Learning a New Language
- Thread starter x_Alison
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One thing I do know is that the older you get the more difficult it becomes for you to learn a new language - but it's not impossible. I'm not fluent in any other languages (I took Spanish throughout all of my school years and learned enough where I can understand some words still but not speak it fluently), but my fiance is pretty fluent in Japanese. He learned in school and continues to be able to understand it relatively well and speak it too. The most important part is to immerse yourself in the language. Read books in it, watch movies/tv shows in it, listen to music in it, and if you're lucky enough spend time in the native country.
As mentioned earlier, immersion is key. You can make Spanish a priority by reading/watching everything in Spanish, speaking with native speakers, and experiencing the culture nearby (if there is any). Mastering a language can take a while, but if you get the opportunity to travel and/or live in a Spanish-speaking country, you can be fluent pretty quickly! Learning colloquialisms, picking up the local dialect, and blending with the native population will do that pretty nicely. If you are currently attending college, you can take Spanish classes if you have the time.
Your community may have resources to help you learn Spanish as well. Where I live, there are a lot of resources for learning Spanish (as I live pretty close to Mexico), and Spanish is pretty much the de facto second language for many people (and for businesses as well), so picking up the language is pretty easy.
I took French in high school and, like you, want to become fluent. I'm kind of slacking off on the immersion part, but I'm trying to get my speaking skills up to par if I ever want to go to France for future study abroad programs! Right now, I listen to French radio in the car and have gotten the hang of translating French articles into English. Some things I probably won't learn entirely, like complicated slang and such, but I hope to make something out of learning a second language.
Good luck and have fun learning Spanish!
Your community may have resources to help you learn Spanish as well. Where I live, there are a lot of resources for learning Spanish (as I live pretty close to Mexico), and Spanish is pretty much the de facto second language for many people (and for businesses as well), so picking up the language is pretty easy.
I took French in high school and, like you, want to become fluent. I'm kind of slacking off on the immersion part, but I'm trying to get my speaking skills up to par if I ever want to go to France for future study abroad programs! Right now, I listen to French radio in the car and have gotten the hang of translating French articles into English. Some things I probably won't learn entirely, like complicated slang and such, but I hope to make something out of learning a second language.
Good luck and have fun learning Spanish!
That is awesome! I am a native spanish speaker, so if you want to practice/ask any grammar questions feel free to pm me 
I'd suggest you to watch tv programs and read in spanish more often so you can familiarize with the words. Also keep a dictionary nearby.
There are many great books from hispanic/spanish speaker authors like Gabriel Garcia Márquez and Miguel de Cervantes that you can read for practice. I can suggest some depending of your liking!
I'd suggest you to watch tv programs and read in spanish more often so you can familiarize with the words. Also keep a dictionary nearby. There are many great books from hispanic/spanish speaker authors like Gabriel Garcia Márquez and Miguel de Cervantes that you can read for practice. I can suggest some depending of your liking!
I had a few starter-like classes for French growing up and learned the basics and then moved to Quebec when I was 14. Living in an area that speaks the language you are learning is probably one of the easiest ways to learn in my opinion. It forces you into using and practicing the language almost constantly. If a study abroad situation ever opens up for you, it would be really beneficial to live and study in a spanish-speaking country for even one semester. It could take years and years until you become fluent but practice and patience makes perfect!
I am majoring in Italian and Linguistics and I love languages. I am as fluent as I can be in italian without being immersed in the culture. That's the key to becoming fluent; immersion. When I go to learn a new language, I use Duolingo. It is just like Rosetta Stone but free and better. If you ever need help with Italian, I am your girl. 
For Italian, I studied in grade school for five years. But outside of that, I would read Italian poetry and novels to supplement. I would set my phone and Facebook in Italian just so I could get better at reading. For writing, I went on Tumblr and I met a few people from Italy and I write to them in Italian and they write to me in English to practice their English. I also text my friends from grade school that studied the language with me in the language. So I would definitely recommend getting a pen-pal. As for speaking, I just speak to my friends sometimes or just to myself. When I get very tired or have had a few drinks, I start to think in Italian lol. Another thing that is beneficial to learning a language, at least for me, is learning the culture. I learned so much about many of the Italian regions and history, it really helped me out in understanding the language more. Of course, knowing some Latin will definitely help you. A VERY useful tool I have used is Word Reference. Don't use Google Translate, it is inaccurate. Word Reference gives you the most accurate translation of words and verbs I have ever experienced. Very useful website, there is also an app. There is also a conjugation tool, and it is used for many different languages. I think I used CafeMocha, not sure if that is that site or not, to begin French. If you need any more tips or tricks, let me know
For Italian, I studied in grade school for five years. But outside of that, I would read Italian poetry and novels to supplement. I would set my phone and Facebook in Italian just so I could get better at reading. For writing, I went on Tumblr and I met a few people from Italy and I write to them in Italian and they write to me in English to practice their English. I also text my friends from grade school that studied the language with me in the language. So I would definitely recommend getting a pen-pal. As for speaking, I just speak to my friends sometimes or just to myself. When I get very tired or have had a few drinks, I start to think in Italian lol. Another thing that is beneficial to learning a language, at least for me, is learning the culture. I learned so much about many of the Italian regions and history, it really helped me out in understanding the language more. Of course, knowing some Latin will definitely help you. A VERY useful tool I have used is Word Reference. Don't use Google Translate, it is inaccurate. Word Reference gives you the most accurate translation of words and verbs I have ever experienced. Very useful website, there is also an app. There is also a conjugation tool, and it is used for many different languages. I think I used CafeMocha, not sure if that is that site or not, to begin French. If you need any more tips or tricks, let me know Thank you all for your replies, they are all very interesting! I have a very close Spanish speaking friend of mine and their family speaks mostly only Spanish; I've learned a lot over the past six months that we've gotten closer and I am able to assist the family with their English as well. To me it's just very overwhelming to have to memorize all the words, etc. Speaking it seems as the easy part. I also set my phone in Spanish to learn to read it better, but it's still very difficult. I'm looking into Rosetta Stone in the near future (apx. 6 months or less) I'm very determined! I am Italian but I have no knowledge of the language at all. I wish you all the best of luck in your language learning endeavors.
