Move from letters to useful phrases
Recognizing the Cyrillic alphabet helps, but letters alone will not start a conversation. Once you can read a few simple words, put them into sentences: introduce yourself, say where you live and ask for directions. Reading then becomes part of communication.
Do not try to master every case and verb form in your first week. Start with short expressions you need and use them to understand the grammar gradually.
Divide twenty minutes into four parts
- Read for five minutes. Find familiar words in a short dialogue.
- Listen for five minutes. Notice stress and intonation.
- Speak for five minutes. Change one line of the dialogue to fit your life.
- Review for five minutes. Use an expression you learned yesterday.
On a busy day, repeat just a couple of phrases rather than missing practice completely. Consistency helps at the beginning.
How should you work on mistakes?
Stopping after every small mistake makes it hard to express an idea. After a conversation, choose two mistakes that keep returning and work through them. Ask a teacher or language partner to explain a correction.
When choosing a course, find out how much time is spent speaking, how the group’s level is set and whether you receive feedback on homework.
Prepare for your first conversation
Choose three questions: What is your name? Where do you live? What interests you? Write a short answer to each, then practise the conversation aloud. Think of one follow-up question another person might ask.
This exercise helps you speak without memorizing an entire script. Also practise asking someone to repeat a question if you did not hear it. Keeping a conversation going matters even when your vocabulary is still small.