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Spanish -B1 by November 2014 | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| slikew Groupie United States Joined 4065 days ago 79 posts - 95 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 1 of 58 28 October 2013 at 5:18pm | IP Logged |
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My goal is to reach the B2 level of Spanish by December 2014. I studied Spanish grammar
for one year in university, finishing in 2009. I was able to visit several Spanish speaking countries the following year. I was quite disappointed with my level of Spanish, when in actual practice. In large, I gave up and have only since returned to trying to learn Spanish. My goal is to pass the B2 level by December 2014. **I have since lowered my goal to a B1 by November 2014** Background - 1 year Spanish grammar, brief travel to Peru, Panama, Dominican Republic and Honduras - Recently completed Coffee Break Spanish Seasons 1 and 2 (80 Episodes) - Currently on Unit 7 of FSI Basic Spanish - Destinos - Language learning videos- Episode 15 Current Level - I passed the A1 level exam that was free on the DELE website. I passed all of A2 Level except listening, which I have not had time to do. This was for goal setting purposes and gauging my current level of Spanish Resources at my disposal - FSI Basic Spanish - Spanish speaking friends - Internet Methodology -Studying 2 FSI units a week (2 days/each) and reviewing both on Fridays. I don't allow myself more than 10 mistakes per recording. I rest on weekends -Spanish speaking friends I meet with 1 hour a week (I achieve 95% listening and 5% speaking) -Meet up with Panamanian friend for lunch once every other week (I achieve 60% speaking and 40% listening) -Read NVI Bible (1 chapter/day, cross reference words with Reina Valera 1960 Bible) -LearnPracticalSpanishOnline.com - Beginner short readings (10 beginner readings/ week) This website has interesting short readings broken into beginner, intermediate and advanced categories Edit: Resource added Edited by slikew on 05 June 2014 at 10:39pm 4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| slikew Groupie United States Joined 4065 days ago 79 posts - 95 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 2 of 58 29 October 2013 at 2:15pm | IP Logged |
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I'm quite excited to see that two other users have Spanish logs with the stated goal of reaching a B2 level in Spanish by Fall/Winter 2014. I think this will help motivate me. See below for a list of those users with a similar goal.
Caymane - Spanish B2 By September 2014 - Located in United Kingdom Samfrances -Spanish B2 By November 2014 - Located in United Kingdom Slikew(me)- Spanish B2 By December 2014 - Located in United States It will be interesting to compare what programs and methods are used by each of us, as well as the progress and time spent by the end of the project. I have a feeling that our respective physcial locations and proximity to particular Spanish speaking countries will play a big part in the choice of programs. I stopped using Notes in Spanish as well as the Show Time Spanish, becuase these programs are aimed at Castillian Spanish. When I tried to use the colloquial terms and phrases offered in these courses with a Panamanian friend, he had no idea what I was saying. I will definitely be using resources that focus more on Latin America Spanish. Buen suerte. Edited by slikew on 29 October 2013 at 2:21pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| slikew Groupie United States Joined 4065 days ago 79 posts - 95 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 3 of 58 29 October 2013 at 2:47pm | IP Logged |
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Comparison of Resources for Caymane, Samfrances and Slikew (me) - for easy comparison and reference for information purposes
Caymane - Resources (Unsure of Hours/week) Anki flashcards (Have not used for some time but I feel it's good to refresh my methods so will start again) Skype to talk with natives via 50/50 language exchange. (This is always the important and difficult part!) A native "text" with audio to follow along with like a book or podcast. Native material, news websites, books, pod-casts. (I usually set a time limit for these and focus on words/ set phrases that are common in the text) And in the future I will get a private tutor to asses my level and give advice on areas I'm having difficulty with. SamFrances - Resources (20 Hours/week) 00:26:15 Destinos (video course) 01:44:08 Duolingo lessons 01:39:14 Flash cards 01:50:10 Free reading 01:30:00 Evening class 03:34:36 Evening class homework and follow-up 01:16:20 Learning Spanish Like Crazy 01:31:40 Learning with Texts 01:54:31 Michel Thomas 00:20:17 Notes in Spanish 01:14:00 Pimsleur 00:04:10 Schaum's grammar 00:35:00 Skype conversation / lesson 01:37:03 Spanish TV or film without subtitles 00:10:12 Verbarrator 00:41:17 Writing flash cards Slikew (me) Resources (9.0 Hours/Week Estimate) FSI Basic Spanish Program (2 lessons/week) Destinos (trying for 1-2 episodes/week) One on One talks with Panamanian friend (1 hour every other week) Spanish Church Service (once weekly/ 1.5 hour service and casual speaking to Native Speakers before and after service) Spanish Bible (NVI and Reina Valera 1960) 1 Chapter/day from NVI - cross checking with Reina Valera for different word usages (Vocabulary expansion) Learn Practical Spanish Online - Beginner Level Reading material (10 Readings/Week) Edit: Updated Info and Slikew hours/week study time Edited by slikew on 29 October 2013 at 6:53pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| slikew Groupie United States Joined 4065 days ago 79 posts - 95 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 4 of 58 30 October 2013 at 2:27pm | IP Logged |
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I studied FSI Unit 7 on Monday and Tuesday. In the past, I didn't need to review the reading before I jumped into the lesson. This time, I was completely lost on Monday and found myself just repeating what I could understand. I reviewed the written material briefly that evening to understand what was going on. This really helped me for last night’s pass through Unit 7. I read through all of the text out loud on my own and this helped greatly.
Read Chapters 1-2 of the Gospel of John using the Biblia NVI. Read three short readings from Learn Practical Spanish Online (the stories are becoming more familiar and I'm able to visualize each one a bit better now- like playing a movie in my mind) Watched Episode 15 of Destinos Notes: FSI - I have never truly understood the use of este,esta,ese,esa,aquel,aquella as compared to esto, eso and aquel. Unit 7 deals with this, so it may be a unit that I refer back to in the future in order to solidify the usage of these words. According to the Lonely Planet Latin American Spanish book, esto, eso and aquel are general, easy words when simply referring to something (off the cuff). The use of the other words are for specifying objects in relation to the 1) speaker 2) the person/people being spoken to 3)places/location very distant from both the speaker and the person/people being spoken to. Did anyone else have issues learning the usage of these "two" groups of words? Destinos - It might be good for me to watch an episode twice to really understand the material. I have difficulty with the Argentinian accent, as I'm not used to it. I have found the Mexican/American lawyer's as well as the mainland Spain accents are easier to understand. On a side note, I think the most hilarious accent was the Spanish cab driver in the first episode or two during the Spain adventure phase. I had to listen to that guy quite a few times. Edit: UpdatedDestinos Edited by slikew on 30 October 2013 at 2:39pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| slikew Groupie United States Joined 4065 days ago 79 posts - 95 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 5 of 58 01 November 2013 at 2:01pm | IP Logged |
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Friday Update
Language Instruction/ Listening: I've gone through FSI units 7 and 8 and will be using today to read through the entire transcripts again as well as go through the drills and listen to the dialogs. I was able to watch two episode of Destinos last night (16 and 17). I'm beginning to better understand the Argentinian accent. Reading: I've been able to read a few of the Practical Spanish readings and read the gospel of John chapter 3. I found 17 words that I did not know in this chapter, so this is turning out to be a really great vocabulary builder. Speaking: An Ecuadorian works for the same company as I do, and I was able to have a short conversation with him on the way to our cars. Also, I was able to ramble out a few words at the Home Depot to a Spanish speaking employee. Extras: I passed by Home Depot to get a few light bulbs. While I was there, I remembered that there is a free Spanish language magazine for builders called "Constru-Guia." This won't be very useful for me right now, but I hope to go through things like this as well as books, and magazines later on in my language learning. I have been using Duolingo throughout the day and been brushing up on the basics. I find this quite beneficial. Words: Does anyone know how many words that Duolingo claims to hold? Also, does anyone know how many words FSI Basic Spanish teaches? Notes: Destinos - I noticed that the Argentinian doctor has been using the word "vos" when speaking informally to the Mrs. Rodriguez. I know a few Hondurans who also use "vos." Is there a special conjugation for the word "vos?" Edit: Spelling and update. Edited by slikew on 01 November 2013 at 2:05pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| James29 Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 5367 days ago 1265 posts - 2113 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: French | Message 6 of 58 02 November 2013 at 1:50pm | IP Logged |
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Hey... good luck with those FSI lessons. I just read your log. There are tons of great Bible resources out there. There are free downloadable audio books in Spanish and there are tons of good translations into Spanish. I downloaded the Dios Habla Hoy audio and used it. It is the easiest of the audio Bibles. Now it is available free on youtube. Also, I don't know your exact level of Spanish, but getting a bilingual Bilingual can be a big help. The New Life Version is SUPER simple. It is written at roughly a 3rd grade level and has English and Spanish translations side by side.
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| LeadZeppelin Diglot Groupie United States Joined 5013 days ago 59 posts - 85 votes Speaks: English*, French Studies: Spanish | Message 7 of 58 03 November 2013 at 1:32am | IP Logged |
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I'm in a pretty similar situation. I want to move to Latin America in early 2015. I'm probably shooting for about a B2
level. :) Good luck with your studies! I'll be sure to follow your log. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| samfrances Groupie United Kingdom Joined 4044 days ago 81 posts - 110 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 8 of 58 04 November 2013 at 11:43pm | IP Logged |
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Good luck with reaching your goal. Regarding duolingo, I don't know how many words it teaches, but they have published an effectiveness study which might shed some light on the matter.
http://static.duolingo.com/s3/DuolingoReport_Final.pdf 1 person has voted this message useful |
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