English is not my first language. I am a learner. I experience language barrier. I like to write short poems and i try to translate it into english language. It may sound funny but i try. I wrote a poem "the language between us" I don't understand most of the things you say in your language and then i rest my face on my hand and you suddenly stop your bla bla bla and i understand one thing that whatever you sound you sound good.
English is not my first language either, but I have spent a lot of time talking to English speakers, so I usually understand it.
One thing that still trip me up sometimes is dialects. People in Texas have their very own way of speaking English. So do Scottish people and Irish people, and so on. So to learn, I would suggest you start by seeking out somebody who speak standard English.
Now everybody will tell you they speak standard English (even Texans), but there is a standard.
In the US it is the way people talk in the Boston, and in Britain it is the way people speak on BBC, Once you know the standard it becomes much easier to learn to understand the dialects as variations of that. A cheaper way is to read and respond on bulletin boards like this. Written language is usually much closer to the national standard than spoken language is.
love JakobA
Boston is "standard" English??!? I thought it was the Midwest. Watching the "nightly" news (which only old people watch) is probably good advice.
Again, this is not a question and should be into the "Statement" section. Do you understand what I am saying? Also, you can post your poems in the "Blog" section. Some people do.
