Finding similarities between the Spanish words you are learning and English words in your vocabulary is one of the most effective ways of expanding your knowledge of the new language. When you start learning Spanish, many of the words you come across from lesson one look similar in both languages, or even identical: individual, mineral, hora, presentar, teléfono, momento, electrónico, radio, recomendar, salmón, limón, apartamento and countless more. Those will be easy to learn and to remember, and a great boost to your motivation. In my experience both as a Spanish teacher and as a student of foreign languages, what is even more encouraging is finding less obvious connections between words in both languages. For instance, have you noticed that the Spanish word for ‘beef’ and ‘cow’ (vaca) has the same origin as the English word ‘vaccine’?; or are you aware of how many English words share their origin with the Spanish numbers: unity (uno), duo (dos), trio (tres), quartet (cuatro), sexagenarian (seis), September (seven), octopus (ocho), November (nueve), December (diez)?Once you have seen those similarities, you are more likely to remember the new Spanish words without effort because your brain works by making associations. If you have ever tried to learn lists of Spanish words without context or associations you will know what a hopeless endeavor that is. That is why I always teach Spanish vocabulary to my students by connecting the new words to other words they already know. Even if you have only just started learning Spanish, making those connections will be one of your greatest allies. They will save you precious time and energy, and will transform the learning process into a game and an enjoyable challenge. The problem, however, is that if you are a beginner, or even if you have already reached an intermediate level, finding similarities between English and Spanish words might not always be easy. A good Spanish language course, however, should point at those similarities, as well as guide you through the most efficient vocabulary learning techniques. To show you how much faster you can learn new Spanish words by associating them to other words you are familiar with, here are twenty-five everyday Spanish words. In brackets I have given you the English translation and on the right is the English word of the same origin as the Spanish:lavadora (washing machine) – lavatorymicroondas (microwave) – undulatecongelador (freezer) – to congealbebida (drink) – beveragecaña (small beer) – canecopa (glass) – cupmanta (blanket) – mantlevino (wine) – vineyardtinto (red [wine]) – tinctureterraza (balcony) – terracemarisco (shellfish) – marinaquerer (to want) – to querycarne (meat) – carnivoreprimero (first) premiercasa (house) – casinotener (to have) – tenantantes (before) – antenatalequipaje (luggage) – to equiphabitación (room) – cohabitationlavaplatos (dishwasher) – lavatory, platemandar (to order) – mandateordenador (computer) – orderencantado (delighted) – enchantedlibre (vacant) – libertycarta (menu) – cartographyCan you connect other Spanish words you know to English words of the same origin? What about ‘pasillo’, ‘fumador’, ‘último’, ‘pescado’, ’suavizante’, ’sombrilla’?
Posts Tagged ‘Spanish Teacher’
Learn Spanish fast – find similarities between English and Spanish words
January 7th, 20103 Tips For Learning A Foreign Language At Home
January 5th, 2010Did you study a foreign language in school? Spanish, French, Italian? Did you enjoy yourself? Or was it an experience that you’d rather forget?
You have to answer these last two questions honestly because they reveal a lot about how you will do the second time around.
There are many people who can’t learn a foreign language in a classroom. I was one of them. I studied French in high school, dropped it in college and then decided to study Spanish once I graduated. No formal teaching, no homework assignments, no calls home for bad grades.
Now I’m a Spanish teacher, married to a Spaniard and raising our children bilingually. And it all happened outside the class.
If you’re one of these people and have no desire to return to the classroom, then you have to make the most of your studies on your own.
It’s not easy at first. Studying a foreign language requires discipline and an awareness of important tips and tricks that can reduce the frustration and disappointment.
Here are three that are at the top of my list:
1) Understand how to learn – This may seem like a simple point but it’s worth its wait in gold. Understand that things take time. Patience is probably more valuable than your conjugations.
Too many people quit studying foreign languages after becoming discouraged with their progress. If you feel that you should progress everyday, you’re mistaken. If you feel you should make great strides each week, you’re mistaken.
You will learn slowly but surely at first and then there will come a point when you’re learning will accelerate. No one knows when. Just be patient and know that good things are happening in the depths of your brain.
2) A little studying each day is better than a lot of studying for a few days. – This is self-explanatory. You are much better off putting in 5 minutes a day when you really don’t feel like it than waiting a week and then studying for 2 hours.
The 5 minutes everyday can be anything you like. You could listen to a song in the foreign language, read the comics in the language, learn curse words in the language. As long as you’re connecting with the language in some way, you will benefit.
3) Find many ways to study. – By this I mean, listening one day, reading another, and so on. The trick to studying a foreign language on your own is to have many ways to both learn and entertain yourself. This way, you’ll always have at least one thing you can do each day to keep your momentum going.
If you know your learning style then do the majority of your learning using that style. After all, it’s the one that comes naturally to you.
In closing, knowing how to study a foreign language on your own is the most difficult part of the adventure. Discipline and desire are needed throughout. If you think you have what it takes, get to it. I did and I’m as fluent as can be. And loving it!
Learning Spanish Language Software – an Easy Language Course?
October 14th, 2009Learning Spanish language software is another way we can easily learn how to speak another language. Spanish is becoming more and more important with regards to business as well as traveling. Thinking of learning Spanish? Read the following review.
Quick overview
Learning Spanish language software is mostly about quickly memorizing and linking between images/scenes to words and phrases and their correct pronunciation by a native Spanish narrator. If we carefully examine why this technology became so popular in recent years, we will find out that one of the reasons is the fact that it combines interactive multimedia in the learning process which makes it easier, fun, and effective.
Our mind memorizes images and voices better than plain text, which is why many of these solutions use the following educational techniques: ‘Motivating’ interactive lesson plans, audio-based lessons, and progress tracking.
What is in it for us?
We can quickly find several main benefits while using these solutions:
- ‘Simulates’ everyday situations.
- Based on short and quick lessons that keep you focused and motivated.
- Transforms a tedious task as learning a new language fun, enjoyable, and effective.
We could list many other important advantages provided by these computer-based programs, simply because Spanish rapidly becomes the second most important language in the United States for day-to-day communication and for doing business.
Among European languages Spanish is considered quite easy and thanks to these solutions, learning Spanish becomes easier than ever, enabling us to expand our horizons by acquiring this important communication tool.
Summary
Learning Spanish language software is a new technology that can help most us acquire basic-intermediate Spanish speaking skills. Can this technology provide better results than learning from a human Spanish teacher? Probably not, but it helps with the necessary skills required for a basic-intermediate conversational Spanish.
By: Jason W.
