Michel Thomas

[Miss Take]

Not really sure where to put this topic - books and writing seems most appropriate.

 

Has anyone tried the Michel Thomas method of learning a foreign language?

 

I'm keen to learn Spanish and I remember hearing about this guy a long time ago. His methods are unconventional but have received a lot of praise. I know I'll still have to do the dog work of learning vocab but it seems that this is a good way to understand the language rather than just learn it by rote. He's got pretty good reviews on Amazon at least, but i wondered if anyone had any direct experience of his techniques.

[Miss Take]

Well, I bought the cds anyway based on the Amazon reviews and I've listened to the first one and I'm already constructing sentences (though very specific ones, obviously). His technique is a world away from the language teachings I remember from the QEII. His method gives you instant confidence in what you're doing and a real feeling of achievement which makes you really want to learn more.

 

He teaches you something that seems almost like nothing and then gets you to work things out for yourself. he'll ask you then to translate a pretty long sentence from English (this is after 15 minutes of your first ever lesson in the language) and you'll laugh out loud, thinking how ridiculous it is that you should be expected to do that - and then you just do it. Even the people on the tape (genuine first time students, apparently) are obviously surprised at how easy they're finding it.

 

Anyway, this is only disc 1 out of 8 and I know that there's a hell of a long way to go if I'm to get fluent, but I'm already won over by his technique and am raring to get on with it. I'll probably listen to each disc at least twice to consolidate what I've learned, but I'm sure I'll be getting the next level of discs pretty soon.

 

Before I got the discs I wondered how anyone could possibly write a review after only having listened to one of the lessons, as a few people on Amazon had done, but now I know.

[ans]

How does his method differ from the good old Rosetta Stone approach?

[Miss Take]

How does his method differ from the good old Rosetta Stone approach?

 

I'll tell you once I've gotten a bit further with the course and once I've worked out what you mean

[Miss Take]

Have looked a bit more and I'd say the main difference is about £100 in Michel's favour!

 

It looks like the MT method and the RT method are only really similar in that they don't require you to 'learn' things - they both work by helping you understand the language. RT uses pictures and sounds to help you learn the same way you did when you were a young child, whereas MT builds your knowledge of the language based on its rules. You practice it and remember it in the same way as you remember what someone said to you in a conversation. He also focuses strongly on pronunciation so that when you actually meet a Spanish speaker, they have a chance of understanding you.

 

I'm on disc 5 now (if anyone's interested) and still enjoying it and already planning on getting the advanced and language builder courses.