Anybody had any luck learning Spanish?

Assimil
Foreign service program
Youtube
A good dictionary

That is no kidding all you need

In every country I've been to, learning the phrase "do you speak English?" has been all I needed.

I took 4 years of it in high school and one semester in college. I think I can read it mostly ok. Speaking it is another story.

Took 3 it in high school and in college. Brushed up on it when I had to reply to emails from customers in Puerto Rico. Got very good at that because I was using the same words and phrases and fielding the same questions.

If you're studying abroad next summer, you probably already took some classes. If not, take one at a local community college ASAP.

To brush up your skills, there are a number of options. Watch Univision. Read and edit Spanish Wikipedia. Download a Spanish Bible and read passages you know in English, or compare the same chapter side by side. Read Spanish tabloids - tabloids are written at a very low intellectual level and should be understandable with just a basic knowledge of the language. Find Spanish-language message boards.

Also learn the specific jargon for the classes you'll be taking.

quote:

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It's one thing to read and understand Spanish, or any language for that matter, but being able to think on the fly in Spanish and hold a conversation is a whole other animal that can only be accomplished with practice speaking it with someone else.

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Yep. I can't translate in my head fast enough.

nein

Si. ?Que Pasa

Duolingo is a good free app

Hear and listen to as much as possible, and try to talk as much as you can. A good way to practice I used was listening to music and finding the translated lyrics.

It can't be stressed enough that practice is the key.