Introduction

We often talk about what makes great language teaching: clear explanations, rich input, meaningful practice. But how often do we stop to ask: how does the brain itself process language?

The answer matters more than we might think. Understanding the key areas of the brain involved in speaking, listening, reading and writing gives us powerful clues about how to teach more effectively. Why is listening so crucial early on? Why does grammar overload learners so easily? Why do some students struggle to connect speech and text?

In this article, we’ll take a simple tour of the brain’s main language hubs — what each does, how they work together — and explore what this means for everyday classroom practice. You don’t need to be a neuroscientist to teach with the brain in mind… but knowing a few key facts can help you make better choices for your learners.

1. Broca’s area

Where it is: In the lower part of the left frontal lobe.

What it does:

• Helps us plan and say words and sentences.
• Handles grammar: putting words together correctly.
• Deals with complex sentence structures.

Think of it as the “speech and grammar centre”.

2. Wernicke’s area

Where it is: In the upper part of the left temporal lobe.

What it does:

• Helps us understand spoken and written language.
• Links sounds to meanings.

The brain’s “understanding and decoding hub”.

3. Angular gyrus

Where it is: In the parietal lobe near Wernicke’s area.

What it does:

• Links what we hear, see, and know.
• Important for reading and writing.
• Helps connect written words with how they sound.

The “integration centre” — essential for reading and writing.

4. Arcuate fasciculus (not a hub but a key connection)

What it does:

• Connects Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas.
• Lets comprehension and speaking areas work together.
• If damaged, people can speak and understand well but struggle to repeat what they hear.

The “information highway” between understanding and speaking.

5. Primary auditory cortex (Heschl’s gyrus)

Where it is: In the upper part of the temporal lobe.

What it does:

• Handles first processing of sounds.
• Critical for hearing and recognising speech sounds.

The “entry point for speech sounds”.

6. Other areas involved in language

• Prefrontal cortex: Handles higher-level things like planning conversations and using language appropriately.
• Right hemisphere areas: Help with tone, emotion, humour, sarcasm, and rhythm in speech.

How a sentence is processed by the brain: hub by hub

Let’s imagine a learner hears the sentence:

“The cat is sleeping on the chair.”

Here’s what happens in their brain, step by step:

1. Primary auditory cortex (Heschl’s gyrus): first stop

• As soon as the sound reaches the ears, it’s sent to the primary auditory cortex, which begins decoding the raw sound: pitch, rhythm, volume.
• At this stage, the brain is simply recognising that “this is speech” and starts to break it into smaller units like phonemes.

2. Wernicke’s area: comprehension and decoding

• Next, Wernicke’s area gets involved to identify words and attach meaning to them: recognising “the”, “cat”, “is”, “sleeping”, etc.
• This is where the learner understands what each word means, tapping into their mental vocabulary.

3. Angular gyrus: multimodal integration

• The angular gyrus might also activate, especially if the learner is imagining the sentence’s meaning (“cat” → picture of a cat; “chair” → picture of a chair).
• If they’re reading the sentence instead of hearing it, the angular gyrus would link the written words to their sounds and meanings.

4. Broca’s area: preparing a response and analysing grammar

• Broca’s area now steps in to unpack the grammar: it identifies that “the cat” is the subject, “is sleeping” is the verb phrase, “on the chair” is a prepositional phrase showing location.
• If the learner is planning to repeat or comment on the sentence (e.g., saying “The cat is sleeping!”), Broca’s area also prepares the speech plan to produce that utterance.

5. Arcuate fasciculus: connecting comprehension to production

• If the learner needs to repeat the sentence aloud, the arcuate fasciculus carries the information from Wernicke’s area (understanding) to Broca’s area (speaking).

6. Prefrontal cortex and right hemisphere: nuance and pragmatics

The prefrontal cortex may also be engaged if the learner is thinking about how to respond, planning what to say next.

If there’s additional nuance (e.g., tone of voice suggests sarcasm or excitement), the right hemisphere areas help interpret this.

Implications for language teaching

Knowing what these areas do gives us useful ideas for how we should teach language.

1. Listening is essential

The auditory cortex and Wernicke’s area need lots of good-quality listening input to help learners distinguish and understand sounds.

Implication: Listening should be a central part of teaching, especially at the start. We should give plenty of listening practice with feedback on pronunciation.

2. Grammar needs careful handling

Broca’s area is sensitive to how much information it can handle at once.

Implication:

• Start with simple grammar before moving to more complex structures.
• Teach language in useful chunks and phrases to reduce overload. This is key, especially with beginners.
• Use repetition and scaffolding to help patterns stick before adding variation. The repetitions need to be many more than what typical textbooks afford (50+) and should cut across as many modalities as possible,

3. Use different modes together

The angular gyrus links visual, sound, and meaning information.

Implication: Combine speaking, listening, reading and writing activities (like dictations, reading while listening, shadowing) so learners use all senses.

4. Build automaticity

The arcuate fasciculus helps us speak and understand quickly and smoothly.

Implication:

• Do lots of retrieval practice and fluency work (like fast drills with feedback).
• Give learners practice speaking and listening at natural speeds early on.

5. Don’t forget tone and emotion

While grammar and vocabulary mainly use the left side of the brain, the right side deals with intonation, feelings, and meaning beyond words.

Implication: Teach not just correct grammar but also natural-sounding speech: tone, emphasis, humour, irony.

Conclusion

If we want our teaching to match how the brain works, we need to:

• Focus heavily on listening at first.
• Teach grammar carefully and gradually.
• Mix speaking, listening, reading and writing so they support each other.
• Give learners lots of chances for quick recall and practice.
• Include tone, emphasis and “how language sounds in real life”.

This is not about gimmicks or brain myths — it’s about respecting how the brain naturally learns language so we can teach in a way that really works.