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I've been working on my Spanish lately and I've been having mucho fun with it. I started with a book called Magrigal's Magic Key to Spanish, which is great and cheap--maybe $10-15? It's an oldie. Then I keep switching around my resources. I have a book of poetry by Pablo Neruda which has his poems on one page and the translation on the facing page so you can compare as you read. there is a great website called Spanishdict.com where I can look up words and hear them pronounced and it has flashcards. I have a little book of idiomatic expressions and a couple of travellers books that I got at garage sales. In all I probably didn't spend even $20. But of course my best lessons came this summer when I went to Peru and hardly anyone knew English so we were forced to speak it and it's amazing how quickly it comes when you do that. Oh yeah, and after I get better I'll use my DVD player and watch Spanish language movies and shows on netflix.
LiveMocha is good and offers a lot of languages.
This is a good French immersion TV program . The show was produced by Yale University. all of the lessons are available online. Resource: French in Action
There are also a lot of language applications available for cell phones
I've been working on my Spanish lately and I've been having mucho fun with it. I started with a book called Magrigal's Magic Key to Spanish, which is great and cheap--maybe $10-15? It's an oldie. Then I keep switching around my resources. I have a book of poetry by Pablo Neruda which has his poems on one page and the translation on the facing page so you can compare as you read. there is a great website called Spanishdict.com where I can look up words and hear them pronounced and it has flashcards. I have a little book of idiomatic expressions and a couple of travellers books that I got at garage sales. In all I probably didn't spend even $20. But of course my best lessons came this summer when I went to Peru and hardly anyone knew English so we were forced to speak it and it's amazing how quickly it comes when you do that. Oh yeah, and after I get better I'll use my DVD player and watch Spanish language movies and shows on netflix.
The study abroad really is key. Even with all of the recent attempts by instructors to recreate an "immersive environment" in the classroom, there is still nothing comparable to spending time in a foreign country. No matter how immersive a classroom setting, it will always come up short.
I would also suggest listening to some music in Spanish while reading the lyrics in Spanish (some liner notes have bilingual versions of the lyrics). The soundtrack to Buena Vista Social Club has bilingual lyrics that are very easy to follow when listening to the music. Of course, that CD might cost you more than $20
Destinos is also available free online. I think that it is a much better program for beginning-intermediate speakers, as telenovelas and Spanish t.v. programs are extremely advanced. You want to build slowly rather than trying to jump into something that advanced right away.
There is also a GREAT and inexpensive language school in Guatemala that I attended. DM me if you are interested and I will give you the name. I highly recommend it.
The study abroad really is key. Even with all of the recent attempts by instructors to recreate an "immersive environment" in the classroom, there is still nothing comparable to spending time in a foreign country. No matter how immersive a classroom setting, it will always come up short.
I would also suggest listening to some music in Spanish while reading the lyrics in Spanish (some liner notes have bilingual versions of the lyrics). The soundtrack to Buena Vista Social Club has bilingual lyrics that are very easy to follow when listening to the music. Of course, that CD might cost you more than $20
Destinos is also available free online. I think that it is a much better program for beginning-intermediate speakers, as telenovelas and Spanish t.v. programs are extremely advanced. You want to build slowly rather than trying to jump into something that advanced right away.
There is also a GREAT and inexpensive language school in Guatemala that I attended. DM me if you are interested and I will give you the name. I highly recommend it.
I'll second the recommendation for Destinos. I think that's a quality program. If you're a beginner, you'd probably want a book to go along with the video series.
Other than that, read as much as you can, listen as much as you can, and try speaking (or copying speech) as much as you can. News programs make listening easier because you know the context and may already know the news in English. A good pocket dictionary (some of Harrap's) is also good to peruse because these dictionaries tend to have the most useful words and phrases. A large Oxford dictionary is great, but there's a risk of learning too many extraneous words and phrases and you won't know which are in common usage.
Another thing that's helpful (if you can handle it) is to leave on talk radio in Spanish when you're sleeping. There's a lot that gets embedded in the unconscious.
I've been working on my Spanish lately and I've been having mucho fun with it. I started with a book called Magrigal's Magic Key to Spanish, which is great and cheap--maybe $10-15? It's an oldie. Then I keep switching around my resources. I have a book of poetry by Pablo Neruda which has his poems on one page and the translation on the facing page so you can compare as you read. there is a great website called Spanishdict.com where I can look up words and hear them pronounced and it has flashcards. I have a little book of idiomatic expressions and a couple of travellers books that I got at garage sales. In all I probably didn't spend even $20. But of course my best lessons came this summer when I went to Peru and hardly anyone knew English so we were forced to speak it and it's amazing how quickly it comes when you do that. Oh yeah, and after I get better I'll use my DVD player and watch Spanish language movies and shows on netflix.
It's easier said than done, but I learned Spanish on the fly while adventuring in South America for a year after High School. I keep it up by doing a job that requires daily Spanish translation too. The best way to become fluent is immersion.
Immersion is key, I think. I'm currently trying to learn German... I have a book and have checked out a bunch of websites. We have a native German speaker living in our home for a few more weeks (foreign exchange student), and I'm asking her a ton of questions, plus she's helping me with pronunciation. I have another native speaker coming for a few weeks later in the summer, and she said she'd help me as well. Unfortunately, an extended visit to Germany is not in the cards for us, at least not within the next five years or so, but I'm trying to make do with the German speakers in my life/family coming to visit me!
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