Best Way To Learn Spanish!

[eight143]

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In the future, I want to expand my patient pool to the spanish speaking community. However, I only took spanish in high school and that hasn't helped me much. I was wondering if anyone have any insights on what the best way to learn spanish. I want to start now, so I can at least carry a good conversation in a few years. Thanks for your input!

 

[critterbug]

Well, learning Spanish is always an option, but if you are like me and have trouble learning new languages, getting a bilingual dental assistant or hygienist to translate seems to be the path of least resistance.

Just an idea.

 

[Firm]

This is kind of tricky. If you live in an area with not many spanish speaking dentists then this is a huge asset. However, if you live in florida or california then learning spanish may not be necessary, because no matter how much you learn someone else will always speak it better. The best place to learn spanish is in another country. Go to a school that teaches spanish in another country for about 6 months.
Here are some schools that I would recommend:

http://cela-ve.com/
http://www.amerisol.com/costarica/edu/intercultura.html
http://www.amerispan.com

I went to the second one (intercultura in Costa Rica) for 2 months. I didn't know any spanish when I arrived, two months later I could speak and understand it. It's very inexpensive, the food is great, your host family is really nice, and they have dance classes. I wished I could have stayed longer, but I had to start my D2 year. If you decide to go for an extended time. Go 2-3 weeks, then take a week off to give your brain time to rest, and to vacation. Hope this helps.

 

[eight143]

Thanks for all your responses. I'll keep all your advice in mind. Thanks.

 

[ItsGavinC]

Serve a 2-year mission for the LDS church. I did, y yo puedo hablar 😀

 

[Supernumerary]

Gavin. Spanish, huh? I learned Danish... a fat lot of good that's done me. lol

I've also been trying to learn Spanish and have decided that it just can't be done well except by going to another country and immersing yourself in it. But then again, maybe you could just find a summer job like lawn care or house painting where everyone else is Spanish speaking. That might work too. 🙂

 

[cgt3477]

I've lived in Miami, Florida all my life and I still can't speak Spanish. I did take Spanish classes for 1 year in middle school, 2 years in High School and a Semester in College but I still have major problems with the conjugations and the grammer. So far I have been able to get by in Miami with the limited amount of Spanish I know.

I think some people are just inclined to learning languages much easier. I only wish I were one of them...

Most people I know who are fluent in a foreign language (who did not grow up with that language in the household) lived abroad for a period of time. I think the best way to learn any foreign language is to completely surround yourself with people who speak that language exclusively. You'll have that extra motivation to learn that language much quicker.