English conversation skills don't improve by just adding more materials. A 7-day training program to master a single conversation resource through self-study.
The more you want to improve your English conversation skills through self-study, the more you tend to struggle by adding too many learning materials.
“This app looks good too.”
“I want to be able to understand this YouTube video as well.”
“I feel anxious if I don't also work on this vocabulary book.”
“I want to learn natural expressions used by native speakers.”
These feelings are very natural. In English learning, you can see what you are lacking one after another. You lack vocabulary. You lack grammar. Your pronunciation is weak. You can't catch what you hear in listening. Your mind goes blank when it comes to speaking. Every time you feel this way, you want to add new materials.
However, what is truly necessary for English conversation is not the number of materials. What is necessary is to use a single resource until you can “hear it,” “understand its meaning,” “say it out loud,” and “turn it into your own story.”
Many self-learners don't fail to improve because they haven't finished their materials. Rather, they are in too much of a hurry to “finish” them. You listened once. You read it once. You looked up unknown words. You checked the Japanese translation. You understood it vaguely. Then you move on to the next. With this approach, even if your English knowledge increases, it is difficult to retain it in a form that can be used in conversation.
English conversation has aspects similar to sports or playing an instrument. You cannot move your body just by reading the rules. You cannot perform just by listening to a song. You need to try the same movements over and over, gradually incorporating them into your body. English is the same; it only becomes “usable English” when you listen to the same conversation material repeatedly, say it out loud, use it with slight modifications, and repurpose it to answer questions.
In this article, I will summarize how a self-studying Japanese speaker can master a single short conversation resource in 7 days. I will break it down into a format you can start today, covering material selection, practice procedures, common mistakes, a daily menu, review methods, and how to combine it with practice logs like Lexion.
This content is also useful for those who are already keeping an English diary or practicing English conversation by talking to themselves. I have written in detail about how to start an English diary in this article.
https://note.com/en_conversation/n/n3ce2c4febbec
Also, for those who struggle to keep up with study time, it is harder to give up if you set up a learning system first.
https://note.com/en_conversation/n/n922785e531d1
The theme of this article is the next stage. It is a practical method for those who are already touching English even a little bit every day to get closer to English conversation without increasing their materials.
Conclusion: Use one conversation resource for 7 different purposes
I will state the conclusion first.
To improve your English conversation, you should use one conversation resource for “7 different purposes.”
The first time, grasp the overall meaning.
The second time, check the sounds you couldn't hear.
The third time, read aloud in short chunks.
The fourth time, mimic the audio with a slight delay.
The fifth time, adapt sentences you can use for yourself.
The sixth time, use them as answers to questions.
The seventh time, speak for one minute without looking.
You might feel bored hearing that you should use the same material 7 times. However, if the purpose is different each time, what you see in the same material will change.
A conversation that you initially thought was “something like this” will be heard as connected sounds the second time. The third time, you will see the difference between sentences you can say yourself and those that are difficult to say. The fourth time, you will understand the rhythm lag. The fifth time, you will find expressions you can use in your own life. The sixth time, it will become a component for answering questions. The seventh time, it will become practice for speaking as your own story.
This is the flow of turning English into conversation instead of ending it with “I understood” the material.
People who struggle with English learning often don't have shallow understanding, but rather have few opportunities to use the English they have understood. That is why there is meaning in repeating the same material. It is important not just to repeat, but to change the role each time.
Why adding more materials makes you less able to speak
Adding more materials isn't inherently bad. Choosing materials that fit your goals is important. The problem is that as materials increase, the depth of your engagement with any single piece of English becomes shallow.
The skills required for English conversation can be roughly divided into the following four:
The ability to hear English sounds.
The ability to understand meaning.
The ability to construct sentences yourself.
The ability to move your mouth and speak.
When you look at many materials, your ability to understand increases little by little. Your vocabulary and expressions also increase. However, if the number of times you speak the same expression is low, it is difficult to convert that into speaking ability.
For example, suppose you see the following sentence in a textbook.
I was going to study English, but I got too tired.
You might understand the meaning. It is a sentence that says, "I was going to study English, but I got too tired." If you move on to the next material here, this sentence ends as "English you can read."
But if you want to use it in English conversation, this is where the real work begins.
I was going to cook dinner, but I got too tired.
I was going to go for a walk, but it started raining.
I was going to practice speaking, but I had a headache.
In this way, you need to substitute it with your own life. Furthermore, you also need to use it as an answer to a question.
What did you do last night?
I was going to study English, but I got too tired. So I just listened to a short conversation and went to bed early.
Once you reach this point, the textbook sentence becomes a component of conversation.
People who add too many materials often skip this process of "changing it into your own story." You read a lot. You listened a lot. You took notes on expressions. But you didn't actually use them in your own situation. That is why they don't come out when you are in a conversation.
In self-study, the ability to use up your materials is more important than the ability to choose them. By reducing the time you spend looking for new materials and using the one you have more deeply, the density of your English conversation practice will increase significantly.
"English you can understand" and "English you can speak" are different
There is a common misunderstanding that occurs in English learning.
It is the belief that if you increase the amount of English you can understand, the amount of English you can speak will increase accordingly.
Of course, you cannot speak English that you do not understand. Therefore, input is necessary. Listening is also necessary. Grammar and vocabulary are also important. However, there is a gap between being able to understand something and being able to say it out loud.
It is easy to understand if you think about it in Japanese. You can watch a cooking video and understand how to make a dish. However, to actually make the same dish, you need to use your hands. You cannot learn how to use a knife, control the heat, or adjust the seasoning just by watching.
English is the same.
Understand when you hear it.
Understand when you read it.
Can explain the meaning.
Up to this point is the stage of understanding.
Can say it without looking.
Can say it with slight modifications.
Can use it to answer questions.
Can say it even when nervous.
From here on is the stage of conversation.
In self-study, you need to build this bridge yourself. A teacher will not ask you questions every time. The other person will not wait for you either. That is precisely why it is powerful to decide on a 'procedure to move from understanding to speaking' using a single resource.
People who improve do not find the 'same material' boring
People who improve their English use the same material many times. However, they are not just repeating the same thing mechanically.
The first time, understand the content.
The second time, look for sounds you cannot hear.
The third time, say it out loud.
The fourth time, make it sound like the audio.
The fifth time, change it into your own sentences.
The sixth time, use it as a response in a conversation.
The seventh time, speak without looking at anything.
In this way, they approach the same material from different angles. That is why it is hard to get bored.
Conversely, people who struggle to improve listen to the same material for the same purpose many times. For example, they just listen passively. They play the audio over and over. But they do not check the parts they could not hear. They do not say it out loud. They do not change it into their own sentences. With this approach, even if your ears get a little used to it, it is difficult to turn it into a form you can use in conversation.
What is important is the quality of repetition.
Repetition does not mean doing the same thing over and over. It means using the same material and applying a slightly different load each time.
In terms of muscle training, it is like not just holding the same weight, but checking your form, changing the number of repetitions, being conscious of the muscles you are using, and adjusting the load little by little. In English as well, by applying loads in order—listening, reading, speaking, changing, and answering—the material becomes ingrained in your body.
Conditions for choosing materials: You cannot master materials that are too difficult
To master a single resource, choosing the right material is important.
English learners tend to want to choose 'natural English,' 'native conversations,' 'overseas dramas,' 'news,' or 'business English.' Of course, those are also attractive. However, if your goal is to improve your English conversation through self-study, it is better not to choose materials that are too difficult from the start.
There are five criteria for recommended materials.
Short materials lasting about 30 to 90 seconds.
Materials that include a script.
Materials where the audio is clear and not overly natural/fast.
Materials containing expressions that can be used in daily conversation.
Materials that are easy to adapt to your own life.
Long materials increase the burden of review. If you try to use an entire movie or podcast, you will get tired just from listening to it once. Even just checking the parts you couldn't hear takes time. As a result, you won't keep it up.
It's fine to start short. In fact, it's better to be short so you can master it completely.
For example, a conversation like the following is sufficient.
A: How was your weekend?
B: It was pretty relaxing. I stayed home, cleaned my room, and watched a movie.
A: That sounds nice. I went out with my friends, but it was really crowded.
B: I know. Weekends can be busy everywhere.
Even a short conversation like this is enough as practice material for English conversation.
How was your weekend?
It was pretty relaxing.
I stayed home.
That sounds nice.
It was really crowded.
Weekends can be busy everywhere.
This contains several expressions that are easy to use in actual conversation. The shorter the material, the easier it is to adapt these expressions into your own speech.
Common mistake 1: Looking up every word you don't know
When using a single piece of material, a common mistake people make at the start is looking up every word they don't know.
Looking up words isn't bad. However, if your goal is conversation practice, trying to understand everything perfectly will stop your practice.
For example, suppose there are five words you don't know in a short conversation. You look them all up, check the example sentences, confirm the pronunciation, and even take notes on related words. Doing this makes you feel like you've studied. But the essential 'time spent speaking aloud' decreases.
If your goal is English conversation, your approach to vocabulary can be simple.
Only look up words necessary for the overall meaning of the conversation.
Keep only the expressions you want to use.
Put off words you are unlikely to use until later.
This judgment is important.
In English conversation, it is more important to gradually increase the number of sentences you can use than to know every single word. If you try to look up every unknown word, the material becomes heavy. When the material becomes heavy, you cannot repeat it. Material that cannot be repeated is unlikely to turn into conversational ability.
Instead of looking everything up perfectly, pick out one sentence you can use in conversation. Please use this as your standard.
Common mistake 2: Ending with just listening
A common mistake among people using listening materials is ending the practice after just listening.
Listening is important. You need to get used to the sounds. You need to know the rhythm and connections of English. However, if you want to improve your English conversation, you need time to move your mouth after listening.
In listening-only practice, the brain becomes passive. Grasping meaning, following sounds, and understanding content—this is good as input. However, in conversation, you need to create sounds yourself.
'Being able to hear' and 'being able to say' are different.
For example, suppose you hear the following sentence in the audio.
I didn't expect it to be that crowded.
You might understand the meaning when you hear it. But if you try to say it yourself, you might stumble around 'didn't expect it to be.' The emphasis and rhythm of 'that crowded' are also surprisingly difficult to say.
Therefore, once you hear it, always say it out loud. It is fine to start slowly. It is fine if it is not exactly like the audio. First, it is important to create that sentence with your own mouth.
If you are going to decide on a ratio of listening time to speaking time, starting with half and half is fine. If you practice for 10 minutes, listen for 5 minutes and speak out loud for 5 minutes. Even just this will bring you closer to conversation than just listening.
Common mistake 3: Being satisfied with just shadowing
Shadowing is a good exercise. It is very useful for getting used to English sounds, rhythm, and intonation.
However, shadowing alone does not necessarily improve English conversation.
The reason is simple. Shadowing is primarily 'practice in mimicking.' In conversation, you need to do more than just mimic; you need to choose sentences yourself and say them according to your own situation.
For example, suppose you have become able to say the following sentence along with the audio.
I stayed home and watched a movie.
This is a good thing. But to use it in conversation, you need to be able to change it like this.
I stayed home and studied English.
I stayed home and cleaned my room.
I went out and met my friends.
I worked from home and took a short walk.
Furthermore, being able to use it as an answer to a question brings you closer to real-world practice.
How was your weekend?
It was pretty relaxing. I stayed home and watched a movie. I also studied English for about twenty minutes.
Once you can do this, the material you shadowed becomes a component for conversation.
Shadowing is just the entrance. From there, change it into your own sentences and answer questions. Incorporating this flow makes it easier to see results in English conversation.
If you want to know more about how to use shadowing, you can also use this article.
https://note.com/en_conversation/n/n4ca1e76a3618
Common mistake 4: Changing the theme every day
In self-study, you tend to want to change the theme every day.
Monday is self-introduction.
Tuesday is travel.
Wednesday is work.
Thursday is news.
Friday is movies.
At first glance, it looks like you are learning a wide range of topics. However, at the stage from beginner to pre-intermediate in English conversation, changing themes too much makes it difficult to retain information. This is because the necessary vocabulary and expressions change every time.
What is needed first in English conversation is not to cover a wide range of topics superficially. It is to be able to talk about things close to your own life in a little more detail, bit by bit.
How was your day?
What did you do yesterday?
What are you going to do tomorrow?
What have you been working on?
How do you usually study English?
Developing the ability to answer questions like these opens up more entry points for conversation. That is why it is more effective to repeat themes close to your daily life at first.
Instead of changing the theme every day, use the same material for a week. From there, adapt it to talk about yourself. If you continue this, you will end up using the same expressions over and over. In English conversation, this repetition is powerful.
Overview of the 7-day training
From here, I will introduce the specific 7-day menu.
The material to use is a short conversation of about 30 to 90 seconds. Please choose something that has both a script and audio. Online materials, English learning apps, short YouTube conversations, or parts of podcasts are all fine. However, avoid anything that is too difficult.
10 to 20 minutes of practice per day is enough. Even 5 minutes is fine on busy days. The important thing is to use the same material for different purposes.
The 7-day flow is as follows.
Day 1: Overall understanding
Day 2: Checking the sounds
Day 3: Reading aloud
Day 4: Shadowing
Day 5: Changing it into your own sentences
Day 6: Answering questions
Day 7: Speaking for 1 minute without looking
There is a reason for this order.
Trying to speak from the very beginning is too high a burden. If you try to speak while the meaning and sounds are still vague, you will just end up thinking in Japanese and translating it into English. Conversely, if you only finish with understanding and checking the sounds, you won't progress to conversation.
Therefore, you build a foundation on days 1 and 2, get your mouth used to it on days 3 and 4, and change it into your own story from day 5 onwards. This flow is natural.
Day 1: Grasping the overall meaning
The goal of day 1 is not perfect understanding. It is to grasp the overall meaning.
First, listen to the audio once. At this point, you don't need to look at the script. Even if there are parts you can't hear, don't stop. Just grasp what is being talked about in the conversation as a whole.
Next, listen to it one more time while looking at the script. Even if there are words you don't know, don't look them all up immediately. First, check the flow of the conversation.
After that, just take notes on the following three things.
The theme of the conversation.
One expression you could use.
One place that was hard to hear.
This is enough.
For example, if it is a conversation about the weekend, the theme is 'what you did on the weekend.' An expression you could use might be 'It was pretty relaxing.' The part that was hard to hear might be the connection in 'stayed home and watched a movie'.
It is important not to overdo it on the first day. If you try to look up every word, translate the entire text, and neatly organize your notes here, the following days will feel burdensome.
Materials for English conversation are practice tools, not subjects for research. First, keep the workload light enough to handle easily.
Day 2: Check just one sound you couldn't hear
The goal of Day 2 is to refine your listening. However, do not try to hear everything. Choose just one place you couldn't hear.
For example, suppose you had trouble hearing 'I stayed home and watched a movie.' Take only this sentence.
Listen to the audio.
Look at the script.
Listen again.
Read it out loud slowly.
Repeat this a few times.
The reason you cannot hear English is not just because you don't know the words. It becomes difficult to hear because words link together, some parts are read weakly, sounds are dropped, and the rhythm is different from Japanese.
stayed home and watched a movie
Even in short chunks like this, the audio does not sound as clear word-by-word as it does in Japanese. Connections like 'home and' and 'watched a' occur.
On Day 2, it is enough just to notice these discrepancies in sound.
You don't need to hear everything perfectly. If you can make one part you couldn't hear audible per material, you are making progress. If you continue this every week, your listening sensitivity will gradually increase.
Day 3: Read aloud in short chunks
Day 3 is for reading aloud.
However, instead of reading the whole text from start to finish with momentum, break it into short chunks.
It was pretty relaxing.
I stayed home.
I cleaned my room.
I watched a movie.
That sounds nice.
It was really crowded.
Like this, break it down into one sentence or half-sentence segments. Then, say each one out loud.
The point is not to aim for perfect pronunciation. If you try to sound like a native speaker from the start, you will get stuck. What is important is to say it out loud while keeping the meaning in mind.
If you say, "It was pretty relaxing," have the feeling of "I was able to relax quite a bit."
If you say, "That sounds nice," have the feeling of reacting to the other person by saying, "That's nice."
In English conversation, it is important not just to read sentences as sounds, but to convey the situation and emotion. From the reading-aloud stage, please try to say it as if you are actually having a conversation.
Three times of reading aloud is enough.
The first time, go slowly. The second time, be a bit more natural. The third time, try to look away from the script for a moment.
Even just doing this will bring the English you can read closer to the English you can speak.
Day 4: Shadowing is fine at "half-completion"
Day 4 is for shadowing.
Shadowing is a practice where you listen to audio and say it out loud with a slight delay. It acts as a bridge between listening and pronunciation.
However, please do not aim for perfection here.
Self-learners often get discouraged because they try to do shadowing perfectly from the start. They fall behind the audio. They miss words. They stumble over their words. That is when they feel, "This is impossible for me."
But for the goal on Day 4, half-completion is enough.
You were able to get into the rhythm of the audio a little. You were able to say only the sentences you knew. You were able to get back on track even if you stopped in the middle.
This is a passing grade.
Before shadowing, listen to it once while looking at the script. Next, imitate it in a small voice while looking at the script. After that, try doing only the parts you can do without looking.
It is fine if you cannot say everything. In fact, the parts you could not say are your next practice points.
Shadowing is not a test to perfectly replicate English. It is an exercise to discover the gap between your ears and your mouth.
Day 5: Change it into your own sentences
Day 5 is an important day that leads to actual English conversation.
Change the sentences in the material to fit your own life.
For example, suppose the material contains the following sentence:
I stayed home and watched a movie.
Change this for yourself.
I stayed home and studied English.
I stayed home and cleaned my room.
I stayed home and cooked dinner.
I stayed home and took a short nap.
The sentence structure is almost the same. You are only changing the content. This is what is important.
English conversation beginners tend to try to create sentences from scratch every time. That is why it takes time. You think about grammar, look for words, worry about whether it sounds natural, and then you stop speaking.
However, if you borrow the sentence patterns from the material, you don't need to create them from scratch.
I stayed home and ...
I went out and ...
I had ...
I got ...
I was going to ..., but ...
I didn't expect it to be ...
Simply by customizing these patterns for yourself, you will increase the number of sentences you can use in conversation.
On the fifth day, choose just three sentences from the material and customize them for yourself. It doesn't have to be many. Three sentences are enough.
The important thing is not to make sentences that you can understand when you see them, but to make them sentences that you would actually say.
Day 6: Turning them into answers to questions
On the sixth day, turn the sentences you created into answers to questions.
In English conversation, just stringing sentences together like a monologue is not enough. You need to be able to use them in a way that answers the other person's questions.
For example, suppose you created the following sentence on the fifth day.
I stayed home and studied English.
Turn this into an answer to a question.
What did you do yesterday?
I stayed home and studied English for about twenty minutes.
You can also add a reason.
I stayed home and studied English for about twenty minutes because I wanted to practice speaking.
To make it even more natural, add one more sentence.
I stayed home and studied English for about twenty minutes because I wanted to practice speaking. It was short, but I felt good after that.
When you use this format, it sounds more like a real English conversation.
What is important in English conversation is not speaking at length. It is answering questions naturally, even if briefly. It is fine to end with one sentence. Once you get used to it, add one sentence for a reason or your thoughts.
On the sixth day, use questions like the following.
How was your day?
What did you do yesterday?
What are you going to do tomorrow?
How do you usually study English?
What have you been trying to do recently?
You don't have to make the questions difficult every time. In fact, it is more practical to repeat the practice of answering questions that are frequently asked.
Day 7: Speak for 1 minute without looking
On the 7th day, you will speak for 1 minute without looking at the script.
One minute might sound long. However, you don't need to give a perfect speech. It's okay if you stop in the middle. It's okay if your grammar is a little off. The important thing is to use the expressions you practiced with the material to talk about yourself.
The theme can be simple.
About yourself this week.
What you did yesterday.
Your plans for today.
What you are struggling with in English learning.
What you want to do next week.
For example, a 1-minute talk like the following is sufficient.
I was a little busy this week because I had many small tasks. But I stayed home on Wednesday and studied English for about twenty minutes. I listened to one short conversation many times. At first, I couldn't catch some words, but it became easier after I read the script. I want to keep practicing because I want to speak English more naturally.
It doesn't have to be perfect. The important thing is that the expressions from the material are mixed into your own speech.
After you speak for 1 minute, please record it. Recording yourself might be embarrassing. However, in self-study, there are few opportunities to look at your English objectively. When you record, you can see issues such as your voice being too quiet, stopping in the middle of sentences, using the same expressions over and over, or being unable to add reasons.
You don't need to grade yourself in detail. Just look at these three things:
Is your voice too quiet?
Where did you stop completely in the middle?
Were you able to use at least one expression from the material?
This is enough.
The purpose of the 7th day is not perfection, but confirmation. It is a day to see how much the material has become a part of your own speech over the week.
A 5-minute menu for busy days
Not many people can do 20 minutes every day. There is work, housework, commuting, physical condition, and plans. English learning often doesn't go as ideally as you'd like.
That is why you should also decide on a menu for busy days.
On days when you only have 5 minutes, the following flow is sufficient.
1 minute: Listen to the audio once.
1 minute: Read just one sentence while looking at the script.
1 minute: Customize that sentence for yourself.
1 minute: Formulate an answer to the question.
1 minute: Speak it out loud without looking.
Even in just 5 minutes, you include listening, reading, customizing, answering, and speaking.
What is important in English learning is not doing it for a long time every time. Even if it is short, it is about not breaking the flow that is close to conversation.
It is not bad to take a complete break on busy days. However, if you have consecutive days off, it becomes harder to get back into it. That is why having a 5-minute menu is a great strength.
How to create study time is also covered in detail in this article.
https://note.com/en_conversation/n/n922785e531d1
How to create a notebook to master your materials
You don't need to make your notebook look pretty. In fact, if you spend too much time making a neat notebook, your speaking time will decrease.
I recommend keeping only the following four items per material.
Title of the material.
Three expressions you want to use.
Three sentences customized for yourself.
One answer to the question.
For example, if it is a conversation material about the weekend, it looks like this.
Title of the material: What I did on the weekend
Expressions I want to use:
It was pretty relaxing.
That sounds nice.
It was really crowded.
Sentences for myself:
It was pretty relaxing because I stayed home.
I studied English for about twenty minutes.
The cafe was really crowded, so I came back home.
Answer to the question:
How was your weekend?
It was pretty relaxing. I stayed home, cleaned my room, and studied English for about twenty minutes.
This is enough.
The purpose of the notebook is not to store information. It is to leave behind material to speak out loud later. Therefore, rather than writing long Japanese translations or massive word lists, please leave behind the sentences you will say yourself.
For those who write an English diary, this notebook works well with it. Simply changing the Japanese you wrote in your diary into short English using the sentence patterns from your material becomes conversation practice.
https://note.com/en_conversation/n/n3ce2c4febbec
If you use Lexion, save your "three sentences of the day"
When you are mastering a single resource, saving the sentences you practiced as a log increases effectiveness.
In Lexion, an English learning app currently under development, we plan to make it easier for self-learners to practice and review their own English sentences.
The concept of how to use it is simple.
Choose one expression you want to use from today's material.
Create three original sentences using that expression.
Check if you can say them without looking the next day.
For example, if the material contains "I didn't expect it to be that crowded," you can adapt it for yourself as follows:
I didn't expect the meeting to be that long.
I didn't expect the cafe to be that crowded.
I didn't expect English practice to be that fun.
If you save these three sentences, you can say them out loud again the next day. In English conversation, a major problem is that the sentences you create today disappear tomorrow. Saving a log creates an entry point for review.
Instead of adding more materials, save the sentences you can use today. This is very important for self-study.
How much can you improve in one week?
To be honest, your English conversation skills won't change dramatically in one week.
However, if you continue in the right way for a week, you will easily notice small changes.
You can hear the sounds of the same material better than before.
Sentences that were hard to say become a little easier to say.
You get a feel for creating your own sentences.
It becomes easier to answer questions with at least one sentence.
By listening to your recordings, you can see what to fix next.
These changes are important.
In English learning, knowing "what to fix next" leads to consistency more than "suddenly being able to speak." This is because the state of not knowing what to do to improve is the most painful.
If you use one resource for 7 days, your weaknesses will become concretely visible.
Is your listening weak?
Do you struggle to get your mouth around the words during reading aloud?
Are you bad at adapting sentences for yourself?
Do you freeze when trying to answer questions?
Does your voice get quiet when you record yourself?
Once you identify your weaknesses, your practice plan for the next week is set.
How to proceed from the second week onwards
From the second week onwards, you may move on to new materials. However, do not switch completely; keep some expressions from the previous week.
For example, if you practiced "It was pretty relaxing." in the first week, use that expression somewhere in your second-week material as well.
How was your day?
It was pretty relaxing in the morning, but I got busy in the afternoon.
In this way, mix the previous week's expressions into the next week's conversation.
Expressions you can use in English conversation are not mastered in a single week. They stick by being used repeatedly in different situations. Therefore, the ideal approach from the second week onwards is to "move on to new materials while still using the previous expressions."
I recommend adding only three expressions every week.
3 expressions in 1 week. 12 expressions in 1 month. 36 expressions in 3 months.
This might seem like a small number. But if you gain 36 expressions that you can actually speak, rather than just recognize, that is significant.
In English conversation, expressions you can use when needed are more valuable than expressions you just know.
When to increase the level of your materials
You might also be wondering when to move on to more difficult materials.
The benchmark is when you can do the following three things with your current material:
Understand over 80% of the meaning when looking at the script. Hear the important parts when listening to the audio. Create three sentences of your own from the material.
If you can do these three things, you may move on to slightly more difficult materials.
Conversely, if there are many sentences you don't understand even when looking at the script, the audio is too fast to follow at all, or you get tired before you can change them into your own sentences, then the material is too difficult.
Using difficult materials might make you look like an advanced learner. However, for self-study English practice, materials that are too difficult are inefficient. This is because you spend too much time on understanding and less time on speaking.
If you want to improve your English conversation, materials that feel slightly easy are sufficient. Instead, use them deeply. Use them until you can say them. Use them until you can change them into your own sentences.
Recommended material genres for self-learners
The easiest material genre to use for self-study is daily conversation.
The following themes are especially recommended:
Talking about the weekend.
Today's plans.
What you did yesterday.
Recent updates on work or studies.
Things you've been struggling with lately.
Physical condition or mood.
Hobbies.
Meals.
Shopping.
English learning itself.
This is because they are frequently used in actual English conversation. They appear everywhere, such as in online English lessons, self-introductions, small talk, conversations while traveling, and interactions with fellow English learners.
Conversely, using politics, economics, specialized news, or abstract discussions as material from the start can be too heavy for building the foundations of English conversation. Of course, it's fine if you are interested, but at the stage of building a sense of being able to speak, it is more effective to be able to talk about daily life in English.
English conversation is not something only for people who can discuss difficult topics. People who can briefly explain their own lives have an entry point into conversation.
'Boring materials' are actually the most powerful
English learners tend to look for interesting materials. Movies, news, overseas interviews, popular YouTube channels. Of course, interest is important for continuing enjoyably.
However, at the stage of building the foundations of English conversation, somewhat boring daily materials are powerful.
The reason is that they are easy to adapt to your own life.
I had a meeting.
I went to the supermarket.
I was tired after work.
I cooked dinner.
I studied English for ten minutes.
These sentences are plain. But they are used often in actual conversation. People who can say plain sentences naturally find it easier to keep a conversation going.
In English conversation, expressions you can use immediately are more important than cool-sounding ones. Patterns you use repeatedly in daily life are more important than difficult vocabulary.
Do not underestimate boring materials. In fact, the more deeply a person can use daily materials, the more their speaking ability will improve, even through self-study.
A checklist for mastering a single piece of material
Finally, I have provided a checklist to confirm whether you have fully utilized a single resource.
I can explain the meaning of the entire conversation in Japanese.
I identified one part I couldn't hear.
I chose three expressions I want to use.
I read those expressions out loud.
I imitated at least a part of it along with the audio.
I created three sentences for my own use.
I created one answer to a question.
I spoke for 30 seconds to a minute without looking at the text.
I recorded myself and decided on one point to improve next time.
It is okay if you cannot do everything. First, it is important to create a solid flow.
Listen.
Read.
Speak.
Change.
Answer.
Talk.
If this flow is included, your study material is becoming closer to actual English conversation.
Summary: Before looking for new materials, turn the one you have into a conversation.
When you want to improve your English conversation, you tend to look for new materials.
However, there should be plenty of English in the materials you already have that you haven't fully utilized yet.
A conversation you only listened to once.
Sentences you understand the meaning of but cannot say out loud.
Expressions you noted down but haven't used.
Material you shadowed but haven't turned into your own story.
Please use those again.
English conversation does not improve just by the amount of English you know. It improves by the number of times you use the English you know, with your own voice, and in accordance with your own life.
What you need to do today is simple.
Choose one short conversation resource.
Listen once to grasp the overall meaning.
Choose one expression you want to use.
Say it out loud.
Change it into a sentence for yourself.
Use it as an answer to a question.
With just this, the material becomes more than just input; it becomes a tool for practicing English conversation.
In self-study, the time you spend without a partner is longer. That is precisely why you need to design practice that brings you closer to conversation even when you are alone. The method of fully utilizing one resource is a realistic means to that end.
Before adding new materials, please open the one you have again. And instead of just understanding it, turn it into your own story.
English remains with you not just by the number of times you hear it, but by the number of times you use it. Turn today's resource into your own words for today. That is how self-study for English conversation moves forward.