I’ve been reflecting upon my language learning journey these past couple of weeks, thinking back to when I first started learning the language. There were a lot of things I did that really helped me, but also some key areas that I would do differently . Here are my reflections, distilled as my top three tips for beginners who are getting started in learning Chamoru.

#1 Build Vocabulary in Context

When I first started learning, I knew barely 50 words in the language. As a beginner, building up vocabulary is essential because we can’t do anything in the language if we don’t have the words.

When choosing vocabulary to learn, I recommend starting out with things I encounter in my life on a regular basis. I tend to remember things better if I can interact with them, so this works for me.

To be a bit more structured, I like to identify the main areas in my life and focus on learning new words in that area. If choosing a theme like that is too broad and overwhelming, you can narrow it down to specific moments in your day, such as drinking your morning coffee or walking your dog. I’ve found it helpful to take note of the things I’m doing, what I observe, what I think and say, and the people, places, and objects I interact with.

I usually drink tea in the morning, so if I were to start with a basic word list for that moment in my day I’d start with the following:

Chamoru	Ingles
chå	tea
kuchåla	spoon
asukat	sugar
maipe	hot
åttilong	black
mames	sweet
ma’aksom	sour
lechen niyok	coconut milk
krim	cream
matuhok	sleepy
ogga’an	morning
lå’la’	alive
lina’la’	life

If it feels overwhelming to look up the vocabulary to start with, I’ve prepared a basic word list that you can use to get started. It’s definitely not comprehensive, but hopefully it can give you a good start:

#2 Use Basic Sentences

When I learn new vocabulary, I always use them in basic sentences. Memorizing individual words is actually not that effective for me, which is why I use this method. When I can use new words in basic sentences, it creates an image and a contextual experience, I’m more likely to remember them.

It’s also helpful to use these basic sentences in my everyday life – if I’m describing my day, it makes it easier for the vocabulary to stick!

I’m not concerned about doing anything super complex at this stage. All I do is look at the things around me and make basic descriptive sentences, such as The coffee is hot. Building from our morning tea/coffee example, we could make the following basic sentences:

Chamoru	Ingles
Matuhok yu’.	I am sleepy.
Maipe i kafe.	The coffee is hot.
Applacha’ i kuchåla.	The spoon is dirty.
Lina’la’ i kafe.	Coffee is life.
Mames i lechen niyok.	The coconut milk is sweet.
Ma’aksom i krim.	The cream is sour.
Mångnge’ i kafe.	The coffee is delicious.
Åttilong i kafe.	The coffee is black.

#3 Listen to Chamoru Everyday

This third tip is something I did not do when I first started learning, and it is the number one thing I would have done differently. If I had to do it over, I would have listened to Chamorro every single day, ideally with the transcript so I could read along while listening.

I think my teacher at the time assumed that l aready knew the sound of Chamorro, or that I had easy access to a native speaker who could help me. Neither of these were true for me. The teacher also refused to provide audio to go with their handouts and heavily discouraged listening to Chamorro music as a way to acquire the language. So I ended up relying upon reading, writing, and speaking in those early days to drive my learning.

Not listening to Chamoru everyday at the beginning of my learning meant I developed bad habits in my speaking and listening that I am still trying to correct. My speaking was so akward, and remained akward for a long time. And I am not talking about the fact that my spoken Chamorro has an American accent – I placed my stresses in the wrong places, which often made me incomprehensible to other speakers. Or else my speech did not flow correctly and I sounded clunky or sterile, as if I was speaking straight out of a textbook. And my listening comprehension was terrible – I could not understand any naturally spoken Chamorro, which was embarrassing.

To avoid developing those bad habits, I recommend two things for beginners: listen to Chamorro music while reading the lyrics (you can find plenty of videos on YouTube with the lyrics in the video) or else visit https://paleric.blogspot.com/ for stories with audio, full transcripts, AND translations! For those who cannot listen to Chamorro on a regular basis in daily life, these are fantastic resources for training your ear in naturally spoken Chamorro. Acquiring the sound of the language will naturally improve your speaking and listening comprehension.