How can I speak English as a native people?

Hi,

It takes a lot of time to speak English fluently. Depends on nationalities your friends are, you can speak English like American, British, European, Australian, and even Scottish.. No matter if you can have an American accent or not, try to pronounce the words correctly first. That's much more important cos the purpose of any language speaking is making the others to understand you.

If you can, try practice English for 1 hour everyday. Speak slowly and pronounce clearly. Don't pay attention at Grammar much if  your target is just speaking. Try to imitate intonation of  your friends

You can use Sound recorder to record your voice and listen to your reading.  If you're diligent enough, I believe your English will be improved soon.

Regards

The very best way is to practice with native English speakers.

Easy.
Start when you're no older than three years old, five at an absolute push.
Use English every day, conversing with native speakers or Americans.
Make sure you read and fully understand everything in the bible and every word ever written by wobbling Willy (Essential to understand English idioms).

Do these things, or your bootless English will not trouble deaf English speakers.

Sorry about the last line, I couldn't resist paraphrasing and bastardising a sonnet but, to those unfamiliar with these things, it'll be water off a ducks back, or a "whooooosh".

I forgot about tongue twisters,
Use as many as you can find - saying them slowly and carefully, making sure you get the mouth shapes and tongue positions absolutely correct.
That'll do wonders for your pronunciation.

ronron wrote:

Hi friends, I has studied English for a long time ago but ...

I hear this often, but ask yourself 'How did I learn Vietnamese'?

As others pointed out - by hearing. Your parents didn't stick a book in your face - you couldn't even read when you first started learning Vietnamese.

And this means off with TV and other entertainment sources and ONLY listen to English. Unfortunately, the best resource, BBC, is blocked in VN by Bac Ho. But you can install a free VPN and beat them this way.

I carry my Samsung Note with me all the time and when I hear an unusual word, I stuff my Note in their face, and ask them to SAY AGAIN. By listening up close, you can hear every intonation.

IF you wrote the opening post, it appears your basic grammar is OK - not perfect - but OK.

Another thing you might do is to 'hang out' where Foreigners meet and try to listen to them as they speak. This will get you used to accents.

There are so many 'audio books' on-line such as this or this. All you need is an InterNet connection and to install (mien phi) U-Torrent.

@Ronron: if you like watching movie, you can download "Friends" film. I watched it some months ago, and I think I learned English too much from this film.
It's funny film,  with 10 seasons, one has 24 parts. Still I haven't watched all, just 5 seasons.
Use U-Torrent to download it. Search: friends kickass torrent season 1[2,3,4...]

eodmatt wrote:

The very best way is to practice with native English speakers.

Totally agree!

And you can actually improve your English speaking efficiency by being involved in an English environment of your own through:
Read English (books, newspaper, use guide, brochure, etc.) -> read everyday, no need to understand all

Listen to English (TV, radio, films, etc.) -> again, no need to understand all or even just like you're listening to music without too much attention

Dream.. in English (last but not least, not easy at the beginning, but just strongly believe you can do it then you can certainly do )

Key required qualification: PATIENCE

G'luck!

eodmatt wrote:

The very best way is to practice with native English speakers.

The best/easiest way is to get married with native English speaker  ?

ngattt wrote:

The best/easiest way is to get married with native English speaker?

A price too high!

Dejavu.dot wrote:

Hi,

It takes a lot of time to speak English fluently. Depends on nationalities your friends are, you can speak English like American, British, European, Australian, and even Scottish.. No matter if you can have an American accent or not, try to pronounce the words correctly first. That's much more important cos the purpose of any language speaking is making the others to understand you.

If you can, try practice English for 1 hour everyday. Speak slowly and pronounce clearly. Don't pay attention at Grammar much if  your target is just speaking. Try to imitate intonation of  your friends

You can use Sound recorder to record your voice and listen to your reading.  If you're diligent enough, I believe your English will be improved soon.

Regards

I have to play more with the Sound recorder. This is a great idea for me to practice with myself in order to improve my voice, pronounce and vocabularies. Thanks Dejavu.

eodmatt wrote:

The very best way is to practice with native English speakers.

Hope I have more friends can be talkative in the relaxation, life, job or anything. Thank you.

virgoks wrote:

eodmatt wrote:

The very best way is to practice with native English speakers.

Totally agree!

And you can actually improve your English speaking efficiency by being involved in an English environment of your own through:
Read English (books, newspaper, use guide, brochure, etc.) -> read everyday, no need to understand all

Listen to English (TV, radio, films, etc.) -> again, no need to understand all or even just like you're listening to music without too much attention

Dream.. in English (last but not least, not easy at the beginning, but just strongly believe you can do it then you can certainly do )

Key required qualification: PATIENCE

G'luck!

I am reminded that when I was a young soldier living in Germany, I (erroneously) thought I could learn German by osmosis, that is by tuning my little transistor radio to a German radio station and placing it under my pillow so that I might absorb some German whilst I slept.

Of course, after midnight the radio station stopped transmitting news programs and simply repeated its station identification name over and over again.

And so it is that I can now pronounce the words of the radio station ID in perfect German: "Deutschland Funk Sender"

Later on I went to language school at Mulheim an der Ruhr and learned to speak the language  properly. Part of the training was "total immersion", in that we were expected to speak only German, once we had a framework with which to work. We - there were 12 on the course - learned to speak basic German in about 4 weeks, after that it was down to "Ubung Macht Die Meister", or "practice makes perfect". Going to German pubs, restaurants and other places to meet with Germans and speak their language with them.

So, OP, as advised above, take every opportunity to read English, speak English and, if you don't understand something, ask, or use the internet to research the things you don't understand.

Apart from learning enough of a language to be able to speak it there are two major hurdles for almost everyone to overcome: 1. Having the confidence to speak with foreigners - You appear to have achieved this.
2. Pronunciation is key. If you can pronounce English words correctly, you will be understood, even if your grammar is incorrect.

Once you have cleared those two hurdles your knowledge of the English language will increase rapidly as long as you keep practicing.

I'm quite convinced that there are some VN's that will never be able to master some pronounciation, ( as some Foreigners will never master some Viet ), whether it's due to dental deformities, swollen tongue?, or shyness, ( I quite often get adults speaking a sort of baby talk English ). I've shown some VN's all the diagrams, ( with translations from Lanes English ), many different ways of pronouncing " TH " words, ( from VN Professors ), used mirrors , recorders , etc, and they still can't say many " TH " or " TW " words,  I've even tried speech therapy, ( I had it when I was young, so can still remember how it works ), and still no success, it can get very frustrating for both parties.

A question for some VN's. do you ever feel like you are being childish, ( apart from sticking out your tongue while trying to pronounce " TH " words ),  or feel you are trying to take the piss out of the English language, when trying to pronounce certain words, I know I do when trying to say some Viet words, that's why I don't bother with some words.
  Unfortunately, I have a house in Tinh Khe, and that is not easy for me to pronounce, you have to make a sort of clicking sound that comes from the back of your throat, although some VN's have no problems understanding me when I say it the English way.

bluenz wrote:

I'm quite convinced that there are some VN's that will never be able to master some pronounciation, ( as some Foreigners will never master some Viet ), whether it's due to dental deformities, swollen tongue?

I had a student who has splayed teeth AND a stutter. When I first met him I was reminded of the English comedian Ken Dodd!

(Ken Dodd is now 86 and still active)

The student presented a real challenge. I only look at two places on my students faces: mouth/teeth and eyes. (Even the beautiful students)

After about a month the mispronunciation caused by his teeth faded and later, so did his stutter.

I used headphones for him and a headset w/mic for me so he could listen 'real close' to word pronunciation.

Now, after I and my partners have coached him for a year, he has landed a good paying job in Japan in the automotive electronic maintenance field. He scored 97% on his technical test and 93% on his English.

But I often had dreams of his mouth and those teeth after giving him lessons!

bluenz wrote:

I've shown some VN's all the diagrams, (with translations from Lanes English ), many different ways of pronouncing

The BBC web site (blocked) has some excellent diagrams on mouth/tongue positioning.

I have supplied a few dozen CDs/SD chips to various chatroom members and I include English for Vietnamese, English Unlocked! Read & Think English and English (Audio Book), along with the BBC pictorials. Seems to help people located way out where Foreigners don't wander.

ronron wrote:

Hope I have more friends can be talkative in the relaxation, life, job or anything. Thank you.

I introduce you this teacher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3g51xfopIE

@ About diagrams on mouth/tongue positioning: You remind me the book " Speaking American English". (can't remember the name exactly). Its video show diagrams of mouth and tongue. I bought some  videos and realized they are available in youtube.

I see Rachel also has diagram videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYWlQur5g5s

" I used headphones for him and a headset w/mic for me so he could listen 'real close' to word pronunciation. "

Yes, it's been proven that when a stutterer can't hear him/herself speak, she/he stops stuttering.
 
The Lanes English diagrams are good, I had the instructions translated, and made the diagrams larger, I've sent them to many people on this site as well, but when i hand them to a VN, I'm sure , 75% of the time they never bother with them, in fact, I think when I gave them to this young Uni Teacher, she was offended, (  Masters Degree in English, but her pronounciation was not very good ), but what would you expect, she was willing to become a TA in a 2 bit Language school ,during her spare time, ( but she couldn't handle the noise from the 4/5 yr olds, yet she had a 2 yr old and a 10 yr old herself? ).

I have this: Speaking English with an American Accent


My problems is, I always sit on my office everyday, and there are some people there, so I can't speak loud. When I am at home, I still don't want to make noise .
That's why I only improve my reading, writing, listening skills . From now, I will try to improve my speaking skill too  .

Ngatt made a good point on watching television shows, "Friends" in her case. It is virtually impossible to speak a language like a native without years of living in a total immersion environment. But television shows offer opportunities to put yourself in one for an hour.

I used to watch Spanish "Soap Operas"  for a half hour a day, and children's comedy shows (El Chapulin Colorado or El Chavo de Ocho) for a half hour. The soap operas were ideal in that the speech was usually clearly enunciated, and the childrens shows were handy for picking up both common expressions, and ones which challenged your pronounciation.

As a native English teacher for 26 years, I'll tell you right now that if you expect to speak English just like a native speaker you're setting yourself up for disappointment. Unless you start learning the language as a small child from a native speaker (just like you learned your mother tongue as a baby from your mother) you will never reach this very unrealistic goal. You may become completely fluent in the language, develop an exceptionally large vocabulary and a reasonably good pronunciation, but that's the best you can hope for.

I learned Portuguese while still in Canada, I've now been living in Brazil for 13 years. I am completely fluent in the language, have near perfect grammar and even do complex English<->Portuguese translations. I will never speak the language like a born Brazilian, that's impossible.

I can tell you that the English language is so complex and ever changing that you're being unrealistic. You still have fundamental problems with the written language, grammar, spelling and word choice; what makes you think that you're going to speak like a native? Fix what you can first and be satisfied with that, because that's the best any non-English speaker can hope for.

Hi! Practice makes perfect. Expose yourself with English speaking people. Listen carefully and try to speak clearly. Don't be shy, everyone started with the first step. Good luck! 

Thanks everyone for your interesting advice  !

bluenz wrote:

A question for some VN's. do you ever feel like you are being childish, ( apart from sticking out your tongue while trying to pronounce " TH " words ),  or feel you are trying to take the piss out of the English language, when trying to pronounce certain words,
.

In Vietnamese language, "TH" is pronouced "thờ", but in English, it is mixed "thờ" with "sờ", right? It is quite easy to pronounce "TH" with me, but when I read a certain word/sentences, I forgot all rules and just pronounce like Vietnamese .
That's why now I must practice, practice and practice everytime  .

Jaitch wrote:

A price too high!

Yeah, sure. I see this when I have some foreign friends. I really like to play with words/sentences in Vietnamese language. And like many poems too. Like this: chả lo gì, chỉ lo già! If you don't understand Vietnamese deeply, you can't see how interesting it is.
Sometimes I updated my status in Skype with Vietnamese poem I like so much, my friend asked me "What is that you written?". At that time, I knew, I would always explain every Vietnamese I wrote . It's not easy at all  :cool. And if I get married with a foreigner, maybe I would give up my habit .

" It is quite easy to pronounce "TH" with me, but when I read a certain word/sentences, I forgot all rules and just pronounce like Vietnamese "
  Just remember to stick your tongue out a little, and blown air, ( Thursday, thirsty , etc,  no air for this, that, them ,  etc ).

Oh, I learn English from watching American movies and sometimes British movies. I have watched thousands of movies already. Have to thank Hollywood big time for that.

I started from zero. Was a poor student so I could afford cheap 10,000 vnd DVDs that have English subtitles. Set the film in English audio and Engllish subtitle. Watch. Listen to what they speak and compare with the subtitle. I paused to look for the meaning of new words in the dictionary that I can remember, how to write, how to speak and how to use. Don't bother to look up all new words, won't help. It took me 2 years, I didn't mind coz I love Hollywood movies.

Be patient!

Ngan Khanh wrote:

Oh, I learn English from watching American movies and sometimes British movies. I have watched thousands of movies already. Have to thank Hollywood big time for that.

I started from zero. Was a poor student so I could afford cheap 10,000 vnd DVDs that have English subtitles. Set the film in English audio and Engllish subtitle. Watch. Listen to what they speak and compare with the subtitle. I paused to look for the meaning of new words in the dictionary that I can remember, how to write, how to speak and how to use. Don't bother to look up all new words, won't help. It took me 2 years, I didn't mind coz I love Hollywood movies.

Be patient!

You were that " Poor " that you could afford a DVD player, and TV ?. hahaha
  I've tried this with VN TV, but some Viet words, ( sounds ), seem ike they don't have any English sound, and many VN's talk so fast. ( VN's probably say the say about Foreigners though,, I know I've had to talk a lot slower, ( and louder ),  since teaching.

Lol. Right but you missed the part I saved money for a long long time to buy cheap TV that cost 1 mil and DVD player I paid 300k for. I keep the DVDs clean and in perfect condition to exchange for another DVDs. I only keep the movies I love.

Go and live in Britain for a few years. My Viet sister in law has a perfect Welch accent lol.

VietExpatTV wrote:

Go and live in Britain for a few years. My Viet sister in law has a perfect Welch accent lol.

Haha, I received quite a shock many years ago, when I heard a Negro/Pakistani? with a thick Scottish accent.
  I still imagine the Chinese students with the Irish accent????

I'm currently trying to teach my kids English. Let me tell you, getting them to put the s on the end of their plurals is a daily battle.

VietExpatTV wrote:

I'm currently trying to teach my kids English. Let me tell you, getting them to put the s on the end of their plurals is a daily battle.

And they add " s " where it shouldn't be, ( because there is no plural in Viet ), with my students,  I have a big " S " on a piece of paper, in my shirt pocket , which I shove in their face, when they miss the " s ", after a while I only have to point at my pocket.

bluenz wrote:

And they add " s " where it shouldn't be, ( because there is no plural in Viet ), with my students,  I have a big " S " on a piece of paper, in my shirt pocket , which I shove in their face, when they miss the " s ", after a while I only have to point at my pocket.

Haha,,yes that's a good one. I usually give my son a big angry "UHM????" and he will auto-correct.