Learning Spanish - How did you do it?

W

WeLuvIbiza

Active Member
We recently received some advertising stuff for a childrens langauge course called Muzzy, and have sent off for the first installment. It's not cheap for the whole course but supposedly the best learning experience for any child. They suggest you can introduce your children to foreign languages from the age of ONE! Our little boy is 16 months and is going to start learning Spanish the Muzzy way :)

I received a bbc learn Spanish course for my birthday this month and we are about to embark on this as a first step. I read about community meeting places around the UK where Spanish ex pats meet to chat with English folk which sounds like a good way to learn. There is such a place in Leeds :)

How did you start / plan to start speaking Spanish?
 
I done an 8 week taster course early this summer, I really enjoyed it and will definately continue learning once Im back from my travels! :D

Muy bien!
 
wanted to do it at school but did french, latin and italian instead.

started aged 18 at evening classes, supplemented by a thirst for knowledge, spanish TV, books, papers, websites, and chaging simple stuff like the language on my mobile/ipod.

passed my AS-Level in the summer with flying colours and now moved onto other courses (at LMU fyi). in Leeds, the meet ups for spanish speaking are at Borders and the Arts Cafe.

as far as the kids i've eased off a bit, its better for them to be competent in english than let that suffer for a small bit of spanish. they'll pick it up like a flash when we move there. nevertheless, both understand and speak basic things like numbers, colours, animals, basic commands like please and thankyou, action commands like push, jump, run.

Dora the explorer has done wonders for my spanish let alone my kids!:oops: :lol:
 
I'm fluent in english and french and at least for me, the only way to learn a foreing language is immersion.
I started english lessons at school at age 10, from 14 to 17 I had extra lessons after school in the British council. My knowledge of grammar was good but I wasn't able to have a normal conversation till I spent 6 months in the UK

Same with French, I started lessons at secondary school at age 16, at age 17 started extra lessons. My knowledge of grammar was so so (it's similar to catalan so it's not extremly difficult to me) but I wasn't able to have a normal conversation neither an anormla one till I spent 4 months in france.

As grego, I suggest to read newspapers and magazines, watch spanish films, hear spanish music (I can reccomend few names if you want, it's amazing when one day you discover you understand the whole lyric of that song) and post in spanish forums. I'm the living example of how good is for your foreing language to post regulary in a forum ;)
 
Interesting stuff.

My downfall for not picking up the baton sooner is lack of time. I work 7am - 10pm through the summer months and have to show my face as a husband / father in-between! I have more time now and am itching to get started with the language course. Sky channel 802 is my new favourite, but by heck, they are sepaking quickly!
 
WeLuvIbiza said:
Interesting stuff.

My downfall for not picking up the baton sooner is lack of time. I work 7am - 10pm through the summer months and have to show my face as a husband / father in-between! I have more time now and am itching to get started with the language course. Sky channel 802 is my new favourite, but by heck, they are sepaking quickly!
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watch Gente at 7pm every night, thats quite easy to watch. for learning telediario is the best to watch, tis on every morning in casa grego:D
 
I took Spanish in high school (ages 13-16). I went through 4 levels in 3 years and was practically fluent. Tested out of 2 years of university level Spanish but didn't end up studying it further other than to converse with my ex-girlfriend's Peruvian mother.

Now, after 17 years and many excesses, I can't remember a damn thing. I'm lucky if I can muster enough to ask directions! :lol: I should have kept up practice, though I'm sure I could pick it up again if I put my mind to it...
 
Morbyd said:
Now, after 17 years and many excesses, I can't remember a damn thing. I'm lucky if I can muster enough to ask directions! :lol: I should have kept up practice, though I'm sure I could pick it up again if I put my mind to it...
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I have that very same problem with English:oops:
 
Hi,

I'm using audiobooks by Michel Thomas, I started a month before my holiday this year and my mates were amazed at how much I knew.

If you are a bit dodgy and want to download them, they are available on torrent sites.
If you morally object to ripping off peoples hard work, they are available on the net. But the ones on Ebay are ripped off too.

Thouroughly agree with Silvia about immersion being best method. And Grego, thanx for the tip about Gente...
 
a better one to watch if you have kids (in order to keep their interest) is "Ankawa", basically a prog in a saturday night TV/family entertainment format but with loads of animals on it.

its on now on sunday nights but it used to be sunday mornings.

los lunnis is good for the kids too.:D :oops:
 
Is there a Spanish version of Sesame Street?

I remember when I first moved out here, there was a Russian version called Ulitsa Sezam. Really helped out in those early days! :lol:
 
Morbyd said:
Is there a Spanish version of Sesame Street?

I remember when I first moved out here, there was a Russian version called Ulitsa Sezam. Really helped out in those early days! :lol:
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Barrio Sesamo ;)

When I was in the UK at the beggining I only understood the teletubbies :oops: :lol:


Grego, I'll check TVE-I programmation to see if there's something worth, altho TVE is crapt
 
silvia said:
Grego, I'll check TVE-I programmation to see if there's something worth, altho TVE is crapt
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sometimes the films are ok. lucia y el sexo was on a while ago.

agreed though, in general the programmes are crap.

vamos a cocinar......con josé andrés:confused:
mira quien baila
desde galicia para el mundo
a ciencia cierta

:rolleyes: :lol:
 
grego said:
sometimes the films are ok. lucia y el sexo was on a while ago.

agreed though, in general the programmes are crap.

vamos a cocinar......con josé andrés:confused:
mira quien baila
desde galicia para el mundo
a ciencia cierta

:rolleyes: :lol:
Click to expand...


This is public spanish tv for you :confused: :rolleyes: :confused:

I checked the TVE I website and I recommend you:

- Documentos TV; Informe Semanal and Linea 900: DOcumentaries
- Metropolis: art

and if you fancy Zona ACB, all basksetball
 
silvia said:
This is public spanish tv for you :confused: :rolleyes: :confused:

I checked the TVE I website and I recommend you:

- Documentos TV; Informe Semanal and Linea 900: DOcumentaries
- Metropolis: art

and if you fancy Zona ACB, all basksetball
Click to expand...

tbh, i can watch almost anything cos its all about learning for me.......although i have fallen asleep during 'escala catalunya' before:confused: :oops: :lol:
 
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