How to Learn English‏

So you want to learn English? I guess that goes without saying if you're reading this article. First of all, you need to ask yourself, "How badly do I want to?"
Some students treat English as a content subject, like history, geography or literature. All you do is memorize a lot of facts and you've got it, right? Actually, becoming proficient

in a foreign language is more like learning to play the piano. It takes practice. A lot of practice.
你想學英文嗎？既然你在讀這篇文章，我想不說也知道了。首先，你得問你自己：
「我有多想學英文？」有些同學把英文視為一個學科，像歷史、地理、文學等等。你要做的就是背一大堆的事實，然後就學會了，是嗎？事實上，要精通一個外語好像學鋼琴，需要的就是練習。很多的練習。
Some of you may be saying, "I just don't have any language aptitude." Oh, come now. If you can read this, you have plenty of aptitude for learning a language. The more important question is whether or not you have the motivation. Many people only want to learn English to pass tests in school. That's not enough. Experts tell us that the most successful language learners have a strong desire to communicate with people in the target culture.
但你們有些人會說：「我就是一點語言天份也沒有。」喔，少來了。如果你能讀這篇文章，你就有足夠的語言天份。更重要的問題是，你有沒有學習的動機。很多人學英文只是為了通過學校的考試。那是不夠的。專家告訴我們，最成功的語言學習者，擁有和某個特定文化的人溝通的強烈意願。
By the way, what do you want to be able to do with your English? Have a conversation with
a foreigner? Understand movies without reading the Chinese subtitles? Read
an English newspaper? Study abroad? If you determine why you want to learn English, it will help you know where to start. Learning English requires a number of very specific skills: listening, speaking, reading, writing. Think about which skill you need to brush up on the most.
順帶一問，你希望將來如何運用你的英文？和外國人交談？看電影時不需要中文字幕，就能看懂？讀英文報紙？出國讀書？如果你確定了你學英文的目的，就能幫助你知道從何開始。學英文需要幾項非常特別的技巧：聽、說、讀、寫。想想哪項技巧是你最需要加強的。
In this series, "Keys to Learning English," we want to give you some principles to help you improve your language learning skills. But there is no magic formula. You can't just wake up one morning, say a few magic words, and instantly turn into a fluent English speaker. You have to apply yourself. And you can't give up. If you use the "keys" in this series, they will help you unlock the door to the world of English. I promise.
在「英語看招」這一系列的文章中，我們要給你一些原則，幫助你增進語文學習的技巧。但我們沒有辦法給你一個神奇公式。你不可能在某個早晨醒來，念了幾句神奇咒語，然後就突然間變成英文講得很流利的人。你必須全力以赴，而且不能放棄。但我向你保證，你若使用本系列中提供給你的「招數」，你將能開啟英語世界的大門。


⊙Word Bank
proficient (adj) 精通的
content subject (n phr) 科目
aptitude (n) 才能
motivation (n) 動機
target culture (n phr) 鎖定文化, 此指某個追求的文化目標
subtitle (n) 電影字幕
brush up on (v phr)　溫習; 加強
forumula (n) 公式
fluent (adj) 流利的
apply yourself (v phr) 全力以赴

@The Day's Phrase
Summer movies are the most highly anticipated of the year
一起看電影去吧！
年度最令人期待的就是暑期檔電影

I brought my own shopping bag, so I don't need to use a plastic bag.
我帶了自己的購物袋，所以我就不需要用塑膠袋。

The truck that collects paper and cardboard comes every Thursday.
收集紙張和紙板的卡車每週四來。

Eighty years ago the drive-in theater was born
汽車電影院
八十年前，出現了汽車電影院

Don't throw away all those printouts! We can still use the blank side of the page.
不要將那些印過的紙丟掉！我們還可以用空白的那一面。
Watch out for poisonous
snakes!
小心有蛇
要提防毒蛇！
If you are going out for the evening, please turn off all the lights to save electricity.
如果你晚上要出門，請關掉所有的燈以省電。