Enjoyable Spanish

  Language exposure is crucial to the development of a second language, and fortunately, you can get plenty of exposure and have fun by watching movies and shows with subtitles! Nowadays, subtitles are more accessible than ever with streaming services like Netflix and Hulu. These streaming services provide plenty of authentic movies and TV shows from different regions of the world so you can improve your listening skills. You can even change the language settings on your Netflix account so everything is written in a different language to get more reading practice (in addition to the subtitles of course!).  Utilizing subtitles has several benefits. Subtitles help with attention to, comprehension of, and memory for the video being watched ( Gernsbacher, 2015 ). It can seem a bit overwhelming as a beginner to a new language, but there are several ways to go about sharpening different abilities using subtitles. I am going to outline a few of them here, and then I will share my own personal

I am not affiliated with any of the apps that I review. I simply wanted to provide a quick review of each app so language learners can decide for themselves which app best suits their needs. We live in an ever-expanding digital age where we can explore the world while lounging on our couch. As a language learner, I am always looking to keep growing my vocabulary and keep practicing the language. The saying “If you don’t use it, you lose it” rings extremely true in the aspect of learning and maintaining a language. There are a ton of different language learning apps out there, and today, I am exploring the most well known of them all, Duolingo. It should be noted that Duolingo is notorious for sending an insane amount of push notifications and, because of this, internet memes have surfaced that I will be sharing throughout this review. Most people have heard of Duolingo by now. I was fortunate enough to have received the beta version of this before it actually launched. It’s been intere

Bilingualism has so many benefits cognitively and socially that it would be a shame to deny our children the opportunity. It is difficult raising children monolingually, let alone bilingually. However, there are different strategies and methods for doing so that make it a bit easier for parents. It is important to start by taking into account all the varying linguistic environments in which the child is being raised. Are you native English speakers living abroad in Germany? Is only one parent able to speak a second language? It’s enough to make your head spin! I think it’s important also to distinguish between the two manners in which bilingual children can acquire both languages. Simultaneous acquisition occurs when a child is raised bilingually from birth. The child goes through the natural acquisition process of both languages simultaneously before the age of 3. Sequential acquisition is achieved when a child learns a second language after the first language, usually after the age