High Quality
Open the downloaded document, and select print from the file menu (PDF reader required).
Beginning Spanish ‐ What Method is Best For You to Start Learning Spanish?
By
Rosana
Hart
My
friend
Jason
wanted
to
learn
to
speak
Spanish,
but
he
was
confused
about
how
to
go
about
it.
Should
he
take
a
class?
Maybe
he
should
study
Spanish
online,
but
there
were
so
many
websites
to
choose
from.
Since
he
worked
and
had
a
young
family,
he
didn't
have
much
time.
Maybe
he
shouldn't
begin
Spanish
right
now.
If
you
have
thought
of
starting
to
learn
Spanish,
what
approaches
have
you
considered
or
possibly
tried?
There
are
a
variety
of
methods
you
can
use
to
learn
to
speak
Spanish.
Here
are
five
of
them:
My
husband
and
I
have
had
so
many
friendly
conversations
all
over
Mexico
because
we
weren't
afraid
to
use
our
far
‐
from
‐
perfect
Spanish.
When
we
spent
a
month
in
Guanajuato,
we
often
bought
coffee
from
this
university
student.
•
Beginning
Spanish
classes
through
a
local
continuing
education
program
•
Online
Spanish
courses
•
Go
to
a
Spanish
‐
speaking
country
for
an
immersion
course
•
Taking
a
Spanish
course
on
mp3
files
you
can
carry
with
you
or
listen
to
in
the
car
Beginning
Spanish
Page
1
•
Working
with
a
multi
‐
media
Spanish
program
on
your
computer
Which
Method
of
Beginning
Spanish
Would
Be
Best
for
You?
Here
is
a
quick
description
of
the
pros
and
cons
of
each
method.
Really,
there
is
no
one
method
that
will
be
right
for
everyone.
You
have
to
consider
your
own
situation,
budget,
and
reasons
for
wanting
to
begin
Spanish.
(1)
TAKING
A
LOCAL
SPANISH
CLASS
The
routine
of
going
to
class
may
help
you
study,
but
if
you
want
to
learn
to
speak
Spanish,
this
is
not
usually
a
good
choice.
Classes
of
this
sort
tend
to
be
heavy
on
grammar
and
weak
on
conversation.
Also,
they
are
quite
time
‐
consuming
when
you
think
of
going
to
and
from
the
class
and
that
part
of
the
class
time
is
wasted
or
spent
on
helping
other
students
with
things
that
aren't
a
problem
for
you.
(2)
ONLINE
SPANISH
COURSES
This
is
quite
possible,
and
there
are
even
some
good
free
courses.
(3)
IMMERSION
COURSE
IN
A
SPANISH
‐
SPEAKING
COUNTRY
By
far
the
most
expensive
approach,
this
also
provides
a
vacation.
There
are
immersion
classes
in
virtually
every
Beginning
Spanish
Page
2
Spanish
‐
speaking
country.
These
vary
a
lot
in
quality,
so
do
your
research.
(4)
MP3
COURSE
Probably
the
most
convenient
method,
with
a
course
like
this
you
can
listen
to
it
from
your
computer
but
more
likely
you
will
listen
via
an
Ipod
or
similar
device,
or
through
a
car
stereo.
This
method
can
be
very
effective
for
learning
to
speak
Spanish.
If
you
also
want
to
learn
to
read
and
write
Spanish,
be
sure
to
select
a
program
that
also
has
books
or
workbooks.
(5)
MULTI
‐
MEDIA
COMPUTER
PROGRAM
In
this
approach,
you
interact
with
a
computer
program.
It's
nice
that
you
can
move
at
your
own
pace
from
one
lesson
to
the
next,
learning
as
you
go.
Some
of
the
programs
include
MP3
files
you
can
use
on
an
Ipod
or
similar
device.
These
programs
are
probably
the
very
best
way
to
begin
Spanish
on
your
own.
Pay
close
attention
to
the
differences
between
the
programs,
as
some
are
based
on
current
research
into
how
adults
learn
languages.
Once
you
decide
what
method
you
want
to
start
with,
you
can
move
on
to
the
next
step,
of
choosing
which
course
or
program
or
whatever
you
will
select.
Jason
chose
a
multi
‐
media
computer
program
with
add
‐
on
MP3
files.
What
will
you
choose?
There's
no
reason
you
should
give
up
on
your
dream
of
beginning
Spanish,
even
if
you
are
very
busy.
Visit
my
website
Beginning
Spanish
Page
3
Add a Comment