Like a robot! It have been almost two years since I arrived to London. Although I had studied English in Spain since primary school I didn't have too much idea about the language when I first came, I

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tamara

Like a robot! It have been almost two years since I arrived to London. Although I had studied English in Spain since primary school I didn't have too much idea about the language when I first came, I had not had any contact with English since I finished my A levels, and that was 10 years ago! I could only remember a little about grammar and some vocabulary. My first 6 month were really hard, even I couldn't understand simple questions and it was a very big effort to read everything, I couldn't say almost a word. Now, I am starting to feel more confident, I can do by myself almost everything: shopping, banking, having a chat with people... but I still having lots of problems for communicating sometimes. Talking by phone still being hard, and when I speak I feel clumsy.I can feel as well that people sometimes can not understand what I am saying. I think my best improvement have been reading. I can read almost everything but when I write I start to be too much creative with the order of the words, which is very important in English but not really in Spanish. I also feel weak with the connections between sentences and that makes feel like a robot (but not like a cool one). I feel a bit like a robot when I speak, write or think in English. I think also I sound like a robot or like the google translator, and that is awful.

Corrections · 3

I would agree: Don't worry about the tiny mistakes you make. I live in the United States and I work with a Chilean man who speaks pretty good English. He doesn't get caught up in the minor flaws or mistakes he occasionally makes. He just speaks the language and lets his personality come through. Hago lo mismo cuando hablo Espanol. Yo se que no hablo 100% bien, pero me comunico lo mejor que puedo. Me enfoco en la situacion y las personas con quienes hablo...no en mi mismo ni mi tecnica. El proposito de un idioma es comunicacion, no perfeccion! Tambien uno debe mejorarse poco a poco....y eso viene por corregirnos poco a poco. Lo que si nos impide mejorar es una preocupacion con nosotros mismos. No debemos ser tan criticos que tenemos verguenza de hablar o expresarnos. Cuando fui de visitas al sur de Espana me di cuenta que no podia hablar perfectamente. Pero me defendi, mejore, y vi que me aceptaron por el esfuerzo q hice. No debes dejar tus errores impedir tus conecciones con otras personas!

Like a robot!

It has been almost two years since I arrived in London. Although I had studied English in Spain since primary school, I didn't have too much idea about the language when I first arrived; I had not had any contact with English since I finished my A levels, and that was 10 years ago! I could only remember a little about grammar and some vocabulary.

My first 6 months were really hard, even I couldn't even understand simple questions and it was a very big effort to read everything; I couldn't hardly say almost a word. Now, I am starting to feel more confident. I can do by myself almost everything by myself: shopping, banking, having a chatting with people... but I still having lots of problems in communicating sometimes. Talking by phone is still being hard, and when I speak I feel clumsy. Sometimes, I can also feel as well that people sometimes cannot understand what I am saying.

I think my best improvement has been reading. I can read almost everything, but when I write I start to be too much creative with the order of the words, which is very important in English but not really in Spanish. I also feel weak with the connections between sentences and that makes feel like a robot (but not like a cool one).

I feel a bit like a robot when I speak, write or think in English. I think also I sound like a robot or like the google translator, and that is awful.

I think Alessandro makes some good points in his comment - you shouldn't feel bad about making mistakes or sounding strange to others. More than 50% of the population in London have come from another country, so you are not alone! People here in London will usually try very hard to understand and help you when you speak. Don't be afraid - even if you muddle your sentences and forget words, the chances are that you will be understood. When you learn English as a foreign language, it feels like you have to know all the rules, but in reality, on the street .. no-one is checking your grammar!!

You're immersed in an ambient where everyone speaks your target language. The only thing you need to do is practicing as much as you can without being ashamed and, above all, avoid speaking in Spanish. Remember you're learning English by the best way that's living with native speakers, so knock yourself out ;)

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