Best thing to do is do a lot of vocab cards,reading and just keep listening/reading to different media sources. And eventually but not right off the bat, you will gain more understanding through listening(listening skills increasing). It takes some time, but you will get to the point of basically understanding almost everything you hear. It's all a matter of learning more and more until you reach a phase where you can understand through purely audio, almost everything you hear. Sometimes there isn't really a direct guide to 100% listening skills, it's more about experimenting and finding your maximum learning styles, so that you may continue learning more and more.

Just a quick thought: I like most of AJATT's concepts, but disagree with the claim, that children learn simply by sitting in the corner and hearing stuff.

In reality, healthy and lucky babies, that become good pupils are treated like little princes/princesses and everybody in the family jumps around them trying to make them say simple words, like "mama" or "papa". Gradually longer terms and phrases are added, usually containing the first learned sounds (mama).

While I'm convinced that it's a mistake to talk to children in "baby language", as if they were totally retarded (unfortunately very common) – because it makes it impossible for children to actually learn real language – I do think the small portions, the patience and the exeggarated praise do their job.

As we all know, the less love children get, the more problems they will have with basic stuff like reading and writing. But there is nobody who does this for us. Nobody hugs us for every correct word, so the reward/dopamine shot isn't anywhere near what these little superstars called babies get from their surrounding.

yudantaiteki wrote:

Spoken language is acquired by babies as long as they are exposed to it, regardless of whether the parents reward the kids, love them, or even pay any attention to them at all.

Not my experience. I worked with children who had parents that were, let's say overwhelmed or unable to do their duty. Many of them had severe problems with speaking, even if their parents did not have them. As a baby you get a lot of applause for very small steps (literally). At a later stage good role models are the most important aspect but as a baby praise and attention is crucial.

It's what makes kids stick to an instrument or art, and once they are good at it, people will say "they have talent", when in reality they just got more praise, while their results sucked as bad as every other kid's.

yudantaiteki wrote:

What exactly do you mean by "severe problems with speaking"?

(Do people raised in orphanages not speak as well?)

Sometimes. Children in orphanages are surrounded by other talking children and adults. More likely a highly neglected, single child will develop slower and make you want to slam your head on a wall. Not speaking from experience or anything. f(^^;)

shihoro wrote:

Re Babies and speaking.  From what I know and have read it seems babies/toddlers will learn to speak even if they do not receive love or any communicative stimulation.

I think the problem is the "or" here. I'm really having a hard time figuring how you can learn a first language without "communicative stimulation", since it starts in utero. But without love, yeah, sure. Maybe you meant "extra communicative stimulation".

Last edited by EratiK (2010 November 03, 12:55 am)

shihoro wrote:

This  boy forgets that a few months ago before I started at the school,  he stopped me in the street and demanded "Oi you! Give me some money for sweets."  I told hm no.  "**** off then you ******* cunt!"  Not what you want to to hear but don't tell me he can't communicate.

Lol. At least he doesn't just play with his dump truck and "have bad days."

*head ---> wall*

mezbup wrote:

There was an experiment a long long time ago in much more primitive days

I think this was a European king, French or German, who expected the children to talk Latin. Of course they didn't talk at all and just died but it doesn't proof much because they didn't get praise and (more importantly) nobody talked to them.

I know a woman who talks to her dog like you would talk to a grown up. The dog usually replies "woof". The same way she talks to her child who is now a teen and hasn't been seen saying anything until she became 15, not even hello. This of course is not necessarily representative, my point is, that adults instinctively talk in a very easy language to children, gradually leveling up over time. At the very beginning the child is only expected to say very simple words and then sentences build up on those simple words (where is the mama, where is the mama?). In the "Western World" this is a little overdone (too dumbed down) in my opinion but still better than too complicated, at least as long as the child doesn't talk at all.

robnonstop wrote:

Not my experience. I worked with children who had parents that were, let's say overwhelmed or unable to do their duty. Many of them had severe problems with speaking, even if their parents did not have them. As a baby you get a lot of applause for very small steps (literally). At a later stage good role models are the most important aspect but as a baby praise and attention is crucial.

It's what makes kids stick to an instrument or art, and once they are good at it, people will say "they have talent", when in reality they just got more praise, while their results sucked as bad as every other kid's.

robnonstop wrote:

The same way she talks to her child who is now a teen and hasn't been seen saying anything until she became 15, not even hello. This of course is not necessarily representative, my point is, that adults instinctively talk in a very easy language to children, gradually leveling up over time. At the very beginning the child is only expected to say very simple words and then sentences build up on those simple words (where is the mama, where is the mama?). In the "Western World" this is a little overdone (too dumbed down) in my opinion but still better than too complicated, at least as long as the child doesn't talk at all.

The simplified term is "socially awkward".

& Yes, in the west many kids become excessively addicted to T.V. and video games and thus suffer child neglectance.

I'm certain people like this speak & understand English fine. They just lack social skills.

Last edited by mark95427 (2011 May 27, 11:46 pm)