Peninha

Language barriers are pretty much like any other barriers, we can overcome them with time and effort. If we make an effort to learn the language we will learn more and more and there will be no barriers left.

Audio tapes help a lot, not only with the grammar itself, but also with audiobooks or audio content from a level we can understand, it's really effective.

I don't think babies can be taught languages, I think babies can't focus on anything we tell them, they just learn from the example. Up from 3-4 maybe they have some abilities to learn in a structured way.

I can't recall the last time I've used a paper dictionary, they are simply no longer necessary in my opinion, at least for those who have a computer connected to the internet, it's far more easy to use an online translator or dictionary.

Any visual stimulation is always more friendly that just text text text, but everything considered a letter can be considered an image, just after we learn that letter it's no longer an image...

That is really interesting, but I am not a native speaker so I can't apply. Trellum, what other sites are you referring to?

I want to teach my kids everything I know and that includes languages. English for example I already explain to them some words they can understand and that they see on the TV or in the computer, slowly they start learning it.

All languages have that I believe, the Portuguese case is pretty similar to the French one, we say "Obrigado" (thank you) and the answer is "de nada" (de rien, It's nothing (not worth mentioning it).

I am Portuguese and Portuguese is my preferred language! :wacky: Apart from Portuguese I manage to speak English and Spanish, but I have no special preferences. I deslike French for some reason, the sound seems to bother me, it's something I can't explain.

It's a great way of entertainment to flirt in a foreign language, I think we all did it at some point in our lives. I still remember being a "kid" and know the sentence ich liebe dich, knowing that it was something flirty lol!

That tip is first to me, but at the same time it doesn't surprise me because we know that being exposed to a language makes it easier for us to learn it. If we know the sounds and we listen to the structure it's almost half way to learning it.

I would love that my wife spoke a language I didn't, I really would because she would teach me and I would have an easy time learning it. Go for it, ask for his help, you can learn a whole lot easier.

I am Portuguese and most songs I listen are in English, so it's not hard to guess that most songs I listen to are in English. Apart from the music being good, I love to listen to the lyrics, trying to understand what they are saying, pretty stimulating!

Losing a language is something really sad because it means we are losing something that cost us really hard to achieve. So if we do treasure a language we should find ways to keep it alive, we must practice it or we will forget it.

I don't find correct grammar or speaking very important, I think the most important is that we communicate well. Having this said, at a professional level it's very important that we express ourselves correctly, depending of course of our area of activity.

I don't write on myself either, it's rather pointless unless it's something really urgent and there is no other place. I do draw watches on my kids wrists from time to time, or smilies on their fingertips.

I think we all use slang when we are not in our professional situations, it's just a way to putting more emotion and expression to our speech. I think it's possible to use slang without being disrespectful.

Good ones there Eppie, I never knew the true meaning of Banana Republic, I though it just meant a place where anyone could do what they wanted to. As cool as cucumber is totally new for me, nice one.

Lisbon is a beautiful city with loads of beautiful buildings, I would have a hard time picking one, but this looks really nice.

LOL, very good one, I am sure your boyfriend loved that one! :grin: I think that flirting in a foreign language is great, better than doing it in our native language. Check out English for example, they love so easily, love this, love that, while in Portuguese amor is a much harder word to say...

I NEVER use my dictionary, it has no use nowadays. It's a pretty old one I brought from my parents almost 20 years ago, but now I just check online for the meaning of words.

Languages are like everything else, use it or lose it! In languages this is particularly true because there are so many aspects in a language that it's very easy to forget it if we are not practicing it.

I think I have an accent, but I don't know which one. I think people notice more my poor grammar (I am Portuguese) rather than my accent lol.

Mira que nunca tengo visto una belly dancer al vivo, me parece my agradable a la vista! :grin: Cuanto al hotel exactamente no te sé decir, pero todo Algarve es muy belo, tienes de visitar!

Hola Monika, welcome to linguaholic! I speak some Spanish, so if you have any question just ask or post it in the Spanish forum. I hope you have a great time here.