One of my goals ("someday") is to be fluent enough in at least 2 languages (ideally tons, but I could start with two). To that end, I dabble here and there and practice. I downloaded (when they were still free AGES ago) the "Learning Spanish Like Crazy" and "Learning Italian Like Crazy" CDs and listen to them in my car. I like both, and I'm pleased with the Spanish one because it's Latin American Spanish which is more relevant for me.
Apparently, some of my students think I know 5 or 6 languages (or maybe they're just humoring me) because sometimes I'll count in Japanese or say a word in German or such just to break things up. If they ask, I tell them how many I've "learned" in the past (in order: English, Farsi, German, Russian, Spanish, French, Japanese, Italian), and I also tell them how many I'm fluent in now (1). Go English!
Let's not fool anyone here. Maybe there's some segment of my brain that remembers these things, but those foreign words/phrases are not making that trip to my mouth. Anyway, as I was surfing the web today and went to the BBC site, I found THIS! Holy cow. There are videos and little dialogs and tests and all sorts of fun things.
I browsed through the French test, and got one wrong, and they linked me to these possible sites. I liked the Ma France one. Oh oh! more things to distract me from doing work.
Pimsleur is awesome. You can go to the public library to check out the tapes for free and listen to them! They're purely audio based call-and-answer, and they focus on conversational things that are immediately useful. I found it fantastic when learning Spanish... I wish we had the same for German, because Rosetta Stone isn't nearly as practical or interactive. :(
ReplyDeleteThanks for the idea, Mimi. I think our downtown library may have some Pimsleur :).
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