Spanish Outside the Classroom

After completing one semester of Spanish, I realized something about learning a foreign language. Incorporating the language is a very important aspect. A person needs to use that language outside of the classroom. It can help that person understand and learn the language better. Why learn a language and never use it outside of the classroom?  Here are tips to incorporate Spanish in your life. These tips could also be applied to learning other languages. I use Spanish as an example since I am learning it.

·         Watch a Movie/tv show in Spanish. This can help you get used to hearing the language.  I like to watch movies/tv shows in Spanish with English subtitles. It helps me learn new words. I like to watch children tv shows in Spanish because I find them more interesting to watch than Spanish soap operas.

·         Read in Spanish. I like to read signs that are in Spanish and English. First I try to read it in Spanish and figure out what it means. Then I read the English portion and see how much I translated correctly.  I liked to read social media post in Spanish too. Spanish books and newspapers are great avenues to practice reading in Spanish.

·         Talk with a Friend. Find a person to practice speaking Spanish. In person, call, and video chat are ways to practice speaking Spanish. This can help you gain confidence speaking the language and practice pronunciation.

·         Write in Spanish. I like to text people in Spanish. Writing in Spanish makes you practice your knowledge onto paper.  Writing a letter or email is another great way to practice writing in Spanish.

I hope these tips can help you. These tips help me incorporate Spanish in a fun way.I would love to hear how you incorporate a new language outside of the classroom.

7 deadly sins found in Spanish Class.

I just finished my first semester of college and  I am very happy to be done. This past semester I took Spanish I. I enjoyed this class very much. As the semester progressed, I noticed some "sins" that my class would do( including myself). This post is to help others who are learning Spanish. I am not saying that I am an expert in the language. These are the things I learned this past semester that I think are important to remember.

1- Do not pronounce H in Spanish. For example, the word hola is pronounced without the H sound.

2- This applies to writing in Spanish. Forgetting accent marks on certain words.

3-  This also applies to writing. Forgetting to start a question with a upside down question mark.

4- Forgetting to make a y sound when pronouncing  words that begin with a double L.

5- Saying or writing yo gusto. Conjugating verbs in Spanish is very important. Knowing the definition of the verbs is also important.

6- Not doing or forgetting homework. I learned doing the homework was very important. It helped me to retain the information and learn it..

7- Not using as much Spanish as possible. I was guilty of doing this past semester. I would forget to speak in Spanish. I learned that oral practice helped me learn the language.

Remember these "sins" because it can help you in Spanish 1 class.

I would love to hear your comments about Spanish class and tips for learning.