English (ESL) with Roland A.

Dream big! Start small! Act now! – a slogan painted on the side of my coffee cup Learning a new language is a big dream. Where do I start? How do I remember all those new words, rules, and pronunciations? Look at the slogan above. One will enjoy more success when you break down this big dream into small steps. For example, you need to decide how many hours a week you will devote to this language adventure. What time of day do you learn best? Act Now! Studies have shown that immersion (just jumping in) is the best way to learn a language. Immersion not only helps you learn a language. You also learn about the culture from whence that language sprung. One immersion technique is to find a place where English speakers gather. Talk to them. If you live in Denver, Colorado, I hope one English speaker you find is me. I’ll talk to my online students, well, online or by phone. May I add one more step to the success slogan above? Make Mistakes! I know it sounds a little strange, but I will encourage you to make mistakes. Making mistakes is part of the process. I knew a guy who had the opportunity to travel to the country whose citizens spoke the language he had learned. He spent two weeks hiding in his hotel room. He was afraid of making a mistake. I trust this description of my pedagogy tells you much about me and much about my unique approach to tutoring English. I suspect we will learn something about life living along the way. I look forward to meeting you soon.