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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 1 of 19 05 May 2012 at 9:39am | IP Logged |
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Oh, hey ho!
So...how many years since I joined this forum? Six and a half? Still plugging away at that Spanish but not really making a lot of progress? Yup! I'm not exactly a great prioritiser of my time...between university, practicing the piano, music theory, teaching, rehearsing and performing with various ensembles, taking care of day to day life, playing with my Beagle and spending time with my partner, I really struggle to find the time and energy to study Spanish as well. So every few months I'll get a chance and I'll feel pumped and do a bit of work and then BAM...it's forgotten about for several more months. My attempt to remedy this has been to take 2 Spanish units as part of my degree (I was stoked when they added them and pleased to get a pre-requisite exemption so that I can jump straight in at intermediate). So now I'll be killing 2 birds with one stone...yay! The unit starts on the 28th of May so I want to TRY and do some revision before then. I'm going to restart the active phase of Assimil and continue where I left off with the passive phase (53). Plus I'm going to continue reading El Principito, just a couple of pages at a time. So, here we go! Again... 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 2 of 19 05 May 2012 at 10:24am | IP Logged |
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Assimil:
Passive - 53, 54 Active - 1, 2 Edited by ymapazagain on 05 May 2012 at 10:38am 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| zhanglong Senior Member United States Joined 4937 days ago 322 posts - 427 votes Studies: Mandarin, Cantonese | Message 3 of 19 05 May 2012 at 3:32pm | IP Logged |
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Buena suerte!
So, don't hurt yourself over it. You have a full life. A lot of irons in the fire. Spanish has been around for more years than any of us have been alive. It will be here long after our great-grandchildren begin their language studies. So, here are some quick suggestions. Whatever you learn, USE it. Find a native speaker and just play with the language. Make it your own. Play with it. Second, find native materials in topics you are interested in. There is such a wealth of Spanish music materials. Learn some really cool love songs, or read articles about Spanish guitar, or take up a Salsa class that is taught in Spanish. Incorporate what you love to do with the language you are studying and you might find a way to keep Spanish near your heart and a part of your daily life. Also, have an iron-clad rule. Don't let the sun set without studying at least 15 minutes of Spanish. In other words, by 5:45pm, tell everyone and everything in your life that it's time for "Spanish Corner". Don't leave the house until you've brushed your teeth, gotten dressed, and done your 15 minutes of Spanish. Don't go to bed without doing your 15 minute Spanish break. Whatever time you choose, stick to it every day, like routine. The main idea is to get into a daily rhythm so that 1) you build upon what you did previously, and 2) you get a feeling of accomplishment from sticking to a schedule. Later you can boost it and do two fifteen minute sessions. If you get stuck, just come to the forum and talk to us. I'm sure you can find a native Spanish speaker to give you a hand. Ciao! 3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 4 of 19 06 May 2012 at 12:32am | IP Logged |
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Hi Zhanglong,
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! And thank you for the advice. The university units include one on one conversation time with the tutor, though this is only once a week. It would be good to tee up something on skype for more frequent conversations. This has made such a big difference to my progress in the past so it would be a great thing to do again. I have a whole shelf of Spanish novels that I can read (depending on the book it's usually "only" 10 or so dictionary look ups per page), and I do really want to read more of these, but reading puts me to sleep. I know that sounds silly! I love reading, I'm fascinated by the contents, I adore books...but put one in my hand, English or Spanish, and I'm asleep after a couple of pages. It does my head in! That's why I'm only working through El Principito in bite sized pieces. And you're right, even 15 minutes a day means a lot more progress then nothing! I just have to be determined to fit it in somewhere! Thanks again :o) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 5 of 19 06 May 2012 at 12:40am | IP Logged |
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Beagles...
My adorable little Beagle Porthos kindly decided to "re-model" my copy of Assimil. She has a thing for paper, and wow...what a special treat I left for her on the couch last night! 2 different types of paper all rolled up into one awesome little chewable bundle, just for her! The nice thick paper of the cover was the best bit, she chewed that up into loads of little pieces...so much fun! The actual book was a bit boring though, so she left that. Argh! At least I can still use the book, it's just looking a little worse for wear! Who would have thought such an adorable little creature could be such a terror, eh? 
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 6 of 19 06 May 2012 at 2:00am | IP Logged |
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Assimil:
Passive - 55 Active - 3, 4, 5 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| zhanglong Senior Member United States Joined 4937 days ago 322 posts - 427 votes Studies: Mandarin, Cantonese | Message 7 of 19 06 May 2012 at 2:52am | IP Logged |
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Yes, that dog has the face of pure evil.
¡Perra mala! (pero se ve muy simpática) :) 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| ymapazagain Senior Member Australia myspace.com/amywiles Joined 6967 days ago 504 posts - 538 votes Speaks: English* Studies: SpanishB2 | Message 8 of 19 06 May 2012 at 11:39am | IP Logged |
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Assimil:
Passive - 57,58,59 Active - 6 I find the units which contain idioms that don't translate well into English a little tricky, so unit 59 took a couple of extra repeats to get under my belt. Though I guess this would be similar for most people. I find it quite fascinating to learn new idioms which at first don't make any sense at all...like "vamos al ajo." I wonder how this expression came about. Could it be that garlic is such a central part of Spanish cuisine that it's "the point?" Uh...if that makes sense... It also gets me thinking about all of the weird and wonderful English idioms that, when you really stop and think about them, sound completely ridiculous! 1 person has voted this message useful |
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