Conclusion List of Used Literatures

Keeping a Language Learning Diary: 5 Tips for Success

Hopefully I’ve sold you on the benefits of keeping a language learning diary. But how do you do it? Here are my top 5 tips.

Tip 1: Make it easy to keep

If you don’t obey this tip, the rest don’t matter. The most important thing about your language learning diary is discipline, and to get that discipline, it needs to be easy for you to make it a part of your routine. This means it has to be both convenient and enjoyable!

Some of this comes down to the format you use:

Wells, G. (1986). The meaning makers: Children learning language and using language to learn. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann pp. 158 - 176

Some people get a beautiful notebook that they can decorate, doodle in and carry around in their bags at all times.

• 
  However, if you might find it difficult to do that, just use the memo function on your smartphone.
  

• 
  You could also use a cloud-based tool (this blogger demonstrates how you can use Penzu to keep any kind of learning diary) so you can access your diary from any device at any time.
  

• 
  Some people choose to keep their diary as a blog in order to share their progress with others (more on this later).
  

Another nice way to make it fun is to take the opportunity to play with the language. You’re not being graded on this! For example, maybe you want to remember some similar sounding words in Spanish, so you write…

El papa empapa las papas de papá. (The Pope soaks dad’s potatoes.)

It’s silly, but you’ll remember it—and perhaps laugh when you read it back.