Becoming Fluent
What are some useful study tips?
9 Answers
Well you have received a lot of good advise here, but here is my take on it. You need to spend enough time to gain a good vocabulary and a basic understanding of grammar. Then you need to start talking and hearing Spanish being spoken by natives. Talk, ask questions, make mistakes, talk some more, listen some more, make more mistakes and repeat every day for at least a year and depending on your aptitude for languages you may become conversationally fluent.
I will probably be the only one here to tell you not to worry too much about grammar. Children learn to speak without understanding grammar rules. So can you. However, vocabulary is critical. You need to be able to hear words. And to hear words you have to know the words you are hearing. Keep you sentences simple. Use more than one sentence to express complex thoughts until you begin to get a feel for the language.
I live in Mexico and after five years still make mistakes daily. But I also get lots of complements on my Spanish.
I would say one of the most important things is to develop relationships with Spanish speakers. When you hear people speaking Spanish approach them and converse, don't be shy! I see that you are a Spanish major, so at some point in time you should begin to see a lot of native speakers in your classes. Take advantage of this! Try and make friends, study with them, invite them out, whatever it takes. You have to put yourself out there. Of course studying grammar, watching movies, listening to music, etc. is necessary, but without speaking it is very difficult to attain conversational fluency. I have seen students that who have studied for years, went to other countries and even who have masters degrees. They do great in the classroom but they can barely hold a conversation. Remember, becoming fluent in another language is a great accomplishment that very few people actually succeed at. Stay positive, stay focused, and above all make lots of mistakes!
Flashcards...that is the fist thing that will come into anyone's mind! Anyone else will agree with me...Other than that....try devoting time to this resourceful site, read Spanish books. As a matter of fact, it is hard for me to say, because each person has a different way of learning! Hopefully this helps!
I know you asked for tips, not resources, but my tip is to find some great resources! When you become tired of your current system, switch things up a bit so you don't get discouraged.
I've noticed that it's been easy for me to find many sources for writing and reading experience, and I find that very helpful and necessary.
However, I've noticed that I really need to practice listening and speaking. I like to use the BBC's interactive video series for listening. BBC Mi Vida Loca Some of the vocabulary exercises there are extremely basic, but I really enjoy listening to the Spanish spoken in the videos. Destinos episodes are also helpful for listening. Destinos I try to practice listening everyday now because I really need a lot of practice.
I think the most enjoyable and entertaining way to listen is to have a conversation with a native speaker through Skype. The Mixxer is a good place to find someone with whom to speak. The Mixxer The people with whom I've spoken have been very patient and willing to repeat themselves when I ask them to speak slowly. I think it's really fun. It's even better if you find someone with whom you "connect". Then you never run out of topics to discuss, and you even get to learn about that person's country. It's so interesting.
You might also consider making use of podcasts. Radio Lingua offers Coffee Break Spanish, which is for beginners, and Show Time Spanish, which is a little more advanced, I think. I haven't use it yet, so I'm not sure. RadioLingua SpanishPod is another good one. SpanishPod NotesinSpanish is also very well done. NotesinSpanish
As others have said, make sure you practice speaking. This is what I struggle with the most. I practice speaking at home and in the car, but when I'm talking through Skype with a real person, I can hardly force the Spanish words out of my mouth for fear of sounding strange. So, I encourage you to speak soon so you don't have to struggle with this like I do.
Take advantage of SD. I've found some great advice and wonderful help here, so really make use of the sight.
Sorry for repeating what others have said, but I just wanted to tell you what's helped me.
The best way to become fluent in Spanish is not only to devote a lot of time studying it, but also watching movies in Spanish, talking with native speakers of the language, reading Spanish books, and applying the language to sentences you use on a daily basis. If you have the finances I would advise taking a trip to a Spanish-speaking country as well.
Oh, yeah! I recently got a Kindle.... when you touch and hold a word, it looks the word up in the dictionary for you. You can buy a Spanish -> English dictionary for it and the Kindle is smart enough to know if a book is written in Spanish or English. So I downloaded Andersen's Fairy Tales (because it was free and has tons of vocabulary) and now when I come across a new word all I have to do is touch it. I love it!!
Agree with all of the above.
Flashcards and word games are good; there are some good Spanish "hangman" games for smart phones out there that don't cost anything.
Structured study like the lessons here at SpanishDict are good for explaining concepts.
Watch DVDs with the Spanish soundtrack enabled; listen to Spanish radio (stream from the internet via a browser), or watch telenovelas (also available via the internet) to help your listening skills.
The hardest thing for me is practicing speaking so that my pronunciation and active vocabulary improve.
Remember that Spanish is spoken for 332millions in 20 countries, being really fluent is not easy, Watch movies from different countries,talk to native spanish speakers from different countries, ask questions and always have in your mind that you are learning standard spanish, conversational language is full of regionalism,argot,dialects, etc,
The Greatest is right.
Also, listen to Spanish radio, watch movies, get a Skype tutor, and go to an immersion program if possible.
