How long will it take to learn conversational Spanish?

Question

I'm starting a 12 week course soon - 2 1/2 hours per week - does anyone know if I'll be o.k-ish after this course? I don't expect to be fluent but would like to know a little more than 'hola'!

Answer 1

Well, in a 12 week course, you will definitely learn the basics of the language, and that will give you the instruments to go on learning and eventually become fluent. In average, it's supposed to take about 3 years (4 hours a week, 9 months a year) to learn a language to a degree of fluency.

Answer 2

In the classes you learn only the grammatical and orthography, if you want to learn to talk in Spanish, you must speak every day with a Spanish speakers, or at least, several times per weeks and if you cannot more you would have to watch Spanish movies in original version and with subtitles in English, with that you learn more than with 12 weeks of class

Answer 3

Todo depende cómo usted está en las idiomas que aprenden a cómo aprisa usted aprenderá

It all depends how quick you are at learning Languages to how quick you will learn it


Su mejor a vivir amonst el español y para utilizar lo que usted lo está aprendiendo entonces se pegará


Its best to live amonst the Spanish and use what you are learning then it will stick



Si usted puede intentar trasladarse a España por algunos meses y comenzar a usarle qué usted entonces ha aprendido toma el resto realmente rápido


If you can try moving to Spain for a few months and start using what you have learnt then you will pick the rest up really fast

Answer 4

You will not be very fluent even after 12 weeks, go to Spain and what you have learnt will make you reasonably fluent after about a month, but do not use English while there as it destroys the pattern.

Answer 5

I live in the centre of Spain in la mancha i Know people who have picked up suffient Spanish in 3 to 4 weeks to live and work here where no English is spoken . A little hint when practicing try with a Spanish accent .Buenos suerte

Answer 6

I took Spanish for some years at college and what the professors say is genuine- to totally understand a language and study and write it nicely, you need to immerse your self in it with the aid of going to a Spanish conversing u . s . for a whilst. yet you need to in all risk develop an quite straight forward expertise of the language after approximately 9 months in case you learn on a daily basis.

Answer 7

I could not learn Spanish is a class it took me going out to Mallorca and getting a job where nobody spoke English and listening making notes and using a dictionary. buying Spanish music with the lyrics inside the case and trying to translate the lyrics with a dictionary.

I met a guy who knew no English and put myself in social situations where I had to understand. I used my Spanish friends who spoke English to check things I was unsure of i basically was a non swimmer who jumped into the deep end without armband. After 6 months I was amazing myself and now I look at what i have achieved. I have brought a cat from Spain to England dealing with vets and everything in Spanish had interviews and held down jobs where nobody spoke English. Had a relationship with a Spaniard who know no English. Found and apartment to rent and arranged all paperwork and had Spanish women teach me to cook in Spanish.
I have done so many things I never believed i could have. I can talk on the phone, read a news paper or magazine and write a letter with books to help.

I must admit I still struggle with the verbs and grammar but "Yo puedo hablo bastante" I never speak Spanish with my friends who know English I am still too embarrassed and lack confidence but I have seen the look of shock when they have heard me speak Spanish with somebody.
It is pretty difficult if you are in the Uk only but this may help a bit. Try watching films with Subtitles in Spanish with the language as Englsih or language Spanish subtitles English. If it is a film you know inside out in English this help learning.
I watched a lot of Desperate Housewives and Sex and The City in Spanish when I was living there and as I know what was happening in most of the episodes in English i could work it out on Spanish TV with Spanish Dubbing and Spanish Subtitles to help me recognise the way thinks were spelt.
I can watch ET in Spanish and tell somebody what he would be saying in English as I know the film so well.

Try get some Spanish films. My ex would say most Spanish films are porm take
the Ages of Lulu or Sex and Lucia and he is not wrong.
Take a look at some films with Gael García Bernal (not only is he cute he can act).
Y tu mamá también (And your mother too)
Mala educación (Bad Education)
Amores Perros (Loves a *****/loves dogs)
This is my favorite i can now watch it without subtitles and understand it all it is one of my all time best films.
Diarios de motocicleta (Motercycle Diaries)

If you are in the UK Check out Film Four as the will be showing Motorcycle Diaries soon and maybe record Live Flesh on Film Four that is also Spanish it is on Late Thursday night.
Films at times are hard to grasp and Spanish ones like I said are pretty sexual the may need to be seen more than twice to get the plot.
Have fun and good luck
Sarah

Answer 8

you'll learn the basics, but what they teach you in the course will probably be the "proper" way of speaking, which most fluent spanish speakers do not use all the time. you won't learn slang words or anything like that. for that, you would have to completely surround yourself with Spanish speakers.

Answer 9

It depends on how much you want to learn Spanish and on how good your teacher is.

If you really want to learn Spanish, find it fun and have a great teacher, you'll learn it very quickly :-)

But if the reverse is true, you'll have trouble learning and it'll take some time :-(

The same type of thing happens with any language you learn :-)

Answer 10

You might know a bit of the basics...like "how are you...I'm good..." things like that. When you're watching a movie, try putting on the spanish subtitles, or try setting the language to spanish, and putting up english subtitles. It should help a bit.