Spanish is a beautiful language, with its sweet love songs and lyrical speech. It is also fairly easy to learn, once you memorize the verb conjugations. With five younger siblings, finding time to study can be difficult; however, there are several resources that have helped me achieve a simple grasp of the language:
- Music. Is there anything as incredible as a husky male voice pouring out his heart to you? (Unless you’re a guy; then it would have to be a girl voice!) Of course, once you learn what he is singing, the experience is even better. Listening to a lot of Spanish music is a good way to familiarize yourself to the rhythm and pronunciation of the Spanish language.
- Books and movies. Try reading a book that you know and love. But read it in Spanish instead of English. You will have an idea of what the words say, and you will learn Spanish sentence structure. Make sure to look up unfamiliar words and phrases. You can also do this with movies: switch the language settings or use Spanish subtitles. Learn how Spanish is used in real-life situations and conversations.
- Websites. Internet resources like SpanishDict.com and BBC.com offer free lessons on speaking Spanish in a fun, friendly manner. You can do these lessons on your own time, in order or not.
- Native speakers. Where I live, it’s difficult to speak to native Spanish speakers, because there aren’t many around. So, I went online. After much trial-and-error with various websites, I stumbled upon italki.com, a place where you can converse with people from all over the world. Talking with people in South America and Spain has improved my Spanish ability rapidly. You can even pay for a certified teacher to give you lessons, a service I have not yet tried.
There are many other language resources out there. But if you’re pressed for time and aren’t keen on sitting in a classroom several days a week, the above suggestions are a good place to start your learning process.
writerbrittany 