How would you feel if you were asked to describe your impression of a painting, and you were showed only a few square inches of it? That is why, when learning a language, we, at TLH, want you to see the whole picture, as soon as possible.
Yes, when seeing a painting for the first time, you might not understand it. Right?
Your instinct will like it, or dislike it, but it will be foreign to you. You may wonder what it means, feel fascinated, or awkward, or perplexed. But if the painter took the time to explain to you what happened in the creative phase, guide you through his inspiration and make you see what he sees, you would learn to appreciate it.
This is what happens when learning a language. You may like or dislike the sound of a language at first, and this is only your first, instinctive, reaction. In fact, when you decide to learn a language, you will likely do so because you first impression of it is a positive one. However, in this initial stage, you do not know what the language is about: does it have an easy or complex grammar? Does it have the same alphabet? How many verb tenses will you have to learn? In other words, you do not know if you WILL still like it after starting your learning journey.
Having a good idea of all this from the get-go will allow you to understand a little more what your brain will have to deal with and avoid part of the frustration (read the blog "The frustration of learning a language") you will face in the learning phase. But what do we mean by THE BIG PICTURE?
What we mean is: how is the language you want to learn different from your yours. What are the learning phases that will require extra effort, and what will you be able to achieve, (conversation wise) as you reach the various milestones of learning (read the blog about "the milestones of language learning"). Likewise, you will get an overview of various grammar points early on in your learning, as your questions about the language come up in class, or when you need to understand what rule lies behind a particular way of saying things. However, the teacher (at the TLH) will not expect you to fully comprehend and master the various and sometime complex grammar points explained. You will need a lot more practice to achieve perfection, but this "filling the blank with answers" every time you need it will help you more and more THE BIGGER PICTURE.
At TLH, we teach you as we go, then we practice, we teach again, practice, and teach again. We do not have a pre-planned schedule for introducing grammar points to you, and we do not wait for you to reach a certain level to answer your questions. We want you to learn in the most natural way, as children do, and like a good parent, we will correct you, and explain you, until, one day, you will be able to walk with your own legs (or speak with your own tongue...)
Did you get THE BIG PICTURE?
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