>>1490463When people say "exposure", don't think of it as being surrounded by the language. That helps, yes but...
If you've ever interacted with very young children, you notice that they're desperately trying to communicate their needs. They want to be picked up, they want a specific food, they want a specific toy. They're really struggling because they don't know the word or are unable to pronounce it correctly. And you, as the listener, are trying really hard to understand so you can give them what they want. This desperate struggle is how they learn fastest. You can try to teach them specific words but the things they care about, you don't need to teach them because they are already fixated on those words because they are codes that unlock the things they want. Grammar comes much later.
If you can put yourself in situations where you desperately need to be understood, that's ideal. It's pretty rare nowadays because everyone will switch to English to help you and you'll be tempted to use a translation app when it gets tough.
