Lesson Transcript

Intro

Chigusa: Welcome to a special Inner Circle Audio Lesson! I'm Chigusa and I'll be your host. My co-host today is the founder of InnovativeLanguage.com... Peter Galante!
Peter: Hi everyone! Peter here.
Chigusa: In this Inner Circle, we’re talking about…
Peter: The Power of Level-Appropriate Language Immersion
Chigusa: You’ll Learn...
Peter: ...One, Does Language Immersion Work?
Chigusa: Two, How Peter Hit His Goal with Dialog Tracks
Peter: ... And Three, How You Can Immerse Yourself in the Language
Chigusa: So you can master your target language and reach your goals!
Body
Chigusa: Listeners, welcome back to the Inner Circle.
Peter: Last time, you learned about the power of textbooks and digital detox.
Chigusa: And now, we’re at the end of November. One month left.
Peter: Chigusa, time flies. Okay, My yearly goal was 30 minutes. I scaled that down to 20.
Chigusa: Yeah, you’re almost there! You promised us 17 minutes last time?
Peter: I did. And I hit it.
Chigusa: So, since time is running out... are you feeling any pressure at all?
Peter: Actually, I am. It’s easy to hit 5 or 7 minutes of conversation, if you prepare.
Chigusa: Yeah, 2 or 3 minutes go to greetings, pleasantries and catching up. That’s the easy stuff.
Peter: But once you’re up there, it’s tough. I don’t have much time left.
Chigusa: So, you have to get as much French in...
Peter: ...before time runs out.
Chigusa: I think most learners can relate here. Learning as much as possible...
Peter: ...and without overwhelming yourself.
Chigusa; So, what’d you do this past month to reach your goal?
Peter: Well, this past month I tried to make the most of my time, with immersion.
Chigusa: You mean like language immersion?
Peter: More specifically, Level-appropriate immersion.
Chigusa: Level... appropriate... immersion. You’ll need to explain that.
Peter: Okay. Let’s jump into the first part
Chigusa: Part 1 - Does Language Immersion Work?
Peter: First, let’s define the term for the listeners.
Chigusa: Yes, what is immersion?
Peter: For most people, it means surrounding yourself with the language, or living the language.
Chigusa: Living as in...?
Peter: As in, going about your day, doing everything you normally do....
Chigusa: ...but in your target language.
Peter: But, the problem is, you can’t just fly to new country and start living life there, usually.
Chigusa: Right. How would you do that at home? For example...
Peter: Wel, you could watch Netflix shows in your target language, listen to music or podcasts. I use Alexa to listen to French lessons on occasion. There are many ways.
Chigusa: Okay, we know what immersion is... what are the benefits?
Peter: First, it’s smart use of your time.
Chigusa: You can’t study all 24 hours of the day.
Peter: And you can’t actively learn all time.
Chigusa: So, if you want to keep your mind on the language...
Peter: ...in your down time...
Chigusa: ....Immersing yourself with something lighter, like music, is the way to go.
Peter: Next, you increase language input.
Chigusa: Language input means...
Peter: It’s what you take in. Listening and reading
Chigusa: So, by increasing the amount of input...
Peter: ...you improve your listening skills and develop a sharper ear for the language.
Chigusa: And, if you’re listening to lessons and dialogs you’ve already done...
Peter: ...you’re indirectly reviewing and strengthening your memory. That’s what I do.
Chigusa: Now, Peter, does it work? If I’m a beginner watching a TV show or listening to a podcast...
Peter: Chigusa, you wouldn’t understand a thing.
Chigusa: Yeah, so aside from getting exposed to it, what’s the point?
Peter: Great question. The secret to making immersion effective is - you should do “Level-appropriate” immersion.
Chigusa: Right, because if you’re listening to something advanced, you can’t enjoy that.
Peter: But, if you’re listening to conversations appropriate for your level...
Chigusa: ...You pick up on all the words... or most.
Peter: And, the language sticks with you. It won’t be “in one ear and out the other.”
Chigusa: Is that what you did?
Peter: Let’s jump into the 2nd part.
Chigusa: Part 2: How Peter Hit His Goal with Dialog Tracks
Peter: So, what I do is super simple. Listeners you already have access to this.
Chigusa: Let’s hear it.
Peter: Every one of our audio lessons comes with a dialog track.
Chigusa: You just get the lesson conversation in the target language. No translations.
Peter: Visit the lesson page, it’s there in the downloads section. And with every FrenchPod101 lesson I’ve done, I’d download the dialog track.
Chigusa: How many dialog tracks do you have now?
Peter: So, I’ve been keeping up with French for... almost all of 2018. Around 100?
Chigusa: Wow.
Peter: Definitely over 100. Each track is 10 to 30 seconds, so it’s not overwhelming.
Chigusa: Okay, good to know. Reviewing 100 10-minute lessons would be hard work.
Peter: So, yea, this is pretty easy. In my downtime, if I can’t focus or am not in the mood to learn, I play these dialogs. I have a playlist for them on my iPhone.
Chigusa: And for how long? Are you listening to it all day long?
Peter: Well, Chigusa for this past month, I’ve doing listening on my way to and from work. So about an hour a day. The moment I leave my house, I press the play button and listen. At night, when I get some time to myself, I wind down by listening to the dialogs. About 2 or 3 hours a day.
Chigusa: Wow, do you understand everything?
Peter: At this point, yes. The nice thing is... I’ve done the lessons already, so I know what it’s all about. If there’s a word I don’t remember, I can figure it out through context and clues.
Chigusa: But if these were not level appropriate dialogs...
Peter: ...If they were too hard, I’d probably zone out or turn it off.
Chigusa: Okay, let’s go back to your goal. How does this help with speaking French?
Peter: My goal with immersion is two-fold. First, I want to maximize my learning time and input.
Chigusa: But, since you can’t actively learn all day long...
Peter: ...this kind of immersion is a great way to keep at it.
Chigusa: Yeah, you add an extra 2 hours of French a day.
Peter: With speaking, since I’m reviewing conversations, I have more to talk about. Chigusa, imagine having 20 extra dialogs in your head that you can use.
Chigusa: That sounds good to me. Actually, that’s what I like about our lessons.
Peter: The conversations?
Chigusa: Yes, you get ready-made scripts and conversations to use in real life.
Peter: By the way, by reviewing these conversations, I get to review all of the words and grammar rules. And I no longer struggle with verb conjugations...
Chigusa: ...because you’ve heard it so many times.
Peter: Exactly. Repetition really helps here.
Chigusa: Okay, you’re maximizing your learning time, you’re immersing yourself...
Peter: ...with level appropriate content.
Chigusa: Now, how can our listeners do this?
Peter: Let’s jump into part 3.
Chigusa: Part 3: How You Can Immerse Yourself in the Language
Peter: Listeners, now that you’re in your 11th month of learning...
Chigusa: ...you should understand enough of the language.
Peter: So, you are ready for “level appropriate” language immersion.
Chigusa: At this point, this tactic becomes very powerful.
Peter: Language is no longer in one ear and out the other.
Chigusa: You’ll understand most of it.
Peter: ...the words will register in your brain...
Chigusa: ...and the new ones, you can figure out through context.
Peter: And in the process, you master words, phrases and grammar rules simply through exposure. You’ve heard them before....
Chigusa: ...and hearing them again cements them into your brain.
Peter: Now, immersion, for the most part, is passive.
Chigusa: It can be active, but you have to be in a country that speaks it.
Peter: So, we focus on passive. How do you immerse yourself with level-appropriate content?
Chigusa: For listening...
Peter: Download the dialog tracks from our audio lessons, save them on your device...
Chigusa: ...and make a playlist. And, then, just play them on repeat.
Peter: Be sure to only use dialogs from lessons you’ve done, or that are close to your level.
Chigusa: If you go too high up where you don’t understand anything...
Peter: ...it might be too soon and it might be in one ear and out the other.
Chigusa: You can also check out our Conversation Compilation lessons on the website.
Peter: These lessons are upwards of 20 minutes and will give you more than enough.
Peter: For reading, take advantage of our extensive reading books.
Chigusa: Extensive reading is a learning tactic, where the goal is to read a ton of books..
Peter: ...that are appropriate for your level. So, you’re not stumbling over every word.
Chigusa: The goal is NOT to analyze every word, but to keep going and immerse yourself in the language.
Peter: So, visit the lesson library and look for Extensive Reading books...
Chigusa: ...that are appropriate for your level.
Peter: If you’re a Premium or Premium PLUS user...
Chigusa: ...You already have access to the dialog tracks and extensive reading books.
Peter: Listeners, you can also listen to music or podcasts...
Chigusa: ...or watch TV shows
Peter: But the secret to making immersion work is through content that you can understand. Level appropriate content.
Chigusa: Alright Peter. Let’s get back to your goals. You hit 17 minutes.
Peter: It’s time to go for 20, Chigusa.
Chigusa: Sounds great! Deadline?
Peter: December 31st.
Chigusa: Listeners, how about you?
Peter: What’s your small, measurable, monthly goal? And what’s the deadline?
Chigusa: Let us know.
Peter: Email us at inner dot circle at innovative language dot com.
Chigusa: And stay tuned for the next Inner Circle.

Outro

Chigusa: Well, that’s going to do it for this special Inner Circle lesson!
Peter: Bye everyone!
Chigusa: Thanks for listening, and we’ll see you next time.

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