Comment by soniman

Internet gurus are hacking language learning and the consensus is moving towards the importance of a steady diet of "comprehensible input" versus grammar instruction. That was always the expert opinion I think but the internet has accelerated it. One important factor is that the early content you consume be translated from your native language into the target language. For instance Latin learners should start with something like Harry Potter latinus. It's interesting to think about why translated-from-native material is the best for beginners; it probably reduces the mental overhead and focuses the learner on learning the language instead of learning the language & content at the same time.