The Best Way to

Learn Spanish
on Your Own

(Tips From The Pros)

Crafted By SpanishlandSchool.com
 Introduction 
We asked 10 of the top Spanish language teachers (experts) to
answer the following question: "What's the Best Way to Learn
Spanish on Your Own?"

What follows is a list of their responses in few short paragraphs.

Many have a common theme and I'm sure you will notice it right
away.

Almost all of our experts recommended having the right

motivation and making daily progress each day.  Many even
mention motivation and desire as more important than the
actual method being used.

Finally, as you will see from the chart on the next page, there was
definitely a preference by those surveyed to both listening and
speaking in the Spanish language.
 Analysis of Results
Summary of Responses (From 10 Spanish Experts)
6.5
6 6
6.0
Listening and Speaking 5.5
each received 60% of the 5.0
recommendations. 4.5

4 of 10 Experts mentioned 4.0

Motivation as a Key Factor. 3.5

(not shown in graph) 3.0

3

Using Books and Phone 2.5

Apps was each only 2.0

mentioned one time. 1.5

1 1
1.0

0.5
Number of Recommendations

Books Movies/ Video Audio/ Listening

Speaking Phone Apps

Ben Curtis
Make sure you know what your motivations are, if
you aren't motivated it's much harder, so write
down what you want from Spanish, where you
want to be, then find ways to learn that really
interest you - if the material is boring, you won't
learn fast either. 

Find interesting material - books, films, podcasts,

blogs, Skype or real intercambios - and immerse
yourself in Spanish completely!
 1. Learning the stuff of Spanish (grammar, vocab, etc)

Connor 2. Actually becoming confident using it, by having a lot of

one-on-one conversations.

Grooms There are plenty of ways to handle #1 (I prefer a

teacher, which is the fastest, but there are other ways). 

For #2, which is what everyone skips (and why most

people speak so poorly even if they “know” a lot of
Spanish), you have to actually speak to real people. That
part cannot be done alone, and it’s the most important
part.
Jared Romey

Do something every day. Before you start, set

up a plan to learn Spanish, and then follow it
every day. 
If you can do 10 hours a day, 2 hours a day, 30
minutes a day, or even only 5 minutes a day, be
sure to make time daily to take one step
forward to your Spanish fluency. 
Doing this guarantees you will reach your
Spanish goals at some point.
One of the best ways to learn Spanish on your own is with audio
learning courses like Pimsleur. Online Skype tutors are also great.
Use resources that focus on conversational Spanish over
grammar.
Rodney
You'll also need someone to talk to. You can find conversational
groups or partners via sites like Meetup.com or with an app like
Prince
HelloTalk. Also be sure to talk to your Spanish speaking friends,
neighbors or co-workers. 

And remember to give your Spanish a purpose by finding ways to

use it in your everyday life. After all, speaking the language on a
regular or daily basis is how you become fluent.
 Vanesa y Álex
Just do massive listening.  From the beginning:
massive listening input. Spanish language can be
very complex. 
There are a million grammar rules and another
million exceptions, you just can’t learn Spanish that
way. Instead: listen, listen, listen and listen to native
speakers. Simplify, don’t 'overlearn,' just do what
native speakers did to learn Spanish. 
Stop being a passive learner, waiting for someone to
tell you what to do. Get active! Listen, talk, read,
write… Use topics that are interesting for you and
don’t be afraid to make mistakes. The important
thing in language learning is communication, not
every microscopic detail.
The very first thing we would like to say is that thanks to modern
technology and the Internet, there is really no need to be alone in your
Spanish studies.  The Internet is now veritably bristling with other folks
ready to share their native Spanish skills with someone who can help them
with their English. You can be that person! 

Of course, just speaking to natives won't get your Spanish where you want
it. To do that you to be building your language through as many means
as you can.  Youtube is filled with thousands of hours of free teaching.
Phone apps want to help you Speak Spanish using cutting edge methods of
learning never before seen.
Gordon
The plain fact is that the Spanish speaking world is so easily accessed
now that you could have a native speaker talking to you through your
Smith
computer screen this very day.
 Jason Jolley
The best way to learn Spanish on your own
is to familiarize yourself with the
proficiency guidelines of ACTFL or the
Common European Framework.

Assess your strengths and weaknesses, set

goals to improve, and identify the
resources that will help you make
progress. 

Within this general purpose-oriented

approach what works best will be what you
enjoy and can sustain doing — kind of like
exercise!
 In my opinion, the best way to learn Spanish by yourself is music, music, music!
Actively discovering songs in Spanish that you like while reading and learning
the lyrics, which is also the way I started learning English on my own. 

This will increase your confidence speaking Spanish in public. It isn’t that much
different from kids who learn their first language by repeating what other
people say and it can give you an immediate sense of accomplishment that you

Tomás can reach on your own.

And if you are thinking that “Latin music” or “Spanish music” isn’t for you, well…

Morales that would be like saying that you don’t like “English music”.   With over 20
Spanish-speaking countries, in each country, you can find that they create their
own type of music. So whether you like rock, reggaeton, salsa, merengue…
Eventually, you are bound to find songs to your liking in Spanish that you can use
to turn the task of learning Spanish into an (even more) fun part of your life.
 Karo Martínez
I am a believer that the best way to learn Spanish on
your own is with a natural method: listening, listening,
listening. I think listening is fundamental if you want to
speak Spanish like a native. 

Although there is one condition: the materials should

be authentic and natural, not adapted for foreigners.
The second essential ingredient is that audios should
be comprehensible, which means that the learner
should understand 70%-80% of the audio. 

This guarantees that the subconscious will understand

the rest 20% from the context. I have learned 3
languages with natural method (as an adult!), and this is
how I teach Spanish to my podcast listeners.
 Andrea Alger
The best way to learn Spanish on your own is to surround yourself
with that second language as much as possible. That doesn’t mean
going to a Spanish-speaking country. What that means is committing
to doing just one thing every day and also switching your daily
routine to include Spanish.

I am sure that every day you listen to podcasts, the radio, or music
while you drive, cook, walk, etc. Well, continue to do all of those
things but this time do them in Spanish. 

Once you do that you are ready to look for a well-structured online
course or tutor/coach that can help you with the grammar and other
aspects of the language as well as the opportunity to talk to a native
speaker (in Spanish).

Becoming fluent can be done with repetitive behaviors built up over

time. At the end of the day, it depends on your daily habits and how
committed you are to accomplishing your goal of learning Spanish.
Thanks For Checking Out Our Guide

We hope you found the responses from these experts above helpful and
maybe learned a thing or two.  At the very least, hopefully you were
reassured with how you have gone about learning Spanish.

Are you interested in getting past the intermediate plateau and speaking
with advanced fluency? Join us at SpanishlandSchool.com. We exist to help
you to start thinking and speaking like a native.