Saturday, 1 November 2014

Making Spanish Lessons In Houston Worth The Effort

By Roseann Hudson


These days, people who are bilingual or even multilingual have the competitive advantage. If you learn a language such as Spanish, you'll be able to communicate with a wider range of people and they'll respect you more because you're speaking to them in their language. Taking Spanish lessons in Houston is easy but it's up to you to make the time and effort you put in, really worth it.

Houston, TX is a very cosmopolitan city, with people from all over the world living and working here. Since Texas used to be part of Mexico, a large part of the population are of Mexican descent. In addition, there are large communities of immigrants who came from other parts of Latin America, including Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras. In fact, more than a third of the city's people speak Spanish at home.

So many people who speak the language of Pablo Neruda or Gabriel Garcia Marquez make finding a teacher quite easy. A good idea is to find a reputable language school and ask for classes that involve private lessons or small groups. This will ensure personal attention but you'll also have a better guarantee that the teacher is competent and qualified.

You'll be assigned a class depending on how much of the language you already know. If you don't know any Spanish at all, you'll start with beginner's classes. First you'll learn greetings and other basic phrases. Then you'll start learning simple vocabulary and the grammar that will form the basis for more advanced classes later on.

One of the most important things to remember is that you need to take control of your own learning process. For example, spend some time doing your homework assignments. These will help you make sense of the day's lesson and help you practice your writing and reading skills. They'll also help your teacher get an idea of your progress.

It's important to practice spoken Spanish as often as you can as well. Join in during conversation classes and don't be too afraid that you'll make mistakes. Take your practice outside of the classroom too, speaking to shopkeepers, workers and any other speakers of the language that you might come into contact with. They'll be happy to help you learn their language.

Like English, Spanish has many accents and regional expressions. Expose yourself to these with the help of music and movies. Listen to radio stations that play styles such as ranchera and rent movies from Mexico, Chile or other countries in Latin America. In this way you'll not only learn how everyday people speak but you'll also find out more about Hispanic cultures.

Once you've learned the basics, it will be useful to try total immersion into the language. Go on vacation in a Latin American country, for instance. Better yet, spend some time at a volunteer project where you work with people who don't speak any English. In this way you're forced to practice your new-found skills while doing something good for the world too.




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