hola! does it really take 4 years to learn spanish??? im moving to malaga for a year and i'll be forced to speak spanish as its a non tourist area!i'm scared! i know quite a lot of words but i can't speak in sentences yet-does anyone have any tips? i was gonna memorise some "ready made sentences" for thye typical situations i'll be in(shpping, travelling, asking for directions etc), do u think thats a good idea?please help, i want to learn sooooo badly! thanks x

Sorry to be so personal, but how old are you? When I came here when I was 16 years old, it took me a couple of months to become conversational, although I had had 4 years of school spanish behind me. This time, as a...er...much older person, it's taking more than 2 years to get where I want to be (as in, it's been that long and I ain't there yet!). Of course, as a teenager I didn't strive for the professional level of Spanish that I do now, so it also depends on what your goals are.

As many people will tell you, you'll get out of it what you put in. Study hard, make lots of spanish friends, avoid speaking english and "cheating," read in Spanish, carry a notebook around with you etc etc, and you'll learn a lot faster.

OTOH, I know people who've been here a year and who know hardly any Spanish...they do not try and they don't have to because they made English-speaking friends.

A year of "forced" spanish sounds like plenty of time to make good progress.

Good luck!

Hi there Suzy. Sunny Glasgow? Maybe not, but a great place even so ? West End, the museums, the countryside etc.
I think the best advice for you would be to take a course as soon as you arrive in Malaga (I assume you're already taking lessons in Glasgow). Once you have a foundation of basic grammar and vocab you can build on it. Be warned, they do have a strong local accent in Andalusia. Coming from Glasgow this shouldn't scare you!!! Nae bother!!!

juliette, im 19. i didn't do spanish at school but now im so intersted in in and really want to learn.I dont go to classes but im sort of self teaching myself with books and cds. i don't think i'll be able to affors classes very often when i go to malaga because im only on an aupairs wage of 60 euros per week!

And, i have been told the accent is strong, but i'm definetly used to strong accents living in Glasgow! I can't imagine what they'll sound like in Malaga though!

Thanks for the luck- i think i might need it!

Thanks guys!
Suzy x

My friend lives in Madrid, if you want to get in touch with her, she may help you.
melinasant@hotmail.com

quote:

OTOH, I know people who've been here a year and who know hardly any Spanish...they do not try and they don't have to because they made English-speaking friends.

You're not referring to ME are you, Juliette??

Suzy,

A year is not much time in the scheme of things. However, you have two things on your side: First, you'll be 'immersed', surounded by Spanish speakers...take advantage of that as Juliette said. And second, because of your age your mind is much more pliable and will be able to accept the language with more ease.

This will all depend on your commitment, as Juliette said. You'll get out what you put in. I do recommend a bit of grammer, not just phrase books. I wouldn't suggest swamping yourself with it, just understand the way verbs are conjugated and the tenses. Obviously, vocabulary is important, learn as much as you can. Much of the rest of the language, articles and such can be tricky and take 'exposure' to get the hang of to use properly.

Understanding the conjugation of verbs can help when you hear new ones. Because you haven't had any formal exposure to the language, you are likely to hear verbs and not even realize they are verbs.

Anyway, this is my advice in summary:

1. Learn how to conjugate verbs (start off with present tense). Try just learning one of each type -

Hablar
Comer
Vivir

2. Learn how to conjugate these in each tense (there will be exceptions to these, called irregular, but get a foundation built and you'll be fine)

3. Practice vocabulary. Even just knowing the name of things can get you far. There are many instances in any language when simply providing the noun will be understood as a question. For example, you are in a store looking for towels, you can often just say 'towels' and a store employee will point you in the direction. This won't always work, but the more vocab you have the better.

I'm done.


T

If anybody is interested there are Spanish classes starting in Academia de Espanol, Diego Leon at the end of September. Its 12€ per year. The number is 917261664 or 917256032

normske,

Sound like it's too good to be true! Do you meet in a classroom, how many times a week and for how many hours each session? Are there books available or must they be purchased? How much are books? How many students per class?

Thanks,


T

Modigy,

Yes its classroom based. The tutor told me that there are around 15-20 students per class and two tutors per class. He said the number of people going to class drops as the year goes on.

There are 3 levels, basic, int and adv. Choice of morning, afternoon or evening. 4 days per week (mon to thur) and around 1.5 hours per day.

Book is around 12€.

Thats all I know really. Give them a call if you need more info.