My answer is quite simple.

I never paid attention in English classes in high school.

That's not a joke!

Don't take it the wrong way.

I love my high school teachers. They were amazing!

The thing is, I hated textbooks so much. They were so boring!

So I read lots of novels. I watched TV series, especially those TV shows.

They were so interesting.

I loved them. I spent time on it EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Most importantly, I was a little bit dramatic while I was watching the shows.

We will get to that later.

When it comes to learning English, there's an annoying myth.

I can't speak English fluently because I have a limited vocabulary.

And...

Grammar it's not my friend!

Remember how you learned your mother tongue?

Let's say the first day you learned the word "apple."

Your mom and daddy introduced apple to you.

They kept chanting "apple".

And you were like what on earth is apple?

Then you found, hmm... it smells so good. It's tasty!

So you happily shouted " Apple! Yummy!"

Your mommy and daddy were so happy!

They even posted a video of you trying apples on Facebook.

And got thousands of likes.

So how did you learn the word "apple"?

It's a connection between the word and all the vivid memories.

Including your parents' smiley faces, the taste of the apple, and you will never forget.

To put it another way, you have to feel the language when you learn it.

It's like when we live in a foreign country, we soon pick up the language.

You must be thinking now...

Great! Serena, You know what?

I cannot move to another country,

so I don't have an all-English environment.

You can create the environment yourself.

Here are some tips:

First, don't think that you have to learn general English that you can use in all kinds of situations in like three weeks or three months.

It will be a long journey.

So you have to break it into small and actionable steps.

For example, if you are a foodie, start with food, find interesting videos online about your favorite food,

pick up those words and use it immediately.

By doing so, you won't feel stressed out.

Because you only need a certain amount of vocabulary to describe the items you like.

That also means, you will be willing to practice on a daily basis.

Second, let's talk about shadowing.

I know you've heard that! But, did you do it right?

Why shadowing is helpful?

It's for us to have the connections between the situation in the TV shows and the spoken English.

When you shadow, you not only learn what you're saying, you also have to pretend that you are the actor or actress in the TV shows.

That's what I did when I was in high school.

For example, when the actor shouted "I can't believe it."

I would say "I can't believe it!"

Why dramatic shadowing can help you learn English effectively?

Because you will have vivid memories.

Just like the first time you tried apples, and learned the word "apple".

So, let's learn English together and have fun!