Some weeks language learning goes well. Other weeks real life takes over.

This was one of those weeks.

Our grandkids were visiting, so most of my time was spent with them and exploring Athens together. There was very little structured language study.

I did manage to use a few basic Greek phrases—hello, how are you, thank you—and I did some sign reading around town (see my post about Reading Signs Around Town. But compared to other weeks, my study time was very small.

That raises an important question for language learners:

How much time should you actually spend learning a language?

A rule of thumb I have often suggested is to aim for about thirty hours a week. That might sound like a lot, but if you are learning a language full-time and living in the language environment, those hours can accumulate naturally.

For example:

  • shopping in local markets
  • talking with neighbors
  • reading signs and notices around town
  • listening to conversations and media in the language

When the language is all around you, those hours add up surprisingly quickly.

But many people—including me right now—are not learning a language full-time. This time around Greek is more like a hobby language for me. I probably will not reach thirty hours most weeks. Ten or fifteen hours is a more realistic goal unless I begin spending a lot more time with Greek speakers in the community.

How to Divide Your Learning Time

Whatever the number of hours, the balance of those hours matters just as much as the total.

One way to divide language-learning time is into three parts:

  • class time
  • study time
  • community time

Ideally, learners spend roughly one third of their time in each.

Another helpful way to think about language learning is input and output.

There are two main kinds of input:

  • reading
  • listening

And two main kinds of output:

  • speaking
  • writing

A healthy language-learning routine includes all of these.

Many learners get stuck doing mostly input—studying vocabulary, reading, or listening. Those activities are important, but language also grows through trying to produce it.

My Not-So-Perfect Experience Learning Russian

When I was studying Russian, I made exactly this mistake. I spent many hours studying grammar and listening to the language. Russian grammar is complex, and I invested a lot of time trying to understand it.

The result was predictable: I could understand quite a lot of Russian, but I could hardly say anything at all.

Later I tried to correct that imbalance by deliberately creating opportunities to speak. These days I no longer live in a place where I can practice Russian regularly, so I probably won’t continue studying it.

Language learning works best when it stays balanced. Input helps us understand the language, but output forces us to use it.

Both are necessary if we want the language to become something we can actually communicate with.

And when a busy week interrupts your study time—as it did for me this week—the best thing to do is simply start again next week.