- 1). Familiarize yourself with the Swedish alphabet. The letters are the same as those used in English, with the addition of the three new vowels "å," "ä" and "ö." Listen to recordings of these sounds on the Internet and practice repeating them aloud until you are confident that your pronunciation closely resembles that of the recording. Pay particular attention to letters that look the same in Swedish and English but have differing pronunciations. The letter "j" is always pronounced as the English "y" in "yes."
- 2). Learn Swedish vocabulary. The key to speaking Swedish effectively is to understand as many words as possible. Use websites such as IE Languages to download Swedish vocabulary lists on themes such as colors, seasons and nature. Dedicate a certain amount of time each day to studying these lists and memorizing the vocabulary. Ask a friend to test you on what you have learned at the end of each week.
- 3). Master Swedish grammar. Understand that there are two cases in Swedish--nominative and genitive--and that nouns, adjectives and articles change their form depending on which of these you use. Note that the word order in Swedish is sometimes different from English, Study the rules surrounding the two grammatical genders of nouns in Swedish. Ensure that you learn the gender of new nouns when you first encounter them, as this will help you use them accurately in sentences.
- 4). Practice the Swedish you have learned. Search for native Swedish speakers in your local area and arrange to meet up for a chat. If this is not feasible, use websites, such as Livemocha, to find Swedish people who are learning English. Offer to give them help with their English in return for advice on your Swedish. When talking to a native speaker, ask him to make notes on your mistakes during the conversation and give you feedback at the end. This helps you to learn from your mistakes and improve more quickly.
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