Foreign Language Learning Strategies
This activity is meant to draw students' attention to the importance of applying well-defined language learning strategies, in particular strategies for vocabulary memorization and retention. Teachers may want to focus on the following strategies:Mnemonic Devices
Since memorization is so important in language learning, many students have found Mnemonic Devices very helpful. Mnemonic devices are rhymes, sentences or acronyms designed to help people remember all kinds of facts, for example, the cranial nerves, the location of the planets in relation to the sun, or the order of the colors in the rainbow. The latter is the "name" Roy G. Biv, standing for Red Orange Yellow Green Blue Indigo Violet. In language learning, such devices are quite useful in grouping vocabulary or categories of vocabulary. One of the most famous mnemonic devices used in teaching French is the acronym Doctor & Missus Vandertramp. Each letter in the standard abbreviations for "doctor" and "missus", plus each letter in the name "Vandertramp" suggest the first letter of a French verb that uses the helping verb être in the passé composé: Devenir, Rester, Monter, Retourner, Sortir, Venir, Aller, Naître, Descendre, Entrer, Revenir, Tomber, Rentrer, Arriver, Mourir, and Partir.Story Building
Have your students learn new vocabulary words by putting them in a story that they create. For example, if you want your students to learn a list of words dealing with food, ask them to make up a story about going to a restaurant. They could also talk about the meals they prepare or a recent trip to the grocery store.Code Words
To learn a difficult word in another language, students should connect it acoustically or visually with a word in their native tongue. They should choose a word in their native language that either rhymes or sounds similar to the foreign word, or connect the code-word by a pictorial idea that conveys the meaning of the vocabulary item. For example, a student who wants to remember the French word for fish, which is poisson, might draw a fish and associate it with that word. A student who wants to remember the Hebrew word for house, which is bayit, might come up with a sentence like "this is an old house-- why do you want to buy it?".Songs
Many students enjoy putting new vocabulary into songs that they write, especially when trying to remember a series of words such as numbers, the letters of the alphabet, or the days of the week.Rule-Based Memorization
Some languages lend themselves to rule-based memorization better than others. The example of Pig Latin, which we include in handout 3, shows how students may benefit from understanding a general principle which makes memorization much easier or eliminates the need for memorization altogether.Teacher Notes
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Student Handouts
Note that the student handouts provide three different scenarios: The first has numbers, that are best memorized in sequence; the second has words that are theme-based; the third has words that are both theme-based and rule-driven. These differences should dictate the choice of strategy used for memorizing the words.Updated February 24, 2004