The Telenovela Method: After failing to learn a new language on FIVE separate occasions…I taught myself to speak Spanish like a native in just SIX MONTHS by watching movies and TV shows, listening to music, and reading books and comics like Garfield and Harry Potter…here’s how you can do it, too!
This simple, easy-to-learn secret that even the most linguistically-challenged can master literally overnight is used by many of the most respected and skilled polyglots and language teachers in the world, and it’s never really been laid out,...
What Should You Start With? Grammar, Vocabulary, Basic Expressions, Everything?!!
The hardest part about learning your first language is figuring out what precisely to do, where to begin, coming up with a plan, a course of study for yourself--what to do, and what order to do it in. This is one of those personal preference things, it really is:...
The Top 22 Ways You Know You’re a Language Nerd…
1. When you're looking for a book on Amazon about a language that you're currently interested in and you check out the ”Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought” section and realize that you own almost every single book in those 10-15 pages :/ 2. When...
The Scriptorium Method by Professor Arguelles
A Scriptorium (which literally means "a place for writing") is a room in medieval European monasteries devoted to the copying of manuscripts by monastic scribes. I'd like to share with you a language-learning technique that is not something I would...
List of Best Sites to Watch Spanish-Language TV/Videos Online (most are free to use)
Today I'm going to give you a list of my favorite websites that you can use to help you learn Spanish via watching television in Spanish (news, shows, telenovelas, whatever), almost all of which are entirely free. I've divided it up alphabetically by country. This...
My Favorite, and Most Common, Gringo Error in Spanish (aka “false friend”)
Embarazada. Ohhh how much you look like "embarrassed", embarazada. Any English-speaker would look at that word and immediately, and for obvious and perfectly logical reasons, guess that it means "embarrassed". Most times if a Spanish word looks very similar to an...
Linear vs. Global Learning – What’s Your Style?
There are essentially two language learning styles that people have, and it's not necessarily black or white, but they will typically have a preference for one or the other, usually a strong preference: global or linear. Most language teachers, in schools...
How Long Should I Study Every Day? How to Schedule It?
One question that beginners inevitably ask is "how long should I study every day?". I will save you a lot of my usual babbling and give you my personal opinion based on years of experience in foreign language learning right now: 30 minutes per day is the...
President Obama Wants You to Learn Spanish (short video)
Just found this, I smiled a bit, kind of funny ("Merci beau coup!" lol), but he's absolutely right: Most Western Europeans speak at least two languages fluently, and someone speaking 5 or 6 isn't the least bit abnormal or special over there at all. The...
How Much Grammar and Syntax Terminology Do I Need to Know?
Frankly? None. You can learn all the grammar you'll ever need for anything other than passing a test on grammar via context--meaning that you'll learn how to say things correctly simply from trial and error: speaking with native speakers, making mistakes, and being...
Fascinating Interview with Luca Lampariello, Italian Polyglot
Short post, just wanted to show you guys this video I came across, it's only about 5 minutes but there's a lot of insights and useful info there, I'd like to especially point out to you how much he emphasizes how important speaking is when it comes to...
How Many Words Do You Need to Know to Be Fluent in Spanish (or Any Foreign Language)? And Which Words Should You Be Learning?
This is going to start out a bit technical and academic, but I promise that if you'll wade through it you will be rewarded with some very useful practical information that you can use to significantly enhance your learning of the Spanish language, or any other second...
“To Have a Second Language is to Have a Second Soul” | Motivational Quotes for Students
Charlemagne (dude on the left) said that. I've heard before that learning a second language not only gives you a whole different and new way of thinking but, most importantly, it gives you an insight into the culture of the people who speak it that you would never...
A Quick Tip on Learning a Language In-Country
Stay out of capitals and especially stay the hell away from the touristy areas. I understand that you may need or want to go to those areas for a short period of time, but as soon as you can you need to get out of there if one of the primary purposes of your trip is...
What’s the Hardest Part? Speaking, Listening, Reading, or Writing? Where to Start?
At least he's trying! This is more relevant than you would think, in a roundabout sort of way, because the hardest aspect of learning a new language is also generally the most important one and therefore the one you need to focus on the most: speaking. It's the most...
Best Spanish Dictionary and Verb Conjugator
Just a quick short post here that I suspect will save a lot of you guys some time googling around and trying to find a Spanish dictionary and online verb conjugator that your like--I've tried a bunch of them, I've used Google Translate (too simple, often...
The Beautiful Simplicity of Spanish Verbs in Chart Form
This is awesome, you beginners out there really need to take heart and have a look at this, because I realize how daunting the way verbs are conjugated in Spanish is for beginners just starting out and trying to understand the language. I just saw it in...
Don’t use Smart.fm, Anki is 10 times better and simpler.
I just got an account on Smart.fm the other day and finally, about an hour ago, got around to trying it out: it sucks. Allow me to elaborate: I'm fairly computer/web saavy, I've used a billion different similar software/web interfaces before, I spent...
Some quick advice on using Anki
Edit [March 20th, 2013]: The tip below still applies, but I just got done doing a much more comprehensive post on what Anki is and how to use it complete with a video demonstration (by me) that I highly recommend you see here: My Most Important...
What the hell am I doing?
Below is me with all my Spanish-learning books (bookmarked and dog-eared to hell) and my precious Macbook and Sennheiser headphones... I've been haphazardly teaching myself Spanish on and off for about the past 3 1/2 years, starting out with Pimsleur because I had...
