One of the things I do while teaching English in my classes is after we study an idea in depth, I make my students create a mind map.  The mind maps must be colorful and animated. By using non traditional techniques in learning a language I think  it makes it not only more fun, but easier to learn.  So if you want to try to learn a language, try making a mind map.  Only when making this map, do one idea at a time with not too broad a focus, such as the topic ‘articles in English’, that is “a, an or the”.

Eventually your goal will be to create a mind map the entire  language.  But again start with a narrow focus. Also I only create a mind map  after I know the idea I am mapping pretty well in my head, then the map crystallizes it in my  brain.  I learn Polish and other Slavic languages, not English of course.  However, with some of the grammar errors I make on my blog, I think some of you  question which language I really learn and which language I teach.

How can mind mapping help you learn a language? Read on. There are a number of free mind mapping software programs on the market. I like one by ‘eDraw’. However, at the end of the day would you rather be sitting in front the computer to mind map or with a paper and colorful pencils? This is what you have to ask yourself. I do a little of both, and certainly my software mind maps look better as I can not draw. But I think I prefer mind mapping by hand. Further, I think its more effective when you are mind mapping by hand to learn a language. Do not ask me why, but in my experience, some how drawing or writing by hand really helps the learning process when trying to learn a language.

Mind mapping

Creating mind maps or mind mapping is using a paper and pencil to draw out maps of connections between two or more ideas. You can use mind maps to learn a language with grammatical ideas, vocabulary and even conversational ideas such as question and answer. Mind maps look like neurons and dendrites or trees. This is not by coincidence. It is a refection how natural structures create connetion, including your memory. Each person draws a mind map in a different way. Some are clean and orderly others seem to be pure chaos. It does not matter. Your style of mind mapping is your style. You can use colors, pictures or whatever you want to make your mind map beautiful or fun.

Mind mapping and language learning

For me personally, I use mind maps to learn target vocabulary in a language. These mind maps often contain phonetics, and word building, but most important categorization. I am not good at drawing pictures, but I add a few once in a while. My mind maps are more like mazes with starting and ending points and many entrances and exits.

For example I will have a mind map with ten entry points, let us way for example connected with transportation vocabulary. For transportation, vocabulary I might have choices or verbs or nouns or adjectives connected with transportation, this route on my mind maps could wind all over the place, with further subcategories and pictures of brides and roads until I find an exit.

Why mind mapping works

I do not believe there are any magic pills to learn a language, except maybe with music; however, I think the act of mind mapping is what helps you learn a language. Creating drawing and planning your mind map is a fun break from learning a word list. Physically drawing the words and thinking about it is why mind mapping works. Maybe there are other reasons, but I have been learning and teaching languages for years and I believe every-way is a good way to learn a language and there are no great secrets other than putting the time in. However, if you enjoy what you are doing than the time you spend will seem like play or no time at all. Further there are efficient ways to learn a language and inefficient ways to learn a language. I think mind mapping is one of the more efficient ways to learn a language.