Have you learnt a second language?

Question

If so, what was it and how did you master it? Did you do it in school as part of a regular program or enroll yourself in a course, or just undertake it yoruself?

Answer 1

I learned Spanish.

I took one year of it in school and then when I got to college I elected to take another year of it.

I am going to become a teacher and I like to understand what all of my students are saying, wether they mean for me to hear and understand it or not.

Answer 2

I moved to Hungary after college and it took me about 3 years to become fluent in Hungarian. I probably could've done it faster if I'd tried harder, but I really think it takes a couple of years at least to let a foreign language consolidate fully in your mind.

Now I live in Japan and I'm slowly on my way to becoming fluent in Japanese after 2 and a half years.

The key in both cases was to surround myself with native speakers and an environment where that language is spoken and (ideally) written as well. It makes such a big difference in language learning. But that's not all you need! It also takes a lot of study, but living where that language is used helps enormously.

Answer 3

My native language is U.S. English. I learned Esperanto from a book, "Teach Yourself Esperanto", in about 18 months. (I went very slowly to try to learn it in depth). I was conversational in 3-4 months, fluent inside of 2 years.

After learning Esperanto, I went through a three year Spanish Curriculum in a little more than one year, then spent a year and a half on a German course, but didn't complete it.

At the end of that, I knew Esperanto much better than either of the other two languages. I'm fluent in Esperanto, but barely conversational in Spanish, and not really conversational in German.

Answer 4

My native language is Spanish. I learned English by attending school, watching cartoons with the subtitles and listening to music and reading the lyrics at the same time. I'm learning German by reading a German book, a dictionary, and by listening by Rammstein CDs. I also use babelfish.yahoo.com to translate paragraphs!!! I haven't mastered neither language yet but I will by practicing more and more and more!!!

Answer 5

I learned Spanish in school starting in 8th grade all the way through college. I practiced it whenever I went to visit my family in Mexico during the summers and it also helped a lot to watch the Mexican soap operas on Univision. They teach you things you could never learn from reading a book.

Answer 6

I know three, if you count sign language as a language. I learned Spanish in school, but it really helped being in Costa Rica for awhile. I grew up speaking English, and Sign Language was taught to me by my deaf friend.

Answer 7

I've begun studying Japanese entirely from books and a select few programmes (namely Before You Know It Lite) and am now semi-fluent. It also helps to find things like radio, music and television shows in the languages to learn recognition of words in speech.

Answer 8

I learned Spanish from my parents, and German by living there for 3 years and also a few courses in college.

Answer 9

My native language is Malay.

But I learn English since I was six until now. English is like compulsory in our education system.

Now, I'm in college and am learning a six-credit first semester Chinese. Woohoo. Very very tiring. Love to speak Chinese but always forget how to write Chinese characters.

Answer 10

German (I learnit it at school, grew up with Swiss-German dialect)
French (in school)
Latin (in school, very helpful, I’m glad I did it)
a little ancient Greek (in school)
Italian, Spanish, Dutch and a little Portuguese (for myself, with friends)
Rumantsch (for pleasure, in a course)
English (at the University, I am an English teacher)

Whatever language you learn, the best way is to actively speak it.
And read, read, read, read, read!!!