Published Monthly

Volume I Number  VII                                                                      July  2007

¡Hola Amigos!

CLASS NEWS

The next Conversational Spanish classes at the Kelly Recreation Complex begin July 23, 2007. Spanish II will be from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm and Spanish I will be from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm. Come join us! Bring your friends and relatives! Tell your co-workers! ¡Ándale!

 Boy, is it hot!

¡Hace mucho calor!

 You know, I hate to talk about problems, but I want to talk about one of the biggest, most common, pervasive difficulties that my students seem to have.

 Practice.                                        Practicar.

Or lack of it.                                 O falta de practicar.

 I know it’s hard. We’re all busy with jobs, school, family, home, and all that goes with them. And most of us don’t have anyone to practice with. So I thought we’d talk about ways to practice by yourself. I would very much appreciate your thoughts on this topic, too. So, if after y’all read this, if you wanna’ write me back an tell me how you practice, that’d be great!

 Okay, bien,

 Now I know some of these are gonna’ sound funny or strange, but give’em a try. And if we don’t get carted away an’ Baker Acted for talkin’ to ourselves (or even if we do!) we’ll be better speakers. Here goes…

      ·        As you exercise, count your reps aloud in Spanish.

 By the way, for it to count, all of this has to be speaking aloud and in Spanish. Duh!

 ·        When you count to brush your hair so many strokes, or your children’s hair, or your dog’s, cat’s, horse’s, whatever!

·        When you brush your teeth so many strokes (albeit this’ll have to be in your head!)

·        When you swish your mouthwash for 30 seconds (again, count in your head, can’t be avoided.)

 As you get ready to go out…

 ·        When you bathe, name the body parts and say what you’re doing:

 Estoy lavándome la cara.        I am washing my face.

Estoy lavándome la pierna.   I am washing my leg.

 ·        As you dress, name the articles of clothing and wonder aloud:

         ¿Me pongo el vestido amarillo, o los pantalones azules con la  

Do I wear the yellow dress, or the blue pants with the white blouse?

 ¿Qué cartera uso, y va con cuáles de los zapatos?

What purse should I carry, and which shoes go with it?

 Or if you’re a guy…

 ¿Me pongo los pantalones negros o grises?

Do I wear the black pants, or the gray ones?

 ·        As you eat breakfast (or lunch or dinner) start with naming things, and gradually add as much as possible:

          Example:

 café                                                                   coffee

Quiero café.                                                    I want coffee.

          Me gusta el café.                                           I like coffee.              

Dame un café con leche, por favor.         Give me a coffee  with milk, please. 

(You’ll have to pretend there’s a waiter in that last scenario.) 

·        Name things in the street as you go along in your car:

          Buzón                                    Mailbox.

Señorita bonita                 Pretty young lady

Librería                                Bookstore

Carro rojo                           Red car

Árboles                                 Trees

Casas                                    Houses

Edificios                               Buildings

 Then, when you learn something new, add it to it, like you did with your meals:

 Hay un buzón.                                       There is a mailbox.

Hay cinco casa blancas .                   There are five white houses.

 Then, when you’re out & about shopping ask about every item, “¿Cuánto cuesta?” and then answer yourself , “Cuesta un dólar, noventa y cinco centavos”, or whatever it is.

 Go out of your way to speak Spanish. Order in Spanish in your favorite Mexican restaurant. Talk to the people with Spanish nametags at the grocery store or wherever, even if it’s just, “Buenos días”, and then when they rattle off something too fast to understand, have your stock phrase ready, “Más despacio, por favor. Estoy aprendiendo español”.

 Read consumer labels in Spanish. The great thing about these is that they’re usually in Spanish and English, so they translate themselves without a dictionary.

 And speaking of dictionaries, carry yours with you at all times. Have it in your car, or in your purse or briefcase. Put nametags on everything in your house or office so as you see them, you’ll remember to say them aloud.

 And by all means, if it’s not a hardship, buy a picture dictionary as well as an alphabetical one. They are very helpful, as well as fun. There are some great children’s picture dictionaries, so look in the children’s books as well. And, if you can share them with your kids or grandchildren, there’s another way to practice. They also make great “bathroom books” if you know what I mean.

 Admittedly, I’m a  certified “bookaholic”. I love books, and buy as many as I can. The big chain bookstores usually have good collections including serious works, as well as things like “Spanish for Dummies” , or “Spanish in 10 Minutes a Day”.

 I’m also a big fan of our local libraries’ books for sale sections. I’ve gotten an enormous amount of material from them on all kinds of things: literature, religion and spirituality, psychology, novels, movies, books on tape, as well as Spanish books , workbooks, transparencies and CD’s. I also buy at used bookstores and yard sales.

It’s amazing what’s out there. But I’m always on the lookout.

 Remember to watch your favorite movies on DVD with the Spanish subtitles or audio track. Don’t use both at once, because it can get confusing. They don’t always match, strangely enough. And you might want to do this by yourself. My husband hates it when I talk during movies!

 Remember also to use the old standbys of listening to Spanish radio and watching Spanish TV stations. You can also use the internet in Spanish.

 One more great way to practice of course is to teach someone else. Granted, you can’t do this alone, but you can involve your husband/wife, boyfriend/girlfriend, children, friends, relatives, coworkers, neighbors. They don’t have to be in class with you, but you can utilize them to practice with by teaching them what you’ve learned.

 ¡Bueno, ya basta! ¡ Pero no me digan que no tuvieron la oportunidad de practicar! ¿El perro se comió tu tarea? Ya, cuéntame otra...

Chao for now. . .  ¡guau!

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Sherri Brownkatz

Certified Teacher

(863) 533-9161 (home)

(813) 763-6333 (cell)

SherriBrownkatz@Verizon.net

www.Brownkatz.com