#I THINK IN SPANISH HOW TO#

Podcasts: If you don’t have a lot of downtime or are an audio learner, try Spanish podcasts.The forms and structure will stay ingrained in your brain after continued reading, and you’ll find yourself forming Spanish sentences naturally in your thoughts. As you read the words, you are silently sounding them out in your head. Books: Reading is a fantastic way to help you think in Spanish.Depending on your Spanish level, you can use English subtitles, Spanish subtitles, or just listen to the Spanish. Television: Take your pick between Spanish channels, Latino shows on Netflix, and episodes of your favorite shows in Spanish on YouTube.Modern technology provides so many ways to encounter Spanish without physically being in a Spanish-speaking country or investing a lot of money. The sentence structure, vocabulary, and phrases will stick in your head from the repetition and be recalled easily. The more you hear, read, and speak Spanish, the easier it will be to think in the language. The only way to learn these expressions is to surround yourself with the language. Languages are unique, and there are some things that cannot be directly translated into English. Of course, it can be hard to cut the translation habit if you have limited exposure to what real Spanish sentences look and sound like. While they may sound strange at first, the more you practice them (in thought and speech), the more natural they will become. Be open to new ways of formulating sentences and expressions.Don’t constantly compare the languages or try to make Spanish fit into English rules.Even if this means thinking in Spanglish, it is better than nothing! Slowly add more words as you learn them. Constantly returning to the English way of saying things is counterproductive. Even though the languages are similar in many ways, they are not identical. Don’t make the sentence first in English and then translate it word-by-word to Spanish.So, how do you break the habit of translating? When you get to this point, you can think in both languages easily.

However, once both pathways are built, you don’t need any effort to recall the word in either language. It takes time, repetition, and dedication to build a new pathway connecting the image of a cat to gato. Pathways in your brain, dug over many years, tell you that a cat is a cat. Of course, you may need to look up a word once in a while, but constantly using translation as a crutch hinders your fluency. The fastest way to speak Spanish is by not translating. We learned by creating connections between spoken words and physical objects or ideas. As children, we didn’t have a translator changing everything our parents said into baby talk. This is one of the first things I tell my students: stop translating! Don’t use Google translate or an English-Spanish dictionary. The thinking process in Spanish should be similar! So, what is your first goal? Is it to actively think and use the vocabulary you already know, or is it to move from thinking in simple vocabulary words to complete sentences? Either way, these eight tips will help you reach your goal in record time.

We naturally learn our first language by listening, repeating words a couple at a time, and using what we know to communicate. If you are able to think or say the correct phrases in Spanish, great! But if you make a mistake, the important thing is that you are using the language. Making sure a sentence is perfect before saying (or thinking) it is tedious and counterproductive. As soon as you learn a new word or phrase, start using it and thinking about it on any possible occasion. Individuals often have a preference for a certain language and only think in the other when they need to use it-and that’s completely fine!

Even bilingual people don’t always think in one language.

#I THINK IN SPANISH HOW TO#

How to Think in Spanishįirst, you first need to set realistic goals. Augby Ashley Reid Homeschooling 0 comments Do You Think in Spanish? Learn the Tips to Think Yourself to Fluencyīilingual people are often asked, “What language do you think in?” For language learners starting their journey, a better question is “How do I even start to think in Spanish?” Although thinking in a foreign language may seem like an unattainable goal at the moment, you can achieve it with the following eight tips.

I think in spanish