One afternoon I was studying for a couple of exams and I was getting a little frustrated and had to step away from the books. I was on my phone scrolling through some social media platform and I came across an ad for Duolingo, a language learning app. It piqued my interest and I wanted an excuse to stop studying for a while. So I downloaded the free app and got right to it. I will get more into the app itself in a bit, but for now just know that I have not been able to put it down! I chose to learn Norwegian, because Vikings are cool. Since I started, the amount of time I waste scrolling through mind numbing social media posts has drastically decreased. I love learning the language and have gone all in at this point!
There are several benefits to learning a new language. A lot of them have nothing to do with the language itself. The first big one I noticed was my ability to memorize and retain more information quicker. Studying was always a struggle for me, and still is. Working on learning a new language exercises those brain muscles though! I have been able to recall more information much more quickly than I was before which helps me both in my studies and in my job.
It also pushes your mental limits. One of the biggest reasons toddlers go through the terrible twos is because they are trying to learn to communicate in a way they have never had to before. Learning something completely new is a challenge. It is not something you can just pick up. After my first lesson in Duolingo, I could not by any means read or write in Norwegian. I still can’t all that well! The point is, it is a process that stretches your limits. It turns something that you cannot do into something you are doing. That doesn’t happen overnight. Going through that process is a challenge that leaves you feeling more and more accomplished each day.
This process increases your brain elasticity. Your brain is a muscle and just like any other muscle in your body, you need to use it to keep it in shape. It is easy to get caught up in the monotonous routine you have created for yourself. This breaks that routine and forces you to think about something differently than you did before. This is a valuable and marketable skill. On this same note, trading social media, YouTube, etc., for Duolingo has decreased my “time-wasters.” These things are not inherently bad, but they have taken our culture captive. Taking a step away from those things has really helped me stay productive.
So, what is Duolingo? Duolingo is a free language learning tool for both mobile devices and desktops. It is divided into different lessons that have levels built within them. Each lesson has five levels. Once you complete the fifth level, you max out that lesson. There are also practice lessons you can go back to and use to review terms and grammar. Essentially, it is built like a mobile game that makes the experience extremely enjoyable! There are leaderboards within it as well as experience points you can earn when you complete lessons. This was the first tool I used to dive into learning Norwegian.
From Duolingo, I discovered a Discord server for people who are working through Norwegian on Duolingo as well. There are people of all levels on the server as well as native speakers. It is a great tool and a great community! They even put on their own voice lessons. Through the Discord server, I discovered a book that has helped me advance my learning even more. The book is called the Mystery of Nils. It goes much more in depth into grammar than Duolingo does, but they compliment each other quite nicely.
So, why learn a new language? Especially if you don’t plan on travelling. Do you want to improve your memory and recall information quicker and more accurately? Well, learning a new language is based on memorization so it helps you build that skill. Do you want to meet new people and expand your circle of acquaintances? Learning a new language is bound to do that! Most importantly, do you want to have a renewed sense of accomplishment? Learning something brand new will be difficult but the thrill of accomplishing something like that is well worth it! I promise. So, go ahead, and learn something new!
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