How to Use Your Spare Time to Perfect Your English Language in College

There is a wide range of things students can achieve during their free time, and among them is perfecting their English speaking and writing prowess. Broadening your English fluency is achievable through consistency and incorporation of diverse strategies into your spare routine. Most students may feel anxious when learning a new language; however, it is easy to grow skills and confidence with enough practice. Let’s review some activities you can incorporate into your spare time that will help improve your oral and written English. 

Read

Polishing your English is a gradual process that requires patience and dedication. More effort needs to be put into reading English materials, such as novels, magazines, online blogs, and scholarly articles. Reading helps improve your vocabulary and mastery of sentence construction. Select interesting reads to make it more engaging. Additionally, choose materials with simple sentence construction and vocabulary for better understanding. 

Reading may not be the most interesting thing to do, especially when learning a new language; thus, you need to find fun ways to get around it. For example, you can join a book club or listen to audiobooks. Whatever your preference is, ensure you maximize the spare time you will have set aside to read.  

Practice Writing 

Writing has proven to be a difficult task for most students, even those with good English language mastery. A student would even pay for an essay to avoid doing the assignment themselves. Becoming a good writer depends on one’s dedication to sharpening their skills, often achieved through practice. Therefore, set aside time to write journals, essays, or content about interesting subjects. You can also choose to write a blog to keep your writing skills in check. After writing your pieces, you can have them reviewed by your peers to get feedback on your progress. Writing is thus a good way to improve your English since you will also have to read and research more words in the process. When journaling in your diary, using complete English words instead of short forms is best. 

Socialize 

Engaging in discussions with your peers broadens your spectrum and makes you more comfortable expressing yourself in English. If you look forward to improving your English, you can attend English-speaking clubs, debates, and group discussions during your free time. Such interactions will help you learn how to express yourself fluently in English. Keep in mind that feeling comfortable when conversing in English is the first step towards sharpening your oral skills. 

Listen to Podcasts and Watch Videos 

You can listen to podcasts or watch movies and other interesting English videos to relax and enhance your English mastery. Engaging in such fun activities makes the learning process less daunting. If you find it hard to interpret some English words when watching videos, you can activate the substile option for accuracy in translation. When listening to podcasts or watching English videos, it is essential to focus on the pronunciations, intonations, and vocabulary usage to improve your oral and listening skills. Podcasts usually have a written section to describe what the session is all about. So, if you find it hard to understand what is being said, you can read the description for context. 

Engage in Language Exchange Programs 

For better learning and experience, you should also consider taking part in language exchange programs where you interact with native English speakers. Such exchanges help you become more confident in your mastery of English. You can get through to such programs from websites such as Tandem or Hello Talk. During such exchange programs, you can also help native speakers learn your language, which is a win-win for everyone. Advancing your English knowledge takes practice, and exchange programs give you the opportunity to further your knowledge and challenge yourself to new interactions. 

Enroll for Online English Courses 

Make use of virtual English classes. Such online courses are flexible and don’t interrupt one’s school schedule. Enrolling in such classes will allow you to learn at your own pace. Besides, the less pressure you’ll have, the more enjoyable the learning will be. Sometimes, we feel uncomfortable around others, especially when we make mistakes. That’s another problem that virtual English courses solve, as they accord you the much-needed convenience of learning at your own pace. If you find in-person classes intimidating, you can enroll in such courses. Furthermore, a wide range of materials and information available online can help you polish your language; thus, taking online courses can open you up to such goodies. 

Surround Yourself With English 

It’s best to immerse yourself in English as much as possible during your spare time to polish your English. Reading an English book or listening to a podcast once in two weeks may yield little results. Instead, you need to make it part of your routine to interact with diverse English materials, such as music, TV shows, performances, and books. Another useful activity is to watch sports with English commentary; it will help you to learn sports-related phrases and pronounce English names correctly. Also, you should keep a circle of friends who challenge you to speak fluent English. Frequent practice will eventually pay off, but to reach great heights, you will have to set attainable objectives for improving your English dialect skills. For example, you can propose to master a specific number of English words daily, which you can get up to during your breaks. Having goals helps you stay accountable by tracking your progress.

Final Take

Improving one’s English language skills can be frustrating; however, with the right strategies, it is achievable. The best approach is to utilize your spare time, especially if you struggle with tight school schedules. Depending on whether you want to perfect your oral, reading, or writing skills, there are various methods to achieve that. It is best to have goals that define what you want to accomplish within a specific period so that you can stay focused on learning. Apply the strategies discussed above to take your English to the next level.

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