Learning a second language comes with a pretty steep barrier to entry. You’re familiar enough with words to know there are a lot of them. Maybe you were once taught how to count to ten in Spanish, but that doesn’t feel like a skill you’ll use often. If you’re ready to move beyond the basics, finding Spanish lessons near me can help you build a strong foundation and make the process smoother.
Is learning Spanish actually hard? In this article, we argue it’s not. However, that’s not to say it will be easy. There’s a lot to learn, and most people take years to develop a deep understanding of a new language.
Find a Teacher
Finding a Spanish teacher is a great way to get the ball rolling if your budget can support professional help. To that end, you may be surprised by how affordable Spanish lessons can be.
We’ve mentioned throughout this article that improvement hinges upon putting in the work, but also on finding a good process.
Your teacher will be an important resource for this latter consideration. They will be able to make qualified recommendations that are specific to you. They may have good tips and unique resources that you won’t find online.
They will also make for an excellent conversation partner. You’ll still need to put in the work at home. Those 600 hours of work and study won’t all take place in front of a teacher, but having someone to get feedback and instruction from will do a lot to help you on your learning journey.
Start By Giving Yourself a Timeframe
It’s been estimated that it takes about 600 hours of study to become fluent in a second language. How long that takes depends on how much time you have, but setting up 600 hours of practice as a goal is a good idea.
Understand that this study needs to be:
- Regular enough to ensure progress. If you work for five hours every Saturday instead of for one hour every day Monday through Friday, you might inevitably spend a lot of your time refreshing what you’d gone over the day before. Shorter, regular sessions make it easier to progress.
- High-quality. A little bit of good practice is always worth more than a lot of bad practice. Make sure that you are using good resources and learning Spanish the right way.
While there are many ways to go about tackling a goal, most people find that it is best to break up what they want to accomplish into many small steps. They then celebrate their accomplishments as regularly as possible.
You might decide you want to learn X amount of words and phrases by a certain day. Alternatively, if you are using a structured curriculum, you might establish a specific spot you want to hit in the coursework by a particular day.
Your goal should be short-term and achievable. The idea is to give yourself as many wins as possible. Those regular celebrations will create a dopamine response in your brain. Basically, you’ll feel good, and that excitement can then be used to fuel your future efforts.
Develop a Good Process
Working without a clear direction won’t get you very far. Fortunately, there are TONS of pre-existing lesson plans for learning Spanish already out there. Duolingo is a popular way to learn a new language because it allows you to do all of the work from your phone. This makes it relatively easy to find time to put the work in.
Otherwise, take a trip to your local bookstore. You’ll likely find dozens of options available. Once you have selected a good course—naturally, one that is designed for someone at your skill level—you can begin working in earnest.
Converse in Spanish
It’s best to learn a language is the way that you use it. Obviously, there is plenty of value in the written word (after all, we’re here now) but you are probably interested in learning Spanish because you want to speak it.
So…start speaking it. You’ll learn better by thinking on your feet. Conversational Spanish is spontaneous and varied in a way that you can’t replicate with a textbook.
You will need to be willing to look silly. Most people do come across as a little goofy as they are learning a new skill. They just haven’t quite gotten where they are going yet. Think about how often a toddler makes mistakes when they are speaking.
That’s pretty much where you will be at in the beginning. But if your kid clammed up every time they misused a word, they’d never learn to speak, right?
The same goes for you. The truth is that most people won’t mind your mistakes at all. They’ll be impressed with your effort.
