Are You Ever Too Old to Start with Spanish for Beginners

Are You Ever Too Old to Start with Spanish for Beginners Is There an Age Limit for Learning Spanish for Beginners? ChaptersWhat Does the “Critical Period Hypothesis” Say?Learn Spanish for Beginners: Advantages for Adults over ChildrenLexical Similarities with English: Spanish Vocabulary and Much MoreFrom Private Tutors to Spanish Books for Beginners: How to Learn Spanish When you're OlderThere are many things that people start to regret as they get older; not travelling more, not picking up a musical instrument, and never learning another language. When it comes to the latter, it is never too late.Spanish is a language spoken by around 400 million native speakers worldwide. It is a language of huge importance, not just because it is an official language in 20 different countries, but also because it is one of the official languages of the UN.It is therefore no surprise that many people opt to learn Spanish, with a lot of schools teaching Spanish to kids from a young age. But if you want to learn to speak Spanish, you don't necessarily have to be young. A beginner setting out to learn Spanish as second language can be of any age.Obviously those who choose to study Spanish will need to have a plan of action for learning Spanish, and this will change based on each person's individual goals, as well as their age.Whether you want to master the Spanish language, take Spanish lessons near me to make new friends, learn Spanish online in your free time, or just learn a new language because it's something you've always wanted to do, age is just a number and everyone can enrich their lives by learning a language.Over half of English vocabulary is either from Latin directly or from French, which itself evolved from Latin. Spanish is also a language that evolved from Latin. This shared lexical history means that there are similarities between English and Spanish that you wouldn’t find if you were learning a language like Chinese.As you’ve guessed, the same goes for most non-European languages, too. This is great news for anyone interested in learning Spanish. However, don’t th ink that this means that Spanish is really easy to learn. It also means that you can’t just put “o” or “a” on the end of every word in English, either!Are you starting Spanish from scratch? You probably know more Spanish than you think you do. You’ve probably heard a few words, already.From Private Tutors to Spanish Books for Beginners: How to Learn Spanish When you're OlderNow that we know there’s no age limit to learning Spanish, even if it can be difficult the older you are, we need to move on to the next step! This is the part where we give you a few tips and tricks on how to learn Spanish quickly and effectively.As a beginner, you'll need to know how to go about learning Spanish, so here are our suggestions...Get Private Spanish TutorialsYou probably could have guessed we were going to say that but it’s true! It’s probably not worthwhile going back to college! A undergraduate degree can take a long time and you want to learn Spanish as quickly as you can.Shoul d you learn Spanish online or with a more traditional book? (Source: pixabay.com)We recommend going straight to a private tutor and focusing on learning Spanish. Learning Spanish with a dedicated personal tutor or Spanish teacher means that the lessons are tailored to you and you can make progress much more quickly than you would in a class. Don't forget that there are also online Spanish tutorials available over Skype if you live in a rural area or can't make it to your Spanish classes.Rather than sitting in a massive lecture hall and blending into the crowd, get personalised  classes! You’ll learn Spanish in no time at all. Your tutor has the freedom to focus on any gaps in your knowledge or things you’re struggling with.If you're lucky enough to be retired, you might not even want to become fluent in Spanish. Maybe you just want to speak conversational Spanish with friends or family members in Spanish speaking countries. If this is the case, there are plenty of conversational language courses available  that can help you hold a conversation with a native, and in doing so you will work on language skills such as comprehension and speaking.However, if you want to learn to speak advanced Spanish, you are going to have to do a lot more than read a few basic Spanish phrases before you go to bed. That said, intensive language lessons can help you learn about Spanish culture as well as all the intricacies of this fascinating language.ImmersionWe often mention this when talking about foreign language learning. Immersion is magic when it comes to language learning. That's why so many young people decide to travel abroad during their studies.There’s nothing stopping anyone from moving abroad to learn a foreign language. You can go to Spain, Central America, or South America. The choice is yours!Once you’re surrounded by Spanish speakers, you’ll have a chance to train your ear and get used to speaking Spanish every single day.Spanish is spoken in plenty of d ifferent places. (Source: Amanda Kerr)There is no black and white answer for how long it takes to learn Spanish, but if your goal is to learn Spanish as quickly as possible and get a good level in a matter of months, immersion is really your only option!Join Speaking GroupsNot everyone can just move to a Spanish-speaking country whenever they want. We know that!  If you don’t want to do tutorials or go back to college, what else can you do?In cities all over the country, there are groups where you can practise speaking a language with other learners. These groups are often found in student towns (where large numbers of students are learning foreign languages) and are operated by students.There are also exchanges organised by those who’d like to practise English with a native speaker in exchange for helping someone else practice a foreign language. They also organise events for people to meet Spanish speakers. However, the main objective is to practise Spanish with as many people as possible. On your first night, you’ll probably have more conversations in Spanish than you’ve ever had up until now.You should try the site meetup.com. This site specialises in getting people together based on their interests (learning Spanish, for example). Members meet up and go for picnics or walks, for example, during which you can practice and get better at Spanish.If you practise enough, you might even end up having dreams in Spanish, too. This is when you really know that you are making great progress!Learn Spanish Basic Vocab by Watching Spanish Movies and TV ShowsFinally, the last tip for those who’ve just begun learning Spanish and are sitting in front of their TV, computer, or tablet: movies and TV shows! With so many streaming sites popping up in recent years, everyone has access to media from all over the world.  You could use this to find TV shows and movies in Spanish.Whether you’re learning new words by reading the subtitles or training your ear with them turned off, films and TV series are great for learning languages.Get a Good Book to Help you Learn SpanishWhichever method you think is the best to you, it is probably advisable to get a Spanish textbook to accompany your studies. This won't be your only learning method, but it can act as a good way to practise outside of the classroom, or in a different way to your principal Spanish learning method.