How To Learn English

Like A Native Speaker

by A.J. Hoge, MA TESOL

How To Use This Book To Improve Your English

1. Read the articles. Use the word list, and a dictionary, for difficult
words.

2. Read each article many times. Review difficult words in a

relaxed way. Don’t try hard to memorize or study.

3. Listen to the audio while reading. Do this many times for each
article.

4. Listen to each article many times, without reading. Overlearn!

Listen until the article feels easy.

5. Send this book to friends who are learning English. Share the
information :)

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Effortless English
“So You Want To Improve Your English"
How To Learn English Like a Native Speaker

program: n. system, course, by A.J. Hoge, Director of The Effortless English Program
school
Why do some students learn English so easily -- while you try every-
thing and learn slowly? What if there was a way you could learn 15%,
25% -- even 50% faster, how would your life change?

If you could read just one article or book about how to learn English
article: n. newspaper or
like a native speaker, this is it. Read all of this E-book and change the
magazine story; university
way you study English.
research report.
way: n. method, how some-
thing is done
"Fantastic, absolutely amazing! A.J., your teaching method is
great. The results are great ... my test scores improved faster than
method: n. how something
anyone else in my class."
is done, way
-- Karin, student in San Francisco, California
scores: n. results, numbers
native: adj. original, born in
a certain place/country
If you are learning English to...
raise: v. increase
*communicate with native speakers
iBT: n. Internet-based Test
(Test of English as a Foreign
*raise your iBT TOEFL score
Language)
*understand English books and articles
English-speaking: adj. able
to speak English
*understand English TV and movies
about to: adv. soon
truth: n. fact
*make new English-speaking friends
effective: adj. successful;
works well
... you are about to learn the most important truth about how to make
method: n. way of doing
an effective English study plan.
something
definitely: adv. 100% surely;
What is the most important method for English learning? If you
absolutely
asked what would give you more English than any other method, I
native English speakers: n.
would tell you, definitely -- it's the ability to understand native
people born in an English
English speakers. That's because the most important part of learning
speaking country
English is.... listening.

www.effortlessenglish.com
closely: adv. carefully
skill: n. ability; something
you can do well
break rules: v. don’t follow
rules; don’t obey
does not work: v. is not
successful
automatically: adv. without
trying, without effort
opportunity: n. chance;
possibility
explain: v. teach, talk about
iBT: n. internet Based Test
course: n. class; teaching
program
the key: n. the most impor-
tant idea
textbooks: n. school books
www.effortlessenglish.com
Listen closely. You could spend a lot of money on English schools,
textbooks, CDs, and websites -- but all that study isn't going to help if
you can't understand English, because you won't be able to use any-
thing you learn.
In the next 5 minutes, I'll show you how to easily learn the skill of lis-
tening to increase your English skill 20%, 30%, or even 50%.
Here are a few things you'll learn when you read this E-book:
* Why 99.9% of English schools fail -- how they break rules of
English learning -- and so fail to teach their students successfully.
* Why grammar study does not work -- and why it can kill your
speaking ability.
* How to increase your vocabulary -- and remember it after you study.
* How to understand more -- and then speak English automatically.
There is a science to learning English. And there are rules about how
to best learn the language. When these rules are followed, anyone
can be successful.
This is an incredible opportunity for you to learn a better way -- but
only if you take it. Your first step is to read all of this E-book. Please
read carefully -- I don't want you to miss a word-- because when I
explain English learning for you, you cannot fail. You will improve
your listening, vocabulary, speaking, grammar, and iBT TOEFL
scores.
"A.J. is a wonderful teacher. My English ability is much better after
following his course. My vocabulary is growing, I understand more,
and I'm actually enjoying English!"
-- Nom, Korean student, San Francisco.
The True Power of Language Learning
Interesting and understandable English is the key to learning English.
Real and interesting English gives you power to learn -- and real,
understandable English has the power to completely change your
English.
The best English learners are children, of course. Why? Because they
don't study grammar and they don't learn from textbooks. They learn
 first from listening-- then later from listening and reading.

methods: n. ways; how
something is done
native: adj. original, from
(born in) a country or place
The most powerful English learners are children and the older stu-
dents who copy children's methods. They speak like native speakers.
They have excellent pronunciation. They learn vocabulary quickly and
easily. They understand grammar automatically.

Why Most Students Fail

You would think that because there are so many books about learning
English, most students must have great English skill. This isn't true.

There are many students who know grammar rules, but very few stu-
myth: n. lie; a story or belief dents can actually use English.
that is not true.
surprise: n. something not MYTH: The best way to learn English is to study grammar. Wrong!
expected; something shock-
ing Just because someone knows grammar, doesn't mean they are good
confuse: v. make you feel at English. Here's a surprise: Students who know a lot of grammar
stupid; make your thoughts are usually worse at English than those who don't study grammar.
unclear That's because grammar rules confuse them. Grammar rules prevent
prevent: v. stop them from being fluent. Children don't learn English by studying
fluent: adj. speaking fast grammar- you shouldn't either.
and easily
confusing: adj. causes your What most people don't know is that grammar "rules" are not really
thoughts to be unclear; caus- rules. The rules you learn in textbooks are confusing, too difficult, or
es you to feel stupid even wrong. They confuse you.
confuse: v. make you feel
stupid; make your thoughts Therefore, learning more grammar will not improve your English.
unclear Simply studying vocabulary words won't help either.

"Did you know that grammar study can actually kill your English
ability?"

Why? Because grammar study slows your brain. It confuses you. It

proven: adj. 100%; definite;
has evidence
not effective: adj. not suc-
cessful; doesn’t work
translate: v. to think in your
language and then change it
to English (and vice versa)
makes you think about English, instead of speaking automatically.
This is a proven fact. Grammar study and textbooks are not
effective. They cause you to think about English. They make you
translate English-- what you want to do is use English easily, without
thinking.
Therefore, to learn English like a native speaker, you need some-
thing else.

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Secrets of an English Teacher

My name is A.J Hoge. I started teaching English 10 years ago when I

worked in Korea, teaching children. Over the past 10 years, I've
taught: v. teach (past tense) taught both children and adults. I've taught at Universities in The
adults: n. people over 18 United States (Lanier Technical College & IIC-SF), Thailand
years old (Thammasat University), and Japan (Hirodai University). I have a
Masters Degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other
Languages).

When teaching in Japan, I saw that most students learn slowly. After 5
years of English, they could not speak English. They could not com-
municate. They could not understand me.

But I also saw a few different students. These few learned quickly.
They understood me. They talked to me easily. They enjoyed English.
Their grammar was better, their vocabulary was better, their test
scores were better.

I asked myself, "Why are these few students so much better? What
are they doing differently?" I asked all of my students questions too. I
improved: v. got better asked them how they studied. I asked them what they studied. I
learned why some students improved easily and quickly, but most
failed.
an instructor: n. a teacher
(usually at a college or uni-
versity) "During the time that he was an instructor in Lanier Technical
ESL: n. English as a Second College’s Adult ESL program, A.J. proved himself to be most capable
Language and effective. "
capable: adj. good, skillful, -- Flo Smith, Director, Lanier Technical College
effective, successful
interviewed: v. to ask peo- After Japan, I studied students more carefully. I interviewed hundreds
ple a lot of questions of students. I read research articles. I talked to people who spoke 3,
research: n.(adj.) scientific 4,-- even 9 languages. I wanted to find the secret to learning English.
study
At the end of 2006, I knew I had the answer. I finally had enough
knowledge: n. information knowledge and experience. I knew why a few students succeeded,
but most others failed.
program: n. system, school,
course In August 2006, I started my own English teaching program. I wanted
to teach English successfully. I wanted to help students truly learn
English.

enthusiastic: adj. excited

and positive "A.J. is an enthusiastic and energetic teacher. I highly recommend
A.J. "
--Dr. Brenda Murphy

www.effortlessenglish.com

millions: n. 1,000,000s
effortless: adj. (very) easy
work: v. to be successful, to
be effective Effortless English uses English teaching secrets that work.
join: v. become a member
(of a group), work with, sign
up with
lessons: n. classes
proficiency: n. skill, ability
storytelling: n. telling stories
;)
technique: n. way, method;
how something is done
lessons: n. classes
research: n. scientific study
more effective than: adj.
better than; more successful
than
overlearning: n. learning
“too much”; learning more
than seems necessary
relaxing: adj. no-stress;
easy and comfortable
www.effortlessenglish.com
The Birth of Effortless English
I started my English teaching program because most schools fail.
There are too many students who do not learn English-- because they
are using bad textbooks and going to bad schools.
I wanted to help the millions of English students who want to learn
English faster -- and better.
I used all of my teaching and research experience and made ...
... Effortless English -- a special English teaching class that uses only
real English articles, movies, books, and audio (sound).
The First Classes Were Full!
I finally started in August 2006. Only a few students could join, and
my classes were full immediately! In fact, so many students wanted to
join, I had to say "no" to many.
Here's what I gave:
* The incredible Way to Learn Vocabulary and Grammar Without Hard
Work-- TPRS. TPRS is "Teaching Proficiency through Reading and
Storytelling". It is a simple but amazing technique for teaching
English. Story lessons teach grammar and vocabulary quickly and
easily. Research shows that this technique is more effective than
normal textbooks or classes.
* The "Overlearning" method that helps students use English auto-
matically. Most schools make the same mistake-- they don't repeat
and review enough. Their students never really learn the lesson.
* How to use real English to increase vocabulary, understanding, and
grammar-- without trying to study!
* How to learn English in a relaxing way by enjoying interesting arti-
cles about interesting topics. No stress, no worry.

to avoid: v. to stay away
from; to not do
naturally: adj. effortlessly;
following nature
* How my best students learn, how they study -- and how they learn
English faster and better than other students.
* How to avoid grammar study and instead learn grammar like chil-
dren-- naturally.

* Why you should never study grammar rules -- and how it can hurt
your speaking.
context: n. situation
switching: v. changing
place: n. source; location * How to use "Context-switching" to learn vocabulary faster.
"Context-switching" means learning the same word from more than
one place.
memorize: v. remember
(exactly)
articles: n. stories (in news- * Why you should never study vocabulary books, or try to memorize
papers, magazines, and long lists of vocabulary words. True vocabulary learning must be from
research journals) real, interesting stories, conversations, movies, and articles.

step: n. action
* How to use writing to remember vocabulary better-- writing is the
final step in learning vocabulary.
raise: v. increase; get big-
ger/more
*How to raise your iBT TOEFL score 20%, 30%, --or even 40%
comprehensible: adj.
understandable; can be
understood * What research shows is the most effective way to learn English--
input: n. something that “Comprehensible Input”. Methods that use "Comprehensible Input",
comes in (to your brain) such as Effortless English, are 20-50% more effective than normal
methods: ways; techniques programs.

audio: n. sound (recordings)

* Why it is best to learn from real English books, articles, audio, and
movies-- textbooks and English classes do not use real English.
program: n. system, school,
course
price: n. cost; amount you So you see, I used everything I've learned to make the Effortless
pay English program. Honestly, there isn't another program that can
increase your English faster.

www.effortlessenglish.com
course: n. class
confidence: n. strong (pow-
erful) feeling; feeling you can
be successful
confident: adj. feeling
strong and successful
benefit: v. be helped; get
good results
an hour: adv. per hour; each
60 minutes
MP3s: n. sound files, audio
files (play with iTunes or
MP3 player)
www.effortlessenglish.com
"A.J., thanks so much. Before taking your course, my English was
terrible. I had no confidence. I didn't think I could learn English, ever.
Now I'm learning fast. I feel confident and I love English. Compared
to my classmates at school, I'm learning much faster than them."
-–Atsuko, student in Hiroshima, Japan
Learn English Whenever and Wherever You Want -- and at a
lower cost!
The internet has made it possible to learn English, anytime and any-
where-- without spending a lot of money. You can find conversation
partners, text & audio articles, and English lessons very easily.
Obviously, you don’t need expensive schools and textbooks anymore
to learn English. Use the internet!
For example, I've made an Effortless English Internet Club so.....
* members can learn at their speed, whenever they want;
*members can learn anywhere, wherever they want;
* members don't need to spend a lot of money on classes or text-
books;
...but members still benefit from my Effortless English program.
Yes, the program on The Effortless English Club site is the same I use
in my classes. My classes are expensive, they must be. Students pay
$300 a month for my classes here in San Francisco. But learning with
the internet is more convenient and less expensive.
Here's What Members Won't Be Getting
Now that you've seen what membersl get from The Effortless English
Club , here's what members won't get:
* You won't learn boring and difficult grammar rules. You won't be con-
fused.
* You won't do boring activities. You won't study textbook English.
* You won't listen to fake (not natural) conversations. No one uses the
English in textbooks. No one.

purse: n. money holder;
money
investment: n. money you
pay to get more money later from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best inter-
interest: n. percent increase est."
your price is only $57: you
pay only $57
discount: n. special lower
price
Beta Test: n. a new website-
not open to everyone yet
develop: v. to improve, to
make, to create
investigate: v. learn about;
research
waste: v. to spend money
but get nothing
Beta Test: n. a new website
that is not open to the public Everyone Cannot Join But ...
yet
Effortless: adj. easy; does-
n’t require hard work
www.effortlessenglish.com
How Much Do You Really Need To Pay?
The truth is, English schools are too expensive. Yes, my students are
willing to pay $300 a month-- $3600 a year, or more, to learn with me.
They are happy to pay instead of going to boring schools that don't
work. But its not necessary to pay that much.
"If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away
-- Benjamin Franklin
You don't have to pay $3,600 for The Effortless English Club or for
any other internet program. The Effortless EnglishClub is only $57
a year-- for example. This is a special Beta Test price, but the final
price will still be only $87-117 a year.
But my site isn’t the only one. There are many good English teaching
systems on the internet. For example, The Linguist is an excellent
system that is very successfu, and they charge only $480 a year. You
can find language partners on KanTalk.com for free. And there are
more. Investigate them. The internet is the future of English learn-
ing.
"I spent years going to English schools. I wasted so much money and
time. I'm so happy I found A.J."
--Tip, student, Bangkok Thailand
Right now, Effortless English is in “Beta Test”. We are full and I’m not
accepting more new members.
However, you can still find other good internet programs or you can
still make your own Effortless English study plan. The best English
learners follow their own plan and use real English materials-- not
textbooks.
"I'm happy I joined A.J.’s program. Its great to see it growing so quick-
ly. I hope more people will learn English the Effortless Way!
--Gabriel, student, Gainesville, Georgia
 You Can Expect Immediate Results When You Change Methods

Remember: When you use the Effortless English way, you will imme-
native speaker: n. someone diately start learning English like a native speaker.
born in a country where the
language is spoken You’re tired of struggling with English, aren’t you?
struggling: v. trying very
hard; fighting Most English students spend years going to school, studying gram-
proof: n. evidence, known mar, memorizing vocabulary-- but still can't use English. If you are
fact reading this, you want to really learn and use English- like a native
isn’t it?: (tag question) you speaker.
agree?, don’t you agree?
memorizing: v. remember- When you decide that you want to change the way you learn, don't
ing (exactly) wait. Take action. Find an internet program that uses an Effortless
English method. Or make your own Effortless English study plan.
chance: n. opportunity, pos-
sibility Don't miss this chance.

The important thing is don’t continue to use old study methods.

Change the way you learn, and change the results. Learn English
like a native speaker.

I wish you success and happiness in your English learning,

A.J. Hoge, MS TESOL

Director, Effortless English

Learn More

The Effortless English Club

http://www.effortlessenglish.com

The Linguist
http://www.thelinguist.com

KanTalk
http://www.kantalk.com

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Effortless English
harmful: something that
hurts or damages
ability: skill
communicating: using and
understanding; giving infor-
mation
after years of study: after
studying for many years;
after studying a long time
hesitant: not sure; stops
and starts often; pauses and
thinks often
broken: incomplete; slow
with many mistakes
stressed: worried; feeling a
lot of stress
useless: not helpful
confident: strong and sure
convinced that: sure that
the key to: the solution to;
the best way to
memorizing: to study and
remember exactly
fail to: do not (do) some-
thing
fluent: speak without stop-
ping a lot; quick and natural
speech
recommend: give advice;
suggest
definition: meaning
insanity: craziness
www.effortlessenglish.com
Why Grammar Is Bad
Podcast Date: November 16, 2006
All Sound Files Available At:
http://www.effortlessenglish.libsyn.com
Grammar study is harmful. Grammar study will hurt your English
ability. Do not study grammar.
If you have problems communicating in English, after years of
study, its probably because you study grammar.
If you have problems understanding English, after years of study, its
probably because you study grammar.
If your English is hesitant, broken, and slow, its probably because
you study grammar.
If you are nervous and stressed by English, its probably because you
study grammar.
If you hate English, English teachers, and English class, its probably
because you study grammar.
Stop studying grammar. Grammar is not only useless- it is actually
harmful. Grammar study will cause you to learn more slowly, under-
stand less quickly, and feel less confident.
Most students, of course, believe the opposite. They are convinced
that grammar is the key to learning English. They spend years
memorizing grammar rules. They spend years listening to teachers
explain grammar. They spend years reading grammar textbooks.
Teachers, textbooks, and schools all tell the student the same thing-
you need more grammar; you must study grammar. When their stu-
dents fail to improve, fail to communicate, fail to use English, and fail
to become fluent- the schools recommend more of the same- gram-
mar, grammar, and more grammar.
The famous definition of insanity is- "doing the same thing, but
expecting: thinking some-
thing will happen (in the
future)
insane: crazy
provides: gives
overwhelms: is too much
for; does too much; defeats
to analyze: to examine care-
fully (consciously)
interferes with: prevents;
stops; causes problems for
illustrate: show
harm: hurt; damage
stranger: someone you
don’t know
will do: will be OK
to pick: to choose
classic: perfect; usual; tradi-
tional
unconscious: not thinking
about something directly;
indirect thinking
mental: thinking; mind
detailed: careful
picking: choosing
out of a group: from a
group
consciously thinking:
directly thinking about; think-
ing in words
effortless: without trying
instinctive: natural
to explain it: talk about it
separate: remove you from
forces you: makes you
interferes with: stops; pre-
vents; causes problems for
so much trouble: so much
difficulty
www.effortlessenglish.com
expecting a different result". By this rule, most English schools and
teachers are insane.
But why? Why is grammar study harmful? The answer is that gram-
mar study provides too much unnecessary information. It over-
whelms your brain's ability to learn the language. Grammar rules
force you to analyze the language-- and that interferes with your
brain's natural ability to learn and understand it- without effort.
Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Blink, gave the following example to
illustrate the harm caused by too much unnecessary information:
"Let me give you a very simple example of this. Picture, in your mind,
the face of the person who sat next to you on the bus today. Any
stranger whom you've seen recently will do. Now, if I were to ask
you to pick that person out of a line of people, could you do it? I'm
sure you could. Recognizing someone's face is a classic example
of unconscious mental ability. We don't have to think about it.
But imagine I were to ask you to take a pen and paper and write
down a detailed description of what that person looks like. Describe
their face. What color was their hair? What were they wearing?
Believe it or not, you will now do a lot worse at picking that face out
of a group. This is because the act of consciously thinking about
and describing a face has the effect of hurting your normally effort-
less ability to recognize that face. We all have instinctive (natural)
memory for faces. But by forcing you to analyze and describe that
memory-- to explain it-- I separate you from your natural ability."
Grammar study does the same thing that describing a face does-- it
forces you to analyze and explain the language-- and therefore hurts
your natural ability to learn the language effortlessly. The problem
with grammar study is that it interferes with your natural language
learning ability- an ability that is very powerful- but unconscious. By
forcing you to EXPLAIN English, the teacher actually hurts your ability
to LEARN English.
This is why so many advanced students, after years of study, still
have so much trouble understanding and using English. Every time
they want to say something, they first think about it consciously. They
may even think in their native language first, then translate to English,
then analyze the sentence for grammar mistakes, and then-- finally--
say it. Therefore, their speech is very slow, very hesitant, and very
unnatural.
Its even worse with listening. When listening, there is no time for
conscious thinking and analyzing. You must be able to understand
instantly: immediately; very INSTANTLY. If you must think about the language; if you must ana-
quickly; without taking time lyze the grammar; if you must translate-- you will soon be lost. Your
be lost: be confused grammar study makes it impossible for your unconscious mind to do
what it is supposed to do-- understand instantly and naturally.
supposed to do: should do
So what can you do? If you have spent years learning grammar, but
still have trouble with real spoken English, is it possible to improve?
effortlessly: without trying Is it possible to communicate naturally? Is it possible to free your
hard; easily; in a relaxed way unconscious brain and learn to understand, and speak, effortlessly?

The answer is yes.

method: way of doing some-
thing
massive: a lot; a huge
amount of
authentic: real; natural
designed for: created for;
made for
But it will take time. The first step is to stop studying grammar- imme-
diately. No more textbooks. No more grammar classes.
The next step is to follow a method of massive authentic input.
"Authentic" means real, and by input I mean listening and reading. In
other words, you must listen to and read as much real, interesting
English as possible. By real English I mean real articles, books,
movies, essays, podcasts and conversations. Authentic English is
not made for English students- its designed for fluent English speak-
ers.

learning guides: study
guide; study material
material: books, movies,
etc.
Ideally: In a perfect situa-
tion; the best thing to do
If you want to understand and speak real English with real English
speakers-- you must get real English input-- not textbook English, not
teacher English. Its OK to use dictionaries and learning guides to
understand the material-- as long as its real material. Ideally, you
should spend at least one hour every day listening to and reading real
English material. You should choose material that is interesting to
you. You should enjoy it-- and feel relaxed while you listen and read.

After many months of authentic input, you can add the final step:
step: action communicate with interesting, real people. When you communicate,
expressing: saying, commu- you should focus on expressing ideas, opinions, and feelings-- not
nicating on following "rules". Your speech and understanding will naturally
focus on: concentrate on; improve over time. Just focus on communicating.
think about
In fact, if you follow the Effortless Way, your grammar will also
Way: method; how to do improve- naturally. But you must not study grammar and you must
something not think about it.

overload your brain: give Do not overload your brain with too much unnecessary information.
your brain too much informa- Follow an effortless approach, and let your brain do what it does best-
tion - learn naturally.

If you have been studying grammar a long time, it may take some
time for you to improve. But you will improve.

www.effortlessenglish.com
 And, if you continue with an effortless learning method, you will even-
eventually: sometime; at tually learn to communicate easily and naturally in English.
some time in the future
You will also have a lot more fun.

Learn More:

Automatic Language Growth

http://www.algworld.com

Blink, by Malcolm Gladwell

http://www.amazon.com/Blink-Power-Thinking-
Without/dp/0316010669/sr=8-2/qid=1163716068/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-
0413950-9037745?ie=UTF8&s=books

Second Language Acquisition, by Dr. Stephen Krashen

http://www.sdkrashen.com/SL_Acquisition_and_Learning/index.html

The Focal Skills Language Learning Approach

http://www.su.edu/icfs/essenfeat/feature.2.htm

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Effortless English
frustrate: anger (caused by
failure)
communicate: speak and
understand
well: good
knew: know (past tense)
industry: business; field
huge: very very big
international: for many
countries; crossing many
countries
publishing: book making;
printing
chain: a company with many
stores
independent: separate; only
one; not owned by others
abroad: in another country
necessary: very important;
must be done
system: way of doing some-
thing
guarantee: promise (100%)
hope: wishes; good expecta-
tions
native: someone born in a
country
abroad: in another country
Venezuelan: a person from
Venezuela (in South
America)
intensive: powerful; concen-
trated; a lot in a short time
intensive English school:
school that teaches English
20+ hours a week
way: method; how to do
something
blames: accuses; says
someone is wrong
www.effortlessenglish.com
The Failure of the English Industry
Publish Date: December 31, 2006
More Sound (Audio) Archives Available At:
http://www.effortlessenglish.libsyn.com
Does it frustrate you that you still can’t communicate with English
well? Does it make you angry that you could be learning much
faster-- if you knew how?
The English industry is a huge international business. It includes
publishing companies, big chain schools, independent schools,
study abroad programs, high schools, and universities. English is big
business.
Its also a business that grows from failure. In America, in Japan, in
Taiwan, in all the world-- most English schools fail their students.
Students spend hundreds and thousands of dollars on books and
classes. They are told the cost is necessary. They are told that the
class has a “special” system that will guarantee success.
All over the world, good students spend huge amounts of money-
hoping the English industry is right.
They start class full of hope. They want to learn English. They hope
to speak to native speakers someday. They may hope to study
abroad. They may hope to get a better job. They may hope to make
new friends. They may hope to live in America or Canada and make
a new life.
But what usually happens?
A Venezuelan student told me that English schools are “killers of
hope”. He studied at an intensive English school for one year. At
the end of the year he still “couldn’t understand or use any English”.
Luckily, he found a better way. But many students never do.
The English industry never blames itself. Schools never say their
teaching methods are failures. They blame you, the student; and
maybe you blame yourself. Schools say you didn’t work hard

grammar-analysis: careful
study of separate grammar
rules; focus on memorizing
grammar rules
memorize: to remember
(exactly)
complicated: not simple;
very difficult and complex
translated: changed from
one language to another lan-
guage
unnatural: not natural; not
simple
research: careful study; aca-
demic study; experiments
work: are successful; func-
tion
method: way of doing some-
thing
results: effects; outcome;
what happen
input: something that comes
in (ex. listening and reading)
input method: way of learn-
ing that uses mostly listening
and reading
adolescent: 12-14 year old
children
comic books: books with
pictures and words
articles: short information
stories
novels: story books (usually
long)
relaxed: no stress
focus on: concentrate on;
think about
fake: not real
improve: get better
increase: become more; get
higher
www.effortlessenglish.com
enough. They say you need to continue with classes. Eventually, you
might think “English is impossible”.
You, however, are not the problem. The school is the problem.
The textbooks are the problem. Most schools say they teach “natural
English”, but actually they do not. Most schools use a grammar-
analysis way of teaching. They teach students to memorize compli-
cated grammar rules. They teach students to memorize long lists of
translated vocabulary. They use unnatural conversations and boring
activities. They use tests.
Research shows that these ways of teaching are failures. They do
not work. They are not successful for most students. It is not the
student that is failing, it is the school and the textbook.
The good news is that you CAN learn English like a native speaker.
You can succeed. You can learn to understand native speakers. You
can learn to talk with them. You can get a high TOEFL or TOEIC
score. You can really learn English.
You can succeed- you only need to change the way you learn.
Change your study method to change your results.
What way should you use? What does research say is best? What is
actually successful?
The research says an input method is best. This means you should
listen to and read real English. It means you should focus on input,
reading and listening, that you understand.
You should listen one hour, or more, to English everyday. You should
also read every day, but not textbooks. You should read fun and
interesting things. You should read real English-- children’s books,
adolescent novels, comic books, articles, magazines, and novels.
You should get things that seem just a little bit easy.
If you do this every day, in a relaxed way, you will succeed. If you
focus on real English input, not fake textbook English, you will suc-
ceed. You will improve faster. You will enjoy English more. You will
increase your test scores.
And you will do this without spending a lot of money.
Learn More:
Language Learning Research
http://sdkrashen.com
 Effortless English
Listening & Pronunciation

native: first; where you were Listening is the most important part of learning a new language.
born Listening is how babies first learn their native language. Listening is
ability: skill where speaking ability comes from. Listening is (mostly) how you
learn the new language.
improve: get better
input: what comes in (to the Yes, we all want to speak. But speaking will improve from input--
brain) reading and listening.

download: get from the
internet
podcasts: sound (MP3)
shows; internet radio shows;
internet radio articles; inter-
net sound lessons
audio articles: sound sto-
ries
audio: sound
repetitive: repeated
unknown words: words you
don’t understand
rapidly: quickly; fast
magical: amazing; incredi-
ble; wonderful
phrases: groups of words;
more than one word
stick: stay; don’t leave
effort: trying; hard work
notice: hear or see; be
aware of; recognize
adds up to: makes; is a total
of
replaces: is instead of; in
place of
texts: written words
review: look at again, read
again, study again
Therefore, I always tell my students to LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN a
lot. I tell them to download podcasts, audio articles, and audio
books. I tell them to buy the DVD of a TV show and watch it again
and again and again.
When I say "listening" I mean repetitive listening. You need to listen
to the same thing many times. The first time you listen to something,
you may not understand much. But if you read the same thing and
find the meaning of unknown words... then listen to it many times
everyday- you will rapidly begin to understand it.
Then something else magical happens. A few of the phrases stick in
your brain... with no effort.
Steve Kaufman, who speaks 9 languages, says this about listening:
"All kinds of listening will help you improve your listening ability.
However, it is best to listen to the same thing many times. This way
the new words and phrases will become a part of you. If you are also
studying new words and phrases, you will notice them while listening.
Soon you will be able to use them. They will become a part of you.
If you do a little bit at a time, you will be surprised how quickly it adds
up to an hour. Remember that the time listening replaces time in a
classroom. You have more freedom if you take your listening with you.
This is more useful than a lot of classroom study. Listen often to
things that you basically understand. Read the texts from time to
time. Also make sure that you review the words and phrases that you
have saved. Then listen again."

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Effortless English
The Effortless Way
Just how can you improve English without difficult study? How can
difficult: hard you improve vocabulary, listening, grammar, and speaking without
using textbooks or expensive schools?

I hear these questions from many people. Of course, the basic ques-
tion is, “How does The Effortless Way work?”

The Effortless English system comes from a lot of research. The

phrases: more than one
word; a group of words
simple: easy; not hard; not
complicated
accidently: by chance; with-
out trying
cheers: yells (to celebrate);
encourage
idea is-- language is learned from comprehensible input.
Comprehensible means understandable- can be understood. Input, in
this case, means listening and reading. So, we learn a language by
understanding phrases in that language. Its simple, right?
This happens to all babies. Our mom says, “mama, mama, mama”
while smiling and holding us. Every day she says, “mama, mama,
mama”. One day, when we accidently say something like “mama”,
our mom laughs, cheers, and smiles. She is very happy. Eventually
we understand that “mama” is the sound for our mother.

We quickly go from these simple messages to understanding sen-

messages: communications tences. For example, when mom says, “come to mama”-- if we move
towards mom, everybody laughs, cheers, and smiles. Now we under-
stand that this sentence means “move towards mom”.

Once we learn a lot of this simple language, we are ready for more
difficult ideas. We begin to read- and that’s when our vocabulary and
grammar grow very quickly. We learn thousands of words every year.
We don’t “study” most of these words. We never try to memorize
context: situation them. We learn them by reading. We understand their meaning from
repetition: doing the same context-- from the situation in the story. We understand them from
thing many times; again and repetition. By listening and reading to things we mostly understand,
again we can learn the parts we don’t know.

We learn most of our language this way.

system: way of doing some-
thing This is how you will learn at Effortless English. My system has both
fairly: somewhat; a little easy and fairly difficult articles, but I use several methods to make
methods: way of doing them understandable.
something; system; way

www.effortlessenglish.com
 First, I give the text for an article. By reading first, you can go slowly
text: written words and learn new words gradually. I have a word list with the text-
gradually: step by step; little which gives simple English meanings for the most difficult words and
by little; not suddenly phrases. By reading the article many times and using the word list,
you learn most of the new vocabulary without stress.
stress: worry
Next, you listen and read at the same time. This teaches you the cor-
rect pronunciation of all words. It also starts to improve you listening
skill in a low-stress way.
audio: sound
discussion: conversation The next step is an audio vocabulary discussion. I explain some of
explain: teach the difficult words and phrases. You listen to these lessons many
lessons: teachings; classes times- which helps you learn the new vocabulary more deeply. I
deeply: thoroughly; com- always encourage students to relax, listen, and enjoy.
pletely; totally
Next are the mini-stories. The mini-story is, perhaps, the most
mini: small; short; little important lesson. This lesson helps you get a strong understanding of
perhaps: maybe the vocabulary, and how to use it. For the mini-story, I choose 8 to
choose: pick 10 words from the article. I then make a little story using these words.
re-tell: tell again; say again I tell the story three times. When I re-tell the story, I ask a lot of ques-
tions. I ask you to repeat the story after me, using the new vocabu-
lary. I ask you to listen to the mini-story many times.

original: first The final step is for you to listen to the original article many times.
Now you can understand a lot of it. You put it on you iPod and listen
to it during the day. You listen to it many times and learn vocabulary
and grammar naturally.

relaxed: enjoyable; no Each step in the system is important. By following all the steps, you
stress; no worry learn English in a relaxed way. You improve your vocabulary, your
improve: get better listening, your grammar, and your speaking. You improve faster than
students who use textbooks and normal schools.

input: what comes in (listen- To really learn English like a native speaker, you need to use an input
ing and reading) system. You need to use a system like the Effortless Way. You don’t
system: way of doing some- need to join Effortless English, but you do need to read and listen to
thing real English. You need to do this a lot.

Throw away your textbooks. Save your money. Relax, use an effort-
less method, and improve faster.

www.effortlessenglish.com
 Effortless English
textbook: n. school book
sip coffee: drink coffee
slowly
login: v. to enter a website;
to type your user name and
password
iPod: n. MP3 player (made
by Apple)
lesson: class
article: n. story in a maga-
zine, newspaper, or research
journal
review: v. to study again; to
look at (or listen to) again
realize: v. to know, to under-
stand
automatic: adj. happens
without trying; effortless
fluent: adj. easy and fast
(speaking)
confident: adj. strong and
successful feeling
www.effortlessenglish.com
A Normal Day
Its 7 A.M. in the morning on Monday. You don’t feel like studying
another English textbook or going to another English class; so you
turn on your computer. While you sip coffee, you login to Effortless
English and listen to a vocabulary discussion. You play it two times.
It’s now 7:30, and you’re feeling great because you understand a lot of
the vocabulary. You have energy. You are ready for more.
Next, you leave home-- going to work. You have your iPod, and are
you are listening to the mini-story lesson now. It’s easy and fun. You
are really understanding the new vocabulary. You are understanding
without trying. The story is funny and the lesson is easy to do. You
repeat it quietly-- you are surprised that you remember so much. You
smile. On the way to work, you repeat the lesson three times.
You get to work and do your job-- but during lunch you read the arti-
cle. You already know some of the new words. You are relaxed as
you read and review the word list. The article is interesting, and you
realize you are actually enjoying English.
On the way home, you listen to the article on your iPod. Sometimes
you read and listen at the same time, sometimes you only listen. The
article is short, so you listen to it 5 or 6 times.
You understand more each time. You think, “If I do this everyday,
English will become easy and automatic. I’ll be fluent.” You feel
confident. You know you are learning English like a native speaker.
Could this really happen to you?
Don’t be surprised when it does.
 Effortless English
are killing me: hurting a lot
marathon: 26 miles [42km]
training: practicing (for a
sport or activity)
cut back: reduce; do less
gradually: little by little; step
by step; slowly
breathing hard: breathing
fast and with difficulty
to push myself: to make
myself work hard
Yikes!: something we say
when we are surprised
sprint: a short fast (running)
race
breathing heavily: breathing
fast and with difficulty
effortlessly: without trying
hard; without effort
build up: increase
take my advice: follow my
suggestion
gain: improvement; benefit;
increase
philosophy: a strong group
of ideas, belief, and/or val-
ues
forced to quit: made to quit;
had to quit (had no choice)
steady: gradual, step by
step
injuries: hurts (to body)
whatsoever: at all
arduous: very difficult and
not fun; tough and not pleas-
ant
www.effortlessenglish.com
No Pain No Gain
Publish Date: December 27, 2006
All Sound (Audio) Archives Available At:
http://www.effortlessenglish.libsyn.com
"My knees are killing me. I'm only running 9 miles [15km], I don't
think I'll be able to ever do a marathon. What should I do?", Mike
asked.
"How long have you been training?", I asked
"One month"
"Only one month? And you're trying to run 9 miles already! You
should cut back. Only increase your mileage by 1 mile per week.
Build up gradually." I said. "What about your speed, how do you feel
when you run... are you breathing hard?", I asked.
"Yeah. I try to push myself and go as fast as possible" Mike said.
"Yikes! Don't do that. You're training for a marathon, not a sprint.
You should run slowly most of the time. You shouldn't be breathing
heavily when you run. In fact, you should be able to chat while
you're running. My advice is to run slower and run shorter- you will
then automatically and effortlessly build up to running a marathon.",
I said.
Unfortunately, Mike didn't take my advice. He believed in a "no pain,
no gain" philosophy. Running slowly and easily didn't feel like work
to him- so he thought it couldn't help. Instead, he kept trying to run
farther and faster as soon as possible. His knee problems became
worse. Finally, he was forced to quit. He never did run a marathon.
I, on the other hand, used my slow, steady, easy approach to com-
plete 2 marathons. I never had knee problems, or foot problems, or
any injuries whatsoever. I never felt the training was painful or
arduous. I enjoyed my training runs. Most of them felt easy and
effortless.
Invariably: (almost) always;
without exception
to question: do not believe;
ask questions about; doubt
belief: strong idea
strive: try very hard
suffer: feel pain
comprehensible: under-
standable; able to be under-
stood
approach: way; method
frustrated: anger caused by
failure to do what you want
to do
unfair: not fair, not good
rewarded: got/received
something good because
you did something good
resent: to feel anger about
something that happened in
the past
ineffective: not effective;
does not work
get it: understand
switch: change (to another
choice)
bitter: negative feeling
(strong negative feeling)-
usually about a failure
to train: to practice for
process: action; how some-
thing is done
system: organized way of
doing something
guarantee: to promise
insist: strongly want to do;
feel/say something must be
done
traditional methods: normal
ways of doing; usual way
www.effortlessenglish.com
I often think of Mike when I talk to my English students. Invariably
there are students who question my effortless approach. They too
have a "no pain, no gain" belief. They think they cannot learn English
unless they strive and suffer. So they spend long hours memorizing
grammar textbooks. They spend long hours doing TOEFL practice
tests and textbook exercises.
I tell them to relax. I tell them to stop these activities and focus on
interesting, comprehensible listening and reading. But many don't
listen. They continue with the painful approach. They become
increasingly frustrated. Some even become angry-- especially when
they see the "effortless approach" students improving much faster.
They feel its unfair that their pain is not rewarded. They resent that
their painful efforts are so slow and ineffective.
Some eventually do get it, and switch to an effortless approach. But
some never do. They just keep doing the same thing. They grow
more bitter and frustrated-- just like Mike when he tried to train for a
marathon. Many finally quit.
Don't be like Mike. "No pain, no gain" is a lie. If you enjoy the
process of learning English you will, in fact, gain more and gain
faster. If you use an effortless approach, your grammar, listening,
speaking, reading, and writing will all improve faster than if you use a
painful textbook approach.
Put away the grammar books. Put away all textbooks. Find interest-
ing and understandable English material. Listen, listen, listen to it
every day. Read, read, read for fun every day. Join an effortless sys-
tem, such as Effortless English or The Linguist.
If you do, I guarantee you will enjoy English more-- and you will learn
faster and more easily than those who insist on following the tradi-
tional methods.
No pain-- big gains!
Learn More:
Jeff Galloway’s Marathon Training
http://www.jeffgalloway.com/training/marathon.html/
Automatic Language Growth
http://www.algworld.com
Dr. StephenKrashen’s Language Research Site
http://sdkrashen.com
 Effortless English
About The Author
A.J. Hoge has a Masters degree in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) and
has over 10 years of teaching experience. He is the creator of Effortless English (www.effortlesseng-
lish.com) and also publishes a teaching website called Effortless Language Acquisition. He currently
lives and teaches in San Francisco, California.

You can email A.J. at ajhoge@gmail.com

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Recommended Web Sites

Effortless English
http://www.effortlessenglish.com

The Linguist
http://www.thelinguist.com

Dr. Stephen Krashen

http://sdkrashen.com

Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling

http://www.blaineraytprs.com/explanationpage.htm

Automatic Language Growth

http://www.algworld.com/

Kantalk
http://www.kantalk.com

www.effortlessenglish.com