表示“自学做某事”，英语通常用teach oneself to do sth，而不用teach oneself doing sth。如：

I tanght myself to type. 我自学了打字。

he taught himself to play the violin.  他自学拉小提琴。

I began to teach myself to read at four.  我四岁时自学阅读。

He taught himself to carve to a high degree of proficiency.  他自学雕刻达到了很高的水平。

有时还可在不定式前加上how（如何），以强调“方法”。如：

I taught myself how to play the piano. 我自学了弹钢琴。

但是，由于我们可以说teach oneself sth（自学某东西），如：

During the passage she taught herself basic Arabic. 她在航程中自学了基本的阿拉伯语。

Don’t laugh, but I’ve decided to teach myself Chinese. 别笑话我，我已决定自学汉语了。

所以如果一个动名词已经名词化了，则也可用于teach oneself后面，构成teach oneself doing sth这样的格式。如：

He taught himself swimming. 他自学游泳。