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Which programs to begin Spanish (again)? | ||
Tags: Language Program | Spanish | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Programs, Books & Tapes |  | |
| jody Senior Member United States Joined 6238 days ago 242 posts - 252 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: Russian, Bulgarian | Message 1 of 14 23 May 2011 at 7:26pm | IP Logged | ||
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Hi folks. After a really long time (2 years) hiatus, I am ready to start learning languages again. I'm probably at beginner to (very) early intermediate in Spanish and Russian. I want to begin again with Spanish and see it to fruition this time. My children, ages 7-10 also want to join me in learning. My question has definitely been asked before, but I wanted to ask a few specific questions and get it all in one place. Thanks for your replies, I look forward to reading them all.
What would you all recommend for beginning Spanish studies? I can get Pimsleur from my local library, and I like it very much. I've completed about half of the lessons (2 years ago) and I've just started them from the beginning again. I also have Teach Yourself (with audio) from the library. What other good choices do I have for me and the children? FSI? Can you help me find the link for FSI again? My bookmark is old and no longer works. What about Rosetta Stone? I know it's very expensive, and some people love it and others hate it. Is it worth the money? Am I forgetting a good program? Thanks for your comments, any help is very...helpful. :) 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| tractor Tetraglot Senior Member Norway Joined 5453 days ago 1349 posts - 2292 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, English, Spanish, Catalan Studies: French, German, Latin | Message 2 of 14 23 May 2011 at 8:38pm | IP Logged | ||
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A few of the usual suggestions: Assimil, Linguaphone, Living Language, Michel Thomas, FSI, Hugo, Cortina. Most
people here think Rosetta Stone is crap. You can find FSI here: http://fsi-language-courses.org/ 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| jhois777 Groupie United StatesRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 4963 days ago 43 posts - 47 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish, Portuguese | Message 3 of 14 24 May 2011 at 3:29am | IP Logged | ||
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I am in the same place as you. I am using Pimsleur and Michel Thomas which is working
out very well. Buenas suerte 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| jody Senior Member United States Joined 6238 days ago 242 posts - 252 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Russian, Bulgarian | Message 4 of 14 24 May 2011 at 6:44pm | IP Logged | ||
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Regarding the FSI, thanks for the link.
Would you recommend beginning with the Programmatic, Basic, or FAST program? What are the differences? 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| dbag Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5022 days ago 605 posts - 1046 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 5 of 14 24 May 2011 at 11:36pm | IP Logged | ||
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Hi
I have been learning Spanish since November of last year, so I am no expert. However, there are a few things I would do differently if I could go back in time. Firstly, I really, really wish I'd heard of Assimil when I started. I would really recomend you begin Assimil at the soonest possible opportunity. Michel Thomas is a good program for a painless introduction to the grammar. Apparently some people can speak really well after this course, but I think for most people its just a good introduction. Pimsleur is good but slow and expensive- much better in my opinion is a program called Learning Spanish Like Crasy, which is in the same vein as Pimsleur, yet is cheaper, moves faster and covers far more content. Just dont be put of by their marketing... I spent ages on this site trying to sift through the differences between the various fsi programs. It was difficult and confusing. In a nutshell: FAST covers very basic Spanish and is akin to a good phrasebook. Its basically just for those travelling to a Spanish speaking country who need enough language to get around. Programmatic certainly has its fans, but from what I can make out it was never completed, and was disliked by many at the FSI. Basic, I believe, is THE course. I sure I saw a post on here somewhere where it was refered to as the most complete language course ever. How true that is, I really dont know. I have Platiquemos, which is basically a more user friendly version of the BASIC course. Its another one I wish I'd started earlier. Extremly thorough, although its endless drills are somewhat daunting. If you search through the learning log section of the site you will come across one from a member called irationale, who became fluent in Spanish in a very short time by using this course. It seems that Assimil and Platiquemos are the two serious courses . I am attempting to use both. I really wish I had jumped into these two, months ago rather than waiting. I hope I've represented the above courses correctly (I sure someone will jump in if I have got anything wrong) and I hope the information will be of some use. Best of luck! Edited by dbag on 26 May 2011 at 4:58pm 7 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| akprocks Senior Member United States Joined 5286 days ago 178 posts - 258 votes Speaks: English* Studies: German | Message 6 of 14 25 May 2011 at 2:52am | IP Logged | ||
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Research 'Destinos', it's a really excellent program. Assimils not bad either though.
1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| tractor Tetraglot Senior Member Norway Joined 5453 days ago 1349 posts - 2292 votes Speaks: Norwegian*, English, Spanish, Catalan Studies: French, German, Latin | Message 7 of 14 26 May 2011 at 12:59pm | IP Logged | ||
The old Linguaphone Spanish course from the 1970s is serious too. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| dbag Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 5022 days ago 605 posts - 1046 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Spanish | Message 8 of 14 26 May 2011 at 4:56pm | IP Logged | ||
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@ tractor
I would love to try linguaphone out. I reckon i'l pick up a second set at some point just to see what its like. Have you used it? How much content does it have, and how far can you go with it in comparison to Assimil and Platiquemos? Edited by dbag on 26 May 2011 at 4:59pm 1 person has voted this message useful |
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