Improve your language skills!
Each of the four main skills is important in order to progress.
Many students of a language only practice reading and writing in a new language and never progress past beginner or early intermediate levels.
The result is that possibly after several years of learning, learners can hardly hold a conversation or understand a native speaker.
Our goals:
- Jump start your language skills
- Actually learn to speak a 2nd language
- Focus on the differences between English and Spanish
- Track your level and see your improvement
Skills we practice
Each of the four main skills is important in order to progress.
Many students of a language only practice reading and writing in a new language and never progress past beginner or early intermediate levels.
The result is that possibly after several years of learning, learners can hardly hold a conversation or understand a native speaker.
How we practice
The way we practice is similar to a class lesson. Each lesson is in the form of a post.
Each post has an agenda at the top.
Typical agendas will in include:
- an introduction
- a vocabulary list
- flashcards related to the content
- a reading (story, song, poem, etc.)
- audio to accompany the reading
- a link to recording software for you to read, record and compare
- Comprehension activities about the reading (aka homework)
- A related fun activity, such as crossword, word search, etc.
Translations
Did you notice the language changer in the menu? Click on either English or Spanish will translate the site. The language changer may also be visible in the right side of each page where categories and tags appear.
The language switcher works by simply clicking on the language name to change the site’s language.
In some cases the language is not meant to change, such as vocabulary, flashcards and games. Those may be unaffected.
The site is also in the process of evaluating a few language translators to assist, since the site can be accessed in either English or Spanish. Some of these translators use Google Translate and while others allow for a more hands-on translation.
The English on the site should be reasonably OK. If the Spanish is lacking, please leave a note at: steve@bilingualpractice.com. Constructive criticism is appreciated.
About
Hi, my name is Steve. I am a licensed Spanish teacher and a certified ESL instructor. Welcome to my site.
I’ve noticed my Spanish skills slipping a bit, so I’ve decided to do an A-Z review. The review that I have chosen is distinctly different than the one used to learn Spanish.
In school, I learned Spanish by memorizing and practicing grammar and vocabulary. Unless one loves grammar, it is a boring way to learn.
Knowing what I know now, that way seems counter intuitive.
Rather, the approach here will be to acquire Spanish through reading and listening actual content that I present with explanation and activities.
The single piece of advise I can give is having consistent practice. First, find your blind spots. By first finding where you are the weakest, you can target those area for improvement. My biggest concern is listening skills, so I am target those. Additionally, I am seeking my blind spots to target. An example would be: verb expressions with prepositions (such as aprender a, dejar de, etc.).
Feel free to use any of the activities and join me in my quest to improve.
