Consejos

Listening activities through the University of Texas — one of the best resources available, providing videos of native speakers talking about various topics. Each topic has 6 native speakers, exposing students to different accents and vocabulary.

LingusTV — free dramatic videos with subtitles in Spanish for all levels. Funny and entertaining, providing an enjoyable way to strengthen listening skills.

Livemocha — a free website for learning various languages in a fun and interactive way, with plenty of opportunity for repetition.

While teaching English in Argentina, Nikki was surprised about the number of students who were excited about having a native English-speaking teacher. At the same time, it was interesting how little their group of native English speakers knew about the rules and grammar of their own language.

Have you ever thought about how there are three different sounds for regular verbs in the past? The suffix -ed in "worked," "wanted," and "learned" are all different — and there's a reason why.

Some language institutes only hire native speakers, but does that really mean native speakers are better teachers? As a teacher of both English and Spanish, finding the right language teacher depends on more than just native status.

The Diploma de espanol como lengua extranjera (DELE) is the standard of Spanish competency tests, offered two to three times a year through the Cervantes Institute at testing sites in major cities throughout the world.

The test offers three levels — Inicial, Intermedio, and Superior — and provides a diploma credential for those who'd like to have something more on their resume than "conversational" or "fluent" in Spanish.

In the Spanish-speaking world, the DELE Superior is recognized as "native-like fluency" for jobs and school.

Trabalenguas — literally "tongue obstacle" or tonguetwister. Tres tristes tigres trigan trigo en un trigal.

Paracaidas, paraguas, rompecabezas — compound words: the fall stopper (parachute), water stopper (umbrella), or head breaker (puzzle).

Esposas — wives or handcuffs. Seem machista? In English we have the old ball and chain...

Tranquilo (chill/mellow) does a great job of describing all types of things.

Estrenar, tutear — concise verbs meaning to use or show something for the first time and to use the familiar tu form.

Ojo — a great gesture (pointing to your eye) or verbal warning to watch out.

The best way to learn a language is to immerse yourself in it. Whether that means living abroad, traveling, or taking advantage of exposure to Spanish in Denver, you will learn to speak and understand Spanish faster than studying in the classroom once a week.

The classroom gives you the structure you need to build a foundation, upon which you can explore the language and culture in its authentic setting.

Music, films, television, radio, learning CDs, media, and internet resources all keep you improving outside of class. Most importantly, speak with native speakers whenever you get the chance — they will appreciate your effort.

Economist Tyler Cowen has proposed that learning foreign languages will be increasingly important for job-seekers around the world.

Rather than making the usual arguments about globalization and immigration, he points out that critical thinking, judgment, and empathy are increasingly important skills in a knowledge economy.

The best investment in your education is not technical, but general: learning to learn instead of learning to do something. Travel and learning a foreign language are among the best ways to gain international insight.

The Denver Spanish Language Meetup group is a great opportunity to practice your Spanish in a social setting. Generally hosted at a member's house, events are usually bimonthly and are an informal gathering of all levels — beginner to native speakers — who are interested in practicing their Spanish.