How to study Spanish in your free time
Today’s blog will look at tips on how to study Spanish in your free time.
The secret to a successful language student is practice, practice, practice! There are a few things you can do in between lessons which would fast-track your progress as a Spanish speaker:
- Try to get newspapers and magazines in Spanish and read articles you are interested in. This will help you increase your vocabulary. Look up words you don’t know in a dictionary and make a note of them. For longer articles, don’t look up every word but try to get the general gist of the passage:
- Check out elcastellano.org for access to major newspapers in all the main Spanish-speaking countries
- Spanish newspapers and magazines:
- El País (www.elpais.es)
- El Mundo (www.el-mundo.es)
- ABC (www.abc.es)
- Latin American newspapers and magazines:
- Argentina: La Nación (www.lanacion.com.ar)
- Guatemala: Prensa Libre (www.prensalibre.com)
- Mexico: El Universal (www.el-universal.com.mx)
- Peru: El Comerico (www.elcomercio.pe)
- Watching Spanish television is a great way of improving your listening skills. After all, babies learn their native language by listening to it being spoken and then mimicking what they hear! Don’t be discouraged if you cannot understand at first since you may find that you understand the associated action, and gradually your confidence will improve.
- www.rtve.es: showing Spanish news, TV series and documentaries
- Listen to Spanish songs! Try to learn the words of the songs whilst you are listening. Click on the below image for Calle 13’s beautiful song:
- The humble post it note is a great teaching tool, especially for those who are visual learners. Stick post-it notes around your house with useful words and phrases. By sticking them in places you visit frequently, you will be surprised by how much your brain absorbs sub-consciously.