We built SayWow based on a series of product philosophies. We'd like to share these philosophies and thoughts with you, and invite you to join us in creating a better AI English learning App.

Learning a language isn't about solving exercises - it's about imitation and application.

Fill-in-the-blank and matching exercises aren't how you learn a language; conversation, listening to stories, storytelling, reading, writing, and debate are what you really need to do to learn a language.

Learning a language should start like a child - by imitating others' expressions, then freely organizing your own thoughts to practice expression, ultimately achieving true language mastery.

The importance of listening and speaking before reading and writing

Many people read very quickly in their native language but slowly in English. If you compare carefully, you'll notice that when reading in your native language, there's a voice in your head pronouncing the words; but when reading in English, you often can't produce this voice, or you have to translate the words into your native language to hear them. This is because you haven't practiced enough English listening and speaking.

Therefore, to learn a language well, you must start with listening and speaking practice.

If learning a language doesn't make you happy, you're definitely using the wrong method

Good communication between people helps produce dopamine; learning a language is the process of using language to communicate, and it should be enjoyable because you'll find pleasure in communication.

If you're not having fun, there's definitely an issue with either the conversation topics or your conversation partner.

Find topics that interest you, embark on interesting story adventures, and discover the joy of learning language.

Why SayWow doesn't include translation exercises

1. Babies don't learn language through translation.

• When a baby first sees their mother, there are no other words in their brain to make associations with. Language (sound) directly connects to visual, tactile, olfactory, intuitive, and other senses. Humans are naturally capable of connecting things with language - first connecting to one language, then translating to another.

2. Learning language through translation makes your brain connections slower.

• When you see something, you first think of its name in Chinese, then translate it to English; while others can directly think of its English name. In comparison, your brain connection is one step slower than others.

3. You can master translation without practicing it.

• When you see a highly familiar food like an apple, you can directly say "Apple" or "苹果," and you'll realize that "Apple" and "苹果" mean the same thing. Translation can be naturally mastered after learning the language, without needing to practice it beforehand.

How SayWow helps you master language

1. First listen — then imitate speech — then express freely, becoming familiar with the language like a baby.
2. Learn vocabulary and other language knowledge through visual, auditory, and other senses, making your brain connections faster.
3. Don't practice translation or exercises, only practice the most important purposes of language — expressing yourself, gathering information, and communicating with others.
4. Learn language through interesting storylines that simulate life, gaining the pleasure of language communication through topics you're interested in and conversations you want to have.