video, fluency is the ultimate goal, and the exercise described is aimed at achieving it by practicing storytelling in the target language, which helps in using known words in various contexts naturally.

💡Exercise

In the context of the video, an 'exercise' is a specific method or activity designed to improve language learning. The main exercise involves recording oneself telling a story in the target language, reviewing the recording to identify areas of difficulty, and then repeating the process with corrections.

💡Storytelling

Storytelling is the act of narrating a story, which is central to the exercise described in the video. It is used as a means to practice and improve language skills by recounting personal experiences or events in the target language, thereby enhancing vocabulary and sentence structure.

💡Target Language

The 'target language' is the language that one is learning or trying to improve in. Throughout the video, the focus is on using the target language to tell stories, which is a method to immerse oneself in the language and improve proficiency.

💡DPL and Anki

DPL and Anki are two free apps mentioned in the video that are instrumental to the exercise. DPL is likely a tool for recording and playing back video, while Anki is a flashcard program used for memorizing the vocabulary encountered during the storytelling exercise.

💡Vocabulary

Vocabulary refers to the set of words that a person knows and can use in a language. The video emphasizes the importance of building vocabulary through storytelling and using it in different contexts to achieve fluency.

💡Sentence Structure

Sentence structure pertains to the way sentences are constructed in a language, including word order and grammar. The video suggests that by practicing storytelling, one can improve their ability to construct sentences in the target language.

💡Discomfort

Discomfort in the video is associated with the feeling of difficulty or awkwardness when speaking a language, especially during the initial stages of the exercise. It is presented as a natural part of the learning process that should be embraced to achieve progress.

💡Practice

Practice is the act of repeatedly performing an activity to improve one's skill, which is a key component of the exercise. The video suggests that by practicing storytelling and reviewing the recordings, one can improve their language abilities.

💡Language Partner

A language partner is someone with whom one can practice speaking a language. In the video, the presenter suggests finding a language partner to review and correct the stories, which can further enhance language learning.

💡Hellotalk

Hellotalk is an app mentioned in the video for finding language partners. It is a platform that facilitates language exchange and is recommended for improving grammar and finding more natural ways of expression.

Highlights

The presenter introduces an innovative exercise to learn French fluently, which is responsible for their fluency.

The exercise is a variation of a method previously used in a 30-day fluency experiment with successful results.

Beginners can start this exercise as long as they can form sentences in the target language.

The exercise requires a computer and two free apps: dpl and Anki.

The first step is to record a five-minute story in the target language about oneself.

If a word or sentence structure is unknown, it should be said in the native language during the recording.

Discomfort during the exercise is normal and should be pushed through for progress.

After recording, review the video to identify unknown words and sentence structures.

Create an Anki deck for unknown words and a Google Sheet for sentence structures.

Repeat the storytelling exercise, improving upon the previous attempt.

Continue the process for a week with the same story, then move on to new stories.

The exercise helps develop a vocabulary of life, relevant to personal experiences.

Fluency is achieved by using known words in different contexts, not by knowing a large number of words.

Use Anki to internalize the words learned from the storytelling exercise.

Review the Anki deck and Google Sheet sentences to improve recall speed.

After a few days, the story should be told almost automatically, indicating fluency.

Get a language partner to correct the story and provide natural expressions.

The presenter suggests using the HelloTalk app to find language partners.

The exercise can be adapted for more advanced learners using source content like articles and videos.

A full method video for the 30-day fluency period will be released in the future.

Transcripts

[Music]

[Music]

um

language lords today i'm going to show

you the one exercise to replace nearly

everything else i was doing to learn

french and is 99 responsible for me

finally being able to speak french

fluently

it's a variation of the exercise i used

in the video how i got fluent in french

in 30 days

where i did an experiment with a similar

exercise which brought me great results

and helped me to understand how to get

fluent in a language but even if you're

a beginner

you can start doing this today as long

as you know how to form sentences in

your target language

and they don't even have to be perfect

all you need is your computer and two

free apps called dpl and anki

link in the description if you have a

mac you can download default for your

desktop

if not just use the app on their site

the first thing you're going to do is

get on your computer open up whatever

program can record a video and press

record

now you're going to tell a story in your

target language and record yourself

speaking for five minutes

it has to be a story about you has to be

a story that you feel comfortable

telling to other people and it has to be

a story that you know very well

matter of fact if you need to take five

minutes before you start recording

and tell the story in your native

language in order to get the details

straight

by all means a good example of a story

is how you met your best friend

or how you ended up with the current job

that you have try to tell the story that

you enjoy

so maybe not the job thing if you finish

the story before the five minutes are up

start over and tell it until the five

minutes are finished and if you don't

finish the story in five minutes

keep going until you've told the entire

story if you don't know how to say a

certain word in your story in your

target language

say it in your native language and if

you don't know how to structure a

certain sentence

give it your best guess in your target

language then say it in your native

language

now during these five minutes you might

experience some discomfort the first

time you do this it should be difficult

if you're a beginner it should be fairly

easy if you're advanced

just push through and it'll pay off

i'm serious bro push through the pain

that you feel during this type of

exercise

is the reason why most people don't do

speaking exercises and people not doing

speaking exercises is the reason why

most people don't make speaking progress

and people not making speaking progress

is the reason why most people quit

okay

after five minutes is up stop recording

and watch the video

look out for two things while you're

watching yourself speak and write them

down

these are words that you did not know

how to say and sentences that you did

not know how to structure

take the list of words you didn't know

translate them in deep ill

and create an anki deck give the story

that you told a title

and name this anki deck the same thing

this deck is only for words that you use

and telling this story

don't put any other words in this anki

deck every story that you tell

will have his own anki deck take the

list of sentences you didn't know how to

structure

translate them in debale and put them in

a google sheet

now open your video player again press

record and repeat what you did earlier

tell the same story for another five

minutes you should see that it's quite a

bit easier to do this now that you

looked up the words and sentence

structures that you didn't know the

first time

but telling the story will still likely

be difficult at this point

if so that's fine just keep going after

the second session is done

watch the video you'll notice that you

probably didn't tell the story with the

exact same words and sentences

as you did the first time which is a

good thing so write down any new words

that you didn't know how to say

and write down any new sentences that

you didn't know how to structure add the

new words to the anki deck that you

created earlier

add the new sentences to the google

sheet

finally open your video player and

repeat this process a third time

put any new words in the anki deck and

any new sentences in the google sheet

you'll notice by the third time doing

this that you've already become a lot

more proficient in telling this story

[Music]

now do the same exercise with the same

story for a week straight

and the second week you do this start a

new story in the next week

a third story and so on as you get

better at doing this exercise

you won't need an entire week for each

story after telling the story becomes

automatic

move on to the next story work up to the

point where it only takes two days to

finish the exercise

and move to the next story what's going

to happen is you're going to develop a

vocabulary of your life

a vocabulary of words related to your

interests your friends your family your

job

the more diverse your stories are the

better but it's all going to be in the

context of stories that are relevant to

your life

as you continue you're going to start

being able to use these words in

different contexts outside of these

stories

and in regular conversations when you

talk to other people and that's the

beginning of fluency

using words that you know in new context

without having to think about it

many of us think that reaching fluency

means you have to learn a hundred

thousand words and that's not true

fluency is actually just how well you

use the words that you know in different

contexts

and that comes from practice using the

words that you use most often in your

everyday life

which is what you get from this exercise

okay the last thing is to use anki to

really internalize the words that you

learn

go over the anki deck that you created

for this story at least twice a day

i recommend once right before you start

this storytelling exercise

and once either before you go to bed or

right after you wake up

do the same thing with the sentences

that you put in the google sheet just

read over them don't really stress it

and this will make telling the story

much easier the next time by helping you

to recall the words that you need

faster and you're going to notice that

after just a few days of telling the

story

you're going to be able to tell it

almost automatically you're going to

experience what it feels like to speak

fluently without

really having to think about what you

say finally take it a step farther and

get a language partner

write out your entire story beforehand

send it to your language partner during

your session

and let them correct it and tell you why

they would change certain things

this will help you improve your grammar

and find more natural ways of saying

things

i found my language partners on

hellotalk which you can download on the

app store

if you know other language exchange

platforms put them in the comments to

help people who want to find

a language partner check out the video

how i got fluent

in french in 30 days to see the results

i got with a variation of this same

exercise where you use

source content like articles and videos

instead of stories

that version is a little bit more

difficult if you're looking for

something that's a bit more advanced

i'll be making a full method video for

the method that i use during this 30 day

period soon

please like and subscribe if this was

helpful and i'll catch you next time

on language lords

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