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Learning Tips
Learning Turkish can be a long and difficult journey, and you might get frustrated when you think you've learnt a lot yet don't understand when someone is speaking or writing Turkish to you! So here are some tips to try and speed up the learning process;
1) Study vocabulary. It's a good idea to study Turkish vocabulary at the same as learning the grammar. Make lists of Turkish words and put them into catagories, such as colours or food and drink. Try to learn about 10-20 words in each catagory at a time, and keep going over them until they stick in your head. Buy a dictionary such as the one on the left and jot down important words.
2) Speak in Turkish! Talk Turkish as much as you can, even if it's just to yourself or your pets! This will give you more confidence when speaking to Turkish People. It will also help you to sound more natural when it comes to speaking with other people.
3) Watch Turkish TV. Watch Turkish TV online or listen to Turkish radio stations, even if you don't understand it you will still learn how to pronounce words. Try searching for Turkish programmes on YouTube. I reccomend 'Yabanci Damat' :)
4) Practice makes perfect! Practice writing your own sentences or stories in Turkish, there are many forums that will check and correct it for you and you will learn where you are making mistakes and how to correct them in the future. This will also help you with your grammar and word order.
5) Exchange websites. There are many language exchange sites on the Internet, such as 'My language exchange' or 'My language buddy'. Here you can be matched with someone who wants to learn English and teach Turkish, meaning you can help each other learn the languages.
6) Stickers aren't just for kids! Place stickers with Turkish words written on them around your house, such as putting 'bilgisayar' (computer) on your computer or 'dolap' on a cupboard. If you see the words a few times every day it will help it stick in your head. Just be prepared to answer some awkward questions when your guests ask you why there's a sticker on your toilet!
7) Read children's stories. Find a website containing children's stories in Turkish and try to translate them. Write down all the words you don't understand and learn them. To download childrens books in Turkish from the internet go to www.google.com.tr and search for 'cocuk hikayeleri' ('childrens stories').
Remember: Practice makes perfect!
If you have any tips that you would like to share on this page, either e-mail me with the subject heading 'Tips' or write your tips on the Totally Turkish Forum.
