So, each week a lot of students ask me what they can do to continue their English practice when they’ve finished their English language course in London. Obviously, there are lots of different things you can do:
- Buy a grammar book
- choose an English TV show and watch it every week.
- keep practising on EC ONLINE.
- keep a diary.
- read graded readers for 20 minutes each day.
- Keep reading the EC LONDON 30+ blog each week 🙂
But with all of the above suggestions, there is no speaking. Speaking and actually practising what you have learnt is one of the most important aspects of language learning. After you finish a course, your motivation is high, everything you have learnt is fresh in your mind and you’re eager to put it all into practice immediately. This is the time for you to organise a LANGUAGE EXCHANGE.
- But what is a language exchange?
A language exchange is when you meet up exchange your language for another language. Find an English speaker in your country, meet up once a week for a coffee or a beer and exchange languages. Half of the time you speak English and half the time you speak your language. It’s great, it’s free and it’s practice with a native speaker.
- But how can I find them?
Well, it’s easy really. I’ve lived in cities around the world and there is nearly always a website where you can advertise and find people who are also looking for language exchanges. Ask around or do some Googling to find the website. Another way is to ask in British or Irish pubs as they very often have language exchange nights that they organise each week.
- What if there are no pubs and no websites?
If you can’t find anyone, you can also use the following websites. they’re great and you can at least have Skype conversations with people.
But the first step is an English language course in London. If you’d like more information, check out the courses we offer at EC LONDON 30+