What are the best methods for an American expat to learn Thai effectively?

I've used Brett's courses, and they're worth it. He emphasizes learning to read Thai which is important if you want to learn to pronounce Thai correctly. His site is (I don't get a cut, I just like his stuff).

Sure you can do it. It's not that important how good your memory is, but how much time you spend learning and how focused you are.

For Thai, in my opinion:

Get some classes with a teacher (not just a native speaker. A teacher will be able to teach you right pronunciation. My suggestion is this: (they have a youtube channel about learning Thai).

Subscribe to Pimsleur- great for beginners (but don't start with only this)

The best book to teach you writing I think is Write in Thai in 4 weeks, just obviously you won't learn it in 4 months even, but you can understand the most important things. It is not that difficult in general.

Just don't listen to people who would tell you that you will learn Thai the best on Sukhumvit in a bar or when sleeping. Those people just look for excuses.

Also Pamboon Thai for beginners is good although a bit old fashioned, as you can listen to the dialogues that are in the book.

Good luck!

At 57, I am sure you can do it.

Sign up with a school, that's the proper way to learn. You'll learn how to read, write and speak, that's how you learn a language. Two hours, 2 or 3 tines a week is good.

But you gotta study, if you don't, you won't learn much.

Remember, you're not good at languages, so you gotta make efforts.

Thai is a tonal language, so not easy to begin with (5 different tones = 5 ways to pronounce each word, weather it actually exists and has a proper meaning or not). If you don't pronounce a word the right way, it will mean something else or nothing at all, if the tone you used does not exist for this particular word.

Learning how to read will help you tremendously with the pronunciation, together with learning about the culture and customs (thought process or how Thais think the way they do and why they use the words they use in each situation).

You can always learn a lot on your own, but going to a school and paying for it, will give you guidance, structure and motivation.

Take care.

@Richard ********

I can highly recommend my Thai teacher who’s been great, and teaches via video call!

@https://www.facebook.com/**************************

@chitlada elegance

Get a horizontal dictionary

Language exchange could be fun! Thai language partner, point at an object and say it in English. Ask them what it is in Thai. Mixing languages helps at first

Find me on Prebly

Don’t overload your brain. Learn for an hour max only 3 times a week, and let your brain take it all in. Then go to the market, shopping and practice what you’ve learned. If you have a Thai partner or close friend, take them out for lunch and practice on them. Wish you good luck 🤞🏻

Haven't you seen that guy on Facebook advertising how to speak fluent Thai in 6 months learning only like 3 hours a week? He's singing Thai songs, he's so happy. Maybe you should try that course.

Try Ling app, it's paid on playstore. But you can find a cracked version on pirates bay.

Learn to read Thai language. I’ll assume the rest will follow with some practice. That’s my initial plan.

For me, I learned the normal everyday interaction phrases sawadee krup, cob coon krup etc. Then I started learning words. Not sentences. So, although I can't fully converse, I can get my point across in regular settings, and I can sometimes get the gist of a conversation. (I haven't learned anything new in about 6 months though, so I need to restart it).

But different people have different ways their brain wants to learn. And there is no way I could learn to write Thai. 🤣

I started with the lonely planet Thai phrasebook. Its small enough to put in your pocket and take wherever you go. Then just practice whenever you are around Thai people. They are so happy that you are trying to learn their language and more than willing to help. I learned so much in restaurants and sitting at bar counters.

If you want to learn over zoom,

@Teach *********

Has a really good setup.

You can try “duolingo” app too

I’ve lived in Bangkok for a few years, have a thai partner. I’m now on my fourth Thai school, still at the beginner level. I also have a private tutor. The problem is it’s worse than hard labor for me to memorize vocabulary. 10 minutes and I’m ready for a nap. I’m older, but I was like this when I was young, also. I really loved AUA, were you just watch to Thai people talking, no book, no homework. They closed during Covid. I start tomorrow at Rak Thai. Class is five afternoons a week, and I will have to be accountable to memorize a vocabulary from the book each day. Tones and the alphabet are not so bad for me. I went to Everyday Thai, in Sathorn , the teacher moved too fast, and got mad when I couldn’t remember the words, even though I studied for hours every day. The knowledge, in Asok, it’s pretty nice, and one lesson does not depend on the other. However, they have 15 words for each lesson in the book, but the teachers add about 50 more words, which again was too fast for me. I took a sample classes at Duke; they drill the class over and over in about 10 to 12 words each lesson, but they have a waiting list. Rak Thai had an opening, works something like Duke…

I teach Thai language to one foreign government about 10 years. Now I’m back to Thailand, pm me if you’re interested to learn to read or speak Thai online. Affordable price.

This link might help to get you started Part 1

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Thailand🇹🇭Undiscovered🇹🇭 for places to visit with Google maps attached

Best way is to get a bloody Thai Gf, she wil teach you..... Only need the phrases for arguing anyway, they are easy to learn... The rest is same same but different.

Excellent place to learn thai and great teachers. The class size was around 10 people and

@Wipawan ******

made learning fun. I would definitely recommend this school !!✌️🙏

A New Language School

077 426 981

Soi 6

Pimsleur

You can definitely do it. It just takes a little self discipline to learn a little bit everyday. My friend used Thai pod 101 and he was conversational in a few months.

Download "Fundentals of the Thai Language".

It's free ( assuming it's still available).

This will give you a grounding of the language, both aural and written, and then decide, once you have a reasonable vocab and are able to write basic letters, how you wish to proceed...

I think it's best to learn the simple words and phrases. I speak several languages that I learned when I was very young and I found it's very hard to learn Thai especially being a tonal language.

Hold your nose when you speak, always sound Thai, lol

I learned Thai fluently from drinking...

The problem with Thai is you will repeat a word EXACTLY how you think youve heard it and Thais will say Noooo that means a monkeys arse! 🤣🤣🤣 Keep trying, but its very very difficult.

Best thing to learn first is the alphabet, which is about 55 'sounds' long!

There are no subliminal quick fixes.

The brain doesn't absorb information in that way.

And certainly not whilst you're in bed, despite what countless infomercials will tell you.

Learning another language needs regular (daily) practice.

Even if you are only doing 15 minutes a day just make sure you keep that schedule each day.

Repetition is how we preserve information, but that takes perseverance, and most of all persistence.

There aren't any shortcuts.

But out of all languages, luckily there are a lot of Thai books around.

And Thai teachers willing to work with you

The trick for me was learning the writing. Tones made no sense until I could see the differences

Take you a couple of years to be able to get a grasp of it. Get yourself a tutor, they’re not expensive and do a couple of lessons a week, for a few months, to get the basics.

I try to learn a word a day if I can. I'm not much younger than you and I am indeed retaining it. And whatever I learn I try to use it that day and the next so it becomes ingrained. After a while it just becomes natural. My vocabulary isn't that big and I've been here a number of years. I recommend you try some courses but make sure they go not too fast, make it fun. If that teacher doesn't work out for you then switch. Also how you learn might be different. I like pictures or funny situations that helps my memory work. But really just make sure you allocate time to it each day and practice it. Use it at the 711 or the local market and you can get going on it. You are doing the most important thing right and that is deciding to learn it! So don't give up, it's a fun language. Don't let the script characters get in your way try to hear and repeat the sounds...