Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

Like a lot of people I can speak tourist spanish, you know--enough to buy food and drink, ask for directions and stuff like that.

I have decided to learn spanish properly and decided that I wouls start by buying one of those Computer teach yourself discs. I'm not getting on to well at the moment but...........

I wondered what other people were doing to learn spanish and is there a "best way" of doing it, besides actually being there and diving in at the deep end, is it books, tapes or computers?

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I went to evening classes for a couple of years before moving here and achieved a high level of Spanish but when I actually moved to Andalucía it was like learning a foreign language all over again.

The best way is to make non-English speaking Spanish friends, dump your Sky digibox (if you have one) and buy a Spanish newspaper like Van Guardia and make yourself read it.

You know you are getting there when you find yourself thinking in Spanish rather than translating what you are going to say from English into Spanish before saying it.

If you are still living in the UK and decide to have Spanish lessons try to get a tutor with Spanish as his/her native language preferably with an accent local to the area you are going to move to.

Learning a language academically is fine for passing exams but it's useless for living your life.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

That's great advice. I learnt Spanish from a South American and when I moved to Spain I was told that I was speaking "dirty Spanish".

Watching kids TV in Spanish can be a real help. It's amazing how much you pick up just having the TV on in the background.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I`ll go along with that, also go to the carboots and buy Spanish kids books, they are a great help.
Sit in the Spanish bars and listen and see how much you can understand.
Like they say learn it where you are going to stay, imagine learning English in Cornwall and living in Liverpool or Aberdeen ;)

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I know what you mean about childrens Spanish programmes helping, the BBC Muzzy is good and my two young children already come out with phrases in Spanish from it. I also understand what they are saying as I end up listening sub-consciously to it in the background.

Also the Michel Thomas CDs are good and seem to sink in somehow (even with children trying to talk over it!).

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I use CDs by a French guy called Michel Thomas, he really is easy to listen to and puts it across very well. His pronunciation is good, it must be as I was understood when I last went to Ayamonte but still have difficulty sorting out male and female nouns. Do you live anywhere near RAF Colerne, I was stationed there back in the late 60s early 70s.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I'm not far from colerne.
Where did you buy your cd's from please?

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I didn't buy them, I "copied"!!!!! a set of 8 owned by a pal onto MP3 but I'm sure Michel Thomas's CDs can still be found, probably Smiths would be as good a place as any to start looking or you could "Ask Jeeves". Is the Oliver still a favourite drinking hole in Bath?

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

Pass on oliver. I don't go out drinking (much)

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I still believe it is extremely hard to learn a language unless you live in the country and you are exposed to the language all the time.

We live in the Costa del Sol and the problem is that practically everyone speaks English, even the waiters.

Good luck...it's not easy.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

So do I but I live in a Spanish community not far from the Coast and no one speaks English around me. Try intergrating a bit more and go to where the Spanish hang out not in the Tourist areas. Even if you go to where the waiters speak English, speak Spanish to them anyway and they will also speak it back or answer you in English. I went somewhere where the waiter wanted to improve his English, I did my side in Spanish and he responded in English. :D

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

http://www.linkwordlanguages.com/spanish-european.htm

ACD
Have a look at this site

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I do the same Mercedes, but my Spanish teacher says we should do the opposite. Each speak our native languages as the listening/understanding skills are the hardest to pick up and if you don't understand something you can ask for it to be expalined.

I suppose too, hearing the language spoken will impact on your own accent without you knowing it.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

You can get the Michel Thomas cds off e-bay for a good price.

Re: Learning Spanish in your home ?
 

I'm lucky my neigbours do speak spanish to me as they don't speak English, I find I understand them better than I am able to speak it. I seem to get my point across in most situations, but its conversations I find hardest. My other neighbour is from Barcelona and find him much harder to understand and he also me. When I did classes I found because the teachers didn't speak English it became more like charades, I personally prefer tapes, I got on further with it.