<p>Have anyone here tried to teach themselves a language and had success? I am trying to teach myself French using podcast, lessons from the Foreign Service Institute (free language lessons used to teach US diplomats), and watching films. Feel free to share your success stories and methods.</p>
<p>I’ve heard that Thomas Jefferson self-studied Italian to read the writings of Palladio (the architect). As I’ve heard it, he was successful. Success story!</p>
<p>Yeah, but I just say random stuff from Kdramas to my mother and discuss the wonders of featural alphabets.</p>
<p>I’m self studying Japanese for fun.</p>
<p>I’ve learned about 850 kanji in a little more than a week.
I’m going to know all 2,042 kanji by the end of July.
I think I can be pretty advance in Japanese by the end of this year.</p>
<p>PM me for the #1 site to learn languages (my opinion).
Lots of people on the 'net seem to become fluent because of the strategies on the site.</p>
<p>After Japanese, I plan to become fluent in Korean and get pretty advance in Spanish (all during high school).</p>
<p>I want to teach myself Spanish because it just seems really useful, but I haven’t gotten around to it. I’m terrible with self-studying things.</p>
<p>And Rayna, can I PM you for that site too?</p>
<p>^^ that’s so cool! why japanese?</p>
<p>^^Oh yes, you can.
Anyone can PM me!!</p>
<p>^ hehe thanks~ Japan seems like a cool place. ^^; I like their culture, history, language, and everything. 
I want to self study Korean too!</p>
<p>The site basically is ran by a guy named Khatz who taught himself Japanese, and now is some IT guy in Japan. It’s like “make up your X language childhood!” you do things that are fun, like watch a movie in X language, and just immerse yourself in X language. Do a little everyday (or a lot). Lots and lots of articles and such on this.</p>
<p>850 Kanji in a week? I find that hard to believe that you can reproduce 850 by hand and/or recognize them… it’s taken me several years to memorize 3,000 Chinese characters.</p>
<p>BTW, OP, I think it’s not worth it. You want someone who can really correct the accent and other mistakes. Take a class!</p>
<p>I am trying to teach myself latin. But I am failing at it. I want to at least be proficient past the first year latin level. Then start taking classes.</p>
<p>Wow rayna, that is extremely impressive.</p>
<p>I feel you Merples…
Chinese Saturday school = story of my childhood :(</p>
<p>^^Good for you. I keep thinking I should try to relearn Latin. I can translate any first year stuff without thinking, but it’s baby Latin. I get mixed up with even the very beginning of second year stuff and can only still translate poems I have half-memorized.</p>
<p>I’m trying to teach myself Italian. Between French as a springboard, my own studying, and ten or so in the country, I think I can get somewhere.</p>
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Have you tried Cambridge Latin Course? It’s easy and funny to read for beginners, especially self-teaching students.</p>
<p>I am kinda into Latin too. In learning Latin I don’t need to worry myself about listening and pronunciations, since it’s pretty much a dead language; reading&writing is sufficient for me. I remember years ago I was trying to master Arabic-But the first lesson in pronouncing those letters killed all my hope. I am unprecedentedly terrible at pronunciation…</p>
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<p>hehe it’s hard work~!
remember the kanji can work wonders though!
I study kanji several hours a day, every day. (like 4+ hours).
I use a system called SRS which are like timed flashcards.</p>
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thankies. =]</p>
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<p>There’s another useful website that I use like similar to Rosetta Stone where other users of that language correct your speaking. You can PM for that website. The only way I can learn a language is by speaking with other people from that country and self learning basics. Taking a class never helps. I took Latin in school and I can really read without checking grammar rules or vocab in probably up to half of 2nd year Latin. Face it, half of you that took a class in school for years can’t even speak to real speakers very well. </p>
<p>I want to do this because I want to study abroad in France in college, so I’ll be taking the class in France anyways, but I still want a foundation so I don’t go there cold.</p>
<p>Jesus, that is the last thing I would do for fun…</p>
<p>I really want to learn/teach myself German. Any suggestions?</p>
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<p>In addition to Cambridge (which I’ve never used, but have heard is very good), I’d also recommend Wheelock’s Latin. My Latin I & II classes used Wheelock’s, and I think it would be pretty easy to self-study with. It’s split up into 40 chapters so it may take you a while to get through the whole thing, but it’s very thorough and there are tons of practice sentences/problems. There’s also a separate Wheelock’s workbook (I don’t personally have one, but my teacher prints out homework for us from it every once in a while) that has additional exercises, and a Wheelock’s Latin Reader (I believe the Latin III&IV classes at my school use it.). </p>
<p>I didn’t self-study Latin, so don’t hold me to anything- but the book is very straightforward and seems like it’d be a good way to self-study. :)</p>
<p>I really want to teach myself another language, but I’m not too picky about which one. My dad wants to teach himself Portuguese and since it’s easier to learn a language when you have someone to talk to, I’m going to do that with him.</p>
<p>^ that sounds like fun!!! :D</p>
<p>My older brother speaks Japanese (along with Spanish, German, Hebrew, and Russian). So I can talk with him, when he feels like it :P</p>
<p>I’ve been self-studying Japanese since about 8th grade (so almost 4 years). I need to take an actual class because my motivation sucks, Kanji is a *****, and my grammar is atrocious. But I’ve memorized hiragana, katakana, a few Kanji, and a lot of words. My main method has been watching jdramas, listening to Japanese songs, and using internet resources. Rosetta Stone is too boring, and it doesn’t really fit my learning style. I’d rather take a class to learn it.</p>