Learn Spanish From Scratch: The Ultimate Guide For Beginners
Starting to learn a language can seem like standing at the base of Mt. Everest and looking at the peak. If you are a true beginner without any previous knowledge of the language, you might look up and think that you face an impossible task. However, you know there are thousands of people who have conquered that mountain before you, as well as millions upon millions of students who have been able to achieve fluency in Spanish. You are not alone. And with this post, you will learn how to tackle the Spanish language as a complete beginner.
Spanish a Global language
Indeed, Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the world (by a number of native speakers), and the numbers are growing exponentially year after year! People have different reasons for starting to learn a language. If you want to get a great new job, Spanish can be a valuable asset. With the number of speakers growing every single day, knowing Spanish can help you earn a living as a translator, an interpreter, a language teacher or even an immigration social worker.Going on vacation, perhaps? Wouldn’t it be awesome to mingle with the locals, know how to order home-made food and visit places only a Spanish-speaking person would ever be able to reach? Whether you plan on going to Mexico for a week, staying in a small village in Barcelona for a month or spending a whole year visiting the Americas, a basic knowledge of Spanish is a must if you want to survive!
Priceless advise
You will find out everything from how to choose the right book for you to the first steps of actually learning the language. It will give you bits of priceless advice on how to start working on your grammar, pronunciation and listening skills, as well as provide links to some valuable resources. Put the nine steps into practice and see your Spanish get more awesome by the minute!
Get a Good Grammar Book
You might have heard that all you need to do when learning a new language is memorize a couple of words and phrases and use them whenever the opportunity arises. This might be good advice if you only want to know some basics for a brief exposure to the Spanish language, like travel.
Learn Basic Vocabulary
By building vocabulary before you begin studying tenses and other grammar concepts, you are ensuring that you will have enough words to work with when you are ready to begin building sentences. Besides, learning basic vocabulary always comes in handy because it allows you to understand more and more complex phrases as you build it up.
You do not need to learn words like the parts of a car (unless, of course, you aim to become a Spanish-speaking auto mechanic). Keep it simple, focusing initially on commonly used words, and work your way up to more complicated topics.
Master the Main Tenses
Once you have a good pool of verbs, you should start learning the main tenses.
The concept of a “main tense” is a very broad one that will mean something different from teacher to teacher. However, we can all agree the following are a must in order to start communicating in Spanish:
The present simple: You will need this one to talk about your daily routines, primarily. Spanish also loves using this tense for different purposes (including the future!), so it is a good idea to start with it.
The future simple: One of the easiest, if not the easiest, tenses in Spanish, it will help you express all your thoughts about the future. Add to it the periphrasis ir a (going to) and you will have all you need for now.
The preterite and the imperfect: These two tenses are very often studied together so that the learner can clearly see the differences between them. Although this grammar topic may take you a little while to master, once you do, the rest will be as easy as pie.
YouTube
While you are learning your basic vocabulary and the main tenses, I recommend that you start visiting YouTube.
all know we can go to YouTube and spend hours watching fail compilations and cute cats, but did you know that YouTube is one of the best resources out there for language learning
Start Reading
Reading from day one may seem like an impossible task, but you cannot imagine how much it can help you!I know the idea of reading a 600-page book in a foreign language when you do not speak a word of it is, to say the least, crazy. But there are many other ways that can help you practice your reading skills without having to break a sweat.
Practice conversational and written skills
The last step to get you started learning Spanish will be to practice your conversational and writing skills. Now that you have gathered some vocabulary and a little grammar, you know how to pronounce words and you have read and listened to enough Spanish, it is time to jump into real life and start using what you have learned so far.
Finally,
Do not lose heart! it’s all about repeat practice repeat as if it were something new we were to approach!