I made this mistake. It’s very common. There’s a chance you are making it too.
When I first started learning Spanish, I decided I would start with vocabulary.
In principle, there’s nothing wrong with that idea, but it can lead you off track.
I had a vocabulary book. I opened it up. The first page was all about the kitchen. Another page focused on the tool shed.
I was already good at using mnemonics so I learned a lot of the words in a short time.
If you missed my article on mnemonics, it’s on this page:
http://www.synergyspanishsystems.com/blog/mnemonics-memory-mastery-for-spanish/
Even though I was learning a lot of words, they did almost nothing to help me communicate in Spanish or understand Spanish.
Here’s where I got lost.
In the tool shed I learned the word for rasp.
Como decía mi esposa, (as my wife used to say): “You’re not Handy Manny.” I have never once used the Spanish word for rasp.
Even if I were Handy Manny, how often would I use the word “rasp”?
Lo mismo me pasó (the same thing happened to me) with the kitchen words.
I learned the Spanish for dish drainer and plughole. In a decade of living in Mexico, I never used those words once.
En fin (in short), it was a waste of effort.
Deciding what to learn is just as important as how you learn.
It’s more important to speak with the most frequently used words in Spanish than build a vocabulary around a theme.
In Synergy Spanish, a lot of the heavy lifting of choosing what to speak is already done for you. The path is so refined, you only learn the most impactful Spanish. Nothing wastes your time. All your efforts bring you maximum rewards.
It’s so distilled, you can turn 138 words into as many as 88, 000 Spanish phrases.
Whether you decide to take the easy path or beat your own path, don’t forget to give as much attention to what you learn as how you learn it.
Hi i am at pakistan i love languages the moment i learned arabic english a little bit spanish .love espanol
Thanks so much for your frequent emails with all kind of practical pointers and lessons that help me understand and speak better. Although I learned Spanish as an exchange student in Honduras 40 years ago, I am grateful for ongoing instruction and clarification. Since I did not learn it in the classroom, some aspects of the language I don’t understand well enough to explain to someone else. You are filling in the gap, as I do have opportunities to teach small classes now and then. I discovered Synergy Spanish several years ago when I needed a way to teach home schoolers on a “once-a-week” basis. It gave them a way to actually put words together, instead of, as you put it, memorize boring lists of vocabulary. My husband has gone through most of the lessons himself, which has given him at least a foundation to help him communicate on several mission trips to Central America. THANK YOU SO MUCH, for your generous help, encouragement and positive approach to this language I love!
With your help am slowly beginning to communicate. Am over 60 and the memory is not what it should be, but with your help I am progressing slowly. Thank You. Alan.
Hola Marcus!
Thank you for taking this on. As I go through the lessons, I’m realizing how much thought you have put into their structure so that we students are learning but also do not get bored and feel a sense of accomplishment 🙂
You are one patient fellow, indeed.
hola signor Marcus, I fully agree why waste time learning Spanish words and phrases you will prob a bly never use? stick to the nitty gritty that is Spanish by Marcus!!! saludos signor vic young
Hi Marcus,
I don’t write to you often but just to let you know that I use your Synergy Spanish every day.
From Helen in Australia …soon to go back to San Diego.
Hola amigo, thanks for your uplifting E.Mails it helps, I found your first course really good, I studied it to the end then booked in at a college for 4 months which seemed to throw me right off. I had a whole lot of jumbled grammar in my head.I nearly chucked it in but I really love learning Spanish!
I find it a beautiful passionate language, I will get back to you on the next session soon, Hasta Mas tarde.
I couldn’t agree more. Thank you for pointing out – straight learning to speak and let the words grow as you advance. I just wonder, if for a person learning a non-english language for the first time, if you could advise on the common every day terms/ short sentences of communication e.g How are you? How old are you? etc
Gracias
Saludos me profesor
Hello!
Thanks for all your mails, which I appreciate, read them, get help, get inspiration, to read, hopefully to learn the language, which I have practiced several times Spannia, successfully, despite one very limited vocabulary . Currently, the Spanish classes, some on hold, because I have been 6 months in Spain and when there are many tasks to tackle in the home, but by the end of May, I am daily going again. Once again thank you for your follow-up.
Best Regards
Arne Egil Moen
I studied your Synergy Soanish course prior to travelling to South America. It was a great course . I was able to ask for a beer and ordered at the restaurant, but as I am retired all that talk about the party was wasted on me. I wasn’t looking for work either.. What I needed was words for family members, eg grandchildren, I needed numbers so I could talk about ages, …in fact I needed to carry a dictionary for all the words I didn’t know. I guess what I’m trying to say is the same as what you said- deciding what to learn is important. But knowing what it is you are going to need to learn is something else again! And in the end most people spoke so fast I didn’t have a clue what they were talking about- and the rest had more English than I had Spanish. But I’m glad that I have the bricks and mortar to build on
Marcus,
Can I still join Bola de Nieve even if its full? or do you really require us to wait until there are slots left? Can I not subscribe to your lessons even without your support? (you mentioned your lessons are built and only seldom we’ll be needing support) please enlightened me.
Paps
The page you saw is out of date now, you can join here:
http://www.synergyspanishsystems.com/sidewaysfluency.html