Spanish Learning Opportunities

[Street Philosopher]

---

Members don't see this ad.

I have a lot of time right now and I'll have another month of summer vacation before medical school starts. I don't want to completely waste my time, so I'm thinking of learning conversational Spanish. I already learned some in high school, but it's been too long for me to feel comfortable speaking.

So what's a good volunteer activity that I can do to learn Spanish? Or even better a job? Or if it comes down to it, a course or self-learning program?

I'm in the Los Angeles area if that helps.

I hope I get some responses. 🙂

 

[manta]

hey - i would try finding a community clinic to volunteer at, especially one in a primarily latino neighborhood. you probably wouldn't be able to pick up spanish just like that, but it may help you pick up some key medical words/phrases. maybe you could also try the local health department.
i'm trying to learn spanish right now as well. a couple things have helped - forcing myself to communicate with latinos that speak broken english w/o flagging down an interpreter, buying "medical spanish for health care professionals" (a decent enough book, kind of difficult to navigate through), and checking out spanish children's books from the public library. a lot of schools offer medical spanish, and that's when i'm planning to *really* learn it. 🙂
good luck!

 

[LoneCoyote]

hey,

About once a month there is a group called Manos de Ayuda that sends volunteers from Arizona and Southern California to Puerto Penasco, Mexico to volunteer at a health clinic for indigent children. The U of A sends a group each month and I have gone and it is great. It really gives your Spanish a workout. There are volunteers who speak varying levels of Spanish so they can find something for you to do. It would be a drive from L.A. though... but here's the link if you want to check it out. Feel free to pm me if you want more info or you have questions.

http://www.manosdeayuda.org/

 

[goldenbears18]

Anyone know of similar opportunities in the San Francisco Bay Area? I am kicking myself in the ass for not having planned my summer earlier and trying to travel abroad to get some practice ... grr. 😡
Thanks!