Bob

I believe that most high schools teach a foreign language in English but try to incorporate bouts of that language in speaking/listening activities. On the other hand, I think most colleges teach a foreign language in that language in an attempt for students to learn it "naturalistically."

The first method simply translates words and teach the grammar in English during class which is then used later in homework, projects, and activities. This helps clear confusion immediately so that students can focus on creating projects and completing activities, eventually being able to understand Spanish in everyday life. At that point, students are expected to have a Spanish-speaking environment to further reach for the goal of fluency.

The second method involves studying basic vocabulary at home, and then that language is spoken during class. Even the grammar and culture is taught in that language by using numerous examples to demonstrate a consistent rule that students may use. Any new vocabulary that the student is unfamiliar with is defined in that language. Sometimes, this may cause some confusion. The gist of this method is to immerse students in an environment that solely speaks in that language so that students can learn similar to a native speaker.

Which method do you believe is better? Why?

I think this is a great idea! Due to the amount of Hispanic people living in some areas of the United States, this will really help more people understand the logistics of Obama Care. If those people had brochures or something that explained Obama Care, the website can be extremely useful if listed.

Also, people learning Spanish should take a look at this. It would be great to see if you could understand governmental issues if you are at that level in learning Spanish. This can be a good resource to gauge the Spanish proficiency because if you can understand this, then you can probably make a living in a Spanish-speaking country.

Although there are large amounts of people who speak Spanish in the United States, I still believe that other languages shouldn't be ignored. If the government has the ability to do so, I think they should consider creating sites in more common languages such as Chinese, French, Japanese, Korean, and German because English isn't even the official language of the United States. The government has the duty to help anyone and everyone.

I think another is judgment. It also has a weird spelling rule because it could also be spelled as judgement with an "e" instead of judgment. I prefer to use judgement though. How do you guys spell it?

I was thinking of this too while browsing through the thread! I spell it "judgment" because I know it's right. It does feel extremely like "judgement" though, but I don't use that.

I know that another common misspelling is "misspell" because there are two "s"s. I find it amusing because it is funny when someone wants to point out something is misspelled and says it's "mispelled."

In addition to the three ways of asking questions in French presented by yurithebest1, I learned that there were also questions called "tag questions"

Example: Vous avez un livre.

• Intonation: Vous avez un livre?
  
• Inversion: Avez-vous un livre?
  
• Est-ce que: Est-ce que vous avez un libre?
  
• Tag: Vous avez un libre, n'est-ce pas?
  

Remember that the "inversion" way of asking questions needs a "t" in the middle of the verb and pronoun if the last letter of the verb is a vowel and the pronoun is "il" or "elle."

For example: A-t-elle un livre?

Here's what I know, and I hope it can help organize the information.

• Voy a + [location]. - I go to [location]. For example, voy a la escuela means I go to the school.
  
• Voy a + [infinitive]. - I am going to [infinitive]. For example, voy a comer means I am going to eat.
  
• Voy a ir a + [location]. - I am going to go to [location]. For example, voy a ir a la escuela means I am going to go to the school.
  
• Voy a ir a + [infinitive]. - I am going to go to [infinitive]. For example, voy a ir a comer means I am going to go to eat.
  

I think BWL has the right idea that the "voy a ir a + [infinitive]" indicates going to a new location to do the action.

In English, we often say both "I am going to eat" and "I am going to go eat." The correct usage of grammar would depend on the context, so one is not necessarily more correct than the other. "Voy a ir a + [infinitive]" and "voy a [infinitive]" have pretty solid translations into English, so for once you can judge your usage of Spanish grammar based on what you would say in English.

Well you probably won't be able to comprehend what they say without understanding what the words mean first. The first step is to learn basic Spanish vocabulary and grammar. As stated by others, flashcards can be an effective way to learn the vocabulary. The grammar is a bit tougher, so it should be learned out of a textbook or from a class. Of course, don't just immerse yourself in all the Spanish vocabulary and grammar. Start integrating essays, listening activities, and speaking exercises because these will truly help you learn conversational Spanish. All the while, keep adding new vocabulary words and grammar concepts to strengthen what you already know. This should create a fairly solid foundation.

Once you have a strong foundation of basic vocabulary and grammar, you should be able to pick up a few words or two when you listen to Spanish radio or television. This should improve because you keep learning new words and grammar. Talk to Spanish-speaking friends in order to get a feel for what conversational Spanish sounds like. Make the distinction between formal and informal Spanish so that you understand which words to use in what situation. If you keep this routine consistently, your Spanish should become very good.

Take that awesome Spanish you have learned to a foreign country! If you visit a Spanish-speaking country, you immerse yourself in an environment where there is a high demand for Spanish communication. This is the ultimate method to reach almost-native Spanish fluency. Don't be afraid to ask for the definition of words you don't know.

Using these steps, you should be able to speak Spanish very well. Keep in mind vocabulary is not the only aspect you will need to learn. Although it is important, your ultimate goal is to understand Spanish in daily life. Thus, you must integrate yourself into all aspects of Spanish to enjoy the Spanish movies, books, radio, and television.

I am not fluent in Spanish yet, but it is definitely one of my goals for the next few years! It is true that visiting a Spanish-speaking country for a few months can improve fluency very much. Most of the replies here cite this! I would definitely like to visit one of these countries. If I have the vocabulary and grammar down, then I should be able to comprehend most of what others say and reply in Spanish. I believe that if I can surround myself with a constant Spanish-speaking environment, I can become fluent.

So if you really want to be fluent in Spanish, learn for a few years to be able to understand everything. Then make one of the Spanish-speaking countries a place to visit, and you will almost reach near-native fluency.

One of my Spanish teachers actually encouraged us very much to watch telenovelas in Spanish. She was mostly someone who focused on listening to Spanish speech and talking in Spanish, so she gave us lists of Spanish channels and appropriate telenovelas for us to watch in our free time. Occasionally, she would even find a telenovela for us to watch in class for a few minutes. It really helps with colloquial, conversational Spanish because usually the curriculum does not teach the Spanish you would hear on the streets. I think it is a great way to pick up more casual Spanish if you already have a strong background in Spanish vocabulary and grammar.

The concern that one may have when watching Spanish telenovelas is that they may not be appropriate for younger Spanish learners. Most of the telenovelas are geared toward adults, so generally young learners do not get a chance to watch them as often. Still, it is a good way to practice listening skills while also enjoying the telenovela.