Can’t seem to find a reliable, informative language-learning source? Don’t give up just yet! It can be tough to find the right blog, app, or platform that will elevate your learning experience.
First things first: You need to find a source that matches your level, whether you’re a beginner, intermediate, or expert.
So out of the myriad of language-related information out there, how can you know which platforms will benefit you? The simple answer? Research. And cue the moans and groans. But don’t worry. I’ve done most of the research, so you don’t have to.
Read on for a list of the 10 best language learning blogs in 2019! Perhaps one of the following platforms will stick with you and change your language-learning experience for the better—one can dream, right?
1. Fluent Language
Fluent Language offers a friendly, likable, every-person approach to language learning! The founder, Kerstin, claims that you’re never too old to learn a language—she never studied a language before she was 10, and now she can speak a crazy amount of languages.
Kerstin’s philosophy for Fluent Language is that “Language learning is for everyone, not just young, rich, smart, privileged people. Learning languages is a joyful thing. When you find the tools and resources that work for you, it even becomes easy.”
What does her blog offer?
One unique thing about her blog? Her Language Habit Toolkit. It doesn’t teach you a language but helps you to develop positive language learning habits. She dives further into this concept on her podcast, The Fluent Show. Be sure to tune in for some practical advice on how to effectively learn a language.
2. Smart Language Learner
Looking for a blog to check back on? Consider Smart Language Learner. The creator, Noel van Vliet, recognizes that he made a lot of mistakes when he was learning languages, and he hopes his blog and his advice will stop you from making the same mistakes.
What does his blog offer?
When you check out this blog, be sure to sift through all 16 pages of his blog. Sound annoying? Trust me. It’s worth it. Discover a mixture of broad language-learning advice and methods, reviews of other language learning apps and platforms, and more. Some of his viewpoints are very insightful to language learners. For example, “Pronunciation errors can get fossilized. And fossilized errors are hard to correct later on.”
If you want a dose of motivation with a sprinkle of informative advice on language learning platforms and how they work, you’ll like this blog.
3. All Language Resources
This blog has everything. And no, I’m not exaggerating. It literally provides all of the language resources—or at least whatever is available online—and gives honest reviews of numerous products and platforms.
The founder, Nick Dahlhoff, started All Language Resources after he found that everyone was recommending the same products to help him learn Chinese, and they all had positive reviews, but they weren’t helping him at all. He quickly learned that most of the top-rated products were reviewed by companies that could afford to pay the reviewer a wad of cash. So Nick decided to start his own website, peppered with honest reviews.
For example, he writes: “we are an affiliate for FluentU and earn a commission on any sales that come from this site. But, I’m not a huge fan of their product so I recommend a free alternative instead.”
What does his blog offer?
It offers honesty and a plethora of language learning resources
He provides 100-plus resources for learning Spanish, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Italian, Russian, and Arabic online. He also shares online courses and podcast options for numerous languages: Romanian, Finnish, Hebrew, Serbian, Thai, and the list goes on.
Basically, if you want to start learning a language, I’d suggest starting here to find the right resources.
4. Speechling
Perfect your pronunciation with Speechling! This blog, made up of a passionate team of professionals, wants to ensure you elevate your conversational skills, which can be one of the trickier areas of language learning.
This platform welcomes all learners from beginners to experts and offers both detailed advice and online pronunciation coaches in ten languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Russian, Japanese, Italian, Mandarin, Portuguese, Korean.
What does this blog offer?
You can use this website for two major things: tips, tricks, and advice on learning the ten languages mentioned above via their blog or receive personalized coaching sessions on how to speak whichever of the mentioned languages you desire.
On the first day, you’ll record yourself repeating a sentence voiced by a professional actor and then you’ll get feedback from one of their tutors in 24 hours. You also get your first 35 sessions per month FREE. Pretty neat, right?
5. Languages Are Easy
This blog, created by Roope Kiuttu, brims with confidence—the good kind. He knows what he’s talking about! For example, his bio reads, “I know more about language learning than 99% of people on this planet. Why do I say this? First, it sounds impressive. 😉 Second, it tells you that I know what I am talking about.”
And he believes that you can learn a language, that “anyone can learn a language.” And his blog will instill you with the same jolt of confidence that he has.
What does his blog offer?
Roope has articles discussing an array of languages, from English to Arabic to Spanish to French to Finnish, and more. He understands that your genes or your ability to learn don’t matter when it comes to grasping a new language, but it’s the techniques that can change everything. Give his blog a try, and see if it suits your learning style!
6. Omniglot
This blog focuses on writing, useful phrases, idioms, and it lays down the foundation of any language! The founder, Simon Anger, has been working on this site since 1998, and you can tell that he’s accumulated a lot of information since then.
What does his blog offer?
He has alphabets, phrases, and more for basically every language under the sun, from Cape Verdean Creole to Romani to Arabic (Modern Standard) to Estonian to French to English and the list goes on and on.
If you want to grasp the basics of a language, a foundation, use this site. Simon even teaches the phonetics of the alphabets in use today, but he also shows the alphabets no longer in use, which are fun to check out!
7. I Will Teach You A Language
Olly Richards, the creator of I Will Teach You A Language, teaches an array of languages via informative blog posts and through providing ultimate guides for beginners. It may seem like the typical language learning website, but trust me—there’s much more!
He claims that “The difficulty is, unless you’ve [learned] many languages before, how do you know what changes to make, and what to focus on?” He promises to show you how to learn the best techniques, but with a fun twist.
What does his blog offer?
Other than intriguing blog posts, a podcast, and informative ultimate guides on a variety of languages for beginners, he offers short stories!
He publishes the same stories, but in different languages. For example, if you speak English, but want to learn French, you can buy both versions—doing so will help you understand the grammar structure and vocabulary better. He also provides chapter summaries and questions to help you grasp the plot.
These books suit beginner to intermediate learners.
8. Crashed Culture
Do you need direction when it comes to language learning? This is where Jamie from Crashed Culture comes in to save the day. She “realized that language learning is a deeply personal journey, that depends on a whole bunch of different factors.”
What does her blog offer?
Not only does she use her blog to help guide you to the right resources by reviewing various products and platforms. She also has a YouTube channel! And one of her videos unveils how to set up a language learning routine, which is something that all of us language learners need to do.
If you’re just starting out and want to find viable resources on which language learning app to use, check out her blog for honest reviews. She’s not afraid to say when she doesn’t like a certain product!
9. Actual Fluency
The founder of Actual Fluency, Kris Broholm, believes that anyone can learn a language—even adults. He notes that the combination of today’s technology paired with some creativity and innovation propels the overall language learning experience.
What does his blog offer?
While his website offers a plethora of learning sources, such as blog posts and a podcast, Kris also offers “Bite Size Language Courses.” That’s right. They grant busy people the chance to spend around 20 minutes a day learning a language. The languages he offers are Latin American Spanish, Russian, Italian, German, and French.
But the innovative ideas don’t stop there!
Actual Fluency wants to invite language learners across the globe on a luxury cruise in 2021. The point of this cruise? “To share knowledge and network with other like-minded people, while also enjoying everything an all-inclusive luxury cruise has to offer.” Amid the networking and learning, you can bask in total relaxation.
10. Luca Lampariello
In school, Luca Lampariello didn’t like that he had to learn English from a textbook. He “wanted to learn from people, and novels, and films, and all the interesting things that drew [him] to the language.” So he decided to use his own methods to learn English and eventually French. And now he knows 13 languages.
If you want a one-to-one expert on language learning, Luca’s your guy!
One cool thing worth noting? He created his own learning method: Bidirectional Translation. Follow this link for a more in-depth explanation of Bidirectional Translation.
What does his blog offer?
His website has several blog posts unveiling tips on how to learn specific languages. But what really sets Luca apart from other blog posts is his coaching lessons. Everyone from beginners to intermediate to expert speakers to those who want to elevate their pronunciation or speaking skills will find a suitable language learning package.
Not sure if you want to commit to buying a course from someone you don’t know? Check out his YouTube channel to get an idea of what he’s like!
To Sum It Up…
These language learning blogs all offer innovative, unique ways to learn a language. They all provide detailed advice on which methods and resources can help to propel your overall learning experience. It’s obvious that they want you, the student, to find the right resources that suit your learning style—they are all authentic websites that are worth checking out!
BIO: Kelsey Krahn is a Senior Writer for the Speechling Team. She’s always dreamed of blending her passion for writing and teaching English into one job!
Joy
Thank you so much for sharing your references!