“Work, home, classes, work … I would like to learn a new language, but I just don’t have time!”
Everyone has trouble sometimes organizing time; for all of us, there just aren’t enough hours in the day to work, take care of personal matters, time for family, friends, personal development or just relaxing! It is of course a matter of priorities. What is important to us?
If you are thinking about learning a new language, and especially the Polish language (we highly recommend! :-)), the best way for most people is to attend structured courses. Those Polish language lessons can be individual lessons, organized in a way that suits you and your timetable, or consistent group classes where you embark on your Polish language learning journey with other foreigners who have a passion for learning Polish, too!
During these structured, group classes at KLUB DIALOGU Polish Language School for Foreigners, you are then obliged to devote time to learning Polish on specific days and at regular times every week. In KLUB DIALOGU, we conduct lessons so that our students get the most out of them. We enjoy using textbooks that are specifically designed to help you along during your learning but we also fully believe in learning by playing, such as board games, interactive online quizzes and other means. These fun games are also a way to interact with your classmates and get your mind off the everyday thoughts of work, university studies and so on. You can actually learn Polish and unwind at the same time! It’s important especially for people, who learn basic Polish and during online Polish courses.
It is perhaps obvious, that in order to enhance the effects of your Polish language classes, it is important to study alone in order to consolidate your knowledge and the learning you have done during courses with the help of your experienced teacher. It is no secret that learning any language isn’t easy, but taking the time to also look through your work done in classroom and, once your confidence allows it, to speak to Polish people in real life scenarios, such as in the supermarket, in a cafe or even with your Polish friends! More ideas include watching TV in Polish or with Polish subtitles (to practice reading skills and understanding), changing social media settings to Polish language, listening Polish online and so on. Doing this means you don’t even have to specifically make time to study alone, as you would be doing those things anyway. It is a fact that self-study enhances your Polish language learning, as well as enables you to move on faster, not being stuck at a certain level of Polish knowledge for longer than you need to be!
Some people set aside even just 5 minutes a day for self-study. This may seem like very little but, little in this case is better than nothing! Besides, over time, those 5 minutes can always be extended when you realize that learning our wonderful Polish language isn’t actually a chore, but it is enjoyable. It will become a natural part of your daily activities before you know it. It is also important to not be deterred if you think that you aren’t making progress. With learning anything, there will be times when you plateau and times when your knowledge seems to soar. This is, too, the case with learning Polish both during courses and self-learnig, especially when you learn basic Polish. Students can find themselves at the ‘same place’ with their progress for a while, and then suddenly they are speaking with much more fluency and really getting a hand of some more complicated Polish grammar and sentence structures. This is natural, so don’t worry and don’t get frustrated and definitely don’t give up!! Use this test to evaluate yourself. You can always express your concerns during lessons and our teachers will with pleasure discuss them with you and help you make a plan of how to effectively study further! The most important thing is to do it regularly and with pleasure. And never, never call it homework, but development work – you do it only for yourself 🙂
During both group and individual classes, you learn important and practical skills to help you live life in Poland. You will be able to order coffee, make an appointment with a doctor or hairdresser, buy something in a shop, order a taxi. Group courses are structured around levels and modules, and all students within a group are on the same level. Some know a little more, some a little less, but general ability is the same. Individual lessons are tailored to a given students needs, be it time of day, length of the lesson or language level. Regardless, learning is always fun and our students see it as time to relax whilst learning, not time for more stress.
The decision to learn a language is exactly the same as the decision to start any other activity – running, dancing or eating breakfast before leaving the house. Our motivation is what is important. We just have to find this time. If time is really very limited, we can decide to study individually at home – the teacher comes your home and conducts lessons with you there. What could be more comfortable and convenient? There is also the option to learn Polish online individually or in a group. In this case, you needn’t lose time travelling. However, it’s worth remembering that Polish courses at our school are about more than just learning. It is also an opportunity to meet people who are in a similar situation, people from all over the world, an opportunity to exchange views, experiences, and to have interesting discussions. Group activities, especially in a culturally diverse group, are simply fantastic. It’s worth to mention that we, every so often, organize activities outside of the school to give you a chance to further intermingle, as well as use all the knowledge you’ve accumulated in real life situations with others who are at the same level of Polish as you. Definitely worth taking a little time out of your schedule for!
The bottom line is, once you start, you’ve overcome the biggest hurdle. You will start to see your progress and, more than anything else, feel incredibly proud of yourself. You’ll not want to shy away from speaking Polish again; you’ll be speaking and communicating in no time, full of pride that YOU have achieved that! YOU are the one who has taken the time to study Polish, and YOU have really come a long way and learned a skill that will help you in certain situations, and fill you with joy in others. Come to KLUB DIALOGU Polish Language School for Foreigners to immerse yourself in a wonderful language, meet great and interesting people and learn something that you’ll have for life. We can’t wait to share the journey with you 🙂
