Ways we have been Learning Spanish (Josiah)

There are several ways we have been learning Spanish. I will outline some of the major ones.

The main one for me anyway is simply communication. Our next door neighbors that we have met speak slowly for us, and use a simple vocabulary. When Mom's at the store, she sometimes needs my help. Sometimes, I take 5 minutes planning something to say and making sure I'm saying it right. Then, after I say it, I realize that I was a little off. However, I've learned a lot of words in the 2 and a half months we've been here. I discovered that if I understand the main words in the sentence (simple subject, simple predicate, and direct object), then I can put together the pieces to understand the sentence. For instance, if you heard someone say "want" and "chocolate", you could guess they were saying, "I want some chocolate" without hearing everything they said. It's similar with Spanish.

We also watch television. There is a cartoon channel that is in Spanish, and also the Spanish subtitles. The subtitles help a lot especially in shows like Sponge Bob where the characters speak so fast, I'd be surprised if a native speaker could understand them. In those shows, I just rely on the subtitles. I have learned a handful of words by watching television. It's a great way to learn.

Another way is reading books. Books can be interesting and they help you learn at the same time. I read books at 8 year old level, but that's OK. Unlike cartoons, when I see a word I don't know in a book, I can use a translator, and I haven't fallen behind on what's going on. Books are not in a hurry.

Of course, Catalan is the official language in Barcelona. The Catalan I know is "Hi, Thank you, please" and a few meats for sandwiches. Another large quantity of words is similar to English or Spanish, but I've sort of given up on Catalan by now, because everyone can speak Spanish.

I think that trying to learn a new language is an adventure.