Spanish For Dummies- How To Learn Spanish Quickly
Spanish For Dummies is one of the books in the successful “For Dummies…” series. It quite naturally focuses on the Spanish language and sets out to help you learn Spanish quick in an easy and entertaining manner.
Spanish For Dummies is written by those who know the language best at the Berlitz language school. The book features common expressions and phrases that you may find helpful while you are on vacation, and aims to get you up and running with the language.
The Spanish For Dummies book describes itself as being, “…the ultimate guide for speaking Spanish quick and easy.” The book is accompanied by a CD-ROM, which allows you to hear Spanish spoken by native speakers.
In some way, you could describe any starter Spanish learning course as being Spanish for dummies , in a general sense that is. The idea is that it can take a beginner who has no knowledge of Spanish, from knowing nothing at all to at least speaking a couple of common phrases in Spanish.
There are a fair number of courses like that in the market nowadays. Nowadays, language courses have started concentrating on the fun element of learning a language, paying less attention to the need for grammar, syntax and cultural nuance, and replacing it with shortcuts, tricks and tips to actually speaking the language with other native speakers.
Grammar does have its place. Spanish grammar is quite different from English grammar. That’s why they will describe a new car as “un coche nuevo,” literally, “a car new.” There is not a lot you can do about the difference other than just learning it.
Translating literally from English to Spanish is a very bad idea. That would come out as, in our example, “un nuevo coche,” and would sound just as bad to a Spanish person as “a car new” sounds to you! As a rough guideline, put the adjective, the describing word, after the noun, the thing being described. This is the reverse of the normal rules in English.
The Spanish for dummies type of courses tend rather to focus on the easier side of things. There are a large number of Spanish words, for instance, that are very similar to their English counterparts. Mostly, they change only with the suffixs. Words in English ending in “ant” often become words ending in “ante” in Spanish. Por ejemple (that’s Spanish and I’ll bet you can guess what it is in English), “important” becomes “importante.”
But that’s not all…
Many of the “ent” ending English words become “ente” in Spanish, such as “evidente.” A good number of the “ible” and “able” ending words stay the same in both languages: comparable, combustible. Some Spanish words merely drop English endings, such as the “ate” ending words where “participate” becomes “participa” and “terminate” becomes “termina.”
How many English words can you think of that suffix in “ary”? There are tons and you’ve just learned as whole lot more Spanish words, because you can adapt the English to Spanish by changing the “ary” ending to an “ario” ending.
Spanish for dummies can be the title of a best selling language book, or it can simply be a way of describing a good Spanish course designed to help you learn Spanish fast without the hassle of learning complex Spanish grammar.
February 16, 2009
Learning Spanish Phrases - They key to Speaking Conversational Spanish Fast
Taking the plunge to learn another language like Spanish is a big undertaking but it can be fun and rewarding, especially if the reason you’re learning it is to travel abroad.The methods used by some Spanish courses and programs are not always equal, often times the best methods are not used at all.
When you’re learning a second language there are a couple of ways you can do it.
Memorization is the first method of learning a new language.This process is where you build a large vocabulary of new words in Spanish solely by relating the word in Spanish to a word in English.
This is the method most used in junior high and high schools. The draw back here is that most students build a big vocabulary but rarely learn to piece those words together to make sentences.This does not aid the individual in becoming a good Spanish speaker, nor can they communicate well.
The other way that Spanish is often taught, and most often used in Spanish software or audio courses is by teaching useful Spanish phrases rather then long lists of words.
For example, if you learn how to say “I need to go to”in Spanish you can then create full sentences simply by adding other words and phrases to the end of the single phrase.
So a full example would be, you ask “I need to go to the bathroom” how ever you could replace “the bathroom” with the airport, the grocery store, the bank etc.Using this method it’s easy to make phrases and therefore speak some what fluent Spanish and communicate with native speakers.
One of the best programs of learning using this method is Tell Me More Spanish software.Tell Me More Spanish is one of the top rated learn to speak Spanish programs available for home use, it’s speech recognition helps you perfect your pronunciation of words and helps you learn near perfect conversational skills.
While there are less expensive learn Spanish programs available this one is probably the best available.To read more about the specific features check out this detailed review of Tell Me More Spanish.
If you choose to learn Spanish phrases rather then going the memorization route you’ll find yourself conversational much faster and learning the basics in less time.It just doesn’t make any sense to me why one would bother learning a ton of Spanish words that just aren’t used often in everyday conversation.It makes no good sense or worth while use of time.
Tags: education, language, learn spanish, software, Spain
Madrid 2016 - Spain’s New Olympic Bid
February 15, 2009
A fun Way Spanish
It’s not too difficult to learn Spanish fast if you start with the basics. You would be surprised by how much Spanish you can learn by listening to a cd while being on the road every day. Just get down the simple verbs, some food names, and maybe a few descriptive terms. In general, a fair number of people learn Spanish quickly by starting to say the alphabet and practicing greetings such as “hello” and “goodnight,” but studying the facial features will allow you to have a bit of variety and spice as you learn Spanish.
A very cool simple to start with while in the process of learning Spanish is the descriptions of the face. The face is recognized as the front part of the head. It includes the lips, nose, eyes, cheeks, eyebrows, nose, hair, teeth, lips, and chin. The face is an instrument of expression and identity, and people’s faces are the body part that is most commonly used to distinguish them. Often caricatures will overemphasize certain parts of the face in order to make them instantly recognizable to the people who may be familiar with those memorable features.
If you have a bit of trouble remembering names of others, you may wish to become more aqquainted with the features of the face. The size of someone’s eyes allow a mother know immediately which one of your children you are refering to.
It’s good to be able to describe someone’s facial features in Spanish because if you meet a person in a Spanish-speaking country you may have to describe that person to someone else who speaks Spanish. Also, describing people’s facial features in Spanish will help you to learn Spanish in an interesting and unusually way.
To begin with, if you see a person having a thin face, you could say “una cara delgada”. Translated into English, this means “She has a thin face.” If you see a person having a chubby face, you would say “una cara regordete.” If you meet someone you would like to describe as having had a face lift, you would say un lifting or un “estiramiento facial.” In the event that someone has a face with a lot of wrinkles, you would say “arugas.” In the event that someone’s face is happy, you would say “una cara alegre.” If a person has a big nose you would say “una nariz grande.” If a person has sunken eyes, you would exclaim “ojos hundidos.” In the event that you meet a person with shifty eyes, you would exclaim “ojos furtivos.”
These are just several easy Spanish words that you may use to describe people’s faces as you continue to pick up Spanish. With these Spanish words, you will not be at a loss for words when you meet people on the street.
In order to avoid the typical method of learning Spanish such as getting down the alphabet and, “What’s your name?” you may wish to consider picking up the physical anatomy in Spanish or learning how to say the different parts of an existing suburban community. When you deviate from the norm, it not only can be fun to learn Spanish, but it also can be very exciting.
Tags: easy spanish words, learn spanish fast, learn spanish quickly
What are the most optimal ways of learning Spanish?
If you want to pick up Spanish as a foreign language, it is a great choice - Spanish is one of the most frequently-spoken foreign languages in the States and other Latin countries, such as Mexico and South American countries.
Due to the immigration population to the States, there are a number of people in the United States who do not have a lot of knowledge of Spanish, and immigrants may not possess a fluent command of English either. This makes communication a big challenge. So what’s the most optimal method to learn Spanish fast? You can learn Spanish a number of different ways, even beyond what you were probably taught in school.
A lot of people envision to learn Spanish in the same way they were taught during school - textbooks and group conversations. This, in real life, doesn’t usually work out, because textbooks can be costly, and they’re not the most optimal way to learn Spanish quickly because they teach you the formal way that Spanish is spoken.
Native Spanish speakers has a tendency to put the lingual dialect into their conversation, which is not mentioned in every Spanish textbook, so you may be clueless as you try to understand them. Group conversation, however, does have its advantages. You have the oportunity to engage in conversation and work alongside people who are learning Spanish the same way as you.
The disadvantage is that the group progresses at a certain pace, and you have to keep up with the group, otherwise you’ll be left behind. If you are able to work well in a group dynamic, attending Spanish classes are one of the most effective ways to learn Spanish.
You can also learn Spanish through online courses; there are sites that offer free Spanish lessons online. Some even offer an entire step by step learning system. These are one of the most optimal ways to pick up Spanish, especially if audio tapes are included. Audio tapes let you hear how Spanish is supposed to be spoken, and the text element of online courses make it the most optimal way of learning Spanish as you can both hear and see the words whenever you want.
One of the best Spanish courses online that I’ve come across is Rocket Spanish - it has a full complement of all parts of the Spanish language that you’ll need for engaging in usual conversations, and in addtion, you get to learn at completely your own pace when using online courses.
The drawback in this case is that there’s no one to actually have a conversation with. Learning a language in theory is all well and good, but to really get it into your system, you need to have someone to converse with you in the language, as you would have to think on your feet about what you’re saying. Neverthess, online courses are still one of the best ways of learning Spanish.
These are just a few of the most optimal ways to learn Spanish quick. Probably the most effective way to learn Spanish would be to mix all these ways into a single program for yourself by setting up a learning schedule according to your learning needs and the time you have available. Ideally, one of the most optimal ways of learning Spanish is to allocate half an hour each day. If you have audio tapes, you can listen to them in the car on the way to running errands.
Tags: learn spanish fast, learn spanish quick, learn spanish quickly
February 14, 2009
Kids Learn To Speak Spanish Much Better Than Their Parents
kids learn language skills easily. It comes naturally for them; more so than with adults. Many schools offer foreign language classes, with the Spanish language in the forefront as being one of the most popular. Learning Spanish or another language early in life warrants a higher retention rate. Even kids younger than four can be fluent in several languages. The world is becoming a smaller place through globalization, and learning Spanish or some other foreign language at a young age is a useful skill to have.
Why Should Kids Learn To Speak Spanish
Because children learn language skills so easily, some parents are introducing a second language to their children themselves, such as Spanish learning, instead of waiting for when they begin school. Studies have shown that a child of about 6 weeks of age can begin to learn small phrases from more than one language. While no child can speak at that age, when they do speak, they can speak both languages. Because children start learning language skills at birth, they do have the capacity to learn more than one language at once without confusion. Your two year old might speak English, yet can learn to speak Spanish as well!
Because kids learn language skills so easily, some parents are introducing a second language to their kids themselves, such as Spanish learning, instead of waiting for when they begin school. Studies have shown that a child of about 6 weeks of age can begin to learn small phrases from more than one language. While no child can speak at that age, when they do speak, they can speak both languages. Because kids start learning language skills at birth, they do have the capacity to learn more than one language at once without confusion. Your two year old might speak English, yet can learn how to speak Spanish as well!
There are additional benefits to having your kids learn language skills that are foreign to them at an early age. Learning languages early instills good learning habits for later in life. When kids are exposed to different languages they do better in their school work, get higher scores on tests, and are better at problem solving. If just knowing a second language isn’t incentive enough for you to teach your child to speak Spanish or another language in their early years, then maybe knowing that this skill with help them to excel at other things will be.
Due to the fact that kids learn language skills easily, many public schools offer immersion programs. These have become more and more popular because of all the benefits to the kids. Spanish immersion schools have high success rates and the students are usually taught Spanish exclusively for the first three years, and then English and Spanish are taught simultaneously throughout the remainder of their public education. The teachers, of course, also have something to do with the high success rates. In areas without these schools, parents can be teaching Spanish or another language to their kids at home. This method can be successful as well. Teaching kids another language is very important for their development, and it is an avenue that should not be ignored.