Knuckling Down to Spanish. A short course in how I plan to estudy espanol

As an educator, I learned a few tidbits about learning that I hang on to.

• To increase learning, you can do three things: Decrease group size. Increase explicitness. Increase time. These 3 things allow for more opportunities to respond, more and better feedback and, of course, more practice.

• The brain learns best on a nibbling diet. Many concentrated sessions beat fewer longer sessions.

• Engagement is everything. Babies are language learning masters because their "on" button is stuck on. They can't not pay attention.

At Education Week, I attended a session on second-language learning. The challenge was given to be the architect of one's own learning. To do that, it's good to look at the perfect model: Babies and toddlers. Little children pick up language naturally because of being bathed in language from birth and maybe before. The brain, being a pattern-seeking organism, begins to make sense of the babble and in just a couple of years the child has a sophisticated understanding of words and their meanings, sentence construction, even humor. It is amazing, but somewhat replicable; realizing that no one is going to stand over me smiling and speaking slowly while I learn.

But, here's my daily plan for learning Spanish:
1. A few DuoLingo lessons on the iPhone. Great free app, by the way. I'm not a digital game player, but the little reinforcing "ching" when I answer correctly is actually pretty motivating. Tonight I learned the word "enemigos." How cool is that? Like "frienemies" except that it's a real word, and now you, too, know it. I am moving on into something called Object Pronouns. Sounds scary so I'll tackle it tomorrow.

2. At least two Rosetta Stone lessons.  Here again, I can't stop with one at a sitting--mostly because I won't accept anything below 80% on a lesson and sometimes that means many repetitions. How I wish I'd taken ANY language in high school!!  Estupidamente me. (Actually, the word is perezoso. Lazy.) And I confess, in the hardest part, writing, I will advance whenever they let me because it is so hard that about three times through and I'm ready to call it quits, 80% or no.

3. Read out loud the old lesson, study and copy the next lesson from A First Spanish Reader. This is a slow slog and these are supposed to be simple stories, but I am a believer in repetition, so I'm doing it. I figure if I just hear things enough times, something is sure to stick.

4. Read a chapter or two of Spanish, Learn the Basics. This and the previous books are on my Kindle. Rosetta Stone is on my computer. The resources are literally at my fingertips.

5. Get started on actual reading Spanish text with Jay.  Probably the Book of Mormon or Preach My Gospel--a few paragraphs each day to begin with.

With just six weeks before we are supposed to be heading out, I certainly don't have any illusions that I'll be speaking the language, but every day a little step closer....