Learn Spanish in 5 Seconds – Lesson #6
One video in a series on how to learn Spanish in 5 seconds! See more videos and play games at www.klondikebar.com
How to Learn Spanish from Music Videos: My Step-by-Step Guide
Shakira can teach you Spanish!
Today’s post is a guest post by Andrew, who has been writing about learning Spanish over at his blog How to Learn Spanish for a while now. Today he explains how he uses music videos to learn Spanish, and how you can do the same.
Hi, I’m Andrew, and I’ve been teaching myself Spanish for about the past four years or so, and over that time I’ve made a lot of mistakes and learned a ton of useful techniques and tricks, and one of the most important things I’ve learned is something that Ramses has repeatedly banged into your head on this blog: you must expose yourself to your target language as much as possible through popular media, preferably things that you enjoy listening to, watching, and reading, such as movies, TV shows, music, etc.
Because of this belief, I started doing a series of posts on my site, called How to Learn Spanish (very creative name, right?), where I featured a music video in Spanish and then took you through it, step-by-step, using it to teach you Spanish (grammar, vocabulary, idioms, little regionally specific sayings and phrases, and many aspects of the culture that the song referenced or originated from). I started off with Shakira’s very popular La Tortura because I knew it would have a very wide range of people who would recognize it and like it or at least be able to tolerate it and it turned out to be a huge success with my readers. I’ve since done four more (three of which used a Shakira song, and one recently that used Juanes’ Yerbatero) and they have easily become the most popular posts on my blog.
Today, I’d like to show you precisely how to go about ‘learning’ one of these music videos (pick something you like): what I mean by that, is I want to show you how to learn a ton of your target language from the video and how to get to the point in just an hour or so where you can listen to the whole song from start to finish, without pausing, at full speed, and be able to completely understand all of it, each and every word and the meaning behind them, even if you’re a beginner and know very little of the language!
Step 1: Pick Something You Like
This is massively important because if you don’t, you’ll have a hell of a time focusing on it and this will be 10 times harder than it would have been if you had picked something you liked, and consequently it’ll take a lot longer to do, it’ll be unpleasant, and you’ll be far, far less likely to do this again thereby making it much more likely that you’ll give up and stop learning the language. That’s no good, now is it?
Pick something fun that you really want to be able to understand when you hear it–come on, everyone’s got one of those songs in Spanish (or whatever language they’re learning) that they’ve heard and wish they could understand what the singer(s) was saying: what’s yours? What’s that one song in Spanish that you always liked and wished you could understand? That’s your winner (because you actually want to learn it!).
Step 2: Find The Lyrics and a Good Translation of Them
Google. Seriously, I know you’re wanting me to direct you to a specific lyrics site, but the thing is that in my experience who has the best quality lyrics will vary from one song to another, it’s very random and I actually don’t have one particular lyrics site that I’ve found to be consistently better on average than the rest. Just google “[name of the song] lyrics” (e.g. “la tortura lyrics”) as well as “[name of the song] translation” and look at about a half dozen of the top results, frequently the site with the best translation will have the lyrics right along side the translation so you won’t need one site for the lyrics and a separate one for the translation. Here is a fantastic example for Shakira’s Te Aviso, Te Anuncio and it’s the one that I used when I did that song recently.
Please note that these translations (and sometimes even the lyrics) aren’t always dead-on accurate and I almost always end up modifying them and fixing little things here and there, so if something seems a bit off then look the words up in a dictionary or run the whole verse through a translator or post a question about it on a language-learning forum like HTLAL and see what you get.
Step 3: SpanishDict.com and, If You Like, Your Favorite SRS (e.g. Anki)
Ok, now we need to get our reference materials in order and, if you prefer to learn vocabulary this way (many do, many don’t, many, such as Ramses, have advocated it, and many have condemned it), your SRS system (most people use Anki).
I’ve tried many different dictionaries and translators and conjugators, etc., and I’ve found that by far my favorite one of each of those is, luckily, all on one site: SpanishDict.com. Their Spanish dictionary is one of the best if not the best that I’ve tried, their translator is the best because it not only uses the best current translation engine out there (Google Translate) but it also runs whatever you give it through two additional translation engines so you can compare the three and pick the one you want to use, plus the best one (Google) is the first translation you see which is perfect because it’s the one you’ll want 95% of the time, plus the translator is situated right there immediately below the dictionary search bar: how convenient! Their conjugator is also the best one I’ve used, to get to it from the homepage just go up to the ‘More’ menu in the upper right and click ‘Conjugation’.
And, like I said, if you’ll be wanting to enter any new vocabulary you learn into your SRS, now is the time to start it and have it ready.
Step 4: Learn the Lyrics FIRST
That means that you are now going to read the lyrics and look up every single word, expression, idiom, and phrase that you do not know, and you are going to learn it.
This is the tedious part that will take you the next hour or so (the first 3 steps should’ve only taken like 5 or 10 minutes), but it’s also very simple.
You read the lyrics and, using SpanishDict.com (or whatever your favorite tool is), you learn what they mean, you look up all the words you need to look up (and enter them in your SRS if you like), if you encounter a phrase or bit of slang you don’t know, Google it. If that doesn’t work (and it will 99% of the time, it’s extremely rare that I can’t find out what a particular bit of Spanish slang or an idiom or phrase means in 5 minutes between Google and another awesome resource I’m about to mention below) then you can post a question about it on a language-learning forum or Spanish-learning forum (there are many, like I said above I recommend HTLAL, they’re awesome and very polite and helpful)–if you do that you’ll probably have an answer inside of an hour.
Also, I’ll give you a little tip concerning slang: the best ‘Spanish slang dictionary’ in the world is… ready?… Urban Dictionary. I’m not kidding. I’ve tried everything that calls itself a ‘Spanish slang dictionary’, hard copy books and online, and none of them compare to Urban Dictionary. You’ll be amazed how much is in there, try looking up any Spanish slang you can think of, in all likelihood it’s in there–there’s Colombian slang, Mexican slang, Argentinean slang, Spanish (i.e. Iberian, from Spain) slang, everything.
Step 5: Listen
Ok, now you actually get to listen to your music. This won’t take long, but we need to do it right. You want to be able to comprehend it perfectly at full speed without having to pause, right? Ok, well to do that we’re going to need to sort of get our ears accustomed to hearing the lyrics in the way that they’re spoken in this song, we’re going to need to ‘learn’ the sound so to speak.
The way we do that is to pull up the lyrics on our screen (or printed out if you like–regardless, you need to be looking at them and reading along while they’re being sung) and we’re going to play the song at the same time that we read the lyrics and we’re going to pause whenever we hear something and don’t immediately recognize and understand it, got it? What you do is listen to the song and the second that you hear something and think “Wait, what was that? I didn’t catch that. I didn’t understand what she said.” you need to pause, rewind, re-read the lyrics and play it again–do this as many times as is necessary for you to be able to ‘hear’ it (you probably won’t have to do this more than a few times with each word or phrase you hear but don’t quite catch). Do this until you’ve got that particular verse (do this verse-by-verse, that’s my preferred method) down cold, then you go on to the next one and wash-rinse-repeat.
You learn to hear and understand the whole song verse-by-verse until you’ve gotten to the end, at which point, guess what???
Now you can play the whole thing, right from the beginning, all the way through, at full speed, and understand everything you hear perfectly without having to pause it!! Ta-da! 
I know it’s a bit of work (couple hours) and a bit tedious, but look, here’s the deal: learning Spanish or any other language is going to take consistent, persistent work, would you rather do it with something boring and dull like a textbook, or would you rather do it with your favorite song? Exactly. And you just learned a ton of Spanish for the relatively short period of time you invested in doing it: you, in all likelihood, just learned dozens of new vocabulary words, a half-dozen or so new expressions/colloquial-phrases or idioms, several new expressions or ways of saying things, and several new tidbits of information about the culture the song is from (Colombia in the case of Shakira, or Latin culture in general) that you didn’t know before. Even if you don’t bother looking up the specific grammar that was used (which is fine, you don’t need to), you still learned how to use that grammar, didn’t you? You learned by example, the best way!
It’s fun, you learn a ton, and you can just keep on doing this indefinitely due to the limitless amount of free media available online in Spanish (and most other languages) in the form of music videos, MP3s, TV shows, movies, random YouTube clips, etc. I really hope you give it a shot and please feel free to tell me what you think in the comments. Also, I’d like to ask that if you enjoy this sort of thing that you please come on over to my place and check out some of the stuff I’ve done–I’m going to continue doing the music video dissection and learning thing forever, people love that stuff and I keep getting really positive feedback about how much they’re learning from it. I’m currently working on Shakira’s Lo Hecho Está Hecho and that should be up in a week or so. Thanks for taking the time to read this.
Cheers,
Andrew
Further reading:
- The importance of liking your music
- Do things the Spanish way: rap music
- Watch miSexta.tv videos wherever you want
Further
View full post on Spanish Only
3 Pieces of Advice to Learn Chinese
There is a plethora of great rationales for learning Chinese. Mandarin is the most widespread language on Earth and as China increases in economic influence, more people will discover the benefits of learning it. Conversely, several Westerners are afraid that learning Chinese is really complicated. It’s bona fide that Chinese is worlds apart from English and other languages that people speak in the Western world, although if you handle it in an appropriate manner it’ll be a controllable mission. Next are some techniques for making it a tad painless to learn Chinese.
With the differences between the characters of the Chinese alphabet and the letters of the English alphabet it’s no surprise the Chinese “picture” alphabet is hard to grasp the concept of. Once you’ve begun to learn these characters you will notice that these are categorized by groups known as radicals. The usefulness of familiarizing yourself with these radicals is one of the first steps in truly understanding written Chinese and ways of indexing these characters for words that are similar in nature. As you begin learning the language, you will probably be focusing mainly on the vocabulary and pronunciation, but you should also start to become familiar with radicals and characters. After accomplishing this you will have a better understanding of what the characters mean when you see them in written form. It might just clear up this report when get yourself some gunnar optiks glasses, they are going to help make everything you browse through a lot more well-defined.
Regardless of whether or not you can afford to go to china you will benefit from a native speaking Chinese tutor. No matter what program, book or class you chose to learn Chinese with, using a tutor has many more benefits. A tutor can help you progress faster as they correct the naturally occurring mistakes you may make. A tutor is likely to assign extra things for you to do during those off times before your next appointment. Chinese tutors can be found on college campuses or other Chinese predominate locations, ask around for referrals.
Finding a total immersion program could be the fastest most effective manner of learning Chinese. An immersion program is different because it makes you use the new language exclusively over the course of a weekend, week or more. You can find immersion courses in large cities, and universities as well as online. Accelerate your study of Chinese with an immersion program. If you feel a bit intimidated by this method just remember you are not alone. Your mind is forced to speak and react in your chosen language.
There is a plethora of strategies for learning Chinese and your most wonderful tactic is to mix together all of them. With this technique you’ll pick up both written and verbal talents. Additionally, it keeps your studies worthy of note when you use diverse kinds of study aids, like audio programs, movies, classes and trips. We have discussed some techniques for learning Chinese as abruptly as able, although it is of no matter what technique you utilize, it’s essential for you to be willing to put in a high number of hours to this tough language!
Learn German the Easy Way With These Handy Tips
There are many people out there who are really scared to learn new languages. They don’t realize that all they have to do is simple memorization to learn new languages, especially in the beginning stages. Once you get a handle on how the new language’s vocabulary and grammar are handled, then you will find that learning new languages isn’t as hard as you thought. If you really want to learn German, or any other type of language, then you simply need to find a way that is effective for you.
Flashcards are an amazing learning gadget. Several language students joke about the thought of putting flash cards to use, as they seem sort of childish and old-fashioned. Why utilize flash cards when there is such a wide array of superceded technologies that are readily available to aid you in learning? The aim for students putting flash cards to use is due to how well they work! Flash cards let you quiz yourself and to tune-up your skills. They are quite easy to transport with you when you are away from hour home or the classroom. Flash cards make it effortless for you to study with a friend, even if that friend doesn’t have a clue about the German language. Give thought to this excellent section wear a pair ofpaul smith eyeglass and read thoroughly.
Will your budget allow you to find a way to immerse yourself entirely in German? Some people learn their best by just being thrown into it. One of the greatest techniques for getting this to happen is to travel to a country where German (of the language you are trying to learn) is the most widespread language and your first language is not very common. This presses you into finding out how to talk with people you come into contact with and it presses you into learning German as it is used in everyday life. Not everybody is successful with immersion. However, some people come to find out that is it the exclusive method for them to truly understand how to talk in a language that is not their first language.
Try to think German with your thoughts. Whenever you think of something in your native language, try to repeat those words in your head with German. You will then get used to thinking in German. When you are able to think using German, you will find it easier to communicate using the new language. If you can process the language as you are hearing it, you won’t need translators and you’ll be able to instantly know what is being said to you. You can learn German in a few different ways. The most difficult part is finding the way that you best respond to. The best way to find that method is to test several language learning methods. You simply need to find what works for you if you want to successfully learn German. If what you’re using isn’t working, just go with another way.
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Reflexive Verbs in Spanish
Lots of people struggle with reflexive verbs… Professor Jason gives you some useful tips!
An assessment of Rocket Languages
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A Brief Background Surrounding Hindi Music
Hindi songs in several methods showcases Indian tradition to individuals all about the globe. Audio is a important aspect of the hindi motion picture. Because the head office for hindi movie industry is Bombay, presently referred to as Mumbai, via the many years its been acknowledged as as bollywood. It is essential for bollywood films to have top quality films or else the odds are it would not be considered a significant hit regardless of the fact that the film by itself is outstanding, these may be the expectation in the audiences in India. Virtually usually if your hindi motion picture is actually a tremendous hit typically it may have the greatest hindi songs.
In Indian cinema songs represents numerous emotions consequently the transformation in 1 sort of emotions to a various is performed via songs. Hindi Shayari is also a part of the historical part of hindi songs. Considering that cinema began in India, about fifty percent a hundred many years ago, songs continues to be a romantic some of it. Truly there have been in regards to a minimum of ten-15 tunes inside a motion picture when cinema began in India. Motion pictures had been actually more in the form musical drama individuals days.
However now events have transformed you will locate no more than five-6 tunes inside a motion picture now. Hindi songs appears to become changing each and every decade with numerous styles and styles. At first the background songs was more classical with classic Indian sort of songs. By way of the many years utilizing the impact of western songs Hindi songs now’s product or service with a nice mixture of Indian classical songs and western songs. Despite the fact that you will locate a lot of Hindi bands nowadays Hindi songs in contrast to the west is generally Hindi film songs. Inside of the western nations songs enterprise and film industry are two various organizations. Film songs in Hollywood is just background score the bulk of the events there virtually no outright tunes. However in India the background songs industry is a subset of film industry. The bands which create musical videos invariable composers or sing in the films. To support you securely state that the extremely greatest hindi songs continues to be in the bollywood. Otherwise for that Indian film industry Hindi songs may have lesser.
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Word of the Day
- (la) barrera = barrierPronounced: bah-Réh-rah Type: noun Example: No podremos entrar porque hay una barrera metálica en la entrada. Translation: We won't be able to get in because there's a metal barrier at the entrance. Copyright 2012, GB Blanchard - Learn Spanish: www.braser.com […]
