Sometimes we feel like we are not making progress with our spoken English. It feels like we are stuck and we can not find the right words to talk on a specific topic. But why? What is the reason?

Well, one of the reasons why our English is not that good is that our overall spoken English is too low or lacks vocabulary. Usually, we have lots of ideas in our minds but when it comes to sharing, to speaking them out in a loud voice we fail to do so. We don’t speak properly.   What can we do to be able to improve our speaking skills?

Tips for Improving the Speaking Skills

There are some simple tips and tricks which can help overcome this large gap between the English we have in our minds and the English we want to speak out.

Firstly, we should learn to speak by listening not just by reading and writing. When we listen to native speakers, music, films, or documentaries helps us learn natural English, fix the correct vocabulary of certain words we have difficulty in pronouncing, or just get the context the language is being used.

It would also be helpful to find something to listen to and repeat. We can listen to a word, a phrase, or a collocation and play with it. This means you can change the word, phrase, or collocation.

Example: I love pizza

You can change the word pizza. You can play by using another word

I like football/ jam/ tennis/ school

Example: I love eating pizza. You can play by using another verb tense

I like playing football, I like dancing

Secondly, we can focus on collocations, idioms, and fillers. We can expand our vocabulary not by using full sentences.

Example: collocations--- heavy rain, shooting stars

                  Idioms-------kick the bucket, a couch potato

                 Fillers------on top of that, moreover

Last but not least, we should get out of our comfort zone. We have to interact with others even though we might get nervous and make mistakes. It is normal to feel this way and we should get used to it. By doing things that make us nervous we improve our speaking skills and gain more confidence. We can also find a speaking partner to practice our English every day for at least 30 minutes a day. A buddy helps you speak fast and he will not judge you or correct you. He is not your teacher after all. He is your friend who is talking with you about different things. Keep practicing and be persistent. You should be patient, too. After all, ‘’ Rome wasn’t built in one day’’. English should be fun and easy to be learned.