Dear Josh,

This term I’m charting a steady course across reading, vocabulary, listening, and speaking. The lighthouse theme reminds me to return to practice, and the sea image turns each session into a short voyage with a clear bearing.

Study plan

Reading: 20 minutes of close reading with marks and notes. Vocabulary: 10–15 new items with one example sentence. Listening: brief daily shadowing plus micro‑dictation. Speaking: 2–3 minute retellings followed by a quick self‑check.

Practices tried

Graded readers, sentence mining, word banks, podcast shadowing, timed prompts, and reflection logs.

Effective strategies

Shadowing sharpened rhythm and clarity. Small, daily reading built durable momentum. One concrete example per word anchored meaning.

Less effective strategies

Lengthy memorization without context, frequent resource switching, and over‑ambitious weekly targets.

Key lessons

Consistency outruns intensity. Feedback loops make progress visible. Context binds vocabulary.

Next steps

Strengthen my listening practice and expand my vocabulary. Do more reading comprehension exercises to facilitate a more comprehensive learning of the English language.

Sincerely,

Jacky