[Minotauro693]

I'm going to take Spanish I next semester at a Com. College. I'm a 3.0+ student, I'm just wondering what I can do to prepare myself for learning the language. I've already emailed the professor, but she hasn't responded and its been 4 days. Any advice from those who have learned a second language?

[piedra]

Try to learn some vocabulary, the most elemental I mean, watch some movies in Spanish with and without subtitles in English. If you have any Spanish speaking friends ask them for tips. And start reading basic/easy books and when you have spent some time with Spanish, buy a Bantam bilingual edition. Good Luck!

[Minotauro693]

thanks alot

[Crimson_King]

If you want to achieve fluency then you HAVE to study on your own in addition to the class

If you just want enough to get by, then just take the class and do what is needed to pass

If fluency is your goal, then the best thing to do (if at all possible) is to visit the country where your target language is the native language

also check this website out
http://how-to-learn-any-language.com/e/index.html

pm me if you want some more good language websites

[Revok]

Bittorrent = Pimsleur, Rosetta Stone, etc.

[Ultrashogun]

Learn Italian first, it makes spanish easier.

[Lubaolong]

Spanish is very easy to learn. I wouldn't worry too much about it. It's a level 100 class. It's not like you are going to learn that much.

[Michael Wanaka]

Originally Posted by Ultrashogun

Learn Italian first, it makes spanish easier.

The same could be the said for any romantic language. Learn portuguese first, it'll make italian and spanish easier. Vice versa, they all come from latin.

[AZ BJJ]

Originally Posted by Minotauro693

I'm going to take Spanish I next semester at a Com. College. I'm a 3.0+ student, I'm just wondering what I can do to prepare myself for learning the language. I've already emailed the professor, but she hasn't responded and its been 4 days. Any advice from those who have learned a second language?

Get some self-teaching study materials as one of the other posters recommended. Spanish is fairly easy to pick up, and there is a ton of material out there, due to the large Spanish-speaking population of the United States. Don't be too disappointed by the lackluster response time of the instructor. In my experience, language teachers have been notoriously lazy about responding to emails. You will, as another poster states, have to put in the time if you want to be fluent. I can't tell you how many people I have met that have met the language requirements at the university level, who can't ask how to get to the nearest McDonald's in their foreign language. If you just want to meet the school's requirement, then do the assigned work for the class. If you want to be fluent, you need to PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! Get some additional study materials for home, do all assigned homework, work with the instructor, practice with classmates after school, and travel to Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America as often as possible. Do this, and you will master the language in relatively short order. Good luck, and if you can become fluent, you will find the mastery of Spanish to be extremely valuable in the coming years.

[Ultrashogun]

Originally Posted by Michael Wanaka

The same could be the said for any romantic language. Learn portuguese first, it'll make italian and spanish easier. Vice versa, they all come from latin.

Youre right, he should learn latin first!!