Want to know who is our LingQer of the Month? The Honour Roll is up! Please take a look:
http://lingqcentral-en.lingq.com/honour-roll-june-2014
Congratulations to everyone who made it into Honour Roll
How on earth does @kristiansand do it?! 20062! Very impressive.
@kristiansand - what is your secret? 
@spcole83 - your score is impressive too! Congratulations!
I have developed my own system, and I spend lots of hours each day. It is a passion. I am not studying, but enjoying the process. I must say I am working on improving my range of vocabulary in Norwegian which I already speak with good fluency. I am very quickly after more than a year in Spanish improving to some fluency there as well. I had a basis to start in Spanish also because I have spent lots of time in Panama and other Latin areas due to my past work. It just seems to get easier each day. I love the system here at LingQ. I also import a lot of books in both languages. I am sure soon my numbers will drop as I move into Russian and German. I do have a little background in both of those languages as well, but not like Norwegian and Spanish. I have lots of Russian friends from Yekaterinburg, and I have spent time in Germany. Make it fun is the best advice.
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Thanks @kristiansand, that’s really interesting. It would be interesting to hear more about your system for Lingq-ing.
I’ve also been importing and reading whole books, which has been a great way of using Lingq. I lingq very heavily whilst I read which helps so much at noticing recurring structures and phrases. I’m pretty sure this has directly affected my speaking fluency, as I guess my brain is processing the language at the “lingq” level rather than the level of words or whole sentences, making it much easier for me to manipulate the language intuitively.
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@spcole83 and @galina, thanks for asking about my system. To give a little background info, I grew up with both English and Norwegian spoken around me. When I graduated from the University I worked for an export management company setting up distributors for manufacturers around the world. I traveled and worked in 53 countries. I am only telling this to make the point that I have been around a number of languages. I have picked up a base in a few by just being around them, and best of all I have made friends from around the world because of the same reason. When I decided to embark on this quest of developing my abilities in a group of languages, I first read a lot on different approaches to language learning. It was a bit confusing and so I decided to ask some Polyglots their approach. I discovered they all used different approaches. While in Ireland I met Richard Simcott an English Polyglot, and I had a short conversation with him. He suggested I develop my own way and do it daily. So I have done so. The LingQ system fits in what I believe is the best approach for me and a good approach for many. I think everyone learns differently so I am not sure what I am doing will work for anyone else, but I like it. I have fun with it, and I think that is the most important thing.
I don’t try to be number one in LingQ points, but continue to use my way which seems to both work and add points. The working part is the most important for me not the points. For example I did not participate in the 90 day challenge. I can see it would be useful to motivate some people, but I don’t need the motivation. I have a passion to do it. I don’t think my approach is so different from most people on LingQ. I just spend a lot of time in the language and the points add up.
I read a lot of books that I put in the system. I read through the books without making LingQs the first time. I then read again lingQing all unknown words and looking them up in the dictionaries if I am unsure of the meaning, and I create lingQs for phases that I like. I then ask the system to print it, but I don’t print it I only use it to get a Google translation into my native language. I then read through it in English (native) once to make sure I have the meaning. I do this less as I learn the language. I believe you can only retain what you understand. That is the reason to do it, but I place the focus on the foreign context. I don’t use the flash card app or the other apps much, but simply observe the unknown lingQs in context with the focus on the context… I usually try to use the word just in my mind based on the context I see to form my own context. Then move on and re-read the text again stopping on words that are not sticking. I will write several sentences using the word three or four times in a word processing file that I save in a text box. With another box side by side to the foreign box I will put the English translation of the sentences. I use these two boxes for my review. As for listening, I am listening all day to the language. I am surrounded by the language from the time I get up to when I go to sleep. I am doing this from lessons, my books, radio, TV, news, blogs and conversations with native speakers. I never try to force anything, I just review and use the language without worrying. My listening is sometimes done very actively and sometimes just passively, but always with a focus on understanding. When reviewing I sometimes ask questions about the lingQ words in a fun way as almost a game. I also will take a grammar concept and look for it when I read for a week. Keeping up with the number of times I see it over the week period. Moving on to a new concept the next week. I write a journal in the language I am working on each day to review. I am always thinking how do I say that in the language I am working on constantly throughout the day. I think the biggest thing is the time. I am doing something in the language all day. Time with the language makes it happen. I am doing these things often while I am doing other things. I don’t set goals to read this much, write this much, speak this much or listen this much. I only have the intent to acquire the language to use it, and focus on the steps of listening, writing, reading, and speaking by living within the language.
I see you have high a point level as well. I am sure you are making lots of progress and enjoy it. If we do something everyday in the language we want to acquire, we will acquire it step by step. Good luck, and enjoy it. Thanks for asking what I do.
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Thanks for such a detailed explanation @kristiansand! What I really like about Lingq is, because it is such a simple and versatile idea, it can be used in all kinds of different ways. You’ve really made it your own with your own system that works really well for you.
On the subject of high activity scores, I also don’t focus on the activity score so much, but I do pay attention to my “Words Known” stats as this gives me a sense of progress, and is quite motivating. I find it the hardest progress bar to keep up, and trying to keep it up inevitably affects all the other stats.
I pay attention as well to the “Words Known” figure, but my focus is truly on reading, listening, speaking, and writing. I try to do as much as possible within LingQ as I can. I also do a lot outside of LingQ. I like the stats I have, but the satisfying thing however is the reaction I have received from Spanish speaking friends when I speak Spanish with them. I have truly made great progress over the last year. I have been told repeatedly over the last few months that my Spanish is very good. I still don’t think so, but I know I have made great progress. When I started with LingQ I already had some ability to speak Spanish, but now the literature I can read and most importantly the conversations I am having with good friends has sold me on LingQ. The flexibility of LingQ allows everyone the ability to create an approach that works for them. I am already changing my approach a little for Russian. I have been more focused on Spanish, but I am headed to Panama in August for at least five to six months to build the speaking fluency I am seeking. Then after that I am full steam on Russian with some German on the side. I am very thankful for LingQ.
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