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Monday, October 10, 2011

Things to Consider for Learning Spanish

By Michele Shaw

Believe it or not, you can learn a new language quickly and easily. It's really quite a bit of fun if you don't make it into a chore! Focus on the opportunities that speaking another language can bring. You'll have an easier time when you travel. For one thing, it can make traveling much simpler. You might even have an easier time communicating with people in your own city. If you know two or more languages, you are also qualified for many more jobs. Spanish is definitely emerging as America's second language.

Learning your next language is always a great idea. Spanish as almost as widely spoken as English in the United States. How many times do you hear messages in English translated into Spanish? That is a good reason for learning Spanish. Yet there are a lot of people who experience difficulty with a new language. Here are a few useful ideas and tips that will help you if new languages are a bit difficult.

Find a good tutor, if possible. Books and CDs can be great. But a tutor can help you in ways that a book or CD cannot. Of course, it's necessary for a language tutor to have fluency in the language they are teaching. They can teach you about the different dialects within the language you are learning.

Remember that you need to be patient. It's doubtful you'll be fluent in Spanish within 24 hours. You could have all your vocabulary and verb conjugations memorized. But you'll still probably have trouble making sentences. Your progress will suffer if you try to become fluent too quickly and put pressure on yourself. Just relax and learn in a slow but sure manner. This allows you to feel more relaxed with Spanish. If you learn at a slower pace, when you're trying to speak with people in their language they'll show more patience toward you. If you try to pass yourself off as completely fluent too soon you could offend someone! An important skill to acquire is to practice thinking in the new language. This takes some work, but as you are going about your day try to translate your thoughts into Spanish. Don't expect to do this perfectly right away. In your everyday life, consider how various phrases that occur to you would sound in Spanish. if you do this often, you'll find that you get much more skilled at it. You'll find that the internal translation starts to get easier. Before long you might find that you are thinking in Spanish without even making an effort to do so. The next stage is to take your internal thoughts and speak them out loud, so you learn how to converse in Spanish.

One trick you can use is to label the objects around you. You can do this both at home and work, if it's practical. This is a way you can immerse yourself in Spanish vocabulary by seeing the words and what objects they go with. Nothing is more embarrassing than using one word when you meant to use another! If you take the time to learn what words really mean, you won't do what some tourists and other novices of a language do, and make mistakes that can be humiliating. By using this technique of labeling objects, you'll be absorbing all the right names for things, and you'll find yourself picking up the new language quite naturally.

You can take a course. Many people are afraid to learn Spanish through a course with other students. In a course it's standard practice to talk in the language while you're learning. This can be very intimidating!

Even if stumbling through the new language out loud makes you uncomfortable, it's still a good idea. There's no better way to learn it because everyone is making mistakes, as well! You can stumble over the words together! That's much better than doing it in real life where you people may be less forgiving of your mistakes.

Work on improving your "ear" for the language. A lot of languages tend to be more 'oral' than written. If the language is 'alive,' then it will be important to learn how to listen to it. Knowing how to write the alphabet or how to write a correct sentence will only get you so far. Of course you'll still have to understand what is being spoken to you. You'll get the best results by hearing the spoken language as much as possible. When you find yourself being able to identify your language after hearing just a few words you'll know you are on your way to really learning Spanish (or whatever language you have chosen)!

However you decide to learn, do it consistently. There are many ways to approach learning a language, but all demand a certain focus. Languages have a certain logic to them, and you have to follow this. If you start with the fundamentals, like how to pronounce each letter and how to count, you'll have a foundation. If you want to speed up your progress, don't try to learn the language's grammar right away; start, rather, with vocabulary. Whether you are using a book, tape or video, follow it as much as possible the way it is presented. The people who put together these programs know the best way to lay it all out. If you don't adhere to the way the program is meant to be followed, you make the whole process more complicated. It doesn't make sense to try to change a proven method.

Are you in close proximity to a location where most of the people speak in Spanish? A very good way to learn is listening to fluent speakers converse. You'll also find most people are all to willing to help others learn their language. You'll get practice using your new language the way it is meant to be spoken without having to travel far to do so! If you research the subject, you'll find that there are a wide variety of methods that can help you learn faster. There are many sources of assistance; look online or in your local community. Different styles work better for different people. Keep trying different learning techniques. Speaking Spanish is something you can do; just find the method that works for you and be persistent.

There's no reason that speaking another language has to be hard or complicated. Remember, Spanish is not as hard to learn as many other languages, so it's a good one to start learning. When it comes to learning a language, there are many ways to proceed. Everyone has to choose the method that it best for them. When you find the program or strategy that you feel comfortable with, learning will be much simpler. Remember that whatever method you use, you have to give yourself time to make progress.

There are lots of reasons to learn another language but figuring out the best way to learn that language can be tough.

You may consider buying a language book from your favorite bookstore. You can get to know people who speak the language, or you can take a class. There are a lot of options available when you want to learn Spanish (or any other language). Don't forget to have loads of fun!

You don't need to needlessly stress over learning any new language, such as Spanish. You may feel it's hard when you start, but with a little patience is gets easier. You will become fluent if you persist and make good use of as many tricks and tips as possible.

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