Fitting Spanish into Your Busy Schedule
Raise your hand if you have a busy schedule. Yeah. That’s what I thought. So many of us have filled our schedules to the brim – not always voluntarily. As a working mother with a couple of side jobs, I completely understand having a busy schedule. However, I am a language addict. Every time I meet someone from a different country, I want to learn their language. I currently have nine languages on my practice list. Nine! To be fair, though, I am only working consistently on two – German and Chinese. Still, that is a lot to put on an already overflowing plate. How does one find time to study another language?
Practicality
Before we talk about making time, we need to establish what language is the most practical to learn. Let’s be honest. If we are already extremely busy, why waste precious time on a language that we will hardly ever use? I would like to make a strong case for learning Spanish. If you would like a more extensive list of why Spanish is the best language to learn, click here. For now, I will just leave you with this – Spanish is the second most spoken language in the world. There is no need to worry about never using Spanish, as there are about 500 million native speakers worldwide – about 100 million more than native English speakers.
So, we’ve decided that learning Spanish is worth the time and effort. How much effort are we talking about, though? If you are serious about learning Spanish, you will need to be consistent in your study habits. You cannot expect to make progress if you think about Spanish once every month. When you learn a language, you must actually retrain your brain how to think about things. It requires consistency and repetition. However, it does not require hours of extensive study each week. There are several ways that you can study on-the-go or for just a couple of minutes a day. Everyone’s schedule looks different, so I will leave you with several different ideas that you can choose from.
Finding Time
1. Applications
This is probably the easiest way to fit Spanish into your crazy schedule because you can dedicate as much (or as little) time as you would like to your studies. Most of the best apps have a feature where you can determine what your daily goal is – 5, 10, or even 20 minutes. They keep track of your progress, reward your dedication, and remind you when some of your vocabulary words have become weak. My personal favorite is Memrise, but there are several other excellent apps to learn Spanish on the go. The application Drops actually limits you to only 5 minutes of learning per day, so you don’t overwhelm yourself with vocabulary.
In this technological age, most people don’t leave the house without their phone. We depend on our phones for everything – directions, transportation, games – which ensures that it is always with us. Instead of browsing Instagram the next time you look at your phone, start with learning a bit of Spanish. Find a time you have available every day that you can dedicate five minutes to studying. For example, I often study on the bus or in an Uber. However, if I want to use the pronunciation feature, I prefer to be alone. I have two 15-minute breaks at work, and I usually dedicate one full break to language learning with an application. So, find a couple of minutes in your daily schedule that you can spend on your phone – doing something productive instead of browsing social media.
2. Surround Yourself with Language
Where do you spend most of your time? Maybe you often find yourself in the kitchen, your cubicle at work, or perhaps even your car. Wherever that place is, look up the vocabulary for the objects that surround you and make small labels. These can be either handwritten or typed out, whatever works best for you. Tape the labels onto each object so that every time you use that item or walk past it, you see the word. This will help you relate that object to the word in Spanish.
A big step in language learning is being able to immediately relate an object to its corresponding word in the target language instead of having to translate it in your mind. Basically, when you start learning Spanish, you start by thinking about what you want to say in English, translating it to Spanish, then producing it. The goal is to eliminate any English go straight to Spanish. To get to that point, you need to repeatedly see the object and connect it to the Spanish word, which is where our labels come in; every time you use a labeled object, you will be reminded of its Spanish name. This will create new pathways in your brain and rewire it to associate objects immediately with their Spanish names.
Once you’ve moved past objects and would like to start forming sentences, you can do the same thing. For example, once you’ve learned the words ‘sartén, olla, and estufa,’ you can label those objects with phrases like ‘yo uso el sartén y la olla para cocinar en la estufa.’ This method may take a bit of time to get started, but you will be learning Spanish while doing your daily tasks, which will save you a lot of time.
3. You May Say I’m a Dreamer
Now, this one may sound a bit crazy, but it has greatly helped my progress in various languages. Talk to yourself in Spanish! Whatever you are thinking about, try to express it in Spanish. Instead of stumbling over words and phrases when you are in an actual conversation, practice with yourself first to make sure the words flow!
I studied Spanish for several years, but I just could not speak it for the life of me. I traveled to Peru, thinking I could speak fluent Spanish, but as it turns out, I could barely get a few sentences out. There is a big gap between understanding a language and actually being able to reproduce it – those are even two different types of fluency. So, to help me get used to thinking in Spanish and quickly forming sentences, I tried to think in Spanish, and I spoke out loud at times to make sure I could pronounce what I was imagining. I specifically remember one morning at home. I was doing laundry and talking to myself in Spanish. If you had seen me, you may have thought I was a bit on the crazy side, but this really helped me when there were no native Spanish speakers around to talk to. You can still flex those speaking muscles by yourself while doing one of the million tasks you have for the day.
If you spend most of your day around other people, I wouldn’t recommend speaking out loud. However, you can still work on thinking in Spanish. Try and remember how to say a certain phrase in Spanish that you just said to your coworker. Look up some words if you need to. Practice it in your head. Remember, learning a new language is retraining your brain, and training takes consistent practice.
4. Classes with a Native Speaker
All of these previous choices do not give you the ability to actually converse with a native speaker. They are great tools to supplement but to reach fluency you need to actually communicate with someone else who speaks the language. However, that would involve hours of classes a week, loads of money, and lots of travel time to get to the class. What if I told you there was a way to learn Spanish wherever you are (in your home, at a café, on your lunch break) for a fraction of what normal private tutors charge. It is possible!
Here at Spanish Academy, we offer online Spanish classes at a cost you can afford. If you don’t believe me, click here or here to see our price comparisons with some of the other leading companies. Our company is located in Guatemala, so all of our teachers are certified, native Spanish speakers. That means that instead of relying on the conversations you have with yourself, you can ask someone who actually speaks Spanish for some help with your pronunciation and sentence formation.
Even if you have a crazy schedule and only have a half hour free during your lunch break, you can take a class then. Our flexible scheduling ensures that you get to take a class at the best time of day for you. You can even choose from over 50 teachers to find one that best suits your personality and learning needs. As I have learned, nothing beats immersing yourself in the language. I have done all of the above practice habits and they have definitely helped, but they are more of a supplement to my real-life conversations with a native speaker.
Now it’s up to you. You have four methods to chose from to make sure you fit learning Spanish into your busy schedule. You can’t use the excuse that you’re too busy anymore! Choose which of these options above would be best for you…or do them all! Take a Free Class with us today to see how our program can meet your specific needs and start supplementing with the other methods mentions. You’ll be speaking Spanish before you know it! ¡Estarás hablando en español antes de lo que piensas!
If you are looking to get a good handle on Spanish in just a short amount of time, check out our video and accompanying PDF!
Perks of Being Bilingual
Discovering joy in non-materialistic ways is all the rage. Many people are tired of being bombarded by material things and are encouraged to make memories instead – these are more fulfilling than buying the latest iPhone or Gucci bag. The memories that you gain through travel, hiking to ancient ruins learning about new cultures, or building strong relationships with family and friends will be what you remember most about life.
Find Joy
Learning another language can spark joy in a non-materialistic way by lighting a fire from within. You learn the ability to interact with others in their code, open doors for bilingual jobs, and can travel to far reaching places without a translator.
Marie Kondo, the organizational guru and host of the hit Netflix show ‘Tidying Up with Marie Kondo,’ puts it this way:
“People are realizing that happiness is not something you achieve from the outside…but rather from within.”
How can you enrich your life in a non-materialistic, life-changing, brain-boosting and relationship-building way? Become bilingual!
Set Yourself Apart – Be Culturally Competent
Learning another language can enhance your work experience by setting you apart from your colleagues and increasing your cultural competency – buzzwords that companies look for when hiring and promoting.
There are many languages in the world and each one opens up a unique door into another culture. Learning Spanish opens the door to 21+ countries and millions of people. Learn more from our blog ‘Reasons to Learn Spanish.’
Cultural competence is defined so eloquently by Australia’s National Education Leader Rhonda Livingstone as “the ability to understand, communicate with and effectively interact with people across cultures. Cultural competence encompasses:
- being aware of one’s own world view
- developing positive attitudes towards cultural differences
- gaining knowledge of different cultural practices and world views
- developing skills for communication and interaction across cultures.”
Get Noticed and Realize Your Full Potential
A few years ago, I got a job at a prestigious downtown Seattle law firm hoping it would be a gateway to greater things. After spending my first two weeks shredding paper with my fellow new hires, the horizon started to look dim…and smell of shredded paper. Thank goodness I had Spanish on my resume and the hiring manager took notice. One morning, there was an impromptu meeting with a Spanish-speaking client, and they needed a translator quickly. I was plucked from the back office only to be led to a conference room with huge windows, specialty coffee, and 15 people waiting for my arrival. Now, this is what I’m talking about, it was my time to contribute in a meaningful way.
I spent the rest of the day interpreting for our Spanish speaking client and getting noticed. Not only did the partners of the law firm learn that I existed, but they wanted my help. ¿Por que? Why? Because I had a skill that no one else had on the 44th floor…the ability to speak Spanish. I became privy to a new side of the firm that enhanced my personal growth as well as my resume. I eventually moved on to other ventures and learned that my resume set me apart from fellow applicants – speaking Spanish and studying abroad in Spanish-speaking countries helped me land interviews.
Being bilingual inherently improves your cultural competency – This is increasingly important in our business climate which focuses on the ability to interact with people from diverse backgrounds.
See Life in (More) Color
Speaking another language gives you a new perspective, and suddenly you have a new lens from which you can see farther and wider than ever before. Research has found that speaking another language has you thinking in a completely different way and you can literally see more color variations. This new mindset will strengthen your creative thinking skills for the sales campaign you are trying to win.
Another study found that bilinguals can develop a different sense of self when speaking a second language and ‘shift their personalities’ depending on what language they are using. When doing business, this can be beneficial as you could become an assertive negotiator when speaking Spanish, but perhaps feel more reserved when speaking in English.
Start Today!
Get out of that back office and stop shredding paper! Marie Kondo declares, “find happiness from within” – do so by becoming bilingual! Take your first step today by signing up for a free class with Spanish Academy!
Our instructors are native Spanish speakers located in Antigua, Guatemala. They are ready to share colloquial words, culture and everyday life experiences with you! Check out the blogs Learn Spanish Fast and Reasons to Learn Spanish.
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Clothing in Spanish
There’s only one thing other than the two-month long holiday at the end of the year* I miss about school: wearing a uniform! I went to the same school for 14 years, and for 12 of those years, I wore a uniform! Now, it’s been almost ten years since I graduated, but I just realized that for almost half my life I’ve known what to wear! Don’t you think it would be easier sometimes if you didn’t have to decide what to wear every single day? Just think of those days you stay at home wearing pajamas. Isn’t it nice not having to think about clothes or what to wear? Since you’re starting to learn Spanish, you’ll start thinking about these things in Spanish, too: ¿Qué me pongo? – What should I put on?
Nuestro uniforme era un pantalón o falda gris y una camisa polo blanca. (Our uniform was grey pants or skirt and a white polo shirt.) Just imagine a couple hundred children wearing the same clothes! While wearing a uniform makes life so much easier, I do like being able to decide what to wear. I love wearing vestidos (dresses) and botas de combate negras (black combat boots) – that would have been a big no-no at school! So, today let’s learn how to describe the clothes we wear – la ropa que nos ponemos.
*Fun fact: In Guatemala, the school year begins in January and ends in October!
If you want to hear the pronunciation of the following phrases and vocabulary, check out our video! You can also download the printable version of this blog as a PDF.
¿Qué te pones o qué llevas puesto?
While there is more than one way to say ‘to put on’ and ‘to wear’ in Spanish, we will focus today on ponerse (to put on – the act of getting dressed) and llevar puesto (to wear – the act of using clothes).
Ponerse
The main difference between the two is that you say ponerse when you’re referring to the action of putting clothes on only.
Ponerse is a reflexive verb.
‘Poner’ means to put, and ‘-se’ means oneself.
This means that in Spanish you are literally putting clothes on yourself – not just ‘on!’
As we’ve mentioned several times, language is way more than just translating words. Something interesting happens here:
- In English, when you’re wondering which dress would be best for your cousin’s wedding you ask: What should I wear to the wedding? – referring to the action of already having the clothes on, of using them.
- In Spanish, however, you would ask: ¿Qué me pongo para la boda? – What do I put on for the wedding? – referring to the action of putting on clothes, instead of starting to use them.
Conjugating ponerse
As we learned above, ponerse is a reflexive verb. We use a reflexive verb when we want to say that the subject in a sentence performs an action on itself. In this case, we are putting the clothes on ourselves. We conjugate this verb like this:
Use of Articles
As we have seen above, the use of articles- or lack thereof – depends largely on the context. Let’s review!
Llevar puesto
Llevar means to carry. In the context of clothes, we say in Spanish that we carry the clothes that are on us. The way to say this is to use the adjective* puesto to describe where the clothes are. Llevar puesto [insert noun here] then means that we are actively using the clothes, carrying them placed onus: we are wearing them!
llevar ropa puesta
literally means
llevar – to carry, ropa – clothes, puesta – placed/put on us
* puesto is also the participle of the verb poner – in Spanish (just like in English), we can use participles as adjectives to describe nouns!
puesto-puesta-puestos-puestas
Something very important to note here is that since puesto is an adjective, it needs to match the noun it refers to! The matching needs to occur both in number and gender.
Let’s look at it:
Since puesto is an adjective, we can place it both before or after the noun. Whether it goes before or after depends on what you’re saying! Check out more on Spanish adjective placement here. So we can say:
* Keep in mind the use of articles with ponerse. We use them the same way we would with llevar puesto! If you need a refresher, check out the table above once more!
Conjugating llevar puesto
When we conjugate llevar puesto [noun], we need to keep in mind that
- the verb llevar matches the subject of the sentence,
- the adjective puesto matches the noun that the subject of the sentence is wearing!
Takeaway
The best way to learn how to describe what you’re wearing is to practice every day as you’re getting dressed! I suggest adding the articles every time so that you get extra practice with the new vocabulary! As an example, let me tell you what my morning looked like:
Yo me pongo el pantalón. Yo me pongo la playera. Yo me pongo las calcetas. Yo me pongo los zapatos. Me pongo gorra antes de salir. Al estar afuera, pienso, ¡llevo puesta toda esta ropa!
(I put on pants. I put on a T-shirt. I put on socks. I put on my shoes. I put on a cap before I leave. Once I’m outside, I think, “I’m wearing all these clothes!”)
Now it’s YOUR turn to practice! Book your FREE CLASS with us so that you can tell us all about your favorite clothes and when you like to wear them!
Useful Vocabulary
For more practice, download this PDF complete with exercises and an answer key!
Don’t forget to practice your pronunciation with our supporting video lesson!
Top 5 Benefits of Bilingualism in the Workplace
You just landed a job that will send you around the world to hold important business meetings in Spanish-speaking countries – this is a dream come true! Doing business abroad is exhilarating and enhances your global awareness; all the while adding measurable content to your resume. Then, as you’re landing in Buenos Aires you realize that you only speak English. Now you wish you had paid attention in your high school Spanish class or had taken a language at university.
Being bilingual in the workplace gives you an advantage over your monolingual peers. Speaking Spanish will increase your competitive edge, connect you with people on a deeper level, and help you fully grasp the meaning behind what is being said in your business meetings. It is also more gratifying to communicate with people in their native language.
Watch people light up when you unsuspectingly greet them
in Spanish with ¡Buenas!
It doesn’t have to take years to learn a second language; with the right tools, you can become fluent quickly. Check out the blog ‘Learn to Speak Spanish Fast’ where our CEO of Spanish Academy discusses how traditional learning methods are flawed and how he became fluent in only 3 months.
1. Connect and Build Relationships
Let’s face it – we enjoy doing business with people we trust and respect. Successful interactions occur when both parties correctly infer what the other person is trying to convey.
You show respect to the person you are in a business meeting with by greeting them in their native language and understanding a bit about their culture. If you are conducting a business meeting in Buenos Aires and don’t yet speak Spanish, then you would need to speak through an interpreter or expect that your counterpart speaks English.
Why put the burden on everyone else to know English?
Why not learn Spanish today?!
As we all know, the world economy is dependent on global trade and communication. The ability to connect with a business partner in their native language can remove barriers and help establish long-lasting relationships. Propel your importance by being bilingual in the workplace and become the go-to person for all regional and cultural questions.
Dr. Abraham Kim so eloquently expounds how being bilingual in the workplace can benefit you. In his article “The Importance of Learning Foreign Languages” he states,
“One of the most rewarding parts of learning foreign languages is that it helped me to make connections with people overseas. It is amazing how people’s perception of Americans abroad change(s) when they speak the language of the host foreign country. For me, it immediately transformed the way people perceived me from an outsider to a friend. Even though initially my conversation skills were quite elementary, it allowed me to build trust more quickly and to establish a stronger relationship with people. In my small way, through the time and resources spent to learn foreign languages, I was showing honor to the mother countries of these languages.”
2. Improve your Competitive Edge
Colleagues from the same culture are inclined to think similarly. Being bilingual in the workplace empowers you to navigate another culture, learn new perspectives and develop strategic angles for your negotiation positions. This makes you more competitive at your job and will show your Supervisor how you “think outside the box” on another level.
A few years back, while on a business trip to Asia, our team got lost on the way to an important meeting. We found ourselves in an area where no one spoke English – and we didn’t speak the local dialect. Our team was panicked because we were going to be tardy to the meeting. I approached a police officer and asked the common phrase asked by most Americans abroad, “Do you speak English?” The response was a blank stare and so I decided to try something unconventional – “Señor, ¿habla español?” He responded with “¡Sí, Senora! Puedo ayudarte! ¿A dónde vas?” The officer and I were able to communicate in our mutual second language and our team was finally headed in the right direction!
Being able to speak Spanish availed my team in a way
no one would have ever predicted.
A while ago, a friend of mine was hired on by the US Military to help train soldiers before their tour to the Middle East. She was hired on with a significantly higher salary than her monolingual peers who were doing similar work. Why? Because she was a greater asset to the company by being bilingual in the workplace.
3. Enhance your Experience and Have Fun
Speaking a foreign language is so rewarding! You learn to speak in a varied word order, learn new sounds and letters, and expand your social media network by millions of people who speak Spanish! When you are enjoying your job by using Spanish in the workplace, then you’re at your best. This will catch the eye of that boss in the corner office who is in charge of promotions.
Language is your ticket to speak to people in their code, have more meaningful interactions, and immerse yourself in another culture.
4. Do Your Job Better
Being bilingual improves cognitive skills, memory retention, and multitasking capability. It can even fight off early cognitive decline. These skills will make you an employee worth hiring…and keeping for the long run.
Evidence suggests that being bilingual enhances the brain’s executive function which is used for remembering instructions, multitasking, focusing, and planning, which thus helps us with filtering distractions, task prioritization, impulse control, and achieving the goals we have set for ourselves.
Researchers at the University of Ghent in Belgium recently published a study that researched how bilingualism promotes a ‘significant delay’ in the manifestation of Alzheimer’s disease and ‘therefore strengthens the claim that bilingualism contributes to cognitive reserve and postpones the symptoms of dementia.’
5. Avoid Misunderstandings
Not all words are created equal. When you are bilingual in the workplace and understand the culture in which you are doing business, then you can understand the nuances of language and better comprehend what you are concurring to on behalf of your company.
Don’t misconstrue language the same way my friend did. She wanted to express her regret in Spanish by expressing that she was embarrassed for being late to the meeting due to traffic congestion. Instead, she apologized by saying “Estoy embarazada, pero el tráfico…” – wait, WHAT? Did she just tell everyone she’s pregnant?!
Embarazada might sound like a Spanish word for embarrassed, but quite the contrary.
To say you are embarrassed in Spanish is estoy avergonzada. There are many more words that can be misspoken – with Spanish language fluency you can evade these blunders.
Other misunderstandings can occur when interpreting numbers and decimal points. The Guatemalan company you are negotiating with just slides a Memorandum of Understanding across the table and it reads that you will pay a profit of 10,00% and the first payment will be 100.000 quetzales – Huh? Are we signing up to pay a profit of 10,000% and give them $100? No!
Around the world, decimal points and commas are used differently. For Example:
10,00% = 10%
Q100.000 = $100,000*
*For illustrative purposes only. Exchange rates need to be considered.
Avoid the embarrassment of putting your company and job in jeopardy; take time to understand the numbers of the country you are working with.
Conclusively, by being bilingual in the workplace, you can avoid making the mistake my husband made last week while abroad on a business trip – he came home with a bag of dried plums when he thought he was buying us candies!
Prepare yourself today by taking classes at Spanish Academy.
Sign up for your free class and learn Spanish online with one of our amazing teachers in Guatemala!
Why YOU Should Learn Spanish
It’s 2019. The internet has given us so many more connections than we ever dreamed possible. News travels the globe in just minutes. We can interact with people from other countries and cultures—that is, if we have a common language. English is definitely considered an international language, but frankly, knowing only English will weaken your influence in the global community. Are you hoping to learn a second language, but can’t quite decide which is best? Check out these top 6 reasons to start with Spanish!
1. It’s the Second Most Spoken Language in the World
You may be surprised by this as a lot of people think that Spanish isn’t that common worldwide. However, in terms of native speakers, Spanish ranks number two as the most spoken language in the world.
The first is Chinese, of course, with about 1.2 billion native speakers, or 15.6% of the world population. Spanish takes the silver with 400 million native speakers, or 5.2% of the population. In third place, we have English, at 360 million native speakers, or 4.7%.
What About Non-Native Speakers?
English is the international language of business and commerce, and as such, a vast majority of affairs are conducted in English by non-native speakers. This propels English to come in at a close second, next to Chinese, with almost 1 billion speakers. In this case, Spanish gets bumped down to number 4, with 527 million native and non-native speakers.
Quality or Quantity
If you are trying to pick a language to learn to be able to communicate with a large portion of the population, it would make sense to learn either Chinese or Spanish. But, let’s face it— you’re here because Spanish has that special *something* about it, doesn’t it?
2. It’s Super Easy to Learn
Spanish is special and magnetic because it’s easy to learn for a native English speaker. The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) has created a ranking system to show how long it would take a native English speaker to reach a proficiency level in each language and Spanish ranks as a Category 1.
What’s a Category 1 Language?
Category 1 languages are closely related to English and take about 575-600 hours to reach proficiency. Before you say that’s a lot of time, Category 5 languages, such as Chinese and Arabic, take about 2200 hours to reach proficiency!
Which Other Languages Are Category 1?
In this first category we see romance languages like French, Italian, and, of course, Spanish. Similar to English, the alphabet, sentence structure, and basic grammar rules are not so foreign as to be difficult to learn. Even the vocabulary is sometimes so comparable that you may get confused about whether you’re using the English or Spanish spelling.
Is It Really That Easy?
When I first started learning Spanish, I was amazed by how much I actually understood. I could assume the meaning of vocabulary that I had never learned just because of its similarity to English.
Now, it’s not all rainbows and butterflies. There are some difficult aspects to any language. However, if we compare some of the other world languages, Spanish starts to look a lot easier—even with that tricky subjunctive tense and all those verb conjugations.
3. You Can Talk to a Growing Population of Spanish-Speakers in the US
We’ve established that Spanish is one of the most common languages in the world and that it is fairly easy to learn. But, why should you decide to learn it instead of Dutch or Portuguese (which also fall into Category 1)?
Well, it’s close to home. The vast majority of the countries in North and South America speaks Spanish. It’s not like Spanish is spoken only in a remote country on the other side of the world. No. It is spoken in over a dozen countries that neighbor the US, and the number of speakers in the US is growing each year.
How Many People Speak Spanish in the USA?
As of 2015, there were 53 million Spanish speakers in the United States alone. That’s 16.5% of the population. In 2017, Hispanics accounted for over 18% of the population, and that number is expected to increase by 1% every 5 years.
Use Spanish Right Away
Spanish is all around us. It makes sense logically to learn Spanish as a second language so that we can communicate with 18% of our country’s population. Why spend hundreds of hours learning a foreign language you may never use when Spanish is becoming so prevalent right here in our own country?
4. You Can Travel to Your Favorite Exotic Destinations
Of course, not everyone wants to stay in the States. I completely understand that—I started traveling at 16! When you do decide to take your trip, prepare yourself well. Speaking at least a little bit of the native language is important. Knowing how to show respect and talk to locals is the key to survive in a foreign country. It’s frustrating to be in a foreign country without the skills to ask for what you need. Or, try having a conversation with the person sitting next to you when you don’t know more than 10 words. Trust me, it’s not fun!
Where to Go?
Over 20 countries and territories speak Spanish worldwide—there’s even a country in Africa that speaks Spanish! It’s pretty clear: if you are itching to see the world, start learning some Spanish. It will take you to North America, South America, Europe, and even Africa! Whether you are traveling for work, pleasure, or education, speaking Spanish gives you so many more choices on where to go.
5. It Opens You Up to New Cultural Traditions and Experiences
So many places in the world speak Spanish as its official language and the cultural traditions are just as varied as the dialects, architecture, and music. If you took Spanish in school, you may have learned a bit about Mexican culture, with Day of the Dead and Cinco de Mayo. However, more than a dozen other countries and territories speak Spanish. If you decide to reach your potential and learn this language, you will gain access to amazing and fascinating cultures. Learning Spanish isn’t just about learning vocabulary and grammar, it’s so much more.
“A different language is a different vision of life.”
– Federico Fellini
It Changes You
One of the most interesting things I’ve noticed about being bilingual is how I change when I speak Spanish. The way I express myself, how I think about things, how I communicate—it all changes depending on the language I’m using. Why? Because language is so intertwined with the culture that you cannot learn one without the other. It is a beautiful experience!
It Opens Your Eyes
Speaking the language of the country gives us so much more insight into the inner-workings of the culture. Take slang for example. There are about 20 different ways to say “how are you” or “what’s up” in Spanish, depending on the region. By learning some phrases from each country, you get a glimpse of how the people think and interact with each other, which is something a textbook could never teach you.
6. It Offers You More Opportunities
Learning any foreign language can open the door to so many incredible opportunities. The moment you know a language, people start to depend on you for their communication needs. This makes you that much more valuable in the workplace, especially in this era of technology where everyone (no matter what language they speak) wants to stay connected.
Connect to More People
We are a global community, and as such, we need to find ways to bridge the communication gap. By speaking Spanish, you can connect with the 400 million native speakers or over 100 million people who speak Spanish as a second language. For me, connecting with people in Spanish and learning about their culture in their native language has been immensely rewarding. You will most definitely enjoy the experience, too!
Join a Community
The opportunities given to you by knowing a second language are endless. You can work abroad, go to school in a Spanish-speaking country, volunteer and truly connect with the community, and the list goes on. Learning Spanish is the perfect stepping block to building the future you want.
Build Your Future Now!
Alright. I’ve given you several great reasons to learn Spanish. Now go start learning! But, how, you ask? Search no more for a private tutor near you because here at Homeschool Spanish Academy, we offer 1-on-1, tailored classes online right in the comfort of your own home! Nothing beats having an experienced native Spanish speaker teach you the ins and outs of the language. Try a free trial class and start changing your future today!
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¿Cómo estás?
You’re walking down the street and you meet one of your friends who speaks Spanish. You haven’t seen each other in a long time so while catching up, you tell him or her that you’ve just started learning Spanish online with Homeschool Spanish Academy! They are very happy to hear that you’ve started the adventure of learning a new language, so they say jokingly to test your skills: Hola. ¿Cómo estás? You turn red because you still feel a bit unsure about Spanish pronunciation and the correct use of verbs. You smile nervously. Thankfully, your friend has had Spanish lessons for a long time and explains that you can answer with just a short bien, you can say me siento bien, or you can also answer estoy bien.
Now, we’re here to help! Watch this awesome video we just released and keep reading this blog post! We’ve got you completely covered!
Would you rather download this blog with additional exercises? Click below! Don’t forget to practice with this video as well!
Expressing Our Feelings
As you may have learned from that interaction with your old friend, you can express the way you feel in Spanish in more than one way. Let’s have a look at that:
Sentirse vs. Sentir
Sentirse means to feel, and sentir, without the se of the reflexive verb, means to feel. Wait, what? They translate to the same English word, but they have two slightly different meanings in Spanish. It’s a little bit like that blog we wrote on ya and its 14 meanings! Check it out here if you haven’t had a chance to do so already. In this particular case, ‘to feel’ in Spanish can either be:
- sentirse: to feel oneself, to recognize one’s feelings,
- After the verb, we have an adjective: Me siento feliz (adj.). I feel happy (adj.).
- sentir: to feel a feeling
- After the verb, we have a noun: Siento felicidad (noun). I feel happiness (noun).
- sentir: to feel something outside oneself
- Siento la textura. I feel the texture.
Gender-Number Agreement
When we say me siento or estoy, we’re using linking verbs* to help us describe the way we feel. After these linking verbs, there always comes an adjective! Do you remember how in Spanish an adjective has to agree with the gender and number of the noun?
* Linking verbs are verbs that connect an adjective to a noun. They are like a bridge that helps us connect the description of an adjective to the subject of a sentence, unlike other verbs that describe the action that the subject of a sentence performs. Linking verbs help us describe a subject. Some examples of linking verbs in English are: to be, to appear, to smell, to become.
Let’s have a look at examples of gender-number agreement when it comes expressing the way we feel:
As you can see here, the adjective changes in both gender and number to match the subject of the sentence. In this case, we used personal pronouns only to give a better example, but we can replace these with nouns:
- Instead of él/ellos, we can write el niño/los niños
- Instead of ella/ellas, we can write la niña/las niñas
* In any case, the adjective needs to match both in gender and number the personal pronoun or the noun that we use in the sentence! That’s always very important when using adjectives, and not only the ones that reflect the way we feel!
Non-Agreement Exceptions
As with almost every rule in language, there are exceptions. There are adjectives that are invariable. This means that they change only to agree with the noun’s number (not the gender), or they do not change at all. Let’s check those out!
Number agreement only
Non-Agreement
As you can see with these two examples, the adjective changes when used in plural and singular, but there’s no difference when the gender of the noun changes.
Something More
The’s one more way in Spanish in which you can express how you’re feeling at a specific point in time. In English you are hungry, or thirsty. While in Spanish you can estar hambriento or estar sediento, it’s a lot more common to say that you tienes hambre (you have hunger) o tienes sed (you have thirst).
As you may have noticed, this construction includes the verb:
tener (to have) + a noun
Let’s see how this works:
A Little Practice
Let’s enjoy this little practice exercise by feeling in the blanks! Remember the gender and number agreement! Don’t forget to book a FREE class today to practice even more!
| Yo ___ feli__. | I feel happy. |
| Tú ___ trist__. | You are sad. |
| Ella ___ emocionad__. | She feels excited. |
| Nosotros ___ preocupad__. | We are worried. |
| Ustedes ___ feli__. | You all feel happy. |
| Ellos ___ nervios__. | They are nervous. |
Useful Vocabulary
Now it’s your turn to build sentences with these adjectives:
If you are wondering how to pronounce these words and phrases, check out our supplementary video lesson!
Exploring the Market in Spanish
One of the most amazing sensory experiences you can have when visiting a country like Guatemala is visiting mercados (markets) to go shopping in Spanish! The market is an explosion of colors, sounds, and smells like no other! Not all of the smells are pleasant, but all of them are a part of the whole experience! And shopping in Spanish – or in any foreign language – is a very culturally enriching experience by itself! Also, if you’re already in Guatemala, you may want to visit at least of one the Top 5 Spring Break Destinations here!
And check out our latest video! If you’re an auditory learner, it will be a great way to learn some new phrases and vocabulary that will be useful in the market. If you want a printable version of this blog, fill out the form below.
What is the mercado?
At the mercado, you will find colorful produce of all kinds – the known and the unknown. I don’t even know the name of tons of produce they sell there, but the colors are all so pretty!!! You will hear animals in the distance, women yelling the names of the products they sell, birds chirping, men walking around holding so many things you wonder how they can even walk, trucks pulling over, kids laughing, the chatter of people. You will get to smell all the fruits, vegetables, flowers, freshly prepared meals, and – also a part of it but least pleasant of them all – the freshly cut meat! Yes, this is all part of the shopping in Spanish adventure we’ll embark on today!
The market is also the place where you can get pretty much anything you can think of: from baby clothes through crafting supplies, fabrics, coal, grains – all the way to cooking utensils, stationery, and baskets – I have a thing for baskets! Now, in order to buy all the things that you may like or want to fill up that awesome shopping basket you will probably buy (I’m telling you, they are so cute!), you will need to know some vocabulary. So let’s explore the mercado together and learn how to shop in Spanish!
Knowing the Basics to Go Shopping in Spanish
Before we venture into the market, we need to learn some phrases that will be useful in order to know the prices of things. We will also need to know how to ask for a certain something.
Let’s start with prices:
Other useful sentences:
There will be a lot of not knowing what things are because there are tons of produce that we’re just not used to! It’s nice to know the names of things – and to have a little notebook to write the names down. The ladies at the mercado are usually super nice, so they can help you write it down if you nicely ask for help! Find even more tips on how to learn Spanish here!
*A little cultural sidenote:
Por favor and Gracias. Please and Thank You!
Politeness is very important in Guatemala. Wherever you go – but especially for the older women selling vegetables. Here, people will treat you very differently if you’re impolite to them – and not in a nice way! You’re visiting a different culture, so it’s important to take this into account! You’d appreciate the same if someone visited your house!
If you noticed, the conjugation of dar (deme) is in usted instead of in tú. (Deme is an imperative form – a command. Lee más about Spanish commands here and here!) Why? In Guatemala, we use the usted form to show respect to older people or to create a respectful distance between the person we’re speaking with and us. You can find a lot on personal pronouns here.
Let’s visit the mercado and go shopping in Spanish
Okay. First of all, whenever you go to the market for the first time, you should always make sure you have at least a couple of hours to spare. Why? Well, for starters, it really is a one-of-a-kind experience that is amazing to wander through. Secondly, if you’re like me, you’ll get lost at least a couple of times. I’ve been going to the same market for about a year and I still get lost often – Guatemalan markets are like labyrinths and everything is so colorful. It’s extremely easy to get distracted – and lost!
I live in Antigua Guatemala, where the headquarters of Homeschool Spanish Academy is! Whenever I go to the market, I visit the biggest one in Antigua! My first stop is always the veggies stand! To get there, I go past the stands with clothing and shoes, burned DVDs, electronics, and beauty supplies. I always make sure I’m on the right path a couple of times because everything looks the same and I get easily lost. Then…yes! Here we are on my favorite veggie stand on the corner close to the meat section (the only way I remember where it is).
So, we’re at the veggie stand now. I like the bigger ones because then I can buy everything at one place and also, the more things you buy, the better the price they will give you! This is not like a supermarket. Things are not tagged, so you need to ask how much everything is! Let’s start. What I normally get at the veggies, I take out my veggies groceries list.
My Mercado Shopping List
Shopping in Spanish at el supermercado
Although you can buy almost everything in the market, there are things I prefer to buy at the supermarket. Chicken is one of those things because I like to buy frozen chicken. Salmonella is a thing and sanitary conditions in Guatemala are usually not the best at the meat section of the mercado, so I’d rather not get sick. There are other products I also get at the grocery store because it’s just easier to buy them there.
Also, the supermarket is a completely different thing to the mercado. You can find signs on the aisles and prices on things! I know this sounds obvious, but believe me. Once you’ve been to a mercado, nothing is ever the same again. We do take a lot for granted! The signs and price tags do make shopping a lot easier – but the experience less memorable! Also, you’re less likely to get lost. So if you’re the less adventurous type and traveling alone, the supermercado might be a better option!
My Supermercado Shopping List
The other things
I like to buy my miel (honey) from a local honey farm because I’ve been to that place and I know those are happy bees, they produce high-quality honey and their honey has no added sugars (like many honeys do)! I also enjoy buying local and knowing exactly what I’m putting in my body! If you’re ever in Antigua Guatemala and are interested in bees, go pay them a visit! They offer honey farm tours: Bee Miel.
And then there are also huevos (eggs). I’m famous for always squishing avocados on my way back home. Every time, at least one avocado suffers the consequences of having been in my bag. So two conclusions from my avocado squishing times: 1) I’m not trusted with avocados anymore haha and 2) I prefer to buy eggs near my house because I don’t want eggs to suffer the same faith as avocados have multiples times. There’s this place that sells eggs and honey (yes, Guatemala is weird like that) just a couple of blocks away from my house. The chances I kill a whole carton of eggs in two blocks are very low, so I hope for the best!
Takeaway
This has all been about me and all the things I eat! I’d love to learn more about you, so go get your FREE CLASS so that we can talk about YOUR shopping list!
Are you ready to get practicing? Download some exercises here:
Don’t forget to check your answer!
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How to learn Spanish for beginners
Learning a new language can be daunting – the pronunciation, the grammar, the slang, the social nuances. Even when it’s a category 1 language like Spanish, the learning process can be quite intimidating, especially when you don’t know how to start.
There were two main things that held me back several years when learning Spanish: fear of making mistakes and lack of exposure. Now, I was exposed to Spanish as young as 5 years old, and I took classes and used audio books for about 6 years in middle school and high school. One year before I graduated, I took a trip to Peru. I was expected to be a translator since I was at the top of my Spanish class, but when I got there it was a complete shock. I did not understand one. Single. Word. Then, a few years later, I went to Guatemala and truly focused on my Spanish. Once I committed myself to Spanish immersion and practice with native speakers, I was holding conversations after one month and translating for my friends by 4 months. Now, complete fluency took a few years more, but that had to do more with learning the local jargon and perfecting the dreaded subjunctive. In those first months though, I did not take one single Spanish class. So, how was I able to learn so quickly? Well, I’ve put together some important points that helped me learn Spanish as a beginner. Hopefully, they will be of service to you as well!
1. Language Journal
I’m a visual learner. Still to this day, if I learn a new Spanish word, I cannot remember or reproduce it until I see it written. If you’re a visual learner like me, keeping a language journal is critical to the learning process. You can write down new words, make connections between them, study sentence structure….and the list goes on. Even if you’re not a visual learner, a language journal is still a great idea when learning Spanish as a beginner. You can write down new words you hear in a conversation or in a movie, mark down the pronunciation, and return to your notes at later times to keep practicing.
When learning a language, you are teaching your brain to think in a completely different way. Up until now, it has always thought and used English (unless English is not your first language!). In order to work towards Spanish fluency, your brain needs to create new pathways; it’s like digging a riverbed in a desert. At first, it will be extremely difficult, but with practice and repetition, the water will start flowing with ease. That’s where the journal comes in. You can’t expect yourself to remember every word you hear in class or in a conversation – you need reinforcement. With the language journal, you can write things down how you best understand and remember them. You can refer to your notes to practice or if you forget a word that’s on the tip of your tongue. It’s also extremely useful to have a small language journal to carry with you if you know you’re going to be situations that require Spanish conversation. I can tell you from personal experience that a language journal can be a lifesaver when you start learning Spanish as a beginner.
2. Exposure
Like I said before, lack of exposure held me back from Spanish fluency for 6 years. 6 years! When I had accurate exposure to the Spanish language, I was conversing in months. Exposure to the language is absolutely essential when learning Spanish as a beginner, whether you’re 5 or 95! It may seem absolutely overwhelming initially, but remember what I said about building riverbeds in our brain? At first, the water trickles, but with practice, it will soon start flowing.
Taking Spanish classes with a native English speaker may seem easier for you, but in the end, it will cost you – possibly even 6 years! Take the leap. Expose yourself to the Spanish language. This doesn’t necessarily mean traveling to Latin America and completely immersing yourself in the culture and language (Although, if you get the chance, I highly recommend it). There are plenty of opportunities for exposure right where you are.
- Movies and Television – You may think that it’s not possible to learn a language this way, but I have met so many people who learned to speak English just by watching movies and TV shows like ‘Friends.’ It takes commitment, but it’s possible! This is a great way to get Spanish exposure at no extra cost, especially if you have young learners. Netflix is a great option as well because you can choose from shows in Spanish (like Narcos or Reina del Flow) and shows that have a mix of English and Spanish, or ‘Spanglish’ (Jane the Virgin, One Day at a Time). Subtitles are another great tool to increase your Spanish exposure and comprehension. Learn more about how to use them to learn Spanish as a beginner here.
- Community – About 51 million people speak Spanish in the United States. Get out and make some friends! I know it can be awkward to start speaking your second language with a native speaker – trust me, I avoided it for a very long time. However, nothing can help you more than taking that step and initiating conversation with a native speaker.
- Online Classes – Here at Spanish Academy, we offer high-quality online Spanish classes to students of all ages around over the world. These classes are unique because they are taught by native speakers whose goal is to improve your Spanish fluency. You get great exposure to the language, a personal tutor to answer all your questions, and reinforcement materials. Instead of traveling all the way to Latin America, you can get the same benefits right in the comfort of your own home. Try a Free Class today to see if it’s a right fit for you!
3. Conversation
So you have your vocabulary words written in your handy-dandy notebook. You increased your exposure to the language using one of the suggestions above. Now comes the scary part. Actually talking. I avoided conversing in Spanish for such a long time, thinking I wasn’t ready yet. Turns out, it was what I needed most of all. If you just do bookwork and never practice speaking, you’ll never be ready to hold a conversation. As uncomfortable as it may be, you need to start conversations in Spanish even as a beginner. In my personal experience, many native Spanish speakers wanted to speak English with me so they could practice. However, when I expressed my desire to learn and improve my Spanish, they were more than happy to help me. I am forever grateful to them for their patience as they listened to me stumble through sentences and repeated themselves various times until I understood what they were saying. Find someone you feel comfortable with (possibly even with a personal instructor from Spanish Academy) and ask to practice your Spanish with them.
4. Patience
Of course, learning a language doesn’t happen overnight. Be patient with yourself. Everyone learns in a unique way at their own speed. You will make mistakes – I still do, in both languages! However, if you are persistent in learning Spanish and use the right tools, you will progress towards fluency. Don’t get frustrated!
Also, you will be surprised at how patient people are when you try to speak to them in their native language. When I was learning Spanish as a beginner, I was afraid they would get frustrated or not understand me. However, it was quite the contrary. The people around me understood what I was trying to say and helped me express myself in a more natural way. They were incredibly forgiving and so delighted that I was making an effort to communicate with them in Spanish.
5. Practice
‘La práctica hace al maestro.’ Practice makes perfect. This is especially true when talking about learning a language and creating those pathways in your brain. The more you practice, the easier Spanish will come. One great tool I can recommend to learn Spanish as a beginner is language apps. They aren’t the same as having your own Spanish teacher, but they are a great way to reinforce what you are learning in class or what you heard in your Spanish conversations. Check out our top 4 apps of 2019, and pick which one would best for your language needs. For complete beginners, I would recommend Drops.
To learn Spanish as a beginner, you need to make sure you have some sort of exposure to Spanish every day, whether that be through apps, TV, conversations, or classes. Taking a class here and there or using Duolingo once a month will not get you to fluency. Keep practicing diligently, and you will see impressive results in as little as a few months!
Get Started!
To learn more about our Spanish program and the classes we offer, click here. If you want to know why our method works, check out this blog, which also explains more about the way our brains function. And, of course, don’t forget to sign up for a free class today! When learning Spanish as a beginner, it really helps to have a native speaker help you through the process and answer all your questions. Choose your personal instructor from our 60+ teachers to guide you on the path towards Spanish fluency. ¡Empieza hoy!
The Use of ‘Ya’ in Spanish
Did you know that there are numerous words in Spanish that have multiple meanings? If so, great! We’ll learn more about it today! If not, let me introduce you to the first of many tiny Spanish words that have a LOT of meanings: ya.
Ya in Spanish can function as:
- an adverb
- a locution
- a colloquialism
Now, what do these three weird words mean?
- You may already be familiar with adverbs, or words that describe and modify verbs. They are to verbs what adjectives are to nouns.
- El
carro va rápido. - The car goes fast.
- El
- Locutions are expressions that are different than the usual meaning of the stand-alone word and are used in specific circumstances. Locutions can either consist of one single word or a phrase. We use the term locution to refer to a word or set of words that mean an entire concept.
- Pues ya veremos.
- Oh well, we’ll see.
- We also use ya in Spanish colloquially. In other words, we use the word in an informal fashion or in a more comfortable environment. For example, you can use the colloquial ya expressions we’ll discuss today with friends and family, but never for a formal occasion like a job interview!
- ¡Ay, nada que ver!
- Literal translation: Oh, nothing to see.
- Interpreted translation: Oh, it has nothing to do with it.
The various uses of ‘ya’
‘Ya’ in Spanish: Adverbs
When we use ya in Spanish as an adverb, its meaning depends on the context. We use it:
*What is a distributive conjunction:
Conjunctions are words that join other words, clauses, phrases, or sentences. Some examples are: and, or, but, since, because, when, while. Distributive conjunctions are not a thing in English. However, in Spanish, we use them to present two ideas that are equally important, which can be either complementary or contradictory.
‘Ya’ in Spanish: Locutions
As mentioned above, locutions are expressions that can either consist of one single word or a whole phrase and have a meaning other than the usual meaning of the stand-alone word. There are several different types of locutions! The type depends on the function the locution has in the sentence. Let’s look at some ejemplos:
Check this link out to see more uses of ‘mero’.
‘Ya’ in Spanish: Colloquialisms
Colloquialisms are words or expressions we use in a more informal fashion, or in a more comfortable and familiar environment. Explore these Spanish Quotes to find more hidden language gems. Ya in Spanish as a colloquialism can be a:
Review
Learn Spanish by Watching TV
A big part of communication happens through spoken language. As opposed to written language, or the words we read and write, spoken language is everything we speak and hear. Another type of language we utilize is body language, or nonverbal communication. You may be wondering, what does this all have to do with TV and learning Spanish? Well, keep reading & you’ll find out how to learn Spanish by watching TV!
To learn more about the different types of communication and how they impact our interactions with others check out this blog post.
Spoken language
If we think of spoken language, we can divide it into two parts:
- What goes out – the words we say
- What goes in – the words we hear
We know that language learning is a skill like any other, and to get better at it, practice is key! If we are learning to speak Spanish, we need to actually speak Spanish. Before we can have a conversation, though, we need to understand spoken Spanish. One way to better our comprehension is consistently listening to Spanish! The thing is, Spanish has numerous sounds that the English language doesn’t, so we need to train our ears to get accustomed to this new world of sounds. And why not learn Spanish by watching TV?
If you want to practice your spoken Spanish skills, visit some of the Top 5 Spring Break Destinations in Guatemala or any other Spanish-Speaking Countries in South America?
Fun fact: did you know that some languages only exist in spoken form? In some languages, there are no written words to the spoken ones! According to Ethnologue, almost half of the over 7,000 spoken languages around the globe have no written form. Isn’t that fascinating?
Mashed Potatoes vs. French Fries
Let’s be honest. When you’re just starting to learn Spanish (or any language), and you hear people speak, it’s hard to point out where one word ends and another begins. At first, hearing the language feels more like mashed potatoes when in reality every word is a French fry! The more we listen to Spanish, the easier it will become to recognize the different sounds, and where words begin and end. It will be easier to pull the French fries out of the potato mash!
Now, how can we use all this knowledge to our advantage when learning Spanish? We’re very lucky to live in an age when technology offers so many different options that we can use differently depending on the level of our language skills. Let’s learn Spanish by watching TV! Series, movies, documentaries, cartoons…anything with spoken words will be of great help on our path to becoming fluent Spanish speakers!
Talking about technology, why don’t you check out our blog post on the Top 4 Spanish Apps of 2019!
Learn Spanish by watching TV
Let’s go back to words being French fries! Some fries are only seasoned with salt and pepper, while other fries are so heavily seasoned you can barely taste the potatoes! That’s exactly what happens with Spanish and all its different accents! While some are very easy to understand because the speakers pronounce words very clearly, other accents are an entirely different story!
Spanish is my native language, and there are series and movies in Spanish that I’ve watched with English or Spanish subtitles. Why? Because sometimes I want to focus on the plot instead of on trying to understand what people are saying. This is entirely normal: my ear is not accustomed to such an accent! If you need subtitles as a Spanish learner, don’t feel bad because even I as a native speaker need them sometimes too. You and I are definitely not alone on this!
Speaking of different accents, this blog post will help you improve your own accent.
Where to Start
¡Empecemos! Go to Netflix or your preferred streaming service. Pick out your favorite cartoon, series, or movie. Yes, that one you’ve watched at least once (but probably more times than you’d like to admit) in English. Choose to watch the Spanish dubbed version with English subtitles! Wait a second. What?! The original is in English and I’m saying you should choose to hear it in Spanish with subtitles in English? Yes, that’s exactly what I mean. Why? Well, there are two reasons for this:
- You’ve watched this before, and you know what to expect. You know the plot and the characters so your brain already has an idea of what it will be about. This means you’ll have a fun time watching something you like even if you don’t understand everything you hear. It also allows your brain to focus on learning these new sounds with everything you hear!
- The language used on dubbed versions is a lot more neutral than the one from series or movies originally filmed in Spanish because it’s meant to cater to different audiences in various regions. Therefore, this is a great place to begin!
Where to Continue
Once you are past level 1, any of the following combinations will be great to continue learning Spanish by watching TV:
- Spanish audio with English subtitles: This will help train your ear to the sound of Spanish.
- Spanish audio with Spanish subtitles: You’ll hear and read very similar information. Therefore, you’ll start connecting spoken words to written words!
- English audio with Spanish subtitles: This will help you get used to Spanish spelling and written language.
And what should you watch? I don’t want to recommend anything in particular because whatever you watch should be fun for YOU! Learning Spanish by watching TV is educational without you even realizing it because it is so enjoyable! My only recommendation on this aspect is to start with series or cartoons, as movies are way longer and you don’t want your brain to be overwhelmed! We want this to be a fun ear-training activity!
My Personal Experience
Very often, people ask me where I learned English. This is not an easy question for me to answer because English is the only language other than my native tongue I didn’t primarily learn in a classroom – as was the case with German, Italian, French, and Latin. Instead, I learned English in a very organic way. I watched TV and played video games in English! What did I watch? I chose cartoons, series, documentaries, and movies! And even though it never felt like learning, I was learning English and training my ears to the sounds of the language.
Takeaway
It’s simple this time: pick a show you like and have fun while learning! And why not try a FREE CLASS with us to tell us about your experience learning Spanish by watching TV!