Do as children do
The average adult probably learns 2 words a month, on a good month. Compare that to an average second-grader's capacity to learn about 300 new words a month. If you are aiming to improve vocabulary, it's helpful to know how children learn so much in so short a time.
A child's strategy of learning
You can learn so much from a child just by observing how they behave in their daily routines. For them, there's a world of words out there and most of them don’t even know how to use a dictionary; but how can they absorb so much?
Children are naturally curious, so when they hear a new word, they sometimes ask a grownup for the meaning. But more often, they simply learn the meanings on their own, using the context to figure out the definition.
Imitating the child's strategy
A child's mind is always open to new information. You must imitate this kind of outlook so you can improve vocabulary yourself. Here are some ways to imitate the child's learning strategy:
• Every time you come across a new word, read it consciously and see if you can determine its meaning from its context.
• If you hear a word and you don’t know what it means, ask. There is nothing wrong with asking, and this might even help you remember the word better.
• Use software to improve vocabulary. We recommend Ultimate Vocabulary software. This is a very effective tool to help you improve your vocabulary. It will open your mind and allow you to learn upwards of 10 new words a day.