So I’m learning French and listening and struggling with Steve’s podcast as I’m now able to get through most of the intermediate 1 style stuff.
But I’d like to start doing some more output stuff with writing, but I’m unsure if I should be doing grammar exercises or writing exercises or more of a journal entry writing about my day?
If you do journal entry writing, how are you ensuring that your writing is not too off the mark? Are you using the Exchange to get corrections?
As to your question, I think a mixture of whatever you like works best. I sometimes copy things to get used to correct use of the language I am studying, at other times I do writing for pleasure but full of mistakes and occasionally I go in for a spell of doing exercises.
I think you should be more focused at the moment on the listening part and speaking part. Grammar and writing comes after.
You will pick up grammar and the correct conjugation from the podcasts, just listen to the podcasts in your ‘‘dead time’’. In the time you are not doing anything productive, as in the bus, subway, at a supermarket line, in the car, cleaning your room etc.
You’ll learn as a kid learns, by listening to as much content in the language as possible.