1. Good language learners find their own way and
take charge of their learning. They determine the methods that
are
best for them as individual learners.
They learn form others and experiment with different methods.
2. Good language learners organize their study
of the language, and they organize information about the language they
study.
3. Good language learners are creative.
They understand that language is creative. They experiment with the
language and
play with grammar, words, and
sounds.
4. Good language learners make their own opportunities for practicing the language inside and outside of the classroom.
5. Good language learners learn to live with uncertainty
by focusing on the meaning of what they can understand, by not
getting flustered, and by continuing
to talk or listen without necessarily understanding every word.
6. Good language learners use mnemonics and other memory strategies to recall what they are learning.
7. Good language learners make errors work for them and not against them.
8. Good language learners use linguistic knowledge,
including knowledge of their first language, in learning a second
language.
9. Good language learners use contextual clues
to aid their comprehension of the language. They maximize use of
all
potential contexts around the
language attended to for enhancing comprehension.
10. Good language learners learn to make intelligent guesses.
11. Good language learners learn chunks of language as
wholes and formalized routines to help them perform
beyond their competence.
For example, they may learn idioms, proverbs, or other phrases knowing
what the whole
phrase means without necessarily
understanding each individual part.
12. Good language learners learn certain tricks that keep conversations going.
13. Good language learners learn certain production techniques that also fill in the gaps in their own competence.
14. Good language learners learn different styles
of speech or writing to learn to vary their language according to the
formality of the situation.