Resources for Learning Foreign Languages

Phrase books are little gems for language learners. They include practical words and phrases made for use by travelers of foreign countries. In order to make the most of a Spanish phrase book in your language learning adventures, it’s best to pretend your traveling to a foreign country, creating situations that require the use of your phrase book. For example, asking an extremely attractive woman where the bathroom is before you have an accident too embarrassing to explain while dining with the locals. And then having that accident. Err, that’s just an idea anyway. Never happened to me.

There are many Spanish phrase books, and if you have a specific travel destination, choose a phrase book that is specific to the area in which you wish to travel. For general language learning use, I recommend The Everything Spanish Phrase Book: A Quick Reference for Any Situation. It will get you through your most wonderful fantasy travels as you make your way to the top in the country of your choice with Spanish or Latin American lovers on the side. Or you know, whatever your fantasies may be.

Other phrase books I’ve come across with good reviews can be found on the Spanish Resources page, and be sure to check out the complete list of recommended Spanish resources available on the Spanish Language page.

This post is about the book by 37signals, Getting Real, and the translations available. Finding and reading material that interests you in your target language is a great way to learn. Getting Real is a great book for software developers and just so happens to be available in many languages. You can read more about the book at Getting Real: The Book by 37signals, and here is a little snippet:

Getting Real is the business, design, programming, and marketing philosophies of 37signals — a developer of web-based software used by over 1 million people and businesses in 70 countries.

37signals used the unconventional Getting Real process to launch five successful web-based applications (Basecamp, Campfire, Backpack, Writeboard, Ta-da List), and Ruby on Rails, an open-source web application framework, in just two years with no funding, no debt, and only 7 people.

If you happen to be a software developer and are learning a language in which the book has already been translated, you’re in luck! What you came here for: Getting Real: Translations.

Newspapers and magazines give you real-world written word to learn from. With a Spanish bilingual dictionary and Spanish newspaper or magazine article in hand, you’re ready to learn.

The wonderful thing about these language learning tools is that they can be had for free. There are plenty of online Spanish language newspapers and magazines available online for the mere cost of an internet connection (or free one at libraries and hotspots). Dictionaries are also available online, but I recommend using a paper copy for daily use (until I find an online version that is worthwhile anyway).

But what you really came here for is the content. That I’m going to link to — there’s just not much of a point to maintaining separate lists for every language when other sites have the information you’re looking for. That’s part of the greatness that is the internet. The great university of MIT has a well-maintained resource, ad-free: MIT Libraries: Spanish Language News and Magazines.

As always, be sure to check out the Spanish Language section of LanguageJot for a complete list of resources that will give you the ability to read, write, and speak Spanish like a native.

Spanish-English bilingual dictionaries, for the lover of Spanish and English, for the hopefuls that Spanish and English will marry each other. Okay I’m guessing, because I have no idea what Spanish-English bilingual dictionaries are for. Oh wait, yes! — for those who want to learn English. Maybe Spanish. Both?

Since you’re reading this in English I presume you must have a Spanish lover on the side and are desperately wanting to know what they are whispering in your ear. Luckily for you, I spent a few hours browsing Spanish-English bilingual dictionaries online in a quest for the best. Then I went to the store to check out things in person. I finally came home with the Collins Spanish Concise Dictionary, 4e bilingual dictionary. It’s feature packed, up-to-date, a handy size, well printed, etc. Basically, it’s perfect for the self-learner of the Spanish language. Get it and you can look up a few words while you’re in the moment with your Spanish or Latin lover.

For a list of other dictionaries I recommend, check out the Spanish Resources page. And for a list of recommended products in all categories, check out the Spanish Language page.

Spanish textbooks! Oh boy! Learning Spanish grammar is the greatest, most exciting thing to do in life! In fact, it’s so exciting that I’m going to dedicate a portion of my life to writing about all the fun times I’ve had and will have with Spanish grammar.

Alright, so Spanish grammar isn’t the most fun thing in the world. But grammar, unfortunately for those of us who are bored to tears even at the thought of learning it, is a necessary skill for to write and speak the Spanish language properly. Luckily there are books available that teach grammar much more efficiently than most textbooks you might have used in highschool or college.

The book that I will be using to learn Spanish grammar is The Ultimate Spanish Review and Practice, by Ronni L. Gordon and David M. Stillman. For the LanguageJot method of learning, correct grammar lessons (meaning, NOT incorrect) are all that are really needed. As long as the book doesn’t have blatant errors throughout, it’s good enough. With that in mind, I’ve included a list of other grammar books available that have received good reviews on the Spanish Resources page.

If your main purpose of learning foreign languages is the ability to speak to as many people as possible in their native language, then knowing the top ten languages spoken throughout the world is important.

From Wikipedia:

I’m sure you see the disputes in the number of speakers for each language between Ethnologue and Encarta. There are a number of factors that come into play when building a list such as this, none of which I will discuss here — they are far too boring.

There are certainly other lists available for different purposes. If you want the most useful languages to learn RIGHT NOW, this is certainly not the list. You may have entirely different reasons for learning another language, or multiples. Whatever your reason, that’s the most important one. Now, get to learning your next language!

Please see the Wikipedia source for more and the most up-to-date information on the matter.

These handy little guides for travelers offer a sweet introduction to the Italian language. Please read-on for more information, or view the Italian language resource page for LanguageJot selections.

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When researching dictionaries (and all products for that matter), I ask myself, if I were studying this language, what dictionary would I purchase for myself? What is the best dictionary to suit my language learning needs? For Italian dictionaries, the answer is listed on the Italian language resource page. Though, I’m happy to explain the reasoning behind my selections — please continue reading.

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Looking for newspapers from a particular country? Online Newspapers presents you with drop-down lists for each major area of the world:

• North America
• South America
• Central America
• Asia
• Asia Pacific
• South East Asia
• South Pacific
• Middle East
• Africa
• West Indies

Each drop-down list contains countries that exist within the area. Once you select a country, a list of newspapers from the country is presented.

Not only is this an excellent language learning resource, it’s also great for learning about other countries and cultures as well.

Need language learning materials? Your local library is a great place to “check-out.” (Har har.) Libraries are not only limited to books — many also offer tapes, CDs, VHS casettes, and even DVDs. I’ve personally come across many FSI (Foreign Service Institute) courses, Pimsleur courses, and many books too.

Libraries are incredibly useful for previewing material. Preview it at the library or bring it home for a few days or weeks to give things a thorough look. If you like it enough, buy it online or at your local bookstore.

The only thing bad about libraries is going there to find something — waiting for a free computer, or even worse, browsing through the card catalogue. Not anymore — WorldCat to the rescue.

WorldCat makes finding material at your local libraries easy. “Search for an item in libraries near you.” Try it out — it’s free!