topic Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language? in Kitchen

OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Barbarainnc — Fri, 18 Jul 2014 23:36:09 GMT

How did you learn it? Did your family speak it or did you take a class or what?

I always thought Italian or Spanish would be fun to learn. I took 2 years of Spanish in high school, but didn't learn much.

Sometimes I watch You Tube and the cooking shows are in a foreign language and I would like to know what they are saying.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Meezerpleezer — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:36:43 GMT

Barbarainnc--I think that you learn another language best by immersion. The first thing that will happen is that you will begin to understand some of what is said. You may not be able to speak it or write the other language. If you take classes like you have done and continue them, you will learn to put it all together. If you think about it, that is exactly how children learn. You as the parent, speak to them, show them things and say the word. They might repeat what you say but really aren't that verbal. The child has difficulty putting together a sentence but the child probably understands most of what you are saying. It is only after time and listening, that the child becomes proficient. The last skills that the child learns is reading and writing in the language.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

JeanLouiseFinch — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:37:02 GMT

The jr. high I attended automatically taught us Spanish. It came easily to me so I continued in high school, finishing with 4th yr. honors. That was a long, long time ago, but I still remember some of it. One of my sons chose to study German in high school. He earned an opportunity to take a student trip to Germany. A friend's daughter was going on the trip too so the other mom and I decided to sign up as chaperons. Teasing me, my son's "requirement" was that I had to know something like 25 German words. I picked up a few from hearing him around the house, so I was able to recite a list. Even now, he'll say something and I can kind of "get it".

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

lolakimono — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:41:37 GMT

¡sí!

I studied it in school and then lived abroad.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

151949 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:44:28 GMT

I speak medical jargon does that count? And, since my Dad was deaf i can also sign.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

brewhaha — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:45:24 GMT

I speak the language of love.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

blackhole99 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:49:04 GMT

I think you have to have an ear for language,immersion is good , but my son has lived in Mexico for almost a year now and his Spanish still isn't good.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Clover29 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 00:51:19 GMT

At 40, I just decided out of the blue to learn French. I was never interested in speaking it, I just wanted to be able to read it. I did evening classes at the local college for three years. Pretty much everything on my Kindle is in French, and for years I got National Geographic magazine in French.

If you want to learn another language, it is a lot of effort. One of my classmates told me, "It's easy for you, you're young". I was only a couple of years younger than him, I just worked harder at it.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Scooby Doo — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 01:56:15 GMT

I took four years of Spanish a long time ago. I brushed up on my elementary Spanish before I went on a trip to Mazatlan. At our condo there was a young starving mama kitty living in the bushes. I asked our taxi driver where could I go to buy some cat food. I guess I twisted that around because he was astonished that I wanted to buy a cat to eat. He kept telling me, "we no eat cat". I understand Spanish better than I speak it nowadays.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

house_cat — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 01:58:37 GMT

I studied French, Spanish and Italian. I can read a bit in each of them, but can't speak any of them.

My parents were second generation Italian and they never learned to speak it.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Feline Fine — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 02:01:35 GMT

"Me hablo espanol un poco". (I speak a little Spanish). But my computer doesn't do the 'squiggly' over the n, LOL.

My mom was from Germany but lived internationally as a child, and she spoke fluent Spanish, semi-fluent French, and some Portuguese and Italian. She started teaching me a bit when I was about 3 or so, and thereafter.

I also took Spanish in junior high school, but unfortunately not in senior high school. And I really wish I had kept up with it!

But thankfully, there are a multitude of free courses online, as well as books, software (like Rosetta Stone), and courses (like Berlitz) to purchase if you wish.

You have the right idea re: those cooking shows, Barbara. Many foreigners learned English by watching American television. Experts say that listening to and/or watching conversational Spanish or another language is the easiest way to pick it up.

And whichever you learn first - Spanish or Italian - will help you speak the other as they are somewhat similar, along with Portuguese.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Marienkaefer2 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 02:32:11 GMT

Yes, I speak Italian, German, and Spanish. I also studied four years of Russian in college.

I've also recently started learning Portuguese online...I've always loved that language.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

gazelle77 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 02:50:03 GMT

On 7/18/2014 Marienkaefer2 said:
Yes, I speak Italian, German, and Spanish. I also studied four years of Russian in college.

I've also recently started learning Portuguese online...I've always loved that language.

Me too! I also speak fluent Greek!

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

GCR18 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 03:20:20 GMT

I took two semesters of Spanish in college. I can speak three or four words, so no I can't speak another language.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

ennui1 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 03:29:39 GMT

On 7/18/2014 Feline Fine said:
"Me hablo espanol un poco". (I speak a little Spanish). But my computer doesn't do the 'squiggly' over the n, LOL.

That is appalling.

"Yo hablo espanol un po." With the tilde.

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

chi5925 — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 03:31:24 GMT

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

lovesrecess — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 03:39:31 GMT

Spanish and I understand enough French and Dutch to know what my Christmas gifts would be when my relatives would talk in front of me, But I don't speak a lot of French

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

Alsee — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 03:48:20 GMT

I try to speak the same language as my kids- or at least try to understand it. Does that count?

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

moondust — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 04:03:53 GMT

I speak only two languages fluently; German which was my lst language till the age of 5 and then of course English. Kinda easy since I was born in Germany and my dear Mother is German (my Mother speaks/writes in German, French and English...fluently) and we still speak German with one another almost each day. My son was brought up also speaking both English and German.

The lst time coming to the US as a child, I spoke no English and my first friend, was a sweet little girl next door and we played together all summer long before kindergarten. Well, we were "suppose" to be speaking...English, but she was Spanish, was speaking Spanish to me and I was speaking German to her. According to my Mother, one day she asked me a question and I answered in....Spanish!! Opps!! Our Mother's got "together" and put us with other children in the neighborhood that spoke only English and I guess that solved the issue of being able to head off to kindergarten speaking the correct language! I took Spanish in High School (college German) and can still understand and communicate, but writing not so much, therefore not fluent.

And living over half my life in Europe I can get "by" with my French, Italian and Dutch comes pretty easy for Germans!! I always desired to learn Russian, Polish or Chinese...maybe I can still give it a go.

smiles

moondust

Re: OT and Just wondering : Do you know how to speak another language?

corita — Sat, 19 Jul 2014 05:18:02 GMT

On 7/18/2014 ennui1 said:
On 7/18/2014 Feline Fine said:
"Me hablo espanol un poco". (I speak a little Spanish). But my computer doesn't do the 'squiggly' over the n, LOL.

That is appalling.

"Yo hablo espanol un po." With the tilde.

I was born/raised in Latin America - speak fluent Spanish/English, pretty good at French and understand Italian and bit of Portuguese!! Actually it is - "Hablo un poco Español"...