Forget Rosetta Stone! I have some ways to learn the foreign language of your choice for free. For example, the Internet is full of educational websites dedicated to making you bilingual and multilingual. Rather than spend a small fortune on language lessons, I believe in the power of self-learning. Here are some of the best resources I’ve run across that might be of interest to you. Each one is valuable in its own respect and best of all, they’re free. You can save your money for an exotic vacation where you can Parlez-Vous with the locals like a pro.
Here are some websites where you can learn a foreign language for free:
- Live Mocha (http://www.livemocha.com) – With over 38 languages to choose from, members of the site are able to master beginner phrases, surpass the intermediate level, and become advanced in the foreign language of their choice. Paid membership gives you more options but a free account with Live Mocha offers a variety of benefits. Create a profile and start learning a new language right away.
- Busuu (http://www.busuu.com) – Similar to Live Mocha, Busuu gives members their choice of language lessons and the option to converse with others in the language that they are learning. This interactive platform is perfect for beginners. Registration is free and you can learn English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Arabic, and more.
- BBC Languages (http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/) – Learn the facts, phrases, and alphabets of dozens of languages for free on BBC Languages. The site is clean, easy-to-follow, and one of my absolute favorites. Course materials including phrases, audio and video, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, activities, and tests are available in French, English, Spanish, Polish, Greek, Chinese, Portuguese, and a number of different languages of your choice.
- Lang–8 (http://www.lang-8.com) – Learn from real native speakers in the language that you want to learn. Over 190 countries are represented on the site. Membership is free. You write journal entries in the language of your choice and native speakers make corrections so you can learn quickly. Not only do you learn to speak a particular language, you also learn how to write it.
You don’t have to spend a lot of money to learn a foreign language. With so many websites, applications, and free audio recordings online for you to choose from, it will only be a matter of time before you’re fluent in the language of your choice.