How to learn English through series and movies?

Series and movies are considered one of the best ways to learn English in an enjoyable and effective manner.

They help you improve your listening, speaking, vocabulary, grammar, and cultural skills. But how can you make the most out of them? Here are some tips you can follow.

Read: How to Learn English as a Non-Native Speaker

Choose series and movies that suit your level and interests

It's not beneficial to watch a series or movie that is too difficult or boring for you. This will make you lose enthusiasm and focus. You should choose series and movies that match your language level and contain topics that interest you and capture your attention. Some websites that can help you choose suitable series and movies are:

• FluentU: This website offers curated video clips from famous series, movies, and TV shows with translations and explanations of difficult words and phrases. You can also test yourself after each clip with interactive exercises and games.
• Learn English with TV Series: This YouTube channel provides fun and informative lessons about the English language through various scenes from popular series such as Friends, House of Cards, and others. The lessons include explanations of vocabulary, pronunciation, culture, and language situations.
• IMDb: This website is one of the most popular sites that provide information and ratings about series and movies. You can search for series and movies that suit your taste and sort them by rating, year, genre, language, and other criteria.

Use translation wisely

Translation is a useful tool for better understanding series and movies, but don't rely on it too much. The goal of learning English is to be able to understand and use it without assistance. Therefore, you should follow these steps:

1. Watch the series or movie for the first time without translation and try to understand the general context and main ideas.
2. Watch the series or movie for the second time with English subtitles and focus on the words and phrases you don't know or understand. You can pause the scene, go back, and repeat until the meanings become clear to you.
3. Watch the series or movie for the third time without translation and try to notice the difference in your understanding level and enjoy watching.

Follow the series or movie regularly and attentively

Don't watch the series or movie once and forget about it. Make it a part of your daily or weekly learning routine. Try to watch one episode or part of it every day or every week. During the viewing, be attentive and engaged. You have the option to engage in several of the following activities:

• Repeat what the actors say aloud or in a whisper. This will help improve your pronunciation and fluency.
• Predict what will happen in the next scene or at the end of the episode. This will help develop critical and creative thinking skills.
• Summarize what you have watched in English after each scene or episode. This will help improve your writing and expression skills.
• Discuss what you have watched with a friend, teacher, or on a social media platform. This will help improve communication and interaction skills.

Enjoy the watching experience and don't pressure yourself

Last but not least, remember that watching series and movies is primarily a means of entertainment and enjoyment. Don't make it a source of stress or frustration. Don't try to understand every word or sentence you hear.

Don't compare yourself to the actors or native speakers. Remember that learning English is a long and ongoing process. The more you watch, the more you learn. And the more you learn, the more you enjoy.

This concludes the article. I hope you have benefited from it and that you apply these tips in your English series and movie watching.