What is your motivation?
Before taking on the grand challenge of learning Spanish, it's important to consider your motivation. Perhaps you want a functional level so you can find your way around Madrid and order the best tapas. Perhaps you're looking to connect with the locals and perhaps even try dating in Spain. Or you could simply love the fluid, rhythm of this romantic mediterranean language.
Whatever it is, having your motivation clearly in mind will help you when you're struggling and it the struggle feels impossible. And it's definitely possible! But worthwhile things take some time to learn: like learning to play flamenco guitar, how to dance, or how to play golf.
Learning Spanish is just the same- challenging but rewarding!
Enjoy the process
Learning Spanish should be fun, but... sometimes it can seem like a lot of work. Let's say you're on your way to a Spain- or perhaps you've just arrived. You've said "Hola, dos cervecas por favor". Great! It was a good start, but now what... you might need a little more vocabulary beyond simply ordering beer.As you learn Spanish, you're bound to make lots of mistakes. If you can have a sense of humour and laugh about these, you'll make friends quickly. Just think how funny and cute it is when foreigners try to ask the way to the beach, but end up asking "where is the b*tch?!"
Are Spanish classes worthwhile?
Taking language classes definitely helps, as long as you have a good teacher- you definitely want a native speaker as a teacher. You don't need to take classes from an expat (like me) who just learned Spanish few years ago and it still learning!
Unfortunately, classes can get pretty heavy on the details of grammar and complex forms of verbs, and you may not be practicing with vocabulary that is actually useful for day-to-day life in Spain. However, the social side of classes is awesome, and makes them totally worthwhile! Depending on whether you take classes while at home, or once you've already landed in the Sangria capital of the world, you'll likely be spending time with other enthusiastic people, passionate about learning Spanish.
Online programs and apps
These days we can learn anything and everything online. Languages are no different. And with podcasts, courses and apps being designed for tablets and mobiles, you can easily learn on the go when it suits you. While extremely convenient to absorb key Spanish phrases while on the train or jogging, they will never completely replace actually speaking face-to-face with people.
That said, what are some of the best programs and apps to learn Spanish?
- Rocket Spanish By far, the best app I've come across for learning Spanish. It goes straight to teaching you useful vocabulary and forming real phrases. (No more lists of learning the translations for every animal in the zoo!) Fits with a busy and traveling lifestyle- learn while waiting for the metro or walking down the street. Check out my Rocket Spanish Review for more details.
- Spanish Pod 101 If you enjoy podcasts, the Spanish Pod 101 podcast is perfect for you. They release new free lessons every week. It's actually freemium, meaning there is free content, but if you really want to learn at a fast rate, you'd be going at a snail's pace without upgrading to the paid version. While I haven't personally upgraded, you can always try it out and see if it works for you.
- Pimsleur Spanish The Pimsleur Spanish course was developed by a linguistics professor- Paul Pimsleur, who designed it to mimic the way babies learn to speak. This means that it's very much focussed on listening and speaking, although there is some reading material to go with it. A big challenge of this, is that you need to learn and remember all the material to be able to move on to new lessons, otherwise you'll be lost. It's not like a book, where you can flick back to earlier pages. Personally, I wouldn't recommend Pimsleur Spanish- but hey, everyone's different- whatever floats your barco. (Save 25 % with the code SAVENOW).
- Rossetta Stone Spanish Rosetta Stone language learning programs have been around for decades and have a solid reputation. Maybe that's partly why they can justify being one of the most expensive products out there. On the bright side, you can try out their Spanish program for free before deciding. It can certainly be said that their program to learn Spanish is thorough- covering reading, listening and speaking (with sophisticated speech recognition).
- Pickup Spanish Okay, now this isn't going to be for everyone. But in case you're a lad (or lass) who would like to learn a cute pickup line or two, check out Pickup Spanish. Whether you take it seriously or not, it'll definitely be fun learning some more colourful language. And who knows, it might even help with the secret shortcut to learning Spanish...
The secret shortcut!
Okay, I'm about to give you my top secret for learning Spanish fast! And it was my shortcut to speaking fluently and picking up little known vocabulary. Ready?Really- when you're playfully enjoying being with someone- day and night- you feel happy and effortlessly learn from them. And they- madly in love with you, have infinite patience to teach you details, subtleties, and flirtatious expressions. It's like taking a dictionary to bed! Dating people from a different culture is a super fun and fast way to get Spanish under your belt.Fall in love with a Spanish guy/girl and you learn effortlessly
But... I think love happens when it happens, and you can't force it. Beyond recommending that you try dating locals and go out and enjoy the nightlife, qué será, será, whatever will be, will be...
So, what is the best way to learn Spanish?!
Should you study online or go to classes? Should you take classes before going to Spain or wait until you get there? Watch movies in Spanish or speak with natives?
As an expat who learnt Spanish in Barcelona, I recommend a mix of these. While classes are great for getting a solid grasp of grammar, the truth is that you typically learn a lot of unnecessary vocabulary. I mean, who really needs to say, "I would like to book a double hotel room with a sea view" these days? We just jump on Airbnb or Booking.com, right.
You can absorb so much by using an app like Rocket Spanish, and make the most of downtime while traveling, or waiting for the infamously late Spanish to arrive. The content is modern, and quickly starts you off with day-to-day phrases that you'll use (and need) immediately. I found Rocket Spanish gave me a huge boost in confidence to go out and meet people and try out what I was learning.
And finally, actually going out and practicing what you've learned. Sure, you'll make mistakes, but you'll also make friends. And the Spanish have a great sense of humour to laugh at your funny accent and teach you words they don't tell you in classes!
If you happen to fall in love, learning Spanish will become effortless.
Learning any language is challenging, but the best way is a mixture of group or one-to-one classes, self-study with an app, and then getting out in the street to charlar con la gente (chat with people). And when you're clear on your motivation- why you want to learn Spanish- it becomes fun and rewarding.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://spainsecrets.com/learn-spanish/