"‘All I have learned, I learned from books,” said US president Abraham Lincoln. But when studying English, we totally disagree! Try some of these 10 tips on how to live your life in English and continue improving outside the classroom.
Get immersed: Meeting native speakers isn’t always easy. But London has lots of social networking groups where you can speak English. Try Meetup (for meeting people with shared hobbies), Internations London (for socialising with an international crowd), Eat With (for informal supper clubs), Goodgym (for running and volunteer work). For the brave, Hoopla runs improv (improvised comedy) workshops starting at beginner level.
Use post-it notes: Label everyday objects in your home as a daily reminder of new nouns and adjectives as you get ready in the morning.
Read around: Read newspapers and books to help widen your vocabulary. Try children’s books, short stories, graded readers - available at beginner to advanced levels, and even audio books - there is a free trial at Audible.
Watch TV/films: Video clips with subtitles will help improve your listening and conversation skills. See the Metro’s guide to British sit-coms (situation comedies) like Fawlty Towers, The Office and Little Britain on Netflix, and the British Council’s Video Zone. Check yourlocalcinema.com for subtitled film showings.
Make notes: Carry an A-Z notebook to keep a record of useful expressions and vocabulary you find in everyday life.
Sing along: Listen to British and American songs and find and learn the lyrics to some of your favourite songs. Check out the lyricstraining app, which offers gap-fill games at a range of levels.
Switch to English: Text your English-speaking friends in English and change your technology and social media language settings to English.
Speak up: Try to make conversation while out and about in London. Most people will appreciate your efforts (most British people do not speak a foreign language themselves).
Ask away: Teachers will welcome questions (however silly!), so feel free to make notes of any doubts so that you can ask your teacher about them in class.
Pick a theme: Improve your vocabulary thematically by focusing on a different topic each week, for example politics or shopping. Read magazine articles, visit museums, watch videos and read online, making notes of any useful words.