Learning English the Mindful Way
Mindfulness has been a buzzword for the last few years, apps to be mindful on the go are more and more popular, and most likely workshops and seminars on how to be mindful can be found in the area you live.
What is Mindfulness?
Let’s start by understanding what the term mindfulness means. In a nutshell, mindfulness is the art of conscious living, being present and aware of where we are, what we do, how we feel at the moment. Everyone can apply mindfulness in his daily life and to every aspect of his life, too.
Beyond being mindful as a lifestyle, mindfulness is used in the work field; for example, mindful leading or how to perform better at work with the help of mindfulness are no longer exotic topics, but generators of ample discussion at any level and in any environment.
What about the association of mindfulness with education, in particular learning a language in a mindful way?
As a linguist with a long experience in English coaching, I’ve realised that when learning a new language or when sharpening even further the already acquired language skills, there’s a cognitive mechanism involved. How can a language learner retain all the new information, understand it, and apply it until it is second nature to him? Is it via the standard drilling method (repetition, repetition, repetition), or is it via memorising (and ultimately forgetting) most of the new knowledge, or how else? Of course, there are many other ways to teach a foreign language; personally, I was always interested in:
- Supporting my students according to their individual needs
- Making the session interesting, fun, and productive
- Motivating my students in their personal learning journey and helping them maintain that motivation until they have reached their goals
- Introducing the blended-learning method: books are a thing of the past – audio or visual material is much more stimulating
- Helping my students realise that learning anything, even a language, should last a lifetime.
In doing so, I use basic mindfulness principles to guide my students as to why they want to improve their English, how to go about it and create strong links between English and their background so they can build stronger associations between their learning experience and life itself.
ProEnglish and Mindful English Coaching
ProEnglish is all about personalised English coaching, our material is attentively designed to respond to the wishes, goals, and motivations of the learner, in each session we instil a special dose of personal and extra care that helps each learner stay present and focused. Awareness in the process of learning is the key to understanding, integrating, and applying all English skills with confidence and flow.
As an English coach, I am interested in supporting the following way of thinking:
- why am I choosing these words to express my view in English?
- how can I create sentences in English without always first translating them into my native language?
- what is the best way for me to improve my English skills without learning words, expressions, and grammar rules by heart? In other words, how can I integrate English in my life, so I am at ease with it?
At ProEnglish, I offer a no-strings-attached consultation to get a good understanding of why you want to improve your English, and I present you with a plan of action that highlights your current language struggles and the way we can cure them together.
It all begins with: if you are aware of why you wish to improve your English, then ProEnglish can help you discover creative ways to do so, bring you closer to a more natural, relaxed yet full of awareness language learning approach.
Our mindful learning tip: The Flow magazine, its online English version, is a great way to read a wide range of articles on creativity, mindfulness and other interesting topics that will help you improve your English (reading, grammar, sentence construction, vocabulary skills).
Happy mindful English language learning journey to you!