A Few Simple Ideas for New Language Learners: ... and old ones needing some new life

by Ambrose Thomson Angela Thomson Chad Thomson Greg Thomson

© 1999 The Authors. Used by permission.

Complete Table of Contents

Summary

This article gives an overview of Greg Thomson's approach to self-directed language learning. It describes four key principles underlying Thomson's approach: communing, understanding, talking, and evolving, and then describes five simples activities based on these principles. This information will give you a good overview of Thomson's developmental approach to self-directed language learning.

1. Some Background Principles

1.1. Four cute language learning principles you won't forget

1.2. Things to do to learn a language

1.3. Now what do you do with your resources?

2. The Simple Activities

2.1. Simple activity 1: learning names of objects:

2.2. Simple activity 2: talking about stuff in Moran's Lexicarry

2.3. Simple activity 3: working your way through books monolingually

2.4. Simple activity 4: Role cards

2.5. Communicating across information gaps

3. Odds and Ends

3.1. Can technology help in all of this?

3.2. Grammar and pronunciation?

3.3. Reading and Writing?

3.4. These activities are impossible in your situation?

3.5. But you're a language TEACHER!

3.6. Or you're a STUDENT in a language school or language course?

3.7. What it's like to keep evolving

Back Matter

Author note

Dedication