Learning German

When I was a teenager, I started studying German. I took a paper to ask my teacher about some words and things I didn’t understand. After he explained the words to me, I found a way that I could begin to understand and practice German word order. Now, I am a teacher of English, and I think that the technique I used for German can help you with your English.

Word Order in Other Languages

In some languages, the order of the words is not very important. For example, the verb sometimes goes in the middle of the sentence, or at the end. And the meaning doesn’t change.

Word Order in English

In English, the word order often helps a listener or a reader to know what information is important. So when you study English, it is important for you to learn word order.

My German Technique

But how do you learn it and remember it? One way is to use the technique that I used with German. It is very simple. Here is the sentence that my teacher helped me with. The name is not written because I do not remember it.

Frau … ist heute nicht hier. (Mrs. … isn’t here today.)

I was very new to German, so my teacher had to translate the words. Then I saw the difference in the structure, the word order, of the sentence.

Mrs. … is today not here.

After that day, any time I read a German sentence, the English words in my head used German word order. And when I became more fluent, I began thinking more in German. And I thought in German word order. This was good because German word order is important like it is in English.

How can you do This

Here is the way you can do this. Find a simple English sentence. Translate the words into your language. Write the translation, but do not change the word order. Think about the places of the words in the sentence. Do this with many English sentences. After some practice, you will become better and better at English word order.

Your Turn

Please remember to leave a comment and show me how you are using this idea to help you with English. Tell me the ways it is helping you. And do not forget to practice, practice, practice.