Results 1 to 16 of 16
  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Winston-Salem

    Quiero aprender a hablar español

    Does anyone have suggestions for learning Spanish?

    I played around with Duolingo for a few weeks last year, but wasn't very serious about it. It seemed to be pretty useful, but I'm not sure it is the best option.

    I'm open to spending a reasonable amount of $.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Wilmington, NC
    Quote Originally Posted by mattman91 View Post
    Does anyone have suggestions for learning Spanish?

    I played around with Duolingo for a few weeks last year, but wasn't very serious about it. It seemed to be pretty useful, but I'm not sure it is the best option.

    I'm open to spending a reasonable amount of $.
    Date a Mexican girl. Worked for me in high school! I quickly understood what she, her mom, and her dad expected of me. Also learned how good authentic Mexican food is and was able to order for myself in Mexican restaurants and still can to this day.

    Seriously though I hear duolingo is really effective. Maybe buckle down on it and then try to use it in public to really help it set in

    Curious, what's your reason for learning? Work, travel, or just trying to be productive during quarantine?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Steamboat Springs, CO
    Quote Originally Posted by mattman91 View Post
    Does anyone have suggestions for learning Spanish?

    I played around with Duolingo for a few weeks last year, but wasn't very serious about it. It seemed to be pretty useful, but I'm not sure it is the best option.

    I'm open to spending a reasonable amount of $.
    Two questions -- What is your language background. Anything besides highly literate English?

    What are you trying to accomplish?

    For example, I needed to learn some Spanish 'cuz I was traveling in South America, and no one on the entire continent spoke English.
    Sage Grouse

    ---------------------------------------
    'When I got on the bus for my first road game at Duke, I saw that every player was carrying textbooks or laptops. I coached in the SEC for 25 years, and I had never seen that before, not even once.' - David Cutcliffe to Duke alumni in Washington, DC, June 2013

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Undisclosed
    If you are doing it for travel, I really recommend Pimsleur’s discs. Got several compliments in Italy about my (minimal) Italian, and it has worked for me in France. (Dutch in Belgium, not so much — but it is a craat multi-lingual country anyway).

    If you are traveling in any reasonably-sized city around the world, most folks under 40 and in the service industries speak some English. But you get real points IMO for showing the respect of at least learning a little native language. It is minimal respect to do so. And if you get out in the country, folks in the old countries speak their own dialects.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Location
    North Carolina
    Quote Originally Posted by left_hook_lacey View Post
    Date a Mexican girl. Worked for me in high school! I quickly understood what she, her mom, and her dad expected of me. Also learned how good authentic Mexican food is and was able to order for myself in Mexican restaurants and still can to this day.
    Good advice. I learned Portuguese dating and then marrying a Brazilian girl.

    There is some truth to the saying that Brazil can change your life (wife)...
    Kyle gets BUCKETS!
    https://youtu.be/NJWPASQZqLc

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    New York City
    For apps, i have been enjoying Lingvist. But I started with a pretty strong knowledge of Spanish. Not sure how it would be if you are starting from scratch.

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by mattman91 View Post
    Does anyone have suggestions for learning Spanish?

    I played around with Duolingo for a few weeks last year, but wasn't very serious about it. It seemed to be pretty useful, but I'm not sure it is the best option.

    I'm open to spending a reasonable amount of $.
    I liked DuoLingo. I used it for brushing up on my Spanish recently. Not great for learning grammar, but seems good for conversational situations. I suppose that's the follow up - do you want to be able to navigate the streets of Spain, or write term papers?

    If you are just looking for conversational, I'd find a Spanish language meet up. Preferably at z brewery once that's an option. If you need proper grammar and writing skills, you'll probably want an online class.

    I advise against the Spanish speaking girlfriend, unless your wife gives you the green light.

  8. #8
    Lo siento. No hablo frances.

  9. #9
    Based on my personal experience, I recommend marrying someone whose native language is Spanish.

    Other ideas if that's not realistic: When you're watching English-language TV, put on Spanish subtitles when possible (Netflix is good for this). It helps reinforce what you know and occasionally you pick up something new. Children's shows, given the simpler grammar and vocabulary, are actually pretty good for learning foreign languages.

    Alternately, watch Spanish-language shows with English subtitles. Be like a three-year old and imitate the sounds you hear as you're watching.

  10. #10
    Quote Originally Posted by OldPhiKap View Post
    If you are doing it for travel, I really recommend Pimsleur’s discs. Got several compliments in Italy about my (minimal) Italian, and it has worked for me in France. (Dutch in Belgium, not so much — but it is a craat multi-lingual country anyway).

    If you are traveling in any reasonably-sized city around the world, most folks under 40 and in the service industries speak some English. But you get real points IMO for showing the respect of at least learning a little native language. It is minimal respect to do so. And if you get out in the country, folks in the old countries speak their own dialects.
    I second Pimsleur. Check your local library online audio books. I was able to use the entire Pimsleur intro to Spanish for free.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Cincinnati, Ohio
    Quote Originally Posted by Nick View Post
    Based on my personal experience, I recommend marrying someone whose native language is Spanish.

    Other ideas if that's not realistic: When you're watching English-language TV, put on Spanish subtitles when possible (Netflix is good for this). It helps reinforce what you know and occasionally you pick up something new. Children's shows, given the simpler grammar and vocabulary, are actually pretty good for learning foreign languages.

    Alternately, watch Spanish-language shows with English subtitles. Be like a three-year old and imitate the sounds you hear as you're watching.
    I definitely agree with the benefit of this approach. I worked in Brazil for about four years so I needed to learn Portuguese. I learned to read it and speak it pretty quickly, but my ear was really "slow". It was pretty frustrating that I could speak pretty decently, but if I got an answer to a question that was more complicated than "Yes" or "No", I got lost really fast.

    Watching TV with English subtitles was one of the best things for improving my listening comprehension.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Undisclosed
    Quote Originally Posted by nmduke2001 View Post
    I second Pimsleur. Check your local library online audio books. I was able to use the entire Pimsleur intro to Spanish for free.
    Never thought of the library, good idea.

    Pimsleur uses a pretty interesting system of learning -- there is a lot of thought behind how the material is presented. There is a good emphasis on making it sound correct as well. Last time I was in Italy, I had two different store clerks ask where I had learned Italian and took it as a compliment to Pimsleur.

    You will not be fluent, but you will be able to handle simple travel issues. And most people under 40 speak some English these days; I always found that if you took the effort to learn a little of the language folks took that as respect for the culture and responded well.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Raleigh
    Una cerveza oscura, por favor.

    I'm sorry. That's all I've got. My Spanish from high school several centuries ago is no longer worth a darn.
    [redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Undisclosed
    Quote Originally Posted by devildeac View Post
    Una cerveza oscura, por favor.

    I'm sorry. That's all I've got. My Spanish from high school several centuries ago is no longer worth a darn.
    devildeac was the only one that DID expect the Spanish Inquisition.

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Nick View Post
    Based on my personal experience, I recommend marrying someone whose native language is Spanish.
    It will be 19 years too late next week for that option.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Raleigh
    Quote Originally Posted by OldPhiKap View Post
    devildeac was the only one that DID expect the Spanish Inquisition.
    It was fear. No, it was fear and surprise.
    [redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.

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