Chien English Series (Serial 4) - My English Breakthrough Recipe: 4 Key Ingredients
其他关键食材
食材二：室友聊天
欢迎回来。与上一集提到的需要注入很大勇气的公交对话相比，这一种食材可能因为它的柔和度而更易被大众所接受。
如果我告诉你，要想提高口语，你就要和你的中国朋友全部纯英文交流。你会采纳我的建议吗？是不是觉得那样做会很尴尬？至少我。。是会的。那么，有没有什么其他更自然的方法呢？
恭喜！答案是肯定哒。选择收拾收拾行李搬到一个文化大熔炉的屋檐下居住吧。
我很幸运的在第一次共享住宿的经历中无意习得了这条锦囊。还记得我当时是最先搬进那所房子的人，紧接着我的四个可爱的室友就一一闪亮登场啦。其中的3个都来自异国他乡：马来西亚，印度尼西亚和德国。我从中获得的乐趣也是远远超出了我的期望。直到现在，每每想起那段时光，我的心中依然温暖无限。
那时，小屋里的每一天都充满着欢声笑语，我们畅谈着各自的文化，同时也分享着身后悠久的民族美食。教室友们包饺子的那天让我觉得原来生活还可以赋予如此的使命感：）。我的英语也在不知不觉中进步神速。于是，这也成了我之后选择住宿的首要标准之一。
当下，我的室友叫Janin，是一名来自非洲纳米比亚的德国裔姑娘。励志向上又善解人意，典型的学霸级人物。和她的朝夕相处，也让我学到了很多（汗颜时刻，她比我还小四岁呢。。。）。美好的相处，让我感恩而珍惜每一天的时光。
食材三：探索玩转社区/大学俱乐部
只要你稍微搜索留意，就能发现这种食材。而且，你会很惊讶，原来各个大学和社区，为了让我们（国际学生）有一个完美体验，贴心的提供了很多针对我们的社团与俱乐部，周到的设计，会让你觉得不用它们真是太可惜了。
作为南澳大利亚大学的毕业生，我在校期间最喜欢的一个社团是“你的文化，我的文化”（Your culture My culture）。https://i.unisa.edu.au/students/business/life/culture/它是一个半独立群体，根据每个人事先填好的偏好进行科学分组，通常一个组里只有4-6个成员，这让你们可以充分了解彼此。学期里会有一些聚会，例如远足登山，冲浪或去各家餐厅享用美食。如此包吃包玩的设计，不要太爽。成员们也是来自五湖四海希望了解各国文化的志同道合者。如此轻松有趣的环境，让我的英语和探索文化之旅变得趣味非凡。
所以，今天给你们布置的作业就是去搜索你们的大学或社区，看看都有哪些优质资源。不要拖延，立即开始行动吧！如果你坐标刚好就在阿德莱德，那恭喜，幸运的你们可以直接认领我搜到的阿德社区给你们提供的各种趣味英语活动链接：https://www.cityofadelaide.com.au/community/events/
挑一个你心水的，然后开启未知的旅程吧 ：）
第四名：自说自话
这个听起来可能有些怪异而疯狂，但它也因此散发着它的夺目光芒。那段时间，我定下目标，立志每天都要练习口语。所以如果我在某一天没有遇到聊天的人时，我就会跟镜子或手机里的录音机谈论我的一天。就像写日记一样现在，由于我的英语进步了，我开始喜欢在早上慢跑时收听播客。我最喜欢的两个是Oprah的SuperSoul Conversations http://www.supersoul.tv/ 和 On Purpose with Jay Shetty https://jayshetty.me/podcast/。因为我一直很喜欢听故事，因为有趣的同时还可以学习每个人的智慧之处。一举两得。你呢？你喜欢的播客是什么？
简而言之，三点精华总结：
• 如果你可以将学习英语与自己的性格爱好相匹配，你就会发现英语学习其实可以而且应该很有趣。
• 一旦你能在自然环境中无意识地使用英语，你的英语就一定会自由飞翔。 记住，不要对自己的语法错误要求太苛刻。因为只要人们能理解你，你就已经达到目标啦（关键词J）。因为语言的主要目的就是交流呀。
• 试一试。逼一逼自己，看看会发生什么。一路上收获惊喜是一件非常令人兴奋的事，不是吗？
以上这就是我的食谱啦，希望它能激发你去探索属于你的专属秘方。因为我们每个人都是一个独特的个体。我期待早日听到你的秘密食材！
我的英语学习之旅也在此告一段落啦。如果你有什么对你英语学习帮助良多的小贴士，请不要害羞，请大胆在下方留言哦。分享，让这个世界更美好。
Part 2: Other Key Ingredients
No.2 Ingredient: Housemate Chat
Compared to a bit daring ingredient one, this ingredient is much more comforting.
If you are a Chinese, and I am telling you: “To improve your English, from now on, you should talk to any Chinese person you know in English only.” What do you feel? A bit awkward? At least my answer is yes. So, is there any alternative, a more natural way?
The answer is YES! Live in shared accommodation with non-Chinese housemates. I learned this trick by luck from my first shared accommodation experience. I was the first person to move in the house, and my 3 out of 4 housemates turned out to be non-Chinese international students from Malaysia, Indonesia and Germany. And the benefits I received were far beyond my expectations. That period still holds a special place in my heart.
We had so much fun living together, such as talking about our own cultures and sharing our national dishes. I still remember that afternoon, I started my first cooking lesson, teaching my lovely housemates how to make dumplings. That moment added a special meaning to my life, which enhanced my desire to become a cultural ambassador. My English improved a lot too, naturally. Hence, that became one of my rules when it comes to picking accommodation.
Currently, my housemate Janin is a lovely girl from Namibia with a German background. She is a very driven person, very thoughtful and fun person to live with. We had many thought-provoking conversations and exploration journeys together. I learned a lot from her. I absolutely treasure this experience every single day. Gratitude 😊
No.3 Ingredient: Community Connections
This ingredient is always available if you are willing to do a bit of research.
Trust me, you will be impressed by the number of communities/clubs available and specifically just for you (international students) either at your university/school or in the city you are living.
As an alumnus from the University of South Australia, one of my favourite programs is Your Culture My Culture.
https://i.unisa.edu.au/students/business/life/culture/
It is a semi-independent program. Members are grouped based on their preferences, usually, there are 4-6 members in a group. University organises some structured meetups, such as hiking, surfing or having a meal in a restaurant. How good is that 😊? Attendees are all from different parts of the world and eager to learn about cultures. I really enjoyed speaking English and exploring cultures in that type of relaxed and fun environment.
So, your homework today is to check out resources in your local community. Don’t wait, start to explore now! Lucky you who are based in Adelaide, here is a link you for you to browse:https://www.cityofadelaide.com.au/community/events/
No.4 Ingredient: Daily Self Dialogue
This one may sound a bit quirky, but it has its own charm :)
Back then, I wanted to practise my spoken English every single day. When I didn’t have anyone to talk on that day, I would speak to a mirror or talk to my phone recorder about my day. It’s like writing a journal 😊
Now, since my English is getting better day by day, I have started to enjoy listening to podcasts while jogging in the morning. Two of my favourites are Oprah's SuperSoul Conversationshttp://www.supersoul.tv/and On Purpose with Jay Shettyhttps://jayshetty.me/podcast/. I always like to listen to people’s stories and get insights and wisdom from them. What about you? I am always OPEN to recommendation.
In a nutshell:
Learning English can and should be fun if you can match your learning techniques with your personality and hobbies.
When you use English in a natural environment unconsciously, your English will fly. 😊However, don’t be too harsh on yourself and your grammatical errors when you start. As long as people can understand you, you win (use keywords). All in all, the main purpose of a language is to communicate.
Try Try Try. Push yourself and see what happens. Isn’t it exciting to receive surprises along the way?
This is my unique recipe, and I hope it will inspire you to explore a recipe which only belongs to you too. Because we are all different, right? I can’t wait to hear your key ingredients!
This concludes my English learning journey. Is there anything I missed but helped you so much for your language learning journey? Please leave a comment below 😊. Sharing is caring, so let’s give this world more love.
