The StoryLearning® Method
Learn a language the way your brain actually wants to
Courses built on story — not drills, not gamification. Join 100,000+ adults learning Spanish, French, Japanese and more.
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Sound familiar?
You've tried everything. Nothing sticks.
You study for months…
…but still can't understand native speakers. Real conversations move too fast and you freeze up.
You forget everything
You finish a lesson feeling great. A week later, it's gone. You're back to square one — again.
Apps don't get you there
You've done hundreds of Duolingo lessons. You can match pictures to words. But you still can't hold a real conversation.
It's not your fault — and it's not your memory. Traditional methods and language apps teach you to pass quizzes, not to think in a new language. There's a better way.
The StoryLearning® Method
Your brain is wired for story. We built a method around that.
Story creates deeper encoding
Your brain treats stories differently to word lists. Narrative activates more regions of your brain, creating stronger, longer-lasting memories. That's why you can remember the plot of a film you saw years ago — but not vocabulary you drilled last Tuesday.
Context creates memory
You encounter new words inside a compelling story — not on a flashcard. The characters, the plot, the emotions all become anchors for the language. The words stick because they mean something.
Guided discovery beats memorisation
Instead of memorising rules first and hoping to apply them later, you meet the language naturally in the story. You figure out the patterns yourself. Then we explain the grammar. By that point, you already understand it — you just didn't know the name for it yet.
“I'm shocked at how natural it feels. It's like the way we learned our native language.”— StoryLearning student
Choose your language
Every course follows the StoryLearning® method. Start with a 7-day free trial — cancel anytime.
See what it's actually like inside
Every StoryLearning course is built around a compelling story. Here's how a typical chapter works.
Read & listen at your own pace
Each chapter centres on a new episode of the story. Read along at your own pace while listening to native speakers bring the characters to life. No pressure, no timer — just you and the story.
Video lessons with Olly
Short, focused video lessons break down exactly what you encountered in the story — grammar patterns, key phrases and pronunciation. Olly explains everything in plain English, so nothing feels overwhelming.
Vocabulary & practice
Targeted exercises help you lock in new words and structures. No mindless repetition — every exercise connects back to the story, so the language sticks in context.
Track your progress
See exactly where you are and how far you've come. Each chapter builds on the last, so your confidence grows alongside your skills. No guessing, no wondering — just clear, visible progress.
- Story text with native speaker audio
- Video lessons with Olly for every chapter
- Vocabulary breakdowns and practice exercises
- Grammar explanations in plain English
- Pronunciation guides
- Cultural notes
- Progress tracking
- Lifetime access — learn at your own pace
From “nothing sticks” to confident speaker
“I've had years of classes and Rosetta Stone in French, Italian, Arabic and Polish. At most I achieved 'tourist-talk.' Just 10 weeks of beginner Spanish with StoryLearning and I have solid conversational skills and the confidence to use them.”
“I believe this course is equivalent to two semesters at a university. The quality is at university level, but the lessons are more fun than any lecture hall.”
“I didn't consider myself a language person. I was worried I'd never really get it. But having completed Spanish Uncovered, I now feel confident reading and speaking Spanish for real.”
“The best Spanish course I have ever purchased. I have tried everything but nothing sticks like StoryLearning. Simple to understand, fun, motivating, encouraging.”
Your guide
Meet Olly Richards
I speak eight languages — none of them learned in a classroom.
I picked up my first foreign language living in Paris at 19. Since then, I've learned Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Italian, Cantonese, Arabic and German. Along the way, I discovered that the methods most people use to learn languages simply don't work.
So I built something better. StoryLearning teaches you through compelling stories, the way you learned your first language — naturally, through context and meaning. Over 100,000 students have used this method. But what matters most is this: it works.
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