Written by: Margaret Devlin
Earlier this year, one of my best friends left the U.S. to study in Spain. After “helping her pack” (read: sitting on her bed and distracting her), I stood on her doorstep, hugged her goodbye, and struggled to remember one of the most basic Spanish words: Adiós.
Despite having studied Spanish in grade school, I have little to no memory of the language. I know the words for red, blue, chicken, and July (very helpful). I can count to ten. I can recite one line of the Hail Mary (Santa María, Madre de Dios… and presumably so forth). As we already established, I can say hello but not goodbye, which I find terribly poetic and mortifying all at once.
My knowledge of French is much less mortifying. I studied French for eight years, and I still listen to French podcasts in the car to practice my listening comprehension (Little Talk in Slow French and Real Life French are my favorites).
For years, I mentioned (casually, offhandedly) that I would love to learn Spanish. It would undoubtedly be useful in my day-to-day life, and it’s a beautiful language, but learning a new language can be incredibly challenging. It felt like a distant, insurmountable goal. I always said, “I’ll learn Spanish someday,” at an unspecified date in an idyllic future where I have time for every little thing I want to do.
Last year, my attitude changed. While studying in Florence, I learned a fair amount of Italian in a short window of time. I would like a cappuccino. I would like a cornetto. I am American, I’m sorry. Of course, my Italian is elementary, but I was impressed by my progress. The experience reminded me how deeply rewarding learning a new language can be. I always wanted to learn Spanish someday. I’m proud to share that someday is today, and I wanted to share some thoughts on my learning process.
- Pimsleur, Music, and Assorted Media.
Paul Pimsleur was a preeminent 20th-century linguist whose ideology centered around learning languages gradually, as children do, as opposed to learning from a textbook. Last spring, I visited my local library and borrowed the first disc of Pimsleur Language Program: Speak Italian in Eight Easy Lessons. I must admit that I, too, was a skeptic. But after a six-hour car ride to Shenandoah National Park, after eight easy lessons, I could speak some Italian. Consuming media is essential to learning a language’s sentence structure, pronunciation, and vocabulary. While doing homework, I started listening to popular Italian songs. In my free time, I watched Italian shows on Netflix. I even started watching Instagram Reels in Italian, just to make it a normal part of my routine.
2. Start Writing! Speak!
When speaking or writing, I have to thoughtfully consider verb conjugations and sentence structure. I like to give myself short assignments. What day of the week is it? Describe what you did this morning. Today is Monday. Today, I walked at the park. I like the park because I like to hear the birds. Although it can feel silly, writing about your morning is not inherently easy. I quickly get a sense for key words and grammar concepts I’m not familiar with, so I can plan what I’ll study next. It can be tricky to find a conversation partner, but speaking aloud will help you feel more comfortable forming sentences. I once heard a colleague say that she pauses TV shows and movies to practice forming her own response. This is a great idea!
3. Coming to Terms with a Fear of Failure
Even in my first language, I sometimes stumble over pronunciations or struggle to find the exact word for what I want to say. When I studied in Florence, I often spoke in a haphazard conglomeration of Italian, English, and unintelligible gesticulations to convey my point. It was embarrassing. In these moments, I fortunately encountered kindness from shopowners, bus drivers, and baristas who spoke slowly with me, gently correcting my pronunciation. I remember a baker who helped me with the word schiacciata maybe four times, since I kept struggling to say it. It’s hard to be a beginner. It’s hard to rack your brain for a word you never learned, and to feel stupid doing it. In these times, I try to remember why I started learning in the first place. Learning languages opens the doors to songs, books, and people I would have never otherwise interacted with. I’m excited to make mistakes and start learning.
Featured Image Caption: The library can be a great resource for learning a new language!
