What's the best way to improve my Spanish (short of living in a Spanish speaking country)?

Question

I practice with my Spanish speaking friends, that live both near me and abroad, but it doesn't seem like I really have enough opportunity. I do the normal "improving in a language" stuff, like watching movies w/o subtitles, listening to music, reading newspapers, etc; and I do these things every day.

I especially need to work on my aural comprehension and my ability to respond in Spanish. I no longer have to translate in my head, but it seems like I'm not really improving much as a speaker, or at least in only barely perceptible steps (like vocabulary, which is certainly important, but not everything).

Ideally, of course, I would live in a Spanish speaking country for a whie, but that's not feasible for me right now.

What tips do y'all have that might help??

lol :) That is a good way to improve...

I have a Spanish boyfriend, but we don't see each other much (though I've improved a ton since I met him--I'm just kind of plateauing now).

Thanks for the responses so far..

Just to elaborate on the question detail that I already posted, I read El Pais online every morning, I watch Spanish language movies all the time, about 85% of the music I listen to is in Spanish, etc.

I live in upstate NY, where you can't get Spanish language channels on TV without paying a whole lot for the extra cable channels.

Also, I'm starting my 2nd year of grad school, so I can't live in a Spanish speaking country for at least the next 3 or so years. (Also, I really don't have the money to take a vacation to one--I am a poor grad student!!). :)

Answer 1

Cynthia,
I have had a lot of pleasure watching your Spanish acquisition. You probably suspect that, as a linguist and a language teacher, not to mention a person who only started learning Spanish a few years ago, I have a few suggestions.

1. Consider your goals carefully. Not too long ago, I read a chapter from a memoir about an American professor who went to live in Italy. This entire chapter was talking about her Italian language learning experiences. She described how traumatic it was for her to go to her Italian classes and how frustrated she was with her bad Italian because she couldn't translate Dante like she wanted to. However, in the same chapter, she described multiple experiences where she shopped in the hardware store, chatted with the townspeople at the market, and had dinner with her neighbors. As I read, I was struck by the (for lack of a better word) schizophrenia of it all, that she thought she didn't know Italian but was able to do all those things. To be more direct, I recommend that you look carefully at your language needs and goals. What exactly do you want to do with Spanish? If your purposes are being met, who cares whether you miss the gender of a noun once in a while?

2. You are actually doing all the right things, I'd say. Learning a new language is, in large part, a matter of how much exposure you get to that language. Since you specifically mentioned that you'd like to work on listening comprehension, I'd just recommend that you do more listening. When I first started learning Spanish, I used to watch the news in Spanish on television basically every day. At first, I felt that I was lucky if I understood what the main topic of the story was. However, after just a few months, I was able to follow basically what the entire story was about. Also, watching the Spanish-language news produced for the U.S. audience gave me a lot of insight into the Spanish-speaking groups of the U.S. and what's important to them.

It's not just about getting input in Spanish, though, but also maximizing the comprehension of what you are hearing. You can play tons of movies, but if you have no idea what the movie is about, you're probably not learning that much Spanish from it. You could watch the movie once in English so you know the story and then watch it in Spanish (without subtitles, like you're doing) or get to know the story first through reading a plot synopsis, or something like that. I also enjoy reading familiar material in my second language. The advantage of reading a book that you know well is that your previous knowledge really helps you to extract as much meaning as possible from what you're reading, and meaning seems to be very closely connected with learning language that you can use to communicate.

It seems, however, that what you really want to do is be able to have a conversation. Listen to the types of materials that you want to be able to understand, or materials that approximate them. For example, if you want to be able to talk to a certain group of people, listen to the speech of that group of people. You should be able to find sitcoms, for example, that have dialogue similar to the speech of certain kinds of native speakers.

If you feel that you've pretty much mastered the materials you've been working with, try something new. If you branch out in Spanish into an area where you already have some background knowledge, you might be surprised about how much you can already understand.

You, and my fellow answerers, all seem to be convinced that living in a Spanish-speaking country is the best for language learning. But why should that be? Isn't it because in a Spanish-speaking country you are exposed to and speak Spanish all day long? So, actually, you should be able to simply get more exposure to Spanish, wherever you are, and get a lot of the same benefit. I am a firm believer that, in large part, it depends on how many hours you put into it.

3. Obviously, there are limited opportunities for conversation in Spanish in an area where many of the people you interact with are not Spanish speakers. However, since you work at a university, I suspect that you know a couple of professors or fellow TAs who speak Spanish. You could just make an agreement with them that you will always speak in Spanish when you see each other. You could also advertise for a Spanish speaker who would like to practice English conversation. I suspect that in your university community you could find a friend who'd be willing to speak some of the time in Spanish and some of the time in English quite easily.

There's also online chat, which is somewhat similar to speech in the sense that it's speeded, meaning that you have to respond to what someone says more quickly.

In the area where I live, there are a number of clubs and dances that play Latin music. Those are always a good place to meet Spanish speakers, too.

4. Don't get discouraged. As they say, "Rome wasn't built in a day." I think that your daily efforts will pay off. I'm completely behind you. Did I tell you I'm working on learning German right now? So I'm totally there. You can do it!

You may be frustrated because, with your natural linguistic curiosities, you have already discovered some interesting aspects of Spanish grammar, but can't seem to reproduce them in conversation. It's quite common for language learners to not be able to use "grammar rules" that they know in conversation; it seems like the part of your brain that knows about the language isn't the same part of your brain that knows how to speak it. For example, I am very good at describing how and when to use the subjunctive mood in Spanish, but if I go for a more than a week or so without speaking Spanish, my subjunctives are the first thing to go. However, I feel confident that with regular exposure to and practice of the structures you want to learn, you'll get better at them.

Answer 2

The best answer I can give you is to watch CNN, or any Californian News program. That is the accepted "American English" accent. It does not sound as uneducated as Southern, it's not a Texas wildman's sound, not the Northern Yankee sounds that no one can understand making you sound rich and pretentious. I know it sounds a little silly but Seaseme Street is a great program for the young and fresh mind. It teaches children how to spell and speak. I have heard many stories of Mexicans and South Americans learning English by watching that show. There are also tutorials in almost every book store for English as a second language. tapes, CDs, computer programs I am sure they can help aswell. As far as grammar and writing skills, you will need a book to practice by. Just like native English speakers repition will drill it into the brain.

Answer 3

Listen to Spanish music.... watch Spanish TV shows (I really enjoyed the novellas because since they are all the same story you can focus on dialogue )... read spanish kids books (they are especially good because most have the english translation in there).

Or visit North Hollywood, California... there are sections of that area that seem like you ARE in a Spanish speaking country.

Answer 4

Honestly, going to a spanish-speaking country is best, but it's not feasible for alot of people.

One really simple way is just to immerse yourself, like you're doing. Just keep at it. Talk to EVERYONE in spanish, not just your spanish-speaking friends for a while. Also, read and read and read in spanish, watch movies only in spanish - Immerse yourself. Try helping out somewhere locally where they need a translator, perhaps for charity.

Also -- my music teacher used to say "A loud mistake is better than getting it right and being quiet". Try your hardest even if you screw up - it'll be easier if you do mess up because then you have more motivation =)

Answer 5

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Answer 6

Feel like a Spaniard that is you speak in Spanish frequently, read books in Spanish, watched Spanish films and on TV, write letters in Spanish. In short or simple language, do all things in Spanish. Good luck!

Answer 7

You've answered you're question already! The IDEAL method is living in a Spanish country because you are forced to speak Spanish! Go now!!

Answer 8

I too want to improve my spanish a lot, so aside from the music, movies, and such, I actually talk to myself quite a bit. I talk to my cat, my dog, pretty much everything using spanish. i know it's kind of weird, but it keeps me practicing and has been pretty effective thus far.

Answer 9

If you wanna learn so start by thinking in other language, while the time passes try to use all the vocabulary that you already know and try to ad more and more at the time.
Don't be shy, say things even if you said them the wrong way
TRY TRY!!!!!!!!

Answer 10

its really good when you are forced to not speak english at all. get a spanish magazine and read it aloud, I work with mexicans and I think it helps that they dont know english..cause they have to explain everything in spanish. so surround yourself with spanish speaking people