This pdf file examines why second or foreign language learners have such troubles remembering new vocabulary. It proposes ways to improve ways to remember vocabulary, which if adopted can eventual lead to seamless learning. Much the same way as we learnt vocabulary for our mother tongue.

1. Strategies in
Language Learning
Volume 1. No. 5 August 23, 2011
How
to
powerfully
remember
new
vocabulary
Most
language
learners,
that’s
not
correct,
them.
Well,
for
the
vast
majority
of
people
virtually
all
learners
I
have
come
across
that
is
far
from
the
truth!
attempt
to
remember
vocabulary
by
drawing
Of
course,
there
are
those
students
that
this
up
vocabulary
lists…usually
translations
in
their
mother
tongue
next
to
each
word.
Then
works
for
but
I
suspect
very
few.
And
the
few
that
it
works
for
they
are
doing
something
most
students
come
up
to
me
and
say
my
else,
possibly
unconsciously,
to
enable
this
to
memory
is
so
poor,
I
can’t
seem
to
remember
the
words.
There
is
an
excellent
reason
for
happen.
I
will
not
pursue
right
here
what
they
might
be
doing…but
by
all
means
if
you
that
and
that
is
because
they
are
using
the
are
one
of
them
and
you
are
aware
of
what
wrong
method.
you
do,
I
would
be
pleased
to
have
some
Imagine
trying
to
hammer
a
nail
into
a
piece
input.
of
wood
using
your
hand
alone.
Surely
after
not
too
long
you
would
be
saying
you
can’t
do
it!
The
secret
is
the
tool
or
method.
Use
the
wrong
one,
like
a
hand,
a
spoon
or
virtually
anything
and
you
will
get
nowhere
fast.
The
secret
is
the
right
tool.
Don’t
get
me
wrong
it
is
not
your
fault
that
you
are
using
the
wrong
tool.
If
you
look
in
most
language
learning
books,
exercises,
language
classes
you
will
find
that
it
is
even
recommended
that
you
should
learn
your
vocabulary
using
lists.
In
fact,
why
not
work
at
memorizing
10,
20
words
a
day
in
that
way!
Most
students
persist
with
this
method
and
may
even
memorise
them,
but
then
how
do
you
get
memorized
lists
of
words
into
your
WORKING
vocabulary.
That
is
not
often
talked
about…just
assumed
that
once
you
So
what
is
a
good
method?
To
understand
memorise
them,
bingo,
you
will
be
able
to
use
that,
we
need
to
have
a
fundamental
understanding
how
our
brain
works.
I
will
not
E:
andrew@strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
W:
www.strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
©Copyright
Andrew
Weiler
2011

2. Strategies in
Language Learning
Volume 1. No. 5 August 23, 2011
How
to
powerfully
remember
new
vocabulary
be
talking
here
about
the
neurons,
the
our
needs,
what
is
important
to
us,
or
what
synapses
etc.
Instead
I
will
be
reflecting
here
might
be
important
to
us.
I
am
sure
that
on
commonsense
understandings
we
have
there
are
many
people
who
would
walk
past
based
on
experiences.
You
will
find
that
there
the
same
butcher
and
not
even
notice
it.
is
a
lot
of
research
to
substantiate
what
I
am
Why?
Because
it
has
no
value
or
interest
to
writing
about
here.
them
at
that
point
in
time.
Here
is
a
very
important
key,
that
is
overlooked
.
Memory
works
best
when
we
are
dealing
with
things
that
are
important
to
us,
there
and
then.
The
second
thing
to
note
is
that
there
were
links
made
to
our
life,
to
what
was
already
in
our
brain.
From
all
the
research
we
know
that
memory
works
best
when
the
new
item
is
hooked
in
to
what
we
already
know.
The
more
the
hooks,
the
better
it
is
going
to
be
remembered
.
So
the
more
the
hooks,
or
the
links,
the
more
likely
that
we
are
going
to
recall
the
item…
and
the
more
personal
and
immediate
are
the
links,
the
more
chance
we
are
going
to
remember
it.
So
let’s
give
you
an
example.
For
arguments
sake
you
want
learn
the
meaning
of
“bottle”
for
example.
Note
I
didn’t
say
memorise.
Well,
lets
say
you
came
across
it
in
a
picture
In
life,
we
do
not
usually
set
out
to
remember
dictionary,
or
an
article
and
you
looked
it
up
things
but
we
do.
When
we
walk
down
the
in
your
dictionary…
for
now,
let’s
say
a
street
and
see
a
butcher
in
a
shopping
area
bilingual
one.
close
to
our
house,
if
we
are
interested
in
cooking
or
we
have
been
asked
to
buy
some
You
see
the
word
or
the
picture
of
bottle
and
meat,
we
will
put
that
into
our
memory.
We
you
will
immediately
know
the
meaning,
but
make
no
real
effort
to
memorise,
but
we
do
how
will
you
retain
the
meaning
of
that
put
it
into
our
memory.
How?
By
linking
it
to
E:
andrew@strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
W:
www.strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
©Copyright
Andrew
Weiler
2011

3. Strategies in
Language Learning
Volume 1. No. 5 August 23, 2011
How
to
powerfully
remember
new
vocabulary
word…or
how
will
you
avoid
forgetting
it…or
hang
of
it,
you
will
learn
to
do
it
so
fast
that
how
will
you
put
it
into
your
working
you
will
be
hardly
aware
that
you
are
doing
it.
memory.
Another
reason
why
this
works
well,
is
that
The
trick
is
to
put
it
into
your
life,
into
you
have
mobilized
your
brain
to
get
the
new
sentences
in
the
language
you
are
learning.
If
language
involved
in
your
life
.
AND
you
have
you
use
your
mother
tongue,
you
will
be
been
forced
to
make
sentences…hence
you
asking
your
brain
to
do
gymnastics
of
the
kind
have
made
linguistic
contexts
for
the
new
that
are
difficult.
Remembering
words
in
two
words.
Can
you
see
now
why
it
is
much
much
languages
at
the
time
you
are
speaking
one
is
more
likely
that
once
you
have
done
this,
you
difficult..
and
this
is
because
different
will
never
forget
the
word
in
question…or
if
languages
occupy
different
part
s
of
the
you
do,
it
will
only
be
temporary.
And
because
brain..so
when
you
speak
one…stay
in
that.
you
have
placed
it
into
a
linguistic
context,
you
have
also
strengthened
the
language
you
Ideally
write
3
sentences,
each
of
which
are
are
learning
at
the
same
time.
Now
isn’t
that
personal
…
the
more
emotion,
or
memories
a
bonus.
they
evoke
in
themselves
the
better
they
will
be.
There
are
clearly
other
issues
in
remembering
vocabulary
but
this
technique
I
have
just
#
My
new
shampoo
comes
in
a
blue
bottle.
shown
you
will
transform
your
mnemonic
#
I
dropped
a
bottle
of
milk
yesterday
and
my
skills.
That
is
of
course
if
you
utilize
the
sister
got
angry
with
me.
technique
and
persist
with
it.
#
That
bottle
of
perfume
that
my
wife
just
bought
has
a
gorgeous
scent
.
#The
bottle
is
on
the
table
is
not
a
good
one…
as
it
has
on
the
surface
no
personal
element,
does
not
appear
to
evoke
anything
and
in
fact
is
a
dreadfully
flat
sentence.
This
process
might
seem
cumbersome
at
first
(
and
it
is
for
a
time!
J)
but
once
you
get
the
E:
andrew@strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
W:
www.strategiesinlanguagelearning.com
©Copyright
Andrew
Weiler
2011