Livemocha

Livemocha is a great website for language learning. They have an extensive list of languages to choose from and the courses are free. It provides instant immersion by using pictures to convey words and phrases. The user first learns the words by viewing each of the flashcards, and then does activities to reenforce the lesson. For the magnet activity, you arrange the words to form a grammatically correct sentence. For the writing activity, you are given a prompt to write a few sentences or a short paragraph on. For the speaking activity, you read a paragraph or answer a few questions. You can also take a quiz, where you match the foreign language sentence with what it means in your language. There are also other activities, as well as native speakers of the language your learning that will grade your writing and speaking exercises, or even chat with you to help you improve you skills. Getting to know native speakers of a language is a great way to learn about that language and culture. You can also get good movie or book recommendations, as well as learn how real people talk.

Like Rosetta Stone, this program lacks video, which is essential to effective language learning. It also does not explain grammar rules, which, as I stated in my last post, can be confusing for some who have never consciously encountered certain grammatical aspects of a language. However, this site is more creative than Rosetta Stone, since you are able to take a break from tedious activities to talk with real speakers of the language, or to write your own answers to questions, rather than only writing down what you hear.

For more information about Livemocha, go to www.livemocha.com