Resources for Language Learners

 

Today was one of those really productive days! It was nice and sunny and I listened to Spanish podcasts (Duolingo Spanish and Learn Spanish & Go) for the full 90 minutes I was walking.

Last night I watched the movie I am Sam in Spanish (with English subtitles) on Netflix. It's really cool that I can pick to either listen to them speak in Spanish or have subtitles in Spanish so I can be continually learning as well as enjoying binge-watching a show. 

And while I was on this Spanish immersion roll, I went ahead and used the SpanishDict app to quiz myself with their 1000-word Beginner Spanish. I really like how they repeat any words you miss more often as you continue to go through the flash cards.

I know almost all of the words, but there are still some that I misspell or am continually mixing up, so it's really great to review them until they just become rote.

And, of course, I continued studying in Duolingo, making it Day 990 in my streak. Ten more days until I hit 1000!  

There are lessons and stories, but I especially like the Duolingo stories which always end with an amusing little twist.  "Eddie" is my favorite character. He's a single Dad, the father of "Junior" and he's kind of a dork. (I always feel a bond with dorks! I'm a dork myself, obviously. Only a dork would feel a bond with a fictional dorky character.)

In one of the stories, Eddy and Junior are dancing choreographed dances at a live band concert (I think that band was called Hot Pink from Japan).  Another father was there with his daughter and he was surprised that Eddie was there with his son because he said it was a band for girls.  But Eddie wasn't embarrassed or discouraged. He just said he thought it was for everyone and kept dancing.  In another story, Eddie's ex came into the gym with a hot guy, so Eddie tried to impress them by running fast on the treadmill.  He ended up falling and then was embarrassed. It turns out the hot guy was his ex's gay cousin who thought Eddie was cute.

All these apps are great for vocabulary, grammar, reading, writing, and even listening skills, but the area I have the most trouble with is conversation skills! It's so hard for me to speak with any fluency. However, ConversationExchange is another free app that allows you find a partner who you can practice with! In my case, I'm looking for a native Spanish speaker who wants to learn English.

I had a ConversationExchange partner a couple of years ago, but I was embarrassed at how bad my Spanish was, so we only met a few times.  It's time to try again. I was even able to narrow it down to find people in Costa Rica. Maybe I'll get to meet whoever I pair up with in person when I go out there in January!

I'm just floored by how many wonderful resources are available for learning Spanish, even while I'm here in the US.  Today I'm very grateful to be living in this digital age where there are so many amazing resources available to us for learning!