Cacho's Spanish Word Blog

What is the Fastest Way to Learn Spanish?

Cacho — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 04:10:48 +0000

Good question, amigo. Why waste time with lousy study techniques? Be smart. Study efficiently.

My colleague Kim McConnell, an experienced Spanish teacher, just posted a good article with a few of her best tips on how to learn Spanish in the shortest amount of time possible.

One of her tips, which I agree with whole heartedly, is that you really need to take a proactive approach to studying. Don’t be lazy. It is much better to do the hard work of writing or translating Spanish than to simply read or listen to Spanish (that’s too easy and doesn’t train your brain for conversation.)

Here’s the link to Kim’s article on the fastest ways to learn Spanish.

Jetset Spanish Review

Cacho — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 21:22:53 +0000

My colleague, Kim McConnell, recently reviewed Jetset Spanish, a new video-based series of lessons for beginner Spanish students, and wrote this Jetset Spanish review.

Kim is a teacher and tutor who likes to stay on top of the latest developments in Spanish instruction. What she found with Jetset Spanish, in a nutshell, is that it is a good course for beginner students who are too shy or intimidated to start speaking basic Spanish in real situations, such as in a classroom setting.

Like Kim, I have also found that some students hate making mistakes in front of other people. However mistakes are inevitable when learning a new language. In fact, you will make thousands of them!

Jetset Spanish, because it uses a video format, helps get students over the hump and gain some confidence with the new language without having to face any of the fear or embarrassment that comes with saying inaccurate or silly things.

Here is Kim’s review of Jetset Spanish.

A Few Reasons Why Now is a Good Time to Learn to Speak Spanish

Cacho — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 20:50:39 +0000

Thinking about learning a second language? Spanish would be an excellent choice, especially if you have friends or business partners who speak it.

The Spanish language is one of the world’s most important languages, spoken by people in many parts of the globe. It is commonly spoken and understood. More than 400 million people call Spanish their native language. Mexico, Columbia, Panama, Cuba, Spain, Chile, Uruguay — these are just a few countries where Spanish is the dominant language.

But just because many people speak the language, that is not the only good reason why you should learn Spanish.

Number one, it’s fairly easy to learn the Spanish language. English and Spanish share some vocabulary. (These shared words, like “taxi” or “opinion” are called cognates.) English speakers find the grammar easier than Slavic languages like Russian or Asian languages like Japanese or Mandarin. Pronunciation is not too hard either. Not nearly as hard as mastering Mandarin Chinese tones, for example. Think about how hard it must be for foreign language speakers to pronounce English words. Many English words look nothing like they sound. Take, for example, words like “thought” or “knight”. Spanish words are pronounced exactly as they are written. There are no tricks to cross you up and confuse you.

Spanish is a great language for travel since it’s spoken in many of the popular travel destinations like Cancun, Punta Cana, and Ibiza. The capability to speak the native language makes travel easier. Fewer misunderstandings and potential problems crop up. And you can have more interaction with local residents.

Did you know that learning Spanish will sharpen your mind? Learning any new language, including Spanish, is good mental exercise. Studies have shown that studying a new language can prevent mental aging, keeping you sharp-thinking well into your latter years of life.

Speaking a second language feels good. You will have a wonderful sense of accomplishment. Your self-confidence will rise, and for good reason.

Spanish is a key that unlocks the door to new friendships — possibly even romantic ones! You’ll meet new study partners. You’ll meet teachers and tutors. Some people become pen pals. Others practice via messaging.

Would you believe that Spanish can be monetarily lucrative for some. Maybe it will help you find a new career. Being able to speak a second language looks good on your resume and could open doors for you in a globalized economy.

More Information on Rocket Record

Cacho — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 22:16:00 +0000

I received some additional information on the new Rocket Record pronunciation tool from Mauricio at Rocket Languages. Rocket Record will be part of the Rocket Spanish Premium Plus course as of June 21st. Here’s what Mauricio has to say:

Last time we spoke I told you about the brand new Rocket Record,
the latest feature of Rocket Spanish Premium Plus, that lets you
record and refine your pronunciation!

Today we’re going to have another look at just what Rocket Record
does.

Do you want to improve your Spanish accent, rhythm, and
comprehension? Then the answer is Rocket Record!

Rocket Record is the newest upgrade to Rocket Spanish Premium Plus,
that makes it easier than ever to get the sound of your Spanish
language absolutely perfect. By listening to the way the Spanish
host says the words, and looking at the wave-form produced by
Rocket Spanish’s amazing voice mapping interface, you get a clear
picture of the way the words are supposed to pronounced.

Then you get to record yourself saying the word, and watch the
shape of the wave form that you make. Match up your wave-form with
the one produced by the host and you’re there. Perfect
pronunciation!

Go to Rocket Languages website

Best Price on Rosetta Stone Spanish

Cacho — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 22:50:24 +0000

“Where can I get the best price on Rosetta Stone Spanish?” I get this question a lot. Rosetta Stone is one of the most expensive Spanish learning tools on the market so it’s not surprising. The course retails for $479 for the complete course, levels 1 to 5.

In my experience, you can find the best price on Rosetta Stone Spanish on eBay.

You can buy new or used on eBay. If you want to save money you can often get a used copy pretty cheap. Be sure to check the version number though. You will probably want a current version.

Sometimes copied or pirated versions are sold. These are usually sold from sellers located in Asian countries at ridiculously low prices. Avoid them. Rosetta Stone went to a lot of effort and expense to create this excellent Spanish course and it’s not right to rip them off. Buy the authentic software from a legit seller (preferably located in your country) with plenty of sales and a great feedback rating.

If anyone knows a better, cheaper place to buy Rosetta Stone Spanish, please post it below.

Check prices on Rosetta Stone Spanish on eBay

Check Your Pronunciation with Rocket Record

Cacho — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 21:09:30 +0000

I just received an email from Mauricio at Rocket Languages with some interesting information about a new learning tool they have developed. It’s called Rocket Record. My understanding is that Rocket Record will be included as part of the impressive Rocket Spanish Premium Plus course available June 21st. Here’s Mauricio’s email:

Have you ever wondered whether your Spanish accent sounds authentic?

Have you worried that you’ll do the wrong thing because your
Spanish comprehension isn’t quite there?

Have you been concerned that the Spanish you hear sometimes turns
into a long string of gobbledegook? That you just can’t get used to
the rhythm of spoken Spanish?

Well with Rocket Record you don’t need to worry about any of that
ever again!

With this fantastic new tool you get the chance to refine your
pronunciation until you’ve got it just right. Rocket Record lets
you listen to the way your native speaking host says a phrase and
watch as our unique voice mapping technology maps out their
pronunciation on screen. Then, and this is the clever bit, you get
to record yourself over and over again, keeping an eye on your own
personalized voice map, until you get it just right!

That’s some awesome technology!

Your voice may be different from that of the host, but the shape of
the voice map when you say the same words will be very similar.
That means that you can modify the way you pronounce words until
the shape of the voice maps match, and they’re perfect!

Rocket Record is truly a huge advance in language learning!

Go to Rocket Languages website

Advanced Spanish App: Now You’re Fluent for iPhone, iPad

Cacho — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 18:30:04 +0000

When you are at the proficient or advanced level of Spanish, it can be difficult to move to the level of fluency, or even maintain your current level, if you don’t reside in a Spanish-speaking country or have Spanish friends. I recently came across a helpful app that I downloaded to my iPhone4 to help tune-up my Spanish skills. The app is called Spanish Advanced: Now You’re Fluent.

This is a pretty simple but useful app designed specifically for advanced Spanish students you want to improve their fluency with advanced dialogue and translations.

The purpose of the app/course is to talk you through virtually every situation of daily life so you can build the vocabulary you need to be fluent.

Each day offers a new topic, for example, caring for an infant or driving your car to work. A number of tricky sentences will be offered that you then translate into Spanish. The situations are very specific and call for specific verbs and exact words, so you can’t cheat with lazy translations.

Definitely worth checking out if you are striving for fluency.

This app costs $8.99 for the entire year of lessons. I like it.

Jetset Spanish Launches Today

Cacho — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 20:55:33 +0000

The new Jetset Spanish lessons (designed by Rocket Languages) are now available.

Jetset Spanish uses interactive video learning to immerse you in everyday, real-life scenarios with native Spanish speakers.

Here’s a link to to the Jetset Spanish website.

How to Keep Your Spanish Skills Sharp

Cacho — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 18:01:25 +0000

Even if you are an advanced or proficient Spanish speaker, you may find that your Spanish skills start to slip after a while if you don’t live in a Spanish-speaking country and don’t have the opportunity to speak Spanish on a regular basis. Naturally, you don’t want your skills to erode, especially after putting in so much time and effort to learn the language in the first place.

So how can you keep your Spanish skills sharp with minimal effort and minimal time commitment? Here are a few methods I use:

1) Read a book. I usually have a Spanish novel on the go. It’s an easy, passive way to keep Spanish active in your brain. I like mystery and police novels. Right now I’m reading Cazador de Almas by Alex Kava.

2) Subscribe to a Spanish magazine. Getting a magazine such as People en Español delivered to you each month serves as an automated reminder to keep up your Spanish.

3) Change your start page. I like to set the start page on my web browser to a Spanish site. I like to read the latest news from Buenos Aires so I set it to Clarin. Sometimes I change it to Esmas.

4) Tune up with Verbarrator. I’m a big fan of the Verbarrator. I use it to refresh my memory on some of the trickier verb conjugations that I seem to forget when I’m not speaking Spanish regularly (such as past tense subjunctive).

5) Help a friend learn Spanish. There’s a good chance you know someone who is learning Spanish. Offer to help them study. Even if they are beginners it will help you keep Spanish at the front of your mind.

6) Listen to Latin music. This has to be the easiest way to keep Spanish words and phrases running through your head. Let me suggest one song: Por Un Segundo by Aventura. Fantastic lyrics.

How do you keep your Spanish skills sharp? Let me know. Write a comment below.

Hardest Word to Pronounce in the Spanish Language

Cacho — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 21:23:21 +0000

I’ve been speaking Spanish for years and have no trouble pronouncing 99.9% of Spanish words. I know I speak the language pretty well because native speakers have no trouble understanding me and I can communicate what I want to communicate. There is, however, one word that I’ve never even come close to mastering. In fact, when I say it, most people don’t know what the heck I’m talking about. Or, worse, they think I don’t really know how to speak Spanish.

The word I’m talking about is “raro”.

“Raro” means “strange” or “weird” and is commonly used, especially in Mexico.

In English, we might say “Wow, that’s weird” or “How strange”. In Mexico, they would say “Qué raro”.

Now the point of this post isn’t to highlight my Spanish deficiencies but rather to point out a useful technique that many advanced non-native speakers employ. The technique is word substitution.

Instead of beating myself up for not being able to properly pronounce one little Spanish word, I simply make a word substitution. In place of “raro” I say “extraño” or “inusual”, depending on the situation. Sure, it’s not perfect, but it’s close enough.

So next time you encounter a Spanish word you can’t pronounce, find a substitute word and move on. Life is too short to worry over a little word like “raro”.