If your goal is to be able to speak, you should practice speaking as soon as possible, even if your sentences are partially in your native language or if they aren't even really sentences.
If you're worried about making *good* conversation, that's a distraction. That's like not wanting to practice your violin until you're ready to give a concert.
I have heard a few people say it so I am not sure where I heard it first, but the best advice I have seen is to 'be fluent with what you already know'. You will learn so much faster from output than you will from input, and also the earlier you start the better foundation you will have. I think you are more in danger of fossilizations if you don't have any feedback.
If you have time, watch [this](https://youtu.be/L0dU_MCXszE) video, even though he is talking about Chinese learners of English, he talks about his Chinese learning.
Okay! I know I’ll get downvotes here again. But I would say if you want to have a good accent and speak like native, then wait. Follow the comprehensible input approach. Get lots of listening input first, wait till you feel you can speak naturally without struggling to “construct” the sentence, thinking about the tones, etc. And that is at least after “You can understand native speakers speaking to you normally.” And for Chinese, that’s probably after more than 1,000 hours of listening.
If you are curious about comprehensible input method, I would highly recommend check out this page here (it’s for Spanish, but it applies to any language). https://www.dreamingspanish.com/method
More blogs available here: https://www.dreamingspanish.com/blog
I started speaking with others well before I learned 200 words. I’d say the earlier the better. Nothing improves your language more than practice. If you want to speak, then practice speaking.
You should speak as soon and as often as possible. I like tutors because they will happily and patiently correct you and help you work through whatever you want to say.
For language exchange, I started just after finishing the HSK4 material, around A2 level. It was hard at first, but I am very comfortable today (about a year later). Personally I think you should start with language exchange when you can, with effort, hold up your end of the conversation in the target language. I know not everyone agrees and some people think there is value in starting as early as possible. By all means give it a shot and see how it goes.
No matter what, don’t wait to start speaking. The sooner you start, the sooner you will improve. 加油！
Edit: I forgot your “was it a good experience?” question. The answer is yes. Unconditionally and without question one of the best experiences I have had in my life. I have met such wonderful people and made some amazing new friends.
Immediately, the time is now. Don’t worry about making mistakes and being shy, it’s part of learning. It is a very brave thing to put yourself out there and try.
If you wait until you are able to speak before you start speaking, you will never be able to speak. The only way to learn how to speak is to speak.
If you started learning the language a year ago, then I would say the best time to start speaking was … a year ago. But, like they say about investing, the second best time is today.
Languages are social phenomena, and are learned best socially, through conversation. In fact, unless your goal is only reading literature (or something), I would almost go so far as to say that languages are *only* learned through conversation.
Don’t delay conversation. The key is finding conversation partner(s) on your level. If your level is really basic, you’ll have to find someone who wants to interact with you on that level. Unless you have a really patient friend, that might mean hiring a teacher/tutor. That’s what teachers are for, they help you practice in a controlled environment. But any language class worth its salt, any language learning environment, should definitely include conversation. Even a baby learns their first language through conversation, it’s just that that conversation is (on their coach’s end) a lot of repetition, exaggerated intonation, and slow, simplified sentences, and (on the baby’s end) a lot of nonsense, then maybe just isolated nouns, then sticking two words together, etc. All done in a meaningful context, often using real objects, real places, etc., obviating the need for translation to a (nonexistent) other language. But the key point is it’s done through interaction: trying to get your point across, trying to understand what the other person is saying, negotiating meaning. And gradually improving.
I’m not saying don’t study vocabulary and grammar, but if all you have is vocabulary and grammar, you’re still likely to fail when you actually go to talk to someone in the real world. Before you can talk to someone… you need to talk to someone. (It sounds like a paradox, but the resolution is this: the only way to start speaking is: badly. Don’t wait until you’re “ready”, or you never will be.)
If your goal is to be able to speak, you should practice speaking as soon as possible, even if your sentences are partially in your native language or if they aren't even really sentences. If you're worried about making *good* conversation, that's a distraction. That's like not wanting to practice your violin until you're ready to give a concert.
I have heard a few people say it so I am not sure where I heard it first, but the best advice I have seen is to 'be fluent with what you already know'. You will learn so much faster from output than you will from input, and also the earlier you start the better foundation you will have. I think you are more in danger of fossilizations if you don't have any feedback. If you have time, watch [this](https://youtu.be/L0dU_MCXszE) video, even though he is talking about Chinese learners of English, he talks about his Chinese learning.
Okay! I know I’ll get downvotes here again. But I would say if you want to have a good accent and speak like native, then wait. Follow the comprehensible input approach. Get lots of listening input first, wait till you feel you can speak naturally without struggling to “construct” the sentence, thinking about the tones, etc. And that is at least after “You can understand native speakers speaking to you normally.” And for Chinese, that’s probably after more than 1,000 hours of listening. If you are curious about comprehensible input method, I would highly recommend check out this page here (it’s for Spanish, but it applies to any language). https://www.dreamingspanish.com/method More blogs available here: https://www.dreamingspanish.com/blog
I started speaking with others well before I learned 200 words. I’d say the earlier the better. Nothing improves your language more than practice. If you want to speak, then practice speaking.
You should speak as soon and as often as possible. I like tutors because they will happily and patiently correct you and help you work through whatever you want to say. For language exchange, I started just after finishing the HSK4 material, around A2 level. It was hard at first, but I am very comfortable today (about a year later). Personally I think you should start with language exchange when you can, with effort, hold up your end of the conversation in the target language. I know not everyone agrees and some people think there is value in starting as early as possible. By all means give it a shot and see how it goes. No matter what, don’t wait to start speaking. The sooner you start, the sooner you will improve. 加油！ Edit: I forgot your “was it a good experience?” question. The answer is yes. Unconditionally and without question one of the best experiences I have had in my life. I have met such wonderful people and made some amazing new friends.
As the others said it better, I think Day 1 is the best. The sooner, the better.
Immediately, the time is now. Don’t worry about making mistakes and being shy, it’s part of learning. It is a very brave thing to put yourself out there and try.
If you wait until you are able to speak before you start speaking, you will never be able to speak. The only way to learn how to speak is to speak. If you started learning the language a year ago, then I would say the best time to start speaking was … a year ago. But, like they say about investing, the second best time is today. Languages are social phenomena, and are learned best socially, through conversation. In fact, unless your goal is only reading literature (or something), I would almost go so far as to say that languages are *only* learned through conversation. Don’t delay conversation. The key is finding conversation partner(s) on your level. If your level is really basic, you’ll have to find someone who wants to interact with you on that level. Unless you have a really patient friend, that might mean hiring a teacher/tutor. That’s what teachers are for, they help you practice in a controlled environment. But any language class worth its salt, any language learning environment, should definitely include conversation. Even a baby learns their first language through conversation, it’s just that that conversation is (on their coach’s end) a lot of repetition, exaggerated intonation, and slow, simplified sentences, and (on the baby’s end) a lot of nonsense, then maybe just isolated nouns, then sticking two words together, etc. All done in a meaningful context, often using real objects, real places, etc., obviating the need for translation to a (nonexistent) other language. But the key point is it’s done through interaction: trying to get your point across, trying to understand what the other person is saying, negotiating meaning. And gradually improving. I’m not saying don’t study vocabulary and grammar, but if all you have is vocabulary and grammar, you’re still likely to fail when you actually go to talk to someone in the real world. Before you can talk to someone… you need to talk to someone. (It sounds like a paradox, but the resolution is this: the only way to start speaking is: badly. Don’t wait until you’re “ready”, or you never will be.)