Wise words of a polyglot:

One of the wonders of the human brain is memory, which seems to be limitless. According to the Alzheimer Society 'people who are bilingual show symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and other dementia later than people who speak just one language' which is a risk further reduced by learning more languages. Having been raised in a Tamil household, brought up in an English surrounding and having the opportunity to learn Spanish has enlightened me to access three different realms of existence and unlock communication to a global extent. Knowing this, I can only marvel at today's guest Ms. Rebecca Graham who is a polyglot and modern foreign language teacher with an English background.

The Highlights:

In order to receive the wisdom of Ms. Graham, speaker of English, Spanish, French, Portuguese and Catalan, I asked her a series of questions, delving into her past and where it all began.....

Ms. Graham's language interest blossomed at school as she mentions that "languages were the only thing [she] was really good at" describing languages as the area she excelled in. Early problems she encountered were getting her languages confused when she was younger and not having enough opportunity to practice during GCSE. For

A-Level, she outlines events of being advised to not study three languages so chose English Literature instead of Italian, knowing in her gut, I presume, that she would excel more in Italian. She describes this as her only regret, wishing she had been more persistent for her interest.

It is interesting to discover that French was her most difficult language, describing the grammar and pronunciation as tricky and hard. Funnily enough, Italian is a language she would like to learn and tried to for 6 months, but got really mixed up with other languages (Romance languages are very similar and very different at the same time) and Japanese as one she could never learn, having been in awe of her housemates at university who were learning it.

A pinnacle moment in her life seems to be her exchange to Spain at the young age of 17, describing it as "the best thing she could have ever done for [her] Spanish" due to being fully immersed in the language.

To finalise the blog, I asked Ms. Graham for her valuable advice for language learners, how she maintains all her languages and why are languages so beneficial:

"I used to write down new vocabulary and learn it. I also used to talk to myself in that language!"

"My parents always encouraged me. I had the best teachers at school! My Spanish A level teacher really inspired me. I will always remember him… "

"My advice would be if you love languages, then go for it! The world will be your oyster."

"To keep up my languages I speak them at any given opportunity. I listen to podcasts, I travel when possible, I read blogs, books in the native language and newspapers online. "

"Languages are beneficial to get a good job. They increase your job prospects for sure. If I hadn’t spoken languages, I wouldn’t have got the jobs I have had. They allow you to travel and converse with natives in their own language. They increase your confidence and allow you to meet new people from different cultures. "

"What helped me more was actually getting out there and speaking it. Doing an exchange at the age of 17 was the best thing I could ever have done for my Spanish. I was totally immersed in the language. Learning grammar tables is super important too though! "

It is truly amazing to hear Ms. Graham's words resonating with my own experiences, being both a source of motivation and amazement. Her experiences outline my dreams and her challenges reflect my own that I have personally undergone and perhaps foreshadow those I'm yet to have experienced. Her advice serves as a guide for me, and I am sure other language enthusiasts, for being a successful polyglot.