When you are learning languages, it is important to build a good foundation. A house without correct foundation will be destroyed when the wind come. Use that image to represent your motivation and your knowledge of the Thai language.

Learning Thai without learning how to read the symbols of the language is a mistake because you’ll be limited a lot.

  1. You are missing a lot of ressources (Books, Magazines, Newspapers) which let you learn a lot of new vocabulary
  2. You cannot read the sign in the street.
  3. You cannot read the menu from restaurant

Read from newspaper / books

Newspapers

Reading the newspaper will help you a lot in getting some new vocabulary (at least the most used one). It will give you more insight of the life of your city or neighbourhood.

Bangkok Post have a really good website which guide you to the learning process by giving you some translations.

Find the website here

Books

What kind of book should you read ? What you like obviously ;)

But why not taking a book about a new skill that you want to get?

Or a skill you have already and you want to improve?

Sign in the street

Signalisation is quite ok, because they are international and sometimes translated in english.

But all the other sign like promotions, entrance, name of a university or building are not always translated. It’s quite frustrating to do not know what the building you are looking at is !!! Especially when they look really nice ^^

Believe me… you miss a lot of the Thai food when you don’t know how to read Thai. Thankfully, they have a lot of menu with pictures but still … it’s not the full menu.

Conclusion

Reading is quite important to make a good foundation of the Thai language and it’s quite useful in many situation. If you decide to skip it and learn the language with the English transliteration or IPA, go for it but you’ll miss a lot of ressources.