Teach yourself Spanish: Learning how to speak

What is the best way to teach yourself how to actually speak Spanish?  There are several simple techniques that will help you develop this ability gradually and effortlessly.

First of all realize that you learn how to speak when you are by yourself.  You can practice with others and develop your confidence and naturalness that way, but the bulk of the work can be done when you are alone.  Imagine that you are an actor practicing your lines for a play.  Only when you are ready do you go on stage to give a performance.

However you practice, remember that initially speed is not important at all initially.  Be relaxed, speak clearly, take the time to create what you want to say in your mind.  Would you rather speak good Spanish slowly or bad Spanish really fast?  Obvious isn’t it?  Speaking a language is like  learning a sport.  You learn the fundamental routines, you develop good habits, good accuracy.  Then and only then do you develop speed.

    1. The best way to practice is to speak in short logical phrases:  “In the morning………. I get up………. and then……….. I drink a cup of tea……… Then………. I take a shower……… in the bathroom……… and I get dressed….etc.  Speak the way you would tell a story, very slowly and deliberately.  Keep your body relaxed and your breathing smooth.  You may want to walk around to keep your body from tensing up.

    2. Another good way of practicing is to practice translating.  You speak a short phrase in English and – to the best of your ability – you translate it outloud into Spanish. 

If you don’t know a word or an expression, just move on.  If you like, jot a quick note down to remind yoursel to look it up later.  But it’s best to keep going.  Start speaking for 3 minutes, and gradually increase it, till you can comfortably go on for 20, 30 minutes or longer.

    3. You can prepare some topics ahead of time, so you already know the vocabulary and so you have a general idea what you want to talk about.

Once you are pretty comfortable discussing a particular topic by yourself, see if you can slip into the conversation the next time you have a chance with a Spanish  speaker.  “What kind of music do you like?……. or where do you come from in Argentina?”

    4. You can also practice important areas of grammar by praticing alone – especially verbs.  Review the past tense, and then tell stories of your past vacations or interesting experiences.  If you can, it helps to imagine you are actually speaking to someone.

These are very simple ideas, but they are the fundamental building blocks of developing confidence as you teach yourself Spanish.  They have helped make me fluent in 7 languages.  I hope you enjoy your learning experience. If you have questions or comments, you can contact me on this blog and you can also visit my site: Focus Language.com.

Also visit  Intensive French and Spanish Page

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