Benny Lewis's Blog, page 25

Why We Stopped Speaking: Exploring Where Your Family’s Heritage Language Was Lost & How to Revitalize It

Like many of us, I have spent the last year and few months only dreaming of exotic travel that has the ability to immerse me and my travel companions culturally. It has only been through conversation and books such as Jennifer Anton’s “Under the Light of the Italian Moon” that I have been able to […]

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Studycat – a Good App for Children’s Language Learning? A Mother-and-Son Review

Are you trying to raise a bilingual family? Raising bilingual children (or even multilingual) is a serious undertaking. So it’s always helpful to have fun resources to help you in the process -- and that’s where this Studycat review comes in.

Today, I’ll be reviewing Studycat and Studycat Club. Studycat is an app aimed at teaching children ages 3 - 8 to love learning languages. They currently offer the app in English, Spanish, German, Chinese, and French for home use or in the classroom.

Table of contents

What is Studycat? Language Learning for Kids Age 3 - 8
How Studycat Works
Our Experience with Studycat Fun Spanish
Studycat Fun Chinese
Studycat Club Features
Studycat Pros and Cons

Pros:
Cons:


Let’s Wrap It Up! Studycat Review Summary: 4 Stars, and Thumbs Up from the Kiddo

I’ve studied languages throughout my whole life, and have tried a lot of products for all ages: from Rosetta Stone to Drops. More recently, I tested out and reviewed 90 Day Korean and Japanese Uncovered for Fluent in 3 Months.

And since having kids of my own, I’ve been looking for resources to help my children learn the languages of their heritage (my kids are part Cuban and Filipino), of my own study, or their own interest.

Currently, we’re all learning Spanish, and it’s the language my oldest son’s most interested in. But since he’s 6 now, he gets frustrated sometimes and needs a more fun approach to studying.

When Fluent in 3 Months asked if I’d like to test out Studycat to review, I knew it’d be a great opportunity to introduce him to more Spanish.

For the review, I had my son play the Studycat Fun Spanish app for several days as part of his school assignments. I tested out both the Fun Spanish and Fun Chinese apps, too.

I was really impressed with some aspects of the app, while there are some flaws that could be improved on. But I’d rate Studycat apps a 4 out of 5 stars.

First, let’s talk about what Studycat is.

What is Studycat? Language Learning for Kids Age 3 - 8

Studycat is a learning app for at-home study or as a supplement to the classroom. Their goal is to encourage critical thinking and immersion-style gaming to build a foundation in the language.

Studycat was created by language teachers and is a global leader in educational technology. They’re an award-winning app, COPPA certified kid-safe, certified pedagogical quality, and feature no in-app ads.

Studycat has been around for almost 20 years. It’s used globally in classrooms and by parents raising bilingual children.

They’re aligned to Cambridge English: Young Learners, so it’s a supplemental aid to build upon what kids are already learning.

How Studycat Works

The app uses scientifically proven learning strategies through gameplay to help kids learn. It features original cartoon characters and songs to keep kids engaged through immersion.

The game guides you through different activities to build on new vocab and build curiosity. It even develops some reading and speaking comprehension.

Studycat is divided up into different categories of words kids love to learn, although it varies between languages. The categories include colors, animals, the body, food, vehicles, numbers, actions, and more.

Each category features about 7 lessons, each one a tile in the app.

You can pick any of the categories, but you have to start on the first tile of that category.

The first tile introduces some of the new vocabulary. The second tile builds on it with a fun game that builds curiosity. Then it tests their memory, followed by exploring games, spelling, and speaking games.

There isn’t much grammar taught in the app, but some basic phrases and grammar are used and learned through immersion.

Our Experience with Studycat Fun Spanish

I’ve used other similar learning games for my son, including Gus on the Go, Drops, and Endless Spanish. But my son asked to play Studycat more than any of those apps.

Studycat’s gamified learning is similar in style to other games he’s already played. One mini-game is even designed like Fruit Ninja.

In fact, the first day we played together, he didn’t want to stop. He played the game for more than an hour!

His favorite was a game where you have to describe a monster to the Cat Detectives. You have to memorize what the monster looks like fast, and then the cats ask you questions like “¿Qué color? ¿Qué ojos? ¿Qué boca?” (“What color? What eyes? What mouth?”) And you have to pick the correct parts of the body to describe the monster.

He was already starting to remember what certain words meant and could repeat them when I asked. Which was big! Even though we’ve been casually studying Spanish with him, he’s not wanted to speak it much.

He did struggle with a few of the games though, where the instructions weren’t very clear (especially for a kid who can’t read well yet). Sometimes even I was confused about what you were supposed to do.

But it was a fun time playing the game together, and he was even learning the Spanish alphabet.

Studycat Fun Chinese

I tested out Fun Chinese as well because I was curious how it would differ from Spanish. It’s the only Asian language Studycat offers currently.

I did notice that there were fewer categories and lessons for Fun Chinese. But I was pleasantly surprised at how well the game translates to Chinese.

I know ZERO Chinese, but I was learning the colors pretty easily in only a couple of minutes. There were several audio tracks showing how to pronounce the Chinese characters, too. One mini-game does teach you the Chinese characters with pinyin to help you read.

And surprisingly… It was fun as an adult too! One of the levels is like Tetris, and it was really addicting to play.

It’s definitely focused on learning through immersive listening, though. So you won’t learn a ton of Chinese characters.

Studycat Club Features

The Studycat Club contains extra resources and study materials for parents and teachers to help their children learn. It includes worksheets, songs, helpful blog posts, and webinars.

Some of the webinars are pretty cool, especially for teachers. For example, there’s a Task-Based Language Teaching webinar where you learn how to sequence activities for your class or child. There are several about learning through play.

If you’re teaching your child English, then the Studycat Club will be most helpful. The majority of resources are for kids developing their English skills.

But there are some helpful worksheets for all the languages they offer. Coloring pages, writing sheets, and more.

It seems this is a feature they’re continuing to expand upon. And I do think it could use more expanding, but it’s a nice supplement to the app.

Studycat Pros and Cons

The app does a lot of things well, but there are definitely some areas of improvement too. So here’s what we (me and my son) thought the benefits were:

Pros:

The app features fun characters, games, and songs that make kids excited to play. They’re all unique to Studycat.
There’s a lot of repetition to help kids learn new words without it becoming monotonous.
You can repeat the mini-games over and over, and each time is a bit different.
The mini-games are super fun and like games kids already know. Their aim is to keep them hooked.
No ads or other distractions, and you can play the game offline. So no worries about internet safety while learning!
The focus on learning through play-based listening skills and immersion is helpful. There are different voices (female and male) and inflections used which help make listening easier.
The app is easy to navigate even for kids on their own.
It’s a great study aid for parents and teachers to supplement classroom or textbook study. Studycat is designed to complement kids’ language lessons.
You have access to bonus resources through the Studycat Club.
The content and categories are topics kids love so they want to learn.
The game currently teaches about 350 words, which is a great starting foundation for children.
It’s fun for adults too!

Cons:

Some games are difficult to understand in terms of what to do. The instructions are minimal, and there’s no voiceover instructions in either language. This can make it harder for younger kids who can’t read yet.
There’s very little grammar taught. This is a supplementary vocab tool.
Kids can unlock and play through all the levels quickly. So while the games are very fun, I’m unsure how long they’d want to keep playing (considering there are monthly and yearly packages).
There were a couple games that didn’t make much sense. For example, one game has the child repeat what they hear and the game records it. In the next round, the game plays back what the child said, and they have to click the correct answer. My son usually said something completely different to be funny, so in the second round, it was impossible to know what the correct answer was. Also, it seems a bit strange because if you’re pronouncing it completely wrong, you’re getting the wrong kind of feedback from the game.
There are fewer categories in the Fun Chinese app than the Fun Spanish app, and the Studycat Club is more geared to English learners.
I don’t know that it offers enough to set it apart from other cheaper apps from a parent perspective. (From a kids perspective, it offers more fun games.)
Limited to only 5 language options: English, Chinese, Spanish, German, and French.

Other reviewers also commented about some of the gameplay features being difficult or confusing, such as ELT Planning. While Yeah Lifestyle also reviewed Studycat with her son and also found the app fun and engaging to play.

In my opinion, I think the cons could easily be fixed, and aren’t deal-breakers by any means. The most important thing for me was that my son actually enjoyed learning Spanish. It was a big deal!

Let’s Wrap It Up! Studycat Review Summary: 4 Stars, and Thumbs Up from the Kiddo

I definitely think Studycat is worth a try. Especially if you’re struggling to get your child interested and engaged in learning the language.

While the app is somewhat like games such as Gus on the Go, it’s more gamified and addicting. The play-based learning was helpful in making my son want to learn and play. He kept asking to play again!

And as a parent trying to raise bilingual children at home, I think it’s a helpful app to start them off and create excitement about the language. I’d love to see them expand on the material and language options.

I give it 4 stars out of 5, and my son gives it a thumbs up.

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The Best Podcasts to Learn Swahili at Any Level

If you’re interested in picking up an African language, Swahili is a great choice! As a Bantu language featuring a mix of Arabic and European influences, Swahili is the lingua franca of several countries with millions of speakers around the world. This makes it incredibly useful for communicating with locals throughout East Africa and large […]

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German Adjective Endings: The Complete Guide (With Charts!)

Adjectives are really useful for making descriptive, rich sentences in German. They work a little bit differently to English adjectives, because the ending changes based on certain rules. But once you get the hang of those rules (that’s where this post comes in), they’re very straightforward. I’d even say that they’re easy! By the time […]

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101 Must-Know Korean Verbs to Boost Your Vocabulary

No matter what language you’re learning, you have to master your verbs to express what you’re doing. Korean verbs are no different. But you may be surprised at how different Korean verbs are from English or Romance languages! Why? Because of Korean culture and sentence structure. For example, Korean verbs don’t have genders, and you […]

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How to Improve Your Vietnamese Pronunciation With Twisters and Karaoke Songs

A great thing for everybody learning Vietnamese out there is that the language is musical and contains tones that are indicated in the letter by individual symbols. Let’s take the word ma (“ghost”) as an example. If we put special signs above (or below) a, then we get completely different words: má – “mother” mà […]

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¡Lo Siento! and 25 More Ways to Say “Sorry” in Spanish

How do you say “sorry” in Spanish? Saying sorry is difficult… even in your mother tongue. Haven’t we all been at least a little embarrassed to say we’re wrong at one time or another? Aside from that, Spanish makes apologising a little harder. There isn’t a single Spanish translation for “sorry”. That’s where I come […]

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“Congratulations” in Italian (and 20+ more Italian Celebration Phrases)

Welcome to this guide to saying “congratulations” in Italian!

We Italians are cheerful people, and we give a lot of importance to celebration. Big or small, we like to find a way to honour achievements and occasions.

So how do you say “congratulations” in Italian?

This is a very good question, and it has several answers. Think of how many ways there are to congratulate someone in English: “well done”, “best wishes”, “good for you”...

And like in English, the Italian congratulation words you should use depend on the situation. So how do you know when you should use complimenti or vogliate gradire le nostre congratulazioni ed i nostri migliori auguri?

Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered. Here’s what we’ll cover in the article:

Table of contents

How To Say “Congratulations” in Italian: Congratulazioni!
When to Use Complimenti for Congratulations in Italian
When to Use Auguri and Felicitazioni for Congratulations in Italian
How to Say “Congratulations” to Someone Who Did a Good Job in Italian
Examples of Congratulations in Italian for Engagements and Weddings
What Congratulations to Use in Italian for the Arrival of a Baby
How to Say “To Congratulate” in Italian: Congratularsi
How to Say “Many Congratulations” in Italian: Molte Congratulazioni
How to Respond to Congratulations in Italian
Now You Know How to Say “Congratulations” Like an Italian!

Let’s dive in!

How To Say “Congratulations” in Italian: Congratulazioni!

The most literal way to say “congratulations” in Italian is congratulazioni.

With it, you get phrases such as le mie congratulazioni (“my congratulations”) or even le mie più sincere congratulazioni (“my most sincere congratulations”).

As you’ll notice, “congratulations” and congratulazioni look very similar. They are cognates: words from different languages that look similar and have the same meaning. Olly Richards emphasises their use in his Italian Uncovered course. Language learners should take advantage of cognates because they make learning quicker.

So, it's easier for you to remember congratulazioni because it resembles the English word. But it isn't the only noun you can use to express your congratulations.

In fact, it is a bit too formal for casual conversation, and it’s reserved for big occasions. It’s appropriate for weddings or the arrival of a baby. On the other hand, you wouldn’t use it to congratulate your friend on a cake they have baked.

If you’ve studied Italian for a little while already, chances are you’ve come across words like auguri, felicitazioni, and complimenti. Depending on the context, you might have assumed they also translate to “congratulations”.

In some cases, you might have been right! But even if they’re all sometimes used to express congratulations, you can’t always swap one of them for the other.

In fact, they all work best in different situations.

When to Use Complimenti for Congratulations in Italian

Complimenti literally means “compliments” in Italian. (Yes, it’s another pair of cognates!)

You can often use complimenti to congratulate someone, especially when you want to express your admiration.

Here are some examples:

Complimenti, questo piatto che hai cucinato è buonissimo! - “Congratulations, this dish you cooked is very good!”
La tua canzone è piaciuta a tutti, complimenti! - “Everyone liked your song, congratulations!”
Ho visto che hai preso un bel voto all’esame. Complimenti! - “I saw that you got a good mark on your exam. Congratulations!”

While congratulazioni is quite formal and reserved to big events, complimenti is more relaxed. And even if congratulazioni is mostly genuine, complimenti can often be ironic.

Examples:

Complimenti, ti sei fatto prendere in giro - “Congratulations, you let yourself be fooled.”
Hai perso una partita facile, complimenti - “You’ve lost an easy match, congratulations.”

But don’t be afraid to use it when you mean well! It’s one of the most popular ways to say congratulations in Italian.

When to Use Auguri and Felicitazioni for Congratulations in Italian

Auguri translates to “wishes” in English. You often find it paired with the adjective tanti (“many") to form the phrase tanti auguri (“best wishes”).

Auguri is used on specific occasions, which we can categorize in two ways:

recurrent events
pre-event time

Let’s make this a little clearer.

By recurrent events, I mean birthdays, anniversaries, holidays such as Christmas and New Year’s, and occasions like Mother’s or Father’s Day. They are special days that happen every so often, not a one-time thing.

On these occasions, you could also express your best wishes by saying buon [occasion]. Examples include buon compleanno (“happy birthday”) and buon natale (“Merry Christmas”).

By pre-event time, I mean congratulations for the future. This could be to a friend who just told you they will marry soon. Or on the day of your friend’s wedding, you can wish them the best for their married life: Tantissimi auguri per la vostra vita insieme.

Watch out, though: if you’re congratulating your friend on having gotten engaged, you would use congratulazioni. However, if you’re congratulating them for their upcoming wedding ceremony, use auguri.

Felicitazioni can be an alternative to both auguri and congratulazioni, but it is quite formal, so it’s rarely used. You could use it with someone that you address with the formal “you” (Lei) and with whom you’re not on close terms.

As you can imagine, the line between when to use all these words is never clear-cut. It will become easier to use the right expressions at the right time once you get used to the language.

When I learn a new language and find myself in this type of situation, I make sure to observe what the natives do.

As a native Italian speaker, I’ll give you a few starting points. Let’s go over some specific Italian congratulation phrases!

How to Say “Congratulations” to Someone Who Did a Good Job in Italian

In Italian, when someone is good at something, we say they’re bravo (masculine) or brava (feminine).

There isn’t a literal translation of the adjective in English, but when it’s used on its own, bravo/a is often the equivalent of “well done”.

Examples:

Hai passato l’esame, brava! - “You have passed the exam, well done!”
Bravo, sei riuscito a risolvere il problema! - “You’ve managed to solve the problem, well done!”

Ottimo lavoro (“great work”) is another way of saying “well done” or “good job” in Italian. That’s what you could tell someone who has completed a task well.

Example:

Siete riusciti a trovare il pezzo mancante del puzzle. Ottimo lavoro. - “You have managed to find the missing piece of the jigsaw. Well done.”

Speaking of… Getting a new job is a thrilling experience. It’s great to know that one’s efforts have paid off. If you want to recognize the big achievement like that is getting a new job, you can say congratulazioni per il nuovo lavoro.

Auguri also works in this case, because you would wish them success throughout their new career path.

If you’re speaking to someone in informal terms, you could even say in bocca al lupo instead of auguri. It literally translates to “in the wolf’s mouth”, but it’s the Italian way to say “break a leg”.

If you were to congratulate someone on retiring, saying congratulazioni per la pensione or auguri per la pensione is probably the safest option.

Examples of Congratulations in Italian for Engagements and Weddings

“Engagement” in Italian is fidanzamento. To congratulate someone on their engagement, you can simply say congratulazioni and felicitazioni. Or you could choose to use the full phrase: Congratulazioni per il tuo fidanzamento.

(If you’re addressing the couple, use the plural phrase: Congratulazioni per il vostro fidanzamento.)

Like we saw earlier in the post, congratulazioni is the popular word to congratulate someone on their wedding.

As “marriage” is matrimonio and “wedding” is nozze, the full phrase would be congratulazione di matrimonio or congratulazione di nozze.

But there are a few more ways to share your best wishes on this special occasion.

Usually, the group of guests will shout viva gli sposi (“long live the spouses”) or evviva (“hurray” or “cheers”) over a brindisi (“toast”). They’ll say cin cin as they clink their glasses.

In a wedding message, maybe on a card, you can write tante belle cose (“many beautiful things”). It’s short for ti/vi auguro tante belle cose (“I wish you many beautiful things”).

What Congratulations to Use in Italian for the Arrival of a Baby

If someone you know is awaiting the arrival of a baby, you will need some phrases to congratulate them.

I’m not only thinking of the birth, but also a few other occasions. As Italy has a strong religious culture, for example, you might have to congratulate parents for the battesimo (“baptism”) of their newborns.

Here are a few phrases you might want to use with expecting or new parents:

Felicitazioni/auguri/congratulazioni per la tua gravidanza - “Congratulations on your pregnancy.”
Felicitazioni/auguri/congratulazioni per la dolce attesa - “Congratulations on the sweet expectation.”
Congratulazioni/congratulazioni per la nascita - “Congratulations on the birth.”
Congratulazioni/auguri/congratulazioni per il Battesimo - “Congratulations on the Baptism.”

How to Say “To Congratulate” in Italian: Congratularsi

The Italian verb for “to congratulate” is congratularsi, and it is often used instead of congratulazioni.

If you have been studying Italian for some time, it might sound to you as if congratularsi should be translated to “to congratulate oneself”.

Instead, the verb is usually followed by an indication of whom these congratulations are for:

Mi congratulo con te - “I congratulate you” (singular informal)
Mi congratulo con Lei - “I congratulate you” (singular formal)
Mi congratulo con voi - “I congratulate you” (plural)

How to Say “Many Congratulations” in Italian: Molte Congratulazioni

In English, you can make your congratulations more meaningful by adding adjectives to the core noun.

Examples:

“many congratulations”
“my sincere congratulations”

There are many ways to achieve the same result in Italian.

The most literal correct translation of “many congratulations” is molte congratulazioni. However, tanti complimenti works when you want to use complimenti.

If you want to take it to the next level, you can say mille congratulazioni (literally “a thousand congratulations”)

To emphasize your wishes and/or admiration, you might be able to use the Italian suffix -issimo/a/i/e. It’s an intensifier: it makes adjectives stronger.

Here are some examples of how -issimo/a/i/e can work with congratulations:

Moltissime felicitazioni! - “Many congratulations!
Tantissimi auguri! - “Best wishes!”
Bravissimo! - “Well done!”

-issimo/a/i/e can only be attached to adjectives: you can say tantissimi but not augurissimi. It also doesn’t work with every single adjective: ottimo lavoro would sound awkward as ottimissimo lavoro.

My best advice, again, is to listen to how native speakers use it.

There’s one more way to make congratulations stronger that I want to share before we move to the end of the post. It’s actually one of the many quirks of the Italian language.

You might know that ma means “but”. However, you’ll sometimes hear ma used to emphasize congratulation phrases.

Examples:

Ma complimenti!
Ma che brava! (also only che brava)

When used genuinely, ma works to make congratulations more enthusiastic. Somehow, it carries the meaning that whoever receives the congratulations has exceeded expectations.

It can sometimes be used ironically too, but it all depends on the tone!

How to Respond to Congratulations in Italian

Here’s one more thing you need to learn about congratulations in Italian: how to respond to them.

Whatever the language, it is polite to say thank you when someone compliments you or wishes you well. More than polite, it is natural!

So here are a few ways you can answer congratulations in Italian:

Grazie mille - “Thanks a million.”
Ti ringrazio - “I thank you.”
Ma grazie - “Why, thank you.”
Grazie d’essere venuto/a/i - “Thank you for coming.”
Sei gentile, grazie! - “You’re kind, thank you!”

But don’t limit yourself to these five options! Italians have many more ways to express their gratitude, some of them without words.

If you want to learn more about how to say thank you in Italian, check out this post. It lists 27 ways to be grateful in Italian, including food!

Now You Know How to Say “Congratulations” Like an Italian!

You’re ready to congratulate and receive congratulations in Italian!

Maybe you could tell your italki tutor about it and see how they react. They might tell you you’ve done un ottimo lavoro, or they could say you’re bravissimo/a.

If you’re looking for more vocabulary to learn, you could start by checking out the 500 core Italian words.

You can combine learning 5-6 of these words per day with the Fluent in 3 Months Challenge method. You’ll be able to have a 15-minute conversation after 90 days!

In any case, you should be proud of yourself. Learning a new language is no easy feat!

Ottimo lavoro!

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Arabic Alphabet: The Guide to Learning the Arabic Letters and Script

There are various methods to learn the Arabic alphabet. Most print courses give you a table of Arabic letters and then expect you to continue with the next lesson once you‘ve memorised the letters. This brute-force memorization method can be slightly improved if you use a spaced repetition flashcard system like Anki in order to […]

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My Quest to Learn Spanish: How I Ended up Writing a Story in Another Language

When I was at school I didn't have the talent for languages. In fact, I thought Spanish was odd for having the vocabulary and grammar it has.

Why couldn't they just speak English, a language I thought was easy since I myself could speak it so fluently? Surely that would have been much simpler for everyone.

This naive opinion of mine meant I didn't care too much if I were to forever remain monolingual. Those other languages could get lost as far as I was concerned… And yet, I love visiting other countries.

So when I saw the opportunity to teach English in Spain through the British Council which came, at the time, with the prerequisite of Spanish at an A2 level in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR or CEFRL).

I knew I needed to become serious in learning the language.

function runSplitTest(){var randomNumber = Math.floor(Math.random() * 2) + 1console.log(randomNumber)var copy = "";if (randomNumber == 1){ copy = '<i>A note from the Fluent in 3 Months team before we get started: You can chat away in Spanish for at least 15 minutes with the "Fluent in 3 Months" method. All it takes is 90 days. <b><a href="https://fluentin3months.com/challenge... this link to find out more.</b></a></i>'} else { copy = '<i>Before we get started, if you’re looking for an online Spanish course, here’s the course I recommend: <a href="https://www.fluentin3months.com/olly-... Uncovered - Learn Spanish Through the Power of Story</b></a>, a course with a fascinating new method by my friend Olly. You can try it for free for 7 days!</i>'}console.log(copy)var copyToChange = document.querySelector("p.copyText").innerHTML = copy;}runSplitTest();Using Apps Didn’t Do It For Me

I wanted to learn Spanish but I didn't know how. There were so many different opinions online as to what was the best way.

I read outstanding reviews for an app called Duolingo, which promised to gamify the language learning process with the help of its very own green owl mascot. This would be an excellent course, I thought, for someone with such a short attention span as myself.

I spent days and weeks on Duolingo thinking I was making progress when the reality was I was making none. I could never remember the vocabulary and grammar taught.

The only thing Duolingo ever taught me well was the ability to recognise certain words, but this will not take you far in any language as you need to be able to produce those words when speaking.

I Tried Group Classes… With No Better Success

I next tried group classes, thinking that as an adult I would find the classroom setting far easier than my younger self, due to more wisdom obtained over the years.

In the very first lesson, we were introduced to the different forms of referring to people: yo, tú, él, ella, usted, nosotros/as, vosotros/as, ellos, ellas, ustedes. I found this frustrating to understand!

I continued going to the classes, but I never really progressed because I was still trying to get my head around what had been taught in the very first lesson.

I was a slow learner and I felt like a burden to the rest of the class: they all seemed to be making progress whilst I was there holding them back from learning more.

I Also Tried the Full-Immersion Approach… Still No Chance

The next idea I had for getting to a good A2 standard was to go backpacking in a Spanish country. My idea was I would naturally pick the language up if I was surrounded by it. What better place to go to than Colombia, a country I'd always wanted to go to because I imagined it as a land full of beautiful women like Sofia Vergara.

I landed in Bogotá, the capital, anxious to find my hostel, but unable to ask for directions in Spanish nor understand them when I received them. I was lucky, then, to have my phone on me to show the name of the hostel and the locals were kind enough to point me in the right direction.

My time spent in Colombia was nothing but a disappointment as I came away with no improvement to my Spanish. There were too many conversations I missed out on because my Spanish level was too low. I could only say sí or no and my listening comprehension was beyond terrible. I can only imagine the ordeal it must have been for the natives I did speak to.

I Tried Online Tutoring… And Had Some Success

Despite the disappointing experience in Colombia, I did come home with a motivation to study harder. I decided to spend money on private online classes, the convenience being I could choose a teacher from anywhere in the world and a class at whatever time suited me best.

I used italki where you can either get a private teacher or do a language exchange with the many users looking to learn English (or whatever your native language may be). I didn't do a language exchange because half the time (or more) you'll be speaking English, and I wanted to reach fluency in Spanish, not my mother tongue.

Read this post for advice on finding the right online language teacher.

I chose two teachers; one of whom focused on pronunciation which I wanted to study in depth because I had realised how important it was: if native speakers can't understand you when you speak, then you won't be able to have a conversation with them full stop.

I was no longer the slowest learner in the class as it was just me and a teacher. Both of my teachers did a tremendous job of explaining the nuances of the Spanish language and they were patient with me regardless of the speed it took me to understand. I really enjoyed the classes and I looked forward to them each week.

I reached my goal of A2 in Spanish, which meant I was able to go to Spain to teach English. I was placed in Haro, a village in La Rioja so famous for its wine people travel far to visit one of its many bodegas.

They are so crazy for wine in this village they even have a festival in recognition called La Batalla del Vino (“The Wine Battle”), where people squirt wine at each other from water pistols in remembrance of a battle between two villages.

On the weekends I would meet up with my friends for pinchos (tapas in Northern Spain) at one of the many bars in the village and they would teach me new slang. Casually dropping these words in the middle of a conversation is a wonderful feeling.

I Learned a Lot Through Reading, Movies, and… Writing My Own Book

I started reading El Jueves, a colloquial magazine which comes out every Wednesday. It is a very politically incorrect magazine, the kind of learning material I enjoy. I made flashcards out of the vocabulary I learnt from the week's issue and tested myself daily on them.

Unfortunately, I couldn't go around speaking like they did in the magazine or I would have gotten into trouble with the locals. So I borrowed books from the library to learn standard everyday words and phrases, knowing I could return the book the next day if it wasn't right for my level.

One of the best books I borrowed from the library was the “Trajano” series, by Santiago Posteguillo, about the life of a successful Roman emperor. Although these books are enormous, a book's difficulty should never be judged by the number of its pages. The language used in the Trajano series is actually very simple.

Santiago Posteguillo also has other books set during the Roman era I have yet to read but they're definitely on my reading list.

Following a year of studying Spanish I found my level was reasonable, so I wanted to start watching films in Spanish.

On Italki, there was somebody who taught through this medium. He would send me a link to stream a film along with questions I had to fill out, we would then chat about the film in the following class.

One such film was Hable con ella (“Talk to Her), which covered bullfighting. I didn't know anything about this Spanish pastime so I watched ‘Tauromachy', a documentary by Jaime Alekos, portraying what goes on inside the plaza.

I was so shocked at the violence and brutality depicted in its short running time that I was inspired to write Toro 21, a story about bullfighting from the point of view of the bull.

This book took me over a year to write and rewrite, I consider it the crowning achievement in my quest to learn Spanish.

Note: You no longer need an A2 level to go to Spain on the British Council program, they are now accepting people without any knowledge of Spanish, which I think is a shame because you lose out on the motivation to study the language.

The post My Quest to Learn Spanish: How I Ended up Writing a Story in Another Language appeared first on Fluent in 3 months - Language Hacking and Travel Tips.