Language Learning Tool of the Week
You don’t have to travel to the country to learn the language. Free online tools just keep getting better and better! The only resources you need to learn Spanish is a $6 membership in a Skype language exchange site (such as My Language Exchange), a comprehensive program that fits your learning style (I like Español Automatico), and a sprinkling of tools to keep a little variety in your study.
May 1, 2024 - If you’re a fan of Judge Judy and learning Spanish, you’ll love the Spanish version, Caso Cerrado (taken from a Miami television show) and you can view on YouTube. (upper intermediate).
April 1, 2024 - Fluent U offers this great list of Spotify podcasts for beginner and early intermediates.
March 10, 2024 - If you have a VPN you can set to Spain, nothing beat RTVE.es for free movies in Spanish. (intermediate/advanced)
February 22, 2024 - Estudia Español, another great site that a language practice partner turned me onto has free grammar lessons, vocabulary and dual text stories.
January 10, 2024 - dualtexts.com - Just like it says, the site offers general interest articles in dual text Spanish/English. Cover the English and try your best at transcription, or read them with practice partners.
December 15, 2024 - Another novel in easy- intermediate Spanish (that isn’t YA) is Lo Ultimo Que Me Dijo. It’s in first-person and has a lot of easy dialogue. Great for reading out loud.
November 28, 2023 - Okay, this one’s a bit crazy. I recently watched a 40-year old series for free on YouTube on the life of St. Teresa de Avila by Spanish television station RTVE. The advantage to the really old series is that they are super slow, and speak clear, grammatically perfect Spanish. I found it easy to pause and write day key phrases you use every day.
Februrary 29, 2024 - Revista Central offers fresh topics and a promising directory of videos and culture.
February 17, 2024 - El País is Spain’s NYT. Even if you can’t read the whole article, it’s worth studying at least the titles. (advanced)
January 15, 2024 - A major find is Cine en Linea where you can stream the most famous and iconic movies from Mexico’s Filmoteca UNAM. (upper-intermediate)
November 1, 2023 - It’s difficult to find mid-intermediate books that aren’t YA. I found out about La Trenza in my Mexican book club. La Trenza (The Braid) is about how three people in three countries were affected by a single braid of hair.
October 15, 2023 - The website Ivoox is an extensive library of podcasts about everything under the sun. (advanced speakers)
October 1, 2023 - This is a site that a Spanish practice partner in Spain turned me onto. La Clase de Ele, a cute blog for intermediate learner
September 29, 2023 - I’m currently reading the book All the Pretty Horses, a great modern cowboy novel by Cormac McCarthy in Spanish, which is available in PDF form in both Spanish and English. This makes it easy to read it as dual text. (intermediate to advanced). Google All the Pretty Horses PDF
September 10, 2023 - Radio Ambulante is an amazing resource for the advanced intermediate speaker, it’s Latin NPR with hundreds of podcasts on books, culture, music. Especially good for exposure to every type of accent.
August 12, 2023 - The Jiveworld app offers great short stories in slower Spanish with a variety of different accents and cultures represented.
August 5, 2023 - Analizando Humanos is an intriguing YouTube channel with long-form videos in Argentine Spanish.
July 23, 2023 - No Hay Tos, a podcast of Spotify is good to listen to for Mexican Spanish, although these two young guys do ramble alot.
July 10, 2023 - Study Spanish is a tried and true grammar site. Most critical is that it tests you. Studies show you learn 3x more through tests than studying.
June 28, 2023 - El Gran Apagön on Spotify is a dystopian series about world-wide black-outs caused by solar flares and how the world responds and adjusts to a new reality that at any moment they can be left in total darkness. (upper intermediate)
June 1, 2023 - I can’t believe I’ve never mentioned BBC’s News Mundo, their Spanish language outlet. (advanced)
May 20, 2023 - Amazon book previews. I hesitate to buy books in Spanish because you can get bogged down, or you spend the money and realize it’s level is too high. The look inside feature allows you to read just the first few pages. A great day’s lesson!
May 11, 2023 - It’s pretty hard at times to find adult fiction at intermediate Spanish level, that is a say a book you can enjoy without having to look up too many words. Most I find are YA fiction with far too much teenage angst for me. The book Yo recibería las peores noticias de tus lindos labios by Marcal Aguino kept me turning the pages the same way I would a good book in English. Available on Amazon and Apple books.
April 30, 2023- Imperative commands were always easy for me (which might not be a good sign). They may be easy for you too with this tutorial from Spanish Language Blog. (beginner)
April 9, 2023 - Jane the Virgin, a series on Apple TV and rentable on YouTube ($1.99_, is a very funny parody of the Latin American telenovela. The grandmother speaks only Spanish. Great for a complete veg-out. I got hooked in spite of myself. In spite of it's cheesiness, it gets 90% ratings from Rotten Tomatoes. (beginner)
March 28, 2023 - For beginners Spanish Language blog periodically is a good place to check out. Vocabulary lists on the site won’t help you, but their short, helpful lessons like this one on talking about the weather are worth checking for. A good part of the blog is in English.
March 16, 2023 - Take a break and listen to songs some in Spanish on YouTube. This blues song, Me Estas Atrapando Otra Vez by Clan is easy to understand, and some good blues!
February 23, 2023 - Skype. It still astounds me that after the pandemic, more people didn’t jump on the Skype language exchange site. Are you speaking Spanish at least two or three times a week? You don't learn Spanish to speak it, it speak Spanish to learn it. Get started!
February 8, 2023 - I Love, love, love A La Aventura (alaaventura.net) podcast. It doesn't require downloading another app on your phone and you can also access on line. The silky-voiced Juan Bozca Mendoza reviews books like Sinclair's The Jungle and Heller's "Catch 22. It's a simple website to navigate and perfect for mid-intermediates.
January 30, 2023 - - The New York Time article about how exercising facilitates language learning. Spanish podcasts are perfect for while walking on a treadmill.
January 15, 2023 - Want to test your language fast-twitch muscles? Try Lyrics Training. You select a language, then you select a song. The game is to try to fill in the blanks on the lyrics. The more advanced level you select, the more words they leave out. I can't make it past beginner but the music is good and you feel like you’re playing a pinball machine.
December 2, 2022 - NPR's Spanish language Radio Ambulante is good for upper-intermediates, with a wide range of topics NPR is known for. They’ve added transcriptions, making an even better language tool.
November 12, 2022 - As I write in my December blog, my friends and I are completely hooked on Caso 63, a sci-fi audio novela on Spotify that’s the #1 audio fiction podcast in Latin America.
October 28, 2022 - (beginner) Synergy Spanish just sent me this awesome audio for beginners to speak Spanish immediately.
October 6, 2022 - RTVE, Spanish national television, is a resource no language site seems to want you to know about. For intermediates and up can find series, cooking shows, radio programs of every kind and cultural articles.
September 23, 2022 - I know I’ve previously mentioned Español Automatico. They’ve recently start putting super short (a few minutes) podcasts the site calls “shorts” that operate in a loop. Repetition is the key to pronuncial and these are perfect for running through a half dozen times or so. (intermediate)
September 10, 2022 - - For intermediate students, "Cuentos Para Pensar" by Jorge Bucay, is a popular collection of very short (page or two) of parables. Jorge Bucay is a gestalt psychotherapist, psychodramatist, and writer from Argentina.
August 30, 2022 - A friend of mine who is just beginning his language journey loves the folksy teaching style of Dennis Evans (beginner beginner) the Language Tutor on YouTube
August 13, 2022 - For a fun spy book, try Falcó (beginner intermediate). Set in pre-Franco Spain, arms dealer-assassin Falcó has no loyalties other to himself. The action is such you’ll keep going even if you have to look some words up.
July 31, 2022 - (advanced beginners) A Spanish practice partner turned me on to this site. The name Deep English is misleading. The site provides easy curated stories in English to use with your Spanish practice partners. Your partner reads for comprehension and tells you what the story was about. You too read the story and tell them in Spanish what it is about. When you and a partner begin to cover the same ground too much in your sessions, this is a great back-up.
July 10, 2022 - I haven’t tried it, but Spotify’s How to Spanish podcasters, a couple who host an excellent podcast for those desiring insight into Mexican Spanish, recommend Lengua Talk as the place to find quality tutors no matter your budget. .
May 21, 2022 - Eduteach.es.canciones - Does Spanish narrative make you drowsy? This website has a page of links to of the most famous songs in Spanish. Each song has the video and the song's lyrics (in Spanish) beside it. The site tabs will lead you to think they are songs are for children. They are not. Of course you can pause the video when you need to look up a word (and maybe write a few sentences in Spanish using the word if you wish to make your learning more active)
May 10, 2022 - Quizlet, a free flashcard game site. Create individualized study sets from the vocabulary or phrases you learn from Spanish Skype language exchange partners. Share the tool with them. Mine love it
April 25, 2022 - Though not a website, it's cool to look through your Skype messages for new words from your practice partners. If they use them, it's probably common usage you'd not think of. For example, a partner of mine recently used "concretar" instead of "confirmar" to confirm plans for her week-end. Being a cognate (words that sound the same in Spanish and English makes it a double-win for enriching my vocabulary.
April 2, 2022 - Express VPN - You need a VPN to have the best access to Spanish language movies, series, documentary and live comedy programs in Mexico and Spain on Netflix.
March 20, 2022 - Spanishdict.com - Rather than just looking for the translation of a word, type in the Spanish word that interests you. Sentences showing use are in Spanish and English so cover up the Spanish and try to translate into Spanish. It's a great game. (advanced)
January 20, 2022 - If you like period dramas (a la Bridgerton) or are interested in Spanish history, the Netflix series La cocinera de Castamar is for you. Forbidden love in 18th century Spain.
January 7, 2022 - Radio Garden is an app that will enable you to listen to radio stations, news and music throughout the world. Great reviews!
December 29, 2021 - For a little fun and good listening practice, I recommend the series “One Day at a Time” on Netflix with the audio portion set for Spanish. If you can get past the laugh track, it’s a very funny program, particularly if you know Latin culture, as the characters are Cuban American.
December 1, 2021 - Español lingolia has exercises you can take after you hear a grammar video on a site For example, you listen to a grammar video, let’s say on the difference between llevar and traer. Then go to this site and type “llevar” into the search bar to get exercises to test you. (Experts say we learn 3x more from testing than studying).
November 22, 2021 - Google Translate is for much more than looking up words. It can be a great personalized writing tool. Translate a phrase you anticipate wanting to use, say a toast or a joke, into Spanish. Google Translate will give feedback to help you make corrections and by using the audio feature, you can hear how it’s said in Spanish and practice your pronunciation.
November 10, 2021 - YouTubes Professor Jason gives calm, solid lessons on grammar. (beginners)
October 21, 2021 - Love, love, love Netflix series Sin Permiso. Spanish movie makers have conquered the art of character development. The characters in this short series are terrible people and people you like and almost feel sorry for. The patriarch is a narco traficante trying to stay in control of his family and empire after discovering he has Alzheimer’s disease. (mid-intermediate).
October 4, 2021 - Coffee Break Spanish a classic podcast (the Scottish brogue of one of the teachers always cracked me up). I was glad to see they had a YouTube channel now, of conversations on the streets of Madrid (beginners)
September 30, 2021 - Destinos, a telenovela created for language learners has been around for awhile and a fun way for beginners to hear different Spanish accents while following the storyline.
September 21, 2021 - Spotify’s Learn Spanish in Your Car is for beginners covering grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary. (Beginner)
September 10, 2021 - Enjoy following the news in Europe by reading the Spanish edition of BBC World News, (BBC.com/mundo) which tends to be far easier to read than Spanish newspapers like El Mundo. (Advanced)
August 25, 2021 - The glory of being an advanced intermediate is being able to listen to a regular podcast, one not aimed at teaching Spanish. Entiende Tu Mente delves into understanding how your brain is wired. (Spotify)
August 9, 2021 - I love YouTube’s Español Automatico. The classy couple who produce it speak at exactly the speed that I can hope to aspire to as an adult learner and the topics are those not covered elsewhere like this one on how to talk on the phone. Beautiful Castilian Spanish. (intermediate)
July 21, 2021 - Doorway to Mexico - The episodes follow an English speaking family as they travel though Mexico, with a mix of English and Spanish as the family speaks English among themselves and slow Spanish. While the tone’s a bit childish for my tastes, it’s probably less so than many beginner podcasts out there.
July 10, 2021 - Netflix has the best selection of Spanish language movies and series. I’m currently binge-watching Rosario Tijeras. It’s very Mexican barrio, with adorable characterization in the protagonist and her family. It’s tone is telenovela but with action similar to Reina del Sur, another favorite.
June 29, 2021 - Spotify podcast Talking in Spanish is geared towards the novice beginner and a good way to hear the basics spoken.
June 15, 2021 - I haven’t scope the full content of Pagina del Español, but I like what I’ve seen, especially in the Literature tab.
May 27, 2021 - 121 Spanish has a helpful Spanish level test. (Sometimes I love ‘em. Sometimes I hate’em.)
May 20, 2021 - The ads are a little annoying but hey, a site’s gotta make a living. I like Todo Claro for its verb conjugator. Plug in a verb and it gives you all the conjugations, plus other decent exercises at for all levels of students. You need good understanding of grammar tense terms.
April 30, 2021 - You know how I love grammar exercises. Spanish Unicorn is a fresh blog with plenty of them. Site is in Spanish. (Intermediate)
April 4, 2021 - I have found PR.N org Arts and Life Section a good site for stories to share with Spanish Practice partners and stories have audio.
March 29, 2021 - Alternatina is a very funny video about a Latino Millennials navigating American society (Beginner) by Comedy Central.
March 15, 2021 - Hoy Hablamos on YouTube. I’ve been a fan of Spotify’s Hoy Hablamos for a long time (November, 2019). The young Spaniard’s YouTube podcasts cover different material, especially grammar. He has buen rollo. (Advanced Beginner)
March 3, 2021 - A fun video game to play! Clozemaster speeds up your reaction time and includes audio for developing comprehension and pronunciation skills. (beginner intermediate)
February 28, 2021 - Humor. Just the thing to get us through the day. Humor in another language can be hard to access. I found that not the case with YouTube’s Auronplay (upper intermediate)
February 9, 2021 - Brought to my attention by a practice partner, ww.verw-taal.com, a site based in Great Britain to learn Spanish. (Upper intermediate)
January 4, 2021 - The University of Wisconsin in Milwaukee has some decent grammar exercise at the bottom of their Spanish resource list. They’ve done an interesting job connecting to the flashcard site Quizlet and adding short videos that pause during the video to check your comprehension.
December 6, 2020 - A newly designed Conjuguemos! I thought it went away! No, it’s got a fresh new look and it a perfect tool for those difficult imperatives! The only flaw in this conjugating tool is that it’s based on Castilian Spanish conjugation.
March 11, 2020 - Es.quora.com - Is Quora in Spanish. For the more advanced student this is real find. They will send you questions recently answered related to your interests like Quora does. I like to pick shorter ones for a 10 minute reading practice.
January 22, 2020 - Saberingles.com.ar - scroll down to “English and Movies” category to find dialogues from popular movies with tons of phases to study. My Skype practice partners really like to use these when we practice. Each takes a role.
December 6, 2019 - I always try to keep a book in Spanish on hand and find that those with a great deal of daily dialogue help most. It can be difficult to find books easy enough to enjoy. I just finished reading Taína by Ernesto Quiñonez. It’s a dark coming of age story, very accessible to the intermediate Spanish student.
November 9, 2019 - Hoy Hablamos has become my favorite Spotify podcast. Conversational Spanish for the intermediate learner. Very light-hearted and funny, something other podcasts usually lack, for example, in #1046 when Roi and Paco talk about intelligent devices.
October 31, 2019 - It’s really not a website, but this is the only place I can put a shout out to G-mail, to whom I am very grateful for being able to set auto-correct my emails in Spanish to Mexican friends as well as those in English. It corrects even to the point of a red line when you have not added proper accent.
October 9, 2019 - Amazon.com por supuesto has a number of good novels for intermediate readers. Recently, I have liked Los Americanos Desconocidos. A solid story line about immigrants from various Latin American countries with tons of daily dialogue assessable to the mid-intermediate.
August 27, 2019 - Not a website, but rather a book in easy Spanish, who would dream is a tale of a herd trying to make their way towards India, and in first-cow nonetheless? I found a copy through my library. Excellent for learning daily vocabulary and verb usage in dialogue.
April 20, 2019 - The stories presented are, frankly to me, a bit boring, but if you get the the bottom of this page from the Spanish Institute of Puebla, you will see a list of resources that will likely contain a tool you can use.
March 5, 2019 - Need material for your Spanish partners? Medium.com is the perfect site from which to select short, simple stories to use as exercises with your practice partners. Your partner can read them and interpret them, either by translating or paraphrasing. You can try to translate short (5 minute reads) into Spanish.
February 20, 2019 - Synergy Spanish printed this excellent little dictionary on very common phrases like, it wasn’t me (yo lo fui) or so that (asi que)
January 26, 2019 - Amazon.com is a website right? That is where you will find best-sellers in Spanish, like Girl on Train which is perfect for a beginner- intermediate learner.
December 28, 2018 - Amazon.com. Type in “books in Spanish for adults” in the browser and read just the book descriptions, which are in easier Spanish than the books themselves. You might even find a book you want to read.
November 29, 2018 - Another duo-language site, Language on the Web gives stories with side by side translations. These can be used with your language practice partners, with each taking turns reading and translating. (upper intermediate)
September 30, 2108 - Continuing the vein of Netflix series, check out my blog on Netflix series that can improve your Spanish and not be boring, with a focus on series from Spain (and the language of Cervantes).
September 17, 2018: The Netflix series “Catedral del Mar,” is a fantastic series about Barcelona in the 14th century; it’s brutality and social structure focusing on a serf turned nobleman. You can subtitle it in all manner of ways. Not lacking in sex and violence, it still teaches you just how amazing the construction of the great cathedrals really was.