 Textbook | Podcast | App |
Oh, oh hello kind earthlings..
As one of my top 10 things to do in 2015, I foolishly chose to learn a language...which is very difficult to do. Luckily I've stumbled upon a few great resources to help me in my fumbling quest.
I have English and French pretty down, so for me, Spanish was a logical next step. I find myself in Spanish speaking countries quite a bit and instead of thinking.."I should really learn Spanish", I thought I'd rather think "Man, learning Spanish is really hard to learn... I suck..I should try harder, oh my gawwwd, this is so confusing...que tel...buenas...no buenos diaz...what??...whyy??" ..which will hopefully lead to "wow, I'm so glad I went through all that cause now I can speak Spanish, all that suffering really paid off, woo!! Si! Si! Soy el mayor!!!!"
So here I am trying harder and here are some resources I'm finding very helpful in my quest.
Maybe you've been thinking about learning a language, but like me, have difficulty finding the time and dedication to do so. These resources are something you can use on your own time and don't require a tutor or even much out of your day to accomplish.
No matter what language you want to learn, these resources and ways of learning are available in most languages.
These 3 resources are broken down into 3 different ways of learning; Audio, Interactive and Writing. It's nice to have different ways of learning so you don't get bored. It's also good to have a variety of learning techniques cause all our brains are different and learn in different ways!!
1)Coffee Break Spanish:
https://radiolingua.com/coffeebreakspanish/
Coffee Break Spanish is a podcast. The lessons are 20 minutes long. They take you from knowing nothing to being a pro!
If I have a drive that's going to be 20 minutes or longer, I will definitely listen to an episode. I'll usually listen to an episode 3 times before I remember and know everything they go over. This is a great way to learn because while you're driving, you can't be writing or interactiv...ing... The podcasts are very good and enjoyable to listen to. It's great for conversational learning. Yeah!
2)Duolingo Spanish:
https://www.duolingo.com/course/es/en/Learn-Spanish-Online
Duolingo is an interactive phone app where you will mostly learn Spanish words and a bit of vocabulary. This app works in levels and each level takes about 10 minutes to play. If you're a visual learner, this one is good for you. It's not great for learning vocabulary or conversational Spanish, but works wonders for learning words.
3) Con Brio - Text Books:
http://ca.wiley.com/Wi…/WileyTitle/productCd-EHEP002425.html
Con Brio is the quintessential textbook for Spanish. You start right at the beginning and it goes right to the end. It works in lessons and you can do a lesson in about 30-45 minutes. OR you can just go at your own pace. For me, I have to have a writing element when learning or things don't stick very well. When I'm trying to think of a word in a different language, I'm usually visualizing it written on paper..weird huh?!
I have both the teachers text book and the student work book for this. You can't really have one without the other if you're teaching yourself. I got them both for around $30 total on Amazon.
Welp! That's about it. I should mention that I also had a tutor for a little while, but I was away for most of the summer and now he's away for a couple of months. Tutors are an amazing resource, but staying dedicated to learning will mean that you have to do it yourself. Learning a language is so much work and very difficult..especially if you're kinda dumb like me! Ha.
DO THE WORK. BE MORE AWESOME.
....PUT AWAY THAT FANNY PACK, BUST OUT THAT LOCAL DIALECT AND YOU SHOW WHO n THE WHAT WHAT WHO AIN'T NO TOURIST!! Ahem... you can also do better at the market.
Love,
Matt
As one of my top 10 things to do in 2015, I foolishly chose to learn a language...which is very difficult to do. Luckily I've stumbled upon a few great resources to help me in my fumbling quest.
I have English and French pretty down, so for me, Spanish was a logical next step. I find myself in Spanish speaking countries quite a bit and instead of thinking.."I should really learn Spanish", I thought I'd rather think "Man, learning Spanish is really hard to learn... I suck..I should try harder, oh my gawwwd, this is so confusing...que tel...buenas...no buenos diaz...what??...whyy??" ..which will hopefully lead to "wow, I'm so glad I went through all that cause now I can speak Spanish, all that suffering really paid off, woo!! Si! Si! Soy el mayor!!!!"
So here I am trying harder and here are some resources I'm finding very helpful in my quest.
Maybe you've been thinking about learning a language, but like me, have difficulty finding the time and dedication to do so. These resources are something you can use on your own time and don't require a tutor or even much out of your day to accomplish.
No matter what language you want to learn, these resources and ways of learning are available in most languages.
These 3 resources are broken down into 3 different ways of learning; Audio, Interactive and Writing. It's nice to have different ways of learning so you don't get bored. It's also good to have a variety of learning techniques cause all our brains are different and learn in different ways!!
1)Coffee Break Spanish:
https://radiolingua.com/coffeebreakspanish/
Coffee Break Spanish is a podcast. The lessons are 20 minutes long. They take you from knowing nothing to being a pro!
If I have a drive that's going to be 20 minutes or longer, I will definitely listen to an episode. I'll usually listen to an episode 3 times before I remember and know everything they go over. This is a great way to learn because while you're driving, you can't be writing or interactiv...ing... The podcasts are very good and enjoyable to listen to. It's great for conversational learning. Yeah!
2)Duolingo Spanish:
https://www.duolingo.com/course/es/en/Learn-Spanish-Online
Duolingo is an interactive phone app where you will mostly learn Spanish words and a bit of vocabulary. This app works in levels and each level takes about 10 minutes to play. If you're a visual learner, this one is good for you. It's not great for learning vocabulary or conversational Spanish, but works wonders for learning words.
3) Con Brio - Text Books:
http://ca.wiley.com/Wi…/WileyTitle/productCd-EHEP002425.html
Con Brio is the quintessential textbook for Spanish. You start right at the beginning and it goes right to the end. It works in lessons and you can do a lesson in about 30-45 minutes. OR you can just go at your own pace. For me, I have to have a writing element when learning or things don't stick very well. When I'm trying to think of a word in a different language, I'm usually visualizing it written on paper..weird huh?!
I have both the teachers text book and the student work book for this. You can't really have one without the other if you're teaching yourself. I got them both for around $30 total on Amazon.
Welp! That's about it. I should mention that I also had a tutor for a little while, but I was away for most of the summer and now he's away for a couple of months. Tutors are an amazing resource, but staying dedicated to learning will mean that you have to do it yourself. Learning a language is so much work and very difficult..especially if you're kinda dumb like me! Ha.
DO THE WORK. BE MORE AWESOME.
....PUT AWAY THAT FANNY PACK, BUST OUT THAT LOCAL DIALECT AND YOU SHOW WHO n THE WHAT WHAT WHO AIN'T NO TOURIST!! Ahem... you can also do better at the market.
Love,
Matt
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