I am sure
that most of you will agree with what I am about to say: most of us do not have
a lot of free-time, or find it hard to do something productive whenever we do
not have any obligations. I will admit that I have often made up excuses to not
do what I truly think will be beneficial for me. Being a college student can be
physically and mentally exhausting, but is worth it. I have found that one of
the easiest ways to keep up with my language fluency in 5 languages has been
free: watching YouTube videos made by native speakers in my target languages.
This tip
sounds very simple, and, in fact, it is. If you are ever unsure on how to cook
pasta, or how to change your car’s tires, look up tutorials on how to do those
things in your target language. For example, I have had a hard time finding
female Italian YouTubers that I enjoy watching, but stumbled upon an
interesting channel a few weeks ago. What I did was type up “impara a cucinare”
(which translates to “learn how to cook” in Italian), and ended up finding a
young girl’s channel who not only knows how to cook well, but also speaks at a native pace. Watching her recipe videos reinforces the food vocabulary that I
learned last semester, and also allows me to quickly learn new words. Why is
this approach is so effective? It is visual, auditory, and, oftentimes, also
written, which are three key elements in attaining proficiency, and, or fluency in another language.
Almost anything that you want to learn about, learn how to do, or know how to
say can be found on YouTube in many languages. Once you find several channels
that you enjoy watching, your YouTube browser will eventually give you
suggestions on what you might enjoy watching next. It will give you suggestions
on new channels, or videos that are related to topics, or videos that you have already watched. As time goes on, you will find YouTubers that suit your needs,
and that match your interests.
As a bonus, I will give you the names of some of
my favorite YouTubers for several of the languages that I speak. This can get
you started if any of your target languages are the ones that I mention below.
If not, feel free to follow the easy steps that I mention above, and start
searching. You can also type up “famous/popular YouTubers of
[country’s name]” on Google, and get many results if you are unsure about how to start.
French (Français):
Caroline & Safia: Beauty, fashion, and lifestyle
Cyprien: Funny and entertaining videos
Emma: Beauty, fashion, and lifestyle
EnjoyPhoenix:
Beauty, fashion, and lifestyle
Jenesuispasjolie®:
Beauty, fashion, TAGS, advice, lifestyle
NORMAN FAIT
DES VIDÉOS: Funny and entertaining videos
German (Deutsch):
xLaeta: Beauty, fashion, and lifestyle
Ischtar Isik: Beauty, fashion, travel, and lifestyle
Julia Beautx: Beauty, fashion, tags, and lifestyle
Sami Slimani: Funny and
entertaining videos, fashion, beauty, and DIY
Shanti Tan: Beauty, fashion, and lifestyle
Italian (Italiano):
Alberto
ITALIANOAUTOMATICO: Helps you learn Italian by discussing different
topics
deSciò : Funny and entertaining videos
Gioca e
impara con noi: Helps you learn Italian by learning about toys
Oneworlditaliano:
Helps you learn Italian by discussing different topics
Portuguese (Português):
: Helps you learn Portuguese by discussing different
topics (and are funny)
Hellen Hensel: Helps you learn Portuguese
by discussing different topics
Russian (русский):
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