The Learn Spanish Project

Learn Spanish for Free

2009-12-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

While in the tweetiverse, I read a tweet from RUbetweenjobs, the creator of Rock Unemployment about a website called Rent. Food. Broke. It's a site maintained by a few unemployed, underemployed, and otherwise broke friends living in Los Angeles. They write about all things relating to unemployment in a humorous, yet practical way. Here's a post from Rent. Food. Broke. that plugs the resources of the Los Angeles County library system: "The Library: Where Freeloading is Encouraged". This article reminded me of all the wonderful (and free!) language learning resources that can be found at the library. In fact, most public libraries carry the Pimsleur Spanish audio series, Spanish textbooks, and other resources related to learning Spanish.

Learn Spanish for Your Nanny

2009-12-16T15:38:00.000-08:00

This video is not only hilarious, but it's also a reminder of why all Spanish students should learn some Spanish slang words and slurs.
I found this "Spanish for Your Nanny" YouTube video from a post on the Learning Spanish Blog . It has inspired me to find a good Spanish slang/ swear words resource and start studying pronto! I will post more about learning Spanish slang at a later time. This video contains some strong (but hilarious!) language, so watch it at your own discretion.

Learning Spanish with Pimsleur Spanish I

2009-12-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

I must say, I love the Pimsleur Spanish I audio series. This has been my constant companion since I decided to start learning Spanish.
I purchased Pimsleur Spanish I about four years ago, but I never finished the audio disks. Basically, Pimsleur Spanish I consists of 15 audio CDs containing 30 one-half hour lessions. When I purchased the program, I wanted something that would get me understanding and speaking the language quickly. It's a great CD to pop in the car (or burn into an MP3and play on your I-Pod). I think that it's probably a good starting point for someone like me.

I have heard others complain that Pimsleur doesn't have enough vocabulary, but I like the fact that it's not bombarding me with long vocabulary lists. Besides, anyone using the program can supplement their vocabulary with other (free!) online Spanish language learning resources or by doing another program like Rosetta Stone or Livemocha simultaneously. I've also started using Livemocha, a free online resource, and I'll post more about my experiences with it later.

I'm happy to say that I'm now on lesson 23 out of the 30 Pimsleur I lessons. I just might manage to finish this program before Christmas! I would love to surprise the he!l out of some of my bilingual family members during the holiday with the new mad language skills I've acquired! (Or at least have a simple conversation in Spanish. Okay, that's probably more realistic...) :)

P.S. The Spanish I - 2nd Rev. Ed.: Learn to Speak and Understand Spanish with Pimsleur Language Programs (Comprehensive) (English and Spanish Edition) can be found at Amazon.com.

I Have to Learn Spanish

2009-12-14T09:30:00.000-08:00

Bienvenidos!

Learning Spanish has always been on my "to do" list. (I would say bucket list, but saying that at the age of 30 seems a little bit premature.) Like so many people in recent months, I am suffering from a bout of unemployment. Learning another language seems like the perfect project to not only keep me busy but also increase my marketability as a job hunter. I've decided to learn Spanish since the number of Spanish speakers in the United States continues to grow every day. Even in my small Midwestern town, I hear people speaking Spanish on almost a daily basis.

I hope to share my experiences as a self-study Spanish language student. I will explore various Spanish lessons and language resources for others who are trying to learn the Spanish language as well as other languages. I invite you to join me on this language learning journey!