What's the Best Way to Learn Spanish

[boogieman]

I haven't checked in a while but the Hamilton county public library (I don't know if others do) used to have the rosetta stone series that you could check out. They would give you 3 week checkouts on them. I drive back to west Texas where I am originally from every year and would check them out before the trip and listen to them while driving.

 

[Wstar425]

Total immersion isn't really an option, so at this point, the best idea for me seems to be one of the home programs. I haven't heard anyone say those were a waste of money yet, and that's kind of what I was hoping for actually.

I asked my wife the Spanish teacher about getting Rosetta Stone and listening to it while I was driving.

She said don’t bother. On the other hand, I believe English is one of the harder languages to learn, so if Spanish speakers can learn English it seems like someone with some mental capabilities should be able to learn Spanish? The masculine and feminine differences always stumped me. I also did pretty well at math until they introduced it to the alphabet, so maybe she’s onto something. I do our taxes, bu I use Turbo Tax...........

I’m 61, fairly bright, but I don’t like to waste much time on things I don’t see as useful. I probably wouldn’t get much use out of it as most Spanish speakers around here have better English than I would speak Spanish.

if you had someone willing to help you learn, and practice every day that would likely help.

Just in a side note, when my wife did the Total Immersion thing she had two classes in the study and two that weren’t. The two TI classes walked into the first day and she would not speak ANY ENGLISH to them. AT ALL. At the end of the first semester the class average was a little behind the traditional classes. By the end of the year the TI classes were all ahead, but at different amounts.

She had to get special permission from the board, since it could be a waste of time. I remember she also had a few parents that complained, from the TI group, but don’t recall any thanking her at the end of the year. After she wrote her paper and presented it, that was the end of it and they never did it again. She did say the TI was a lot more work for her. She moved on to bigger and better things, VP/Athletic Director, Principal, and then District Administrator before retiring for a year. Then she came out of retirement to take the DA job at this school which she actually attended for a few years in grade school, I think mostly because of the heavy Hispanic population, which she has a love for. Before you jump on the big lib insult train, she’s a Trump supporter. I always tell her I’m her biggest fan!!! A few times I might have been her only fan.

 

[flightsimmer]

Go to Mexico and hang out.

OK, I get it, you can't do that but I once worked with girl that spoke fluent spanish, she could rip it off with the best of them. So I asked her how she became so good at it as I was interested in learning. She said she could teach me but it would take a while. But back to how she learned. She started in grade school, then high school, then on to college and then spent more than a year in Mexico city. Then she came back here and got a job where she used it every day, needless to say I wasn't going to be that commited.

I do have a close friend who teaches Spanish and French but I am no longer interested.

 

[Wstar425]

My wife did four years of high school and 4 years of college Spanish, and a few of French as well. I got in on a few class trips as a chaperone, to various places. Not a vacation!!! The n college she spent a semester in Monterrey, Mexico as a foreign exchange student, I went down there and proposed to her. Talk about a fish out of water!! This was in 1979 or 1980.

While she is not a native speaker, she is fluent and gets to use her Spanish a couple of times a day. When she learned Spanish it was Spain Spanish, not Mexico Spanish, if that makes sense. She has people tell her every once in a while that she doesn’t say something correctly. According to her, she is correct and they are wrong, but this is likely coming from parents of kids that maybe never went to much high school even, so their grammar might not be correct, but they are talking the way people talk on the streets and in their families. I’ve had to call her a few times from the road and have her translate to someone for me a couple of times when I was in California.

 

[9mmfan]

The only Spanish I know well are curse words. When I was younger, I work part time armed security at a Hispanic bar/dance club.

Needless to say those curse words were directed me.
And young Hispanic ladies REALLY know how to dress to attack a man.

 

[Dr.Midnight]

If I decide to take the plunge, it looks like I need to be prepared to put in some significant effort. I'd really love to be able to pull it off too. Not only would it make communication easier, but there seems to be a trust issue between some of my Hispanic customers and myself I just can't get past. Maybe learning their language would help break down some of those issues. I try and put myself in their shoes. If I were an American trying to make a living in Mexico, I might be a little distrustful of everyone I dealt with too.

 

[usmcdjb]

I used to commute about an hour each way to work. I found a set of disks called Behind the Wheel Spanish and listened and repeated them for years. I think you can still find them on Amazon, but not sure.

Didn't make me able to fluently speak, nor understand when native speakers speak. Like has been said, sounds fast because you are trying to process and convert the meanings to what you know - English. But I ordered in a Mexican restaurant one day and the waiter asked me if I spoke Spanish. Then he went 100 mph and it went right over my head.

I know a lot of words and phrases. I can speak them and think I sound pretty good. I also understand the letters make very distinct sounds, and accents go in specific places. Kills me when people pronounce arroz (rice) like the English word arrows.

If you have considerable windshield time, or want to hang out in the house repeating Spanish words and phrases, might be a good jump start. I think having someone to speak Spanish with would be a huge help.

 

[indiucky]

Marry an Argentine woman....

 

[Kutnupe14]

Marry an Argentine woman....

Costa Rican.... ummm
I could never marry an Argentinian woman. I would be dead in a week because whenever I got mad at her, I would say one of two things. "Maradona was soccer's greatest fat crackhead," or "What dummy invades the Falklands.... oh right, Argentina.... the France of South America."

 

[ghuns]

I took one year of high school Spanish, over 25 years ago. Teacher was a 4'-9" pi$$ed off Italian chick. I got a D in that class.

But to this day I can get the gist of a conversation in Spanish, though speaking it is still very difficult and slow for me.

Between my two honor student children, the have about 6 years of Spanish at the high school and college level. Neither can order off a menu in a Messican restaurant.

 

[Wstar425]

When we did class trips to Mexico the idea was for the kids to practice their Spanish on the locals. Most were too scared to try, plus in the tourist areas their English was better. My wife had trouble even getting anyone to speak Spanish with her, until she said I only know Spanish and French, no hablo Ingles. Not too many French speakers in Mexico.

In Paris we got separated on the subway and I was with a group of “French” speaking students. I don’t. Neither did they. My wife yells out what stop we get off as the doors close. Champs-Elysees, which of course is pronounced more like Shons Elyzay, or something like that. So I look at the board and see Champs Elsie, and think we are NEVER getting home. I’m not even sure I knew the name of the hotel we were at, or could pronounce it. But, I was able to see her thru the door into the next car and see her get off. That thing was jammed and they don’t give you much time to get in and out.

This was all long before cell phones were even on Star Trek.

 

[Wstar425]

The only Spanish I know well are curse words. When I was younger, I work part time armed security at a Hispanic bar/dance club.

Needless to say those curse words were directed me.
And young Hispanic ladies REALLY know how to dress to attack a man.

Did you mean to say attack a man, or attract a man?? Either one could be appropriate I suppose!

There are always a few Hispanic young gals, and Moms who come to school functions decked out totally inappropriately. Of course I’m 61, so maybe I’m out of touch with the times.......

Graduations are interesting as most of the Hispanics come in their Sunday best, all dolled up and slicked back. Then the white prople walk in wearing their flannel shirts and ball caps; and leave the hats on inside for a graduation ceremony. Oh the horror!!

We’re a small enough town where everyone seems to get along, or at the worst they just ignore each other.

 

[Bfish]

OP have you started? While some have said immersion is the best way to learn and they aren't wrong let me flip the script on it a bit. The best way to learn is to be the most motivated! I know a guy who was conversational by watching Spanish TV with a notebook for 4 months. It was super impressive. If you can be properly motivated, form a good base and take advantage of situations to practice all of the time and really want to improve you'll learn I'm sure! I'm a Spanish teacher and I see this with students, those that are successful aren't always the smartest students, it's those that are the most motivated and put in lots of effort. Those that are there to get their grade and go on rarely are successful in communicating well or retaining/learning etc. When in school my motivation early on set me apart, and while a immersion was a big deal it was obvious that hard charging motivation was most important.

 

[Dr.Midnight]

OP have you started? While some have said immersion is the best way to learn and they aren't wrong let me flip the script on it a bit. The best way to learn is to be the most motivated! I know a guy who was conversational by watching Spanish TV with a notebook for 4 months. It was super impressive. If you can be properly motivated, form a good base and take advantage of situations to practice all of the time and really want to improve you'll learn I'm sure! I'm a Spanish teacher and I see this with students, those that are successful aren't always the smartest students, it's those that are the most motivated and put in lots of effort. Those that are there to get their grade and go on rarely are successful in communicating well or retaining/learning etc. When in school my motivation early on set me apart, and while a immersion was a big deal it was obvious that hard charging motivation was most important.

I haven't started yet. With everything going on in the world, I haven't found the motivation yet to start the process. Your input is appreciated though. My hope is everything gets back to normal in a month or two, then I can focus on some other projects.