Frustrated and stuck? 3 factors affecting your Spanish learning.
Hey there! Have you considered that there might be three factors slowing down your Spanish learning? Don’t worry, identifying them could help you get back on track. Let’s find out what these factors are and how we can improve them.
1. Damaging self-dialogue when learning Spanish
I am not good at this! I’ll never get this! I should remember that! What is wrong with me? Why is Spanish so hard?
Do some of these sound familiar? I have seen many students over the years, and I can say with certainty that their attitude towards themselves can be their greatest ally or worst enemy. Some very intelligent individuals become frustrated when they don’t speak Spanish perfectly and eventually give up on learning, while others take failures in stride, laugh at their mistakes, and become fluent Spanish speakers. Your thoughts and words significantly impact your reality, so it’s essential to always speak kindly and respectfully to yourself.
Instead of using negative self-talk, try replacing it with positive affirmations such as “I may not know that yet, but I will soon,” “I am learning slowly but surely,” or “I will get there eventually.”
2. Language Comparison: “Why is this different from my language?”
This is one of my favorite topics, and I am quite passionate about it. Let me explain it this way: languages are inherently different from one another. They originated thousands of years ago from communities that had little to no contact with each other. These languages were developed to serve the unique needs of these people based on their religions, economic activities, weather, ways of understanding life, and more.
If you remember this, your question “Why is it different from my language?” will no longer make sense. Different languages exist due to various factors such as geography, history, culture, and many more. Although our mother tongue is crucial to our lives and influences our perception of the world, we must acknowledge that it does not hold a central position.
Therefore, we should accept that languages are different and unique in their way. We cannot expect other cultures to shape their languages based on ours because our language was never meant to be a template for others to follow. It’s not the same language, so accept it. Approach frustrating things with curiosity instead of disdain, and you might find them fascinating.
3. Check your learning method, it might need some updating.
It’s highly recommended to adopt a learning system and stick to it. However, you should ensure that the system includes various activities. While apps can be useful for learning vocabulary and keeping a language fresh in your mind, they shouldn’t be relied upon solely to achieve bilingualism. You’ll eventually require grammatical knowledge, explanations, and interaction with real people. Although classes are great, if you feel that you’re lacking in certain areas, it may be because you need to incorporate other activities into your learning process.
Here’s a list of questions you can use to reflect to see if you’re incorporating enough variety in your learning process.
When in pain, remember this.
Learning can be a rollercoaster ride, with moments of excitement and challenges. It’s perfectly natural to feel overwhelmed at times. However, remember that you hold the power to make your learning experience enjoyable or challenging. If you’re struggling, remember that there is always a way forward. I encourage you to embrace any difficulty as an opportunity to expand your knowledge, become more skilled, and take pride in your ability to speak Spanish.
If you are ready to move forward in your language-learning journey, take a look at our courses coming up in April! There are in person in Tamarindo and online options. If you are more of a private lesson person, tell us more about your needs here.
¡Nos Hablamos!
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