Hola, mis amigos!
I’ve come to the end of week one for my latest challenge: Teach myself Spanish in the Maldives. (Read about how it started by following the link)
First and foremost can we just take a moment to absorb the fact that it’s actually been a week since Fin de año? A week since I was sitting on a rock watching the fireworks and welcoming the New Year out here in the middle of the sea. How time flies. So far so good with sticking to my NYS resolutions! How’s everyone else done? As promised, here is my weekly language update & progression.
Semana uno (week one) GOAL CHECKLIST
[x] Spend 30mins a day practicing
[x] Read online resources and guides on teaching yourself a language
[x] Learn a Spanish preschool song
[x] Make flashcards & use daily
[x] Be able to recite the alphabet
[x] Count to 20
[x] The basics; Greetings
[x] Days of the week
[ ] Months of the year
[x] Time words (Year, day, yesterday, last week, tonight etc)
Resumen semanal (WEEKLY SUMMARY)
I feel like the week went well! 9/10 checked off the list – not too shabby! I haven’t ticked off months of the year yet as I am only just getting around to them tonight.
It’s incredibly daunting when you begin to learn a language. I’ve been speaking English for 22 years and I’m still learning new words here and there. Yes, it’s intimidating to start from scratch and it’s incredibly odd to read, hear and recite (something you’ve done all your life) though this time in a completely foreign way. However I’m finding when I let myself be intrigued by the ambiguity rather than let it deter me, the unknown can be really exciting! This is one of the main factors I’ve taken into account this time around (unlike my French learning) I have changed my mindset. I found myself regularly frustrated before when I felt I’d learnt so much and yet couldn’t understand the French News Channel when I flicked it on. How to fix the problem this time? STOP SETTING UNREALISTIC GOALS. I was incredibly naive to think that after a month or so of 30min practice here and there I’d be able to fully understand each and every segment of the news in French, much less spoken at the fast & frank speed of a native French speaker. This time I’ll be setting small and simple goals and not let the frustration of not being fluent immediately get the better of me. How crazy is that? I actually found myself regularly annoyed that I had not reached fluency all the while not really trying nor putting in the time to ever do so.
¿cómo lo hago -HOW DID I DO IT?
(Some of the resources I used or memory tricks)
I’ve come to the end of week one for my latest challenge: Teach myself Spanish in the Maldives. (Read about how it started by following the link)
First and foremost can we just take a moment to absorb the fact that it’s actually been a week since Fin de año? A week since I was sitting on a rock watching the fireworks and welcoming the New Year out here in the middle of the sea. How time flies. So far so good with sticking to my NYS resolutions! How’s everyone else done? As promised, here is my weekly language update & progression.
Semana uno (week one) GOAL CHECKLIST
[x] Spend 30mins a day practicing
[x] Read online resources and guides on teaching yourself a language
[x] Learn a Spanish preschool song
[x] Make flashcards & use daily
[x] Be able to recite the alphabet
[x] Count to 20
[x] The basics; Greetings
[x] Days of the week
[ ] Months of the year
[x] Time words (Year, day, yesterday, last week, tonight etc)
Resumen semanal (WEEKLY SUMMARY)
I feel like the week went well! 9/10 checked off the list – not too shabby! I haven’t ticked off months of the year yet as I am only just getting around to them tonight.
It’s incredibly daunting when you begin to learn a language. I’ve been speaking English for 22 years and I’m still learning new words here and there. Yes, it’s intimidating to start from scratch and it’s incredibly odd to read, hear and recite (something you’ve done all your life) though this time in a completely foreign way. However I’m finding when I let myself be intrigued by the ambiguity rather than let it deter me, the unknown can be really exciting! This is one of the main factors I’ve taken into account this time around (unlike my French learning) I have changed my mindset. I found myself regularly frustrated before when I felt I’d learnt so much and yet couldn’t understand the French News Channel when I flicked it on. How to fix the problem this time? STOP SETTING UNREALISTIC GOALS. I was incredibly naive to think that after a month or so of 30min practice here and there I’d be able to fully understand each and every segment of the news in French, much less spoken at the fast & frank speed of a native French speaker. This time I’ll be setting small and simple goals and not let the frustration of not being fluent immediately get the better of me. How crazy is that? I actually found myself regularly annoyed that I had not reached fluency all the while not really trying nor putting in the time to ever do so.
¿cómo lo hago -HOW DID I DO IT?
(Some of the resources I used or memory tricks)
- To start off with I jumped on Google and copied down the basics- the alphabet, vowels, numbers and greetings with a second list explaining how to pronounce each word.
- I hit two birds with one stone when I learnt the days of the week (Los dias de la samana) through a childrens song. I found a great one on youtube to the tune of the Adams Family! Ask me any time of the week what day it is- and I’ll now be able to tell you. (Possibly after a little sing along, *da na na na, click, click*)
- To help assist in remembering the numbers I carried around a piece of paper to refer to if I got stuck & would count in my head. I’d count as I took steps, folded laundry, typed or basically anything that could be counted… I counted.
- I used the TEACH YOURSELF SPANISH program to learn the basics of pronunciation, be introduced to simple grammar rules, the alphabet and basic greetings. I didn’t spend as much time on this as I’d hoped, though I’m hoping if I ease into it and make learning the basics as fun as possible there will be less chance of becoming bored with my learning.
- I made a flashcard for all the new words I learnt as well as greeting phrases. I ended up carrying them around and whenever I had a moment to myself at work or while walking around I got them out & practiced.
- To prep myself I've also downloaded a bunch of apps on my phone. (Duolingo, Sensei, Translate, Learn Spanish Free) I'm LOVING Duolingo and Sensei. They have catchy little games and actividads to assist your learning as well as fun ways to introduce new words and concepts. (I have a a samsung running android so you'll find these apps in the Google Play store. I'm sure you apple heads can find them on itunes also.
That marks the end of semana uno! (week one)
The goals next week? Numbers 20-100, Pronouns & articles (I, we, you, this, the, that) I’m going to also start setting a weekly conversation goal so bit by bit I can hold small conversations on various topics right from the start. I also plan to make a Spanish speaking friend on the net somewhere to help assist me as a language partner. If you speak Spanish or are learning English and would like to be that friend, get in touch & let me know! Gracias, hasta la próxima vez!
The goals next week? Numbers 20-100, Pronouns & articles (I, we, you, this, the, that) I’m going to also start setting a weekly conversation goal so bit by bit I can hold small conversations on various topics right from the start. I also plan to make a Spanish speaking friend on the net somewhere to help assist me as a language partner. If you speak Spanish or are learning English and would like to be that friend, get in touch & let me know! Gracias, hasta la próxima vez!
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| Some study in the sun esta tarde. (this afternoon) |
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
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