Hello!
When I taught in a language school, I gave my students homework to do almost every night. Once a week, this homework was writing. You probably won’t be surprised when I tell you that it was not popular!
I know some people have some negative feelings about writing! Let’s see if we can change that feeling.
First, writing doesn’t have to be about essays and stories. It can be something fun like writing on social media.
Second, try thinking about writing as a really good way to practise your English.
Why write?
Maybe you want to speak English so why bother writing?
Well, writing is similar to speaking in some ways. Both skills involve thinking about what you want to say, finding the right words to say it and thinking about the grammar to put your words together into a sentence.
In fact, writing is a bit like speaking in slow motion! It’s great because it gives you time to use a dictionary and check your grammar. This helps you improve your vocabulary and your knowledge of the language.
There are differences between speaking and writing, of course. Most obviously, you don’t have to worry about pronunciation when you write, but you do have to think about spelling.
Many people worry about style differences but I’m not talking about formal or academic writing here. What we say in informal writing isn’t so different from how we speak.
So writing can actually help you with your speaking because you are practising producing the language.
Of course, it’s really important to speak as well if you want to improve your spoken English. Writing alone is not enough.
Another big advantage of writing is that you can do it whenever you have a few free minutes. If you have 10 minutes to spare, you can write something, whether that’s with pen and paper or on your phone.
And writing is something you can easily do on your own. You don’t need somebody to practise with.
But what do I write?
Here are two ideas:
1. Write a journal
Perhaps you could start writing a journal. Write about what you did today, write about your thoughts and feelings, or you could write a learning journal where you keep notes about what English you have learnt and practise using it at the same time.
If you want to read more about journalling, you can look at this blog post which I wrote a few months ago.
2. Write on social media
Journalling is not for everybody. Perhaps you would prefer writing on social media. Posting and commenting in English is good writing practice.
If you’re looking for a safe place to practise without worrying about making mistakes, I have two Facebook groups which you can join.
Here you can practise your English by reading posts, making your own posts and writing comments.
I know that some members of my Facebook groups have become friends outside of Facebook and they practise English with each other using Messenger and WhatsApp.
So if you’d like to practise your English in a fun and social way, come and join one of my Facebook groups.
Please read carefully, click the right link and answer the joining questions or you might not get in!
Ladies:
I have a small, cosy group for women only. In this group, I ask questions for you to discuss and practise your English. You can create your own posts to share something or ask a question. You also have the opportunity to meet me and other learners on Zoom once a month to practise your speaking.
Everyone:
My older group is for everybody. During the week, I ask questions for you to discuss and at every week, I give you ideas for things that you can post. It’s quite an active group so there are plenty of opportunities for you to have a conversation with somebody in English. We also meet on Zoom occasionally.
So come and join one or both of my groups and practise your English skills!
If you're not on Facebook but you're interested in joining the free Zoom meetings, just send me an email!
See you next week!
Katie 💙