Highly flexible, allowing students to study at their own pace. More in-depth than some other methods, including a focus on learning Spanish grammar for those striving towards fluency. A wealth of tools, including flash cards and audio, for each lesson. Free Trial allows you to try it out before you buy.
Many of the extra tools are only available in the most expensive package.
Rocket Languages Learn Spanish courses provide much more flexibility than many other learning methods for those who have various needs in learning Spanish. With several different packages available, depending on your specific needs, you are sure to find the right learning package for the right price.
Rather than forcing students to memorize long rules and word spelling, Rosetta Stone offers a unique method of learning the language in that it drives up each lesson in a special sequence to make it easier to recognize patterns and to understand the language intuitively.
Some students might find it a tad frustrating that lessons do not contain any subtitles in English.
If you're a committed student looking for an effective way to learn Spanish, the Rosetta Stone is the type of software you shouldn't miss. Thanks to its strong immersion with no translation, you'll learn all vocabulary actively alluding to simple language patterns.
Inexpensive and flexible course that covers a variety of subjects. Incorporates several unique methods and techniques to teach students the language effectively. Provides flexibility, allows for self-paced learning, and doesn't bound to moving from one lesson to another in a strict sequence.
Doesn't include any tutoring sessions with native speakers.
Giving access to 13 languages, Babbel is yet one of the most budget-friendly online platforms for learning Spanish. With the focus on writing, listening, spelling, and reading, it comprises all teaching tools to let you start to use the language actively right away. Available for business purposes and as a gift, everyone will find the right package.
A tried and true formula, the Pimsleur method has proven effective for many people over the years. Requires only 30 minutes of study each day, through listening and repeating phrases. Included audio lessons make learning methods convenient for almost any time, especially while on the go.
Doesn't spend much time teaching grammar, focuses mainly on vocabulary and useful phrases.
The Pimsleur method is best for those who will need to learn Spanish for the purposes of traveling. With the lessons focusing on useful vocabulary and phrases, using this method can prepare you with precisely the necessary amount of Spanish needed in a short amount of time.
The course offers too little interaction with other users.
Yabla Spanish is one of the best interactive courses available on the market. It can help you learn Spanish in a fun way - by watching interesting video content. Although it has some media for beginners, it's best for the intermediate and advanced learners who want to improve their listening skills through digital immersion.
The Ultimate in Flexibility
Rocket Languages Learn Spanish Courses is one of the most flexible and in-depth programs available for learning Spanish. With a wealth of information and tools provided for each individual, Rocket Languages also provides three different packages, allowing those wishing to learn Spanish to only pay for the package that they need. While providing a basic level for those who are only studying Spanish for travel or leisure, options also exist for courses that range all the way from the Beginner to Advanced levels.
The lessons for each level in Rocket Languages Learn Spanish Courses have been carefully put together in order to easily guide the learner through regular progress within the course. As opposed to some other courses, the lessons have also been made to be both fun and interesting for the learner, so boredom should not overtake the desire to learn Spanish. This has proven to be effective with students of this course, as the Rocket Languages Learn Spanish Courses have been rated very highly by the students.
Tools to Fit Each Need
Each package includes a large variety of tools for learning, including audio lessons, flash cards, an easy way of finding specific words or phrases, and even a progress tracker. For those who wish to dive in a little deeper, Spanish language and culture lessons are included that helps those interested in all things Spanish to learn in-depth about the Spanish language grammar and Spanish culture.
Try Before You Buy
Although the larger package can be a bit pricey, a free trial is provided for those who wish to try it out before they buy. Having a trial method will help show whether or not this particular course is right for you. Regardless of your specific needs in learning Spanish, Rocket Languages Learn Spanish Courses will be able to meet your exact needs.
Additional Info
Effective Method of Learning the Language
If you've already tried all orthodox methods of learning the Spanish language and nothing helped so far, we'd recommend you to try out a unique but a very effective method developed by the Rosetta Stone team - which is based upon a strong immersion into the world of the language you learn. Thus, rather than spending hours trying to memorize grammar rules and spelling of Spanish words, you can learn the language actively by actually starting speaking it from the first lesson. The discerning advantage of this program is that it doesn't provide any guides or subtitles in English, which makes it one of the most effective software solutions for learning the Spanish language out there. You will learn by repeating the words and phrases you've heard during the course of a lesson and then by associating pictures with them. Such approach is known to be not only one of the most effective but also one of the most natural ones as it teaches you the language just the same way you learned your native language as a child. No repetition, no stress - the learning process is completely based on association and intuition making you proficient in the language without forcing you to delve into grammar details.
Expansive Set of Tools
One of the other reasons, besides the unique immersive technique, why students tend to choose Rosetta Stone platform is that it offers a rich set of teaching tools. Similar to many other online language courses, it has games and interactive sections to pique a student's interest and motivate him to set new goals and reach new achievements. The program is available across multiple gadgets and can be accessed in several ways. This way, you can download a mobile app, order a classic CD version, or access it online via any web browser. No matter what option you choose, you'll get all necessary tools.
In addition to a great variety of teaching tools, Rosetta Stone makes it easy for a student to track his progress. This way, the program breaks down each lesson into several sections so that a student can see where there's room for improvement.
TRY IT OUT WITH A FREE DEMO
Despite some of you may think that such immersive method isn't for everyone, we believe it will work for anyone who ventures to try it out. Besides, there's an option to try out a couple of lessons with a free demo version, meaning if you do not like it, you'll have a chance to go for a different language course. For us, though, Rosetta Stone seemed to be one of the most interesting and innovative solutions to learn foreign languages online as instead of forcing you to learn endless rules and memorizing words it actually makes you use it. Which is why we consider the lack of guides more of an advantage than a disadvantage of the program allowing it to immerse students in the culture of the country and make them fluent speakers. By repeating words and phrases from lesson to lesson, you should be able to learn speech algorithms very quickly and develop language skills as good as they can be. On top of that, Rosetta Stone offers you an option to have a tutoring session with a native speaker under your own schedule, which should help you understand those aspects of the language that you couldn't get without help.
Unlimited Learning Possibilities
If you look to sign up with a language program that won’t be too heavy on your wallet and will allow you to learn Spanish in a simple but effective way, there’s probably no better option than Babbel.com that strives to address the needs of different types of learners, including both auditory and visual types. Learning where a student comes from and what he wants to achieve, Babbel builds an individual path for each one, making it easier to learn and memorize different language patterns. Each course starts with the vocabulary and then proceeds to grammar exercises focused on the repetition of the learnt material. Babbel uses the technique of space repetition, introducing new words through six stages of human memory allowing them to stick to the brain. Thus, Babell makes sure that students learn them all in a way that's comfortable and best suitable for them. In order to make learners fluent in Spanish, Babbel offers one of the shortest paths to speaking the language, building all of their lessons on conversation and life-like dialogues. The dialogues are voiced by natives with different accents so that you can learn to recognize Spanish speech and improve your own pronunciation by mimicking the voices. With Babbel, your learning possibilities aren't limited and you can soon start to communicate with confidence.
Good for Everyone
With Babbel, learning the Spanish language is easy and effective. Once you complete registration on the site and log in your account, you’ll receive a code to use with a mobile app that can be downloaded on both Android and iOS devices. This way, you can continue learning Spanish on the go and even without an Internet connection if you upload the necessary material on your phone or tablet. One of the other things that distinguish Babbel from many of its competitors is that it can be purchased by anyone for anyone. This way, you can get an account to teach your staff business Spanish or purchase it as a gift for your family or friend. A price tag of Babble is more than compelling, especially compared to many other popular language programs available online.
Assess It and Buy
If you still cannot decide whether to choose Babbel or another online program to learn Spanish, you can apply for a free lesson and assess its features first. This will give you an idea about the approach the company used. In general, though, the price for the Babbel's membership is much lower than you'd expect from a platform providing lessons in 13 languages and it's certainly no slouch compared to more advanced and interactive solutions. Babbel not only gives you access to a great amount of quality content but also allows you to jump around lessons choosing topics that are relevant to you. And even though it doesn't contain tutoring sessions with natives, it's pretty good for what it is and many learners around the world have ranked it as a very helpful source.
The Tried and True Method
The Pimsleur Method, pioneered by Dr. Paul Pimsleur, is one of the oldest and most well-known methods for learning Spanish. First put together in the 1950s after rigorous studies and testing, Dr. Pimsleur's method was refined to perfection, being able to meet the needs of most anyone trying to learn a language. Dr. Pimsleur's research indicated that people often best learn while studying for shorter periods every day rather than by "cramming" a long study session in one sitting. His methodology was based on the results of his findings, and shortly after his language study methods started to become popular after proving to be effective.
After many years of further extensive research, along with millions of people using his study methods, the Pimsleur Method has proven itself to be a highly effective method of learning virtually any language. Study programs now exist for almost every language on Earth, with Spanish being just one of hundreds available. While this course is one of the older methodologies currently in use, it has still stood up well to the test of time.
30 Minutes a Day
Consisting of 30 minute lessons each day, focusing on useful vocabulary and phrases used in a natural conversational setting, the Pimsleur Method has proven over the years to be effective in teaching people Spanish quickly and conveniently. This method has proven to be the most effective, as it is easier for people's brains to retain information learned in short, interactive lessons than in long, boring classroom settings.
Learn On the Go
With audio lessons accompanied by the text of each lesson, the Pimsleur Method breaks up each learning session into small chunks of time, allowing your brain to help process and retain each daily learning session more easily. With the audio provided through CDs, MP3 files, and through other means, the Pimsleur Method is also ideal for those who don't have time to sit down and learn.
Additional Info
Immersion Through Video
Vocabulary and listening skills are half the battle in language learning, and that's exactly what Yabla does. It offers an authentic way to study Spanish through video content. This powerful learning tool features almost 1,500 videos that are recorded 100% by Spanish people speaking in the real language. The media include interesting content including news, telenovelas, music videos, short films, cartoons, and more. It offers a wide variety of different accents and voices.
Though Yabla has videos for beginners, it’s best for intermediate and advanced learners who want to boost their listening skills and bring their language learning to the whole new level. Beginners are better to stick to some courses with more structure and guidance. Yet, for those who understand the basics of the language and want to learn more through video content, Yabla is a perfect choice.
This powerful listening tool has everything to help you improve your language level. All videos are subtitled and translated - you can hide them or watch "Subtitles in Spanish only", Subtitles in your native language or English only", as well as "Subtitles in both languages". If you want, you can click on any word to see its definition or save it to the flashcard list. Also, you can click the "Slow" button to slow down everything. All the videos are split into small parts, thus, you can easily focus on the most difficult sentences. With this bunch of features, you can quickly pick up new words and phrases. For sure, Yabla is a very effective and fun way of developing comprehension skills through video immersion.
Motivation Games
Yabla allows you to track your progress in a pretty fun way - you have a great opportunity to learn and play at once:
Multiple Choice allows you to playback clips with subtitles where one word is missing. You need to listen very carefully so that you could select the right one from multiple choice options.
Fill in the Blank is almost the same game, yet here you have to type the missing word by yourself. No multiple choices.
Scribe is a more complicated activity. You need to use your ears and type entire sentences you've just heard in the video. Like the other games, you can choose "Slow" and "Replay" options.
Vocabulary Review is just a basic flashcard game without video content.
Pricing Options
Yabla Spanish costs just 8.95 € per month, and you can get a good discount by signing up for 6 months at a time. The 6-month subscription costs 49.95 €, while the Annual plan costs 89.95 € and offers a great discount of almost € 20. Any Yabla plan includes a 14-day no-questions-asked money back guarantee. So, nothing stops you to try Yabla Spanish and check whether it's the course you really need.
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What Are the Best Ways to Learn Spanish?
As with almost any language, learning Spanish can be a difficult and time-consuming process. However, this is only if you try learning the traditional way that you learned in school - by burying your nose in a textbook and repeating endlessly after a teacher. Despite the teaching methods used in schools, there are many more effective ways of learning Spanish.
Throughout the years, new methods for learning languages have been developed, many of which have proven to be very effective in helping a person learn a new language quickly and easily. While it is difficult to pinpoint one specific way that works better than all of the others, there are several options detailed in this article that have proven to help people with learning Spanish. One of the most tried and true methods that have been proven over the years is the Pimsleur method, developed by Dr. Pimsleur. Most of the other options detailed above are variations of this method, which have come about due to years of trial and experimentation by different language teachers. While not all methods may prove effective for all people, chances are that one of these products will be right for you.
What Features to Compare
Which method of learning Spanish that you choose will most likely come down to several main factors. The primary factor would be what exactly your needs are for learning Spanish, whether it be for fun, traveling, or even for fluency. Those who need to learn Spanish for traveling will probably want to use a method that heavily focuses on useful words and phrases. On the other hand, those who are striving for fluency will want to choose a method that will go in-depth on all aspects of the language, including grammar, idioms, and even the cultural significance of the language.
Another important factor is how much time someone has for learning Spanish. For those who live very busy lives, a method which breaks up your learning sessions into small chunks of time each day may be the most practical, as well as the most effective. Those who have long commutes to and from work may want to choose a method that involves listening practice, which can be done on any long commute in a car, train, or other transport methods. For those with more free time available, the best method may be one that has longer lessons which go more in-depth than just useful words and phrases.
Regardless of which of these factors apply to you, we're sure that you can find the right method with one of the ones detailed here.