Considerations before practicing a real-life topic in English

The following is one of a series of guest posts by Mike Shelby. Mike is a former ESL teacher who has been quietly (i.e., without his own blog) disseminating his thoughts on language learning around the internet for quite some time.

My ideas below may help you practice a language even on your own more comprehensively and productively.

1. Prepare your own list of everyday topics in order of priority and importance based on your needs for potential practical use.

You can make a plan of issues (list out main ideas or key concepts) to cover each topic comprehensively in terms of its content. As you know, a daily life topic such as "shopping" includes various situations, concepts, and issues related to the topic.

This is my list of reading materials with tips on many topics:

• eHow.com
• English language articles about various subjects for reading and study practice
• Articles on Everyday-Wisdom.com
• ESLgold.com's articles and topics for discussion
• English-Online: Articles in Easy, Understandable English for Learners
• E.L. Easton English online reading

Always try to think of potential situations and issues connected with a topic that may be important to you or that you may encounter and how to best express your thoughts.

2. Make your own list of materials (aids, resources, etc.) to practice a daily life topic and select the most relevant content at all levels for your needs.

There are internet resources, textbooks, phrase books, conversation books, audio/video recordings, TV, radio programs, online and face-to-face communication, and reading materials to practice daily life topics.

You can also create your own materials on each topic to include the most important content at your own discretion for your potential use.

3. Read helpful advice/suggestions on how to practice listening comprehension, speaking, vocabulary, reading, and writing on a daily life topic.

4. Prepare a list of activities to practice and to master a daily life topic with vocabulary on it. 

Can you prepare a list of real-life topics in order of importance for yourself with a detailed plan to master each topic (by developing your listening comprehension, speaking, reading, writing, and vocabulary skills)?

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I believe it's a good idea to learn and to practice each daily life topic comprehensively (thoroughly) before proceeding to the next topic, as I described in my English-learning article "Logical mastering of a daily life topic in English". Thought-through (selective) content on each topic for practice based on one's needs is necessary to first encompass relevant content for one's needs as there is an enormous amount of diverse content in language resources.