{"id":8926,"date":"2023-10-26T22:13:39","date_gmt":"2023-10-27T02:13:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/?p=8926"},"modified":"2025-01-24T07:41:43","modified_gmt":"2025-01-24T12:41:43","slug":"best-time-of-day-to-learn-language","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/best-time-of-day-to-learn-language\/","title":{"rendered":"The Best Time of Day to Learn a Language, According to Science"},"content":{"rendered":"

You’re constantly improving the way you study languages, and you’re wondering if the time of day you study makes a difference in how effective you are as a learner.<\/p>\n

Well, studies suggest that morning, afternoon, and evening each offer unique benefits for memory, focus and retention. Here we\u2019ll explore how different times can support specific language skills and how to match your study schedule to your personal needs for better results.<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

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What\u2019s the Best Time of Day for You to Learn a Language?<\/h2>\n

The best time of day to learn a language depends on factors such as your personal schedule, your chronotype (i.e., the time(s) your body prefers to stay awake or asleep) and learning style<\/a>.<\/p>\n

That said, we can give you a rundown of what science has to say about studying languages during different times of the day.<\/p>\n

Mid-morning follows your body\u2019s natural chronotype<\/h3>\n

There aren’t a ton of studies that have looked at the relationship between the time of day you study and your ability to pick up new languages specifically. However, there have been a few that looked at whether the time of day has any bearing on how well people have absorbed what they’ve studied in general <\/em>(not just languages) during that period.<\/p>\n

For example, one 2017 study<\/a> suggested that university students performed best in classes that started at 11:00 a.m. This supported previous research that high school students also performed better during classes that took place in the mid-morning, but not in the early morning.<\/em><\/p>\n

Likewise, a 2020 study<\/a> further reinforced the idea that mid-morning schedules (i.e., 10:30 a.m.) were much more conducive to studying than, say, 8:30 a.m. study schedules.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If you really think about it, it makes sense. You’re not immediately alert the moment you wake up\u2014you still have to do things like down a cup of Joe to jolt yourself awake, even if you’re a morning person. Your brain still needs a bit of time to go from “sleepy” to “oh yes, I’m so ready to dig into those flashcards,” and that can take a couple of hours or so.<\/p>\n

Evening helps you perform best (if done regularly before bedtime)<\/h3>\n

Now, I’m going to cite the <\/em>only study I’ve been able to find that directly touched on the relationship between the time of day you study languages and your language proficiency.<\/p>\n

In 2018, a study<\/a> was conducted on Duolingo users’ activity during various times of the day. (If, for some reason, you haven’t already heard of Duolingo, we have a more in-depth review of the app here<\/a>.)<\/p>\n

According to the study, those who practiced regularly right before they hit the hay performed 52.9% better than other users. The authors credited this to the fact that you’re less likely to be interrupted before bedtime.<\/p>\n

Afternoon can work well (if you take a nap first)<\/h3>\n

You’ll notice that I wrote the bit about studying in the afternoon last, and that’s because there’s hardly any research on how well students or language learners performed when they studied in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

However, there is one 2021 study<\/a> on the effects of napping on cognitive performance\u2014i.e., your ability to learn, absorb and apply new knowledge. The study found that those who napped before 1:00 p.m. performed much better than those who napped at any other time of the day.<\/p>\n

How to Learn Languages During Your Best Time of the Day<\/h2>\n

Now that you have some idea of why different times of the day work best for studying languages and\/or cognitive performance in general, how do you ensure your <\/em>particular study time works for you?<\/p>\n

Experiment with different times to see what works best<\/h3>\n

As you’ve seen, studies on the topic (or, at least, related topics) have vastly different answers to what’s the best time of day to learn language lessons.<\/p>\n

The only way to know what time works best for you is to experiment with studying at different times of the day. Which feels best for learning a language? Which seems to yield the most results? If there isn’t a particular time of day that works best for you, how can you maximize your language studies<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Break studying into short bursts throughout the day<\/h3>\n

Studying a language can feel repetitive at times, so you might tune out if you try to study for too long in one stretch. However, if you break your studying into shorter chunks, you might be able to focus better.<\/p>\n

For example, if you’re going through flashcards, limiting yourself to 15 minutes per set before you take a break might be better than trying to slug through them for 10 hours straight.<\/p>\n

You can segment your lessons within a given day, keeping in mind your unique study preferences and learning style. Experiment with how many words or concepts you can study within a given time. The study chunk you end up with should feel both productive and comfortable for you.<\/p>\n

Alternatively, you can use language learning programs<\/a> with built-in progress trackers to document your studies like FluentU<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

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You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n

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