Ayer tuve un sueño...

I have a plan to help me through the coming Western NY winter...ir a Andalucía.

Such a trip is complicado y caro. But, my sister IS a travel agent in Spain. Should I take along my oldest children? The youngest are 3 and 5 years old. Not one of them has met my family face to face.

I haven't proposed the trip to mi esposo yet. For now, sufro una meloncolía profunda y eschucho la música del grupo El Barrio.

Aventura

I've recently discovered the music of "Aventura." Their official web site (available in English and Spanish) describes their musical style as...their nouveau sound fuses bachata (a guitar-based Dominican folkloric music sometimes called the “Dominican blues”) with R & B, hip hop and other American pop and urban styles.

I particularly like the series "Amor de Madre" (Parts I and II). The songs tell the story of a fatherless boy who runs with the wrong crowd and lands in jail, only to find himself face to face with his father, who suffered a similar fate.

Escucha aquí

NPR Mexico

NPR is my preferred source for information and news surrounding the drug wars in Mexico.

I find it difficult (but important) to teach on this topic, if merely for the fact that it is such a horrible, sad situation

WORLD
Mexico Drug Cartel Territory
Mexico is the top supplier of marijuana — and also a major supplier of methamphetamines — to the United States. In addition, it is a major transit country for other drugs, including cocaine and heroin, coming from other countries. Mexican cartels have now displaced Colombian groups as the dominant cocaine traffickers in the world. Several drug cartels in Mexico have a part in the process, and often war over territory. As Mexican President Felipe Calderon's administration has attempted to clean up the country and to rid Mexico of the top narco-traffickers, other cartel members have killed thousands in an effort to swoop in on the territory and trafficking routes left behind.

Foreign Service Institute Course Material

The foreign Service Institute has made its foreign language training materials public. The audio of taped courses as well as texts and workbooks have been digitized. These are available free to the public.

My first glance is that some of the material is rather dated. But you might find something helpful in there or at least, feel like a future ambassador or better yet, a spy!

Find it here. Choose Spanish or another language from the extensive list. I can't recommend one Spanish course over another.

Univisión Android App

Droid does Apps

While I'm not a big fan of most of the shows from "Univisión," I'd like to acknowledge that watching (listening to) them might have value for the study of Spanish. I'm doing a test run of the Univisión app on my Droid.

How else might you use your cell phone/mobile device to study Spanish. The textbook might even offer some MP3's that you can download to your Ipod or cell phone (or computer). I'll check into it.

Los Aslándticos

Acabo de "descubrir" la música del grupo musical Los Aslandticos. La primera canción que escuché fue "El Primer Día." Escúchala. Te va a animar!

If you don't like the first song you hear, try another! This band really "mixes it up" with big band, reggae, rap, rock, and more.

They aren't the only terrific sound out of Córdoba either.

Juan Antonio Samaranch

In the news today...Juan Antonio Samaranch, long-time president of the International Olympic Committee, passed away today. I heard the announcement this morning on National Public Radio. The npr web site carries a story about the changes to the Olympic Committee under his leadership.

I'll be watching Twitter today to see what the newspapers and individuals might be saying. You can follow me (tweets in Spanish)at Profejulia.

Farm Hands

If you are local to the GLOW region supported by Genesee Community College, you might like to attend a book signing and talk by Tom Rivers, local reporter and author of the book Farm Hands.

Weds. April 7, 2010, 7 p.m.

This is a free program. Please register by calling 585-589-4246.

I just finished reading Farm Hands, although I've been following Tom's journey to live and document farm life and labor issues (including immigration issues) for some time. The book is an easy, enjoyable read and it is very informative.

Fiesta!

The following questions are from a "typical" Spanish 102 assignment designed by the FL Department. Students are asked to research a holiday or festival in a Spanish-speaking country and then complete a study guide.

I highly recommend that students conduct their research in Spanish. This is not meant to be a translation exercise. Similarly, starting in Spanish will give them the correct grammar and all of the vocabulary they need, saving time in the long run.

Use an "Advanced" Google search to find pages written in a particular country and pages written in Spanish.

As always, the basic grammar to answer the question is already "found" in the question itself. Take question #1:

1. ¿Cómo se llama el festival?

El festival se llama __________________.

Notice that you didn't have to modify the verb one little bit! It's a "fill in the blank" sort of thing.

Note: Remember to be aware of the gender of the word you choose for "holiday" such as la fiesta, el festival, el día de fiesta, etc.


2. ¿Dónde se celebra?

Se celebra en ___________________.

3. ¿Cuál es la fecha del festival?

La fecha es________________.

4. ¿Es un festival secular o religioso?

Es_______________ (ALL the words you need are already in this question)

5. ¿Cuál es el motivo del festival? ¿Qué celebra el festival?

Which verbs will you employ and which forms? Es and celebra....easy.

More to follow, provided there are comments and questions.

Study Guide Questions - Forming Answers

One CRUCIAL skill that I work to teach my students is "to take words and grammar from a question and use them to form the answer."

Let's look at this practice as it relates to a common SPA101 assignment, the Travel Essay Study Guide.

Study Guide Questions
SPA 101 Cultural Project

1. ¿Adónde vas a ir?

The answer to this question is basically, "fill in the blank" with the name, in Spanish, of the country you are traveling to.

Of course, you have to answer in the "yo" or first person form so you also need to adjust the verb.

Voy a ir a _______________ (Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, etc.)

2. ¿Cómo prefieres viajar? ¿Vas en tren? ¿autobús? ¿avión? ¿barco?

ALL the words and grammar you need to answer this question are right there! Only a small verb-form adjustment required.

Prefiero is the "yo" form of preferir. Are you using the resource "500 verbs in Spanish?" Look up the verb and then its present tense forms. There are many, many on-line resources that list Spanish verb forms.

Prefiero viajar en tren. OR Prefiero viajar en barco.

3. ¿Con quién vas a ir?

Again, this is a "fill in the blank" answer. Follow the "ir + a+ infinitive formula to express the future.

Voy a ir con __________________ (mi esposo, mi prima, mi amigo, etc.)

Tomorrow, I'll speak to the next few on the list. Or, perhaps you'd like to ask about a specific question?

Remaining questions:
4. ¿Cuándo es la salida? y ¿Cuáles son las fechas del viaje?
5. ¿Qué tiempo hace en este sitio (this place) en esta estación (season)?
6. ¿Qué necesitas traer?

7. ¿Dónde quieres quedarte (to stay)?
8. ¿Cómo es el hotel?
9. ¿Cuánto cuesta el hotel usando la moneda del país o la región?
10. ¿Cuáles son dos atracciones que vas a visitar? (Un museo, un parque, un monumento etc.)
11. ¿Por qué quieres ir a estas dos atracciones? ¿En tu opinión por qué son interesantes o divertidas?
12. ¿Qué vas a hacer por la noche? (ir al cine, a una discoteca, comer, caminar, explorar etc.)

13. ¿Cómo se llama un restaurante famoso en este sitio (place)?
14. ¿Vas al restaurante para el desayuno, almuerzo o la cena?
15. ¿Qué comida típica de la región vas a pedir?
16. ¿Qué vas a beber en el restaurante?
17. ¿Cuál es la cosa más interesante de tu viaje?
18. ¿Qué aprendes de la cultura de la región que visitas?

El Móvil

You might be someone who still considers the cell phone a luxury. Or, perhaps, you consider it a "necessary evil" or even a good "friend."

I've heard many English words for "cellular device" including cell and mobile phone as well as the brand-specific names like "I-Phone," "Droid" or "Intensity."

In Spain, we refer to the cell phone as "el móvil." IN the States and Mexico, the word "celular" is more popular.


One of my favorite podcasts, "Spanish as a second language" has a wonderful episode where the narrator comments on the many features available on today's cell phone.
Camera. Blue Tooth. Video. Apps. Navigation.

You can read the Spanish version of Verizon's current offers and handheld devices. It's interesting to see how app titles and offers are translated from English to Spanish.

Verizon (Español)

I'm very interested in the ways that students might use their cell phones to learn Spanish. Podcasts and MP3's might be downloaded to the cell in order to study vocabulary and listen to grammar on the road.

Tienes tú celular?

- "Pop" Song in Spanish about the cell phone called "El Celular"

Flamenco Chillin'

GCC is closed today because of a big snow storm that is spinning over the the East Coast States. I'm snowed in and the house is cold.

To pass the time, I put on some "flamenco chill," a genre of Spanish music. It is, loosely defined, a fusion of classical flamenco, world instruments, electronica, jazz and African beats. Sometimes, I will admit, it's a bit too jazzy and new-agey for my tastes.

But I love flamenco.

Flamenco reminds me of time that I spent with my mother in Málaga during Holy Week (her name was Marivy). She took my sisters and me to the cathedral where Gernalísimo Franco was married (she was baptized there). We breathed the smells of the processions and the Mediterranean sea...sweet and savory street food, fresh fish, emormous blooming flowers, incense burning. And I felt for the first time the strange combination of pena and alegría that are simultaneously expressed by flamenco performers.

If you grow up in the south of Spain you know flamenco. Consider the high-school dances at my friend Alicia's shool. Interspersed between pop and rock songs, the DJ at these dances played flamenco and in seconds, the gym would be filled with heel-stomping, spinning teens with their chests high and their fingers fanned. Even the wall flowers were compelled to clap.

I especially admire the work of the lead singer of flamenco-chill's flagship group, "Chambao" (music video below).

At the height of the group's popularity LaMari was diagnosed with breast cancer. She writes about her experience and offers hope in her book,

Enamorá de la vida, aunque a veces duela.

"Fall in love with life (or better translated, love life), although at times it(life) hurts."

interview, Flamenco chill group








Another video:

Chambao - Comeme

Dulces aciditos

There are several Mexican children in my son's kinder garden class this year. I've had the pleasure of meeting Jose, Jose, Angel, Belén and Antonio. Recently, one of the children brought candy treats back from Mexico to share with his classmates.

The candy was called "Ogritos" or, in English, "little ogres."

Eyeballed multicolored blobs drawn as cartoons run across the lime-green paper package.

Written on the cover: dulces aciditos (just a wee bit sour? Notice the use of the diminutive.

Sabores: fresa, piña, limón, naranja y uva.

Ogritos candy, hecho en Mexico por Canel's

We imagined that the candy was a Mexican version of the Wonka favorite, nerds. However the flavor is quite different.

Interestingly, "ogritos" is also the term used for Shrek & Fiona's offspring in the movie
Shrek Tercero

Estar - "To Be" Part I

Every Spanish course and textbook must make a decision, which of the two "to be" verbs to introduce to students first.

Estar is roughly equivalent to the English "to be" as is ser.

Let's look at estar (take a quick peek at the image I've included, a view of Earth from Space).

This verb is used to express emotions. For that reason, it is included in most initial chapters. It's common, upon greeting a friend, to ask, "How are you?"

¿Cómo está Ud.?
¿Cómo estás? (tú)

Initial chapters usually model the verb in complete sentences, without much attention to conjugation.

The second most common usage of this verb is to describe location.

At one technology conference I attended, it was suggested that Spanish instructors employ the use of Google Earth to teach the verb estar with regard to location. I imagine you've seen Google Earth maps on the news, where the camera seems to zoom in on the city or region described in the segment.

I picked this up for the traditional classroom right away. I marked points at Celaya, Mexico where my friend Cecilia lives and Batavia, NY, home of the GCC main campus. I also marked La Felguera, Spain, home of my high school alma mater.

Google Earth (link includes video) allows you to fly effortlessly from Spain to Mexico to New York State. (It's a bit dizzying, in fact).

In English, we might discuss these locations in this way,

"Is Celaya far from Mexico City?"

"La Felguera is near the mountains."

"Batavia is between Buffalo, NY and Rochester, NY"

All of these sentences, translated to Spanish, would employ the use of estar.

It's all about location, location, location.

La Felguera está cerca del río Ebro.

Está en Asturias.

The Complete (Sentence) Story

I must have had a really terrific elementary school teacher who taught me to read test instructions very, very carefully. I do wish that I could remember which teacher it was, in order to thank him or her. Many, many points have been saved by this practice (and many heartaches and headaches avoided).

I bring this up because I just finished grading EXAM 1. The instructions across the exam said, "answer in a complete sentence." Still, students responded with just a number (24, for example) instead of a sentence ("The number is 24). And I have to take points off...and I really don't like taking points off.

Sometimes people think, mistakenly, that a sentence needs to be wordy or lengthy.

In fact, a sentence, in Spanish, can be only ONE word in length and still "qualify" as a sentence as long as that word is a conjugated verb.

Consider:

Baila.

He dances.

Canta.

She sings.

Trabajan.

They work.

I hope to be that teacher. You might not remember my name a year from now. I want you to remember to check to see that when the instructions read "answer in a complete sentence" on a Spanish exam, that you've written at least one conjugated verb.

C'mon now, say it with me. How long, minimally, is a complete sentence in Spanish?

"At least one conjugated verb."

Blog Roll

I've assigned the following;

"find and follow a blog written by someone in a Spanish-speaking country for two to three weeks."

For Spanish 101, students may choose a blog written in English.
For Spanish 102, I recommend a blog written in both languages(or two, one in Spanish and one in English.)

I'm quite surprised to hear comments like "Help! I can't find a blog!"

I have the opposite problem. I am intrigued and inspired by several blogs that I follow regularly, using Google Reader (click on "Feed" or "RSS" to subscribe to a blog). Each time I follow a link to another blog or search around for a few minutes by way of Yahoo or Google, I find many, many more blogs that look interesting. I want to read them all.

Take today's catch, for example.
There's MotherJungle, written by an artist, single mother of a child with Down's Syndrome living in Costa Rica. Her blog features photos of the jungle, working-class people waiting in line for the bus, and
a nun walking along the sidewalk.

Travelojos has a more journalistic tone. Articles explore topics like technology and policy.

The Tranquilo Traveler is reporting about forest burning in Nicaragua.

Real people with authentic first-hand accounts of the people, places and happenings in Spanish-speaking countries.

Reflexives with Julieta

despedirse
levantarse
acostarse
irse
casarse con
morirse

The verbs above are what we refer to as reflexive. They MUST carry a pronoun in either form, infinitive or conjugated.

There are two reasons a verb might be reflexive.

The first reason is that the "action falls back upon the subject." In other words, a person is doing something on his own, such as brushing his own hair, getting up, going to bed, brushing his teeth, etc. In an "opposite" scenario, a nurse might help this same someone retire, help someone brush his hair, etc.

Many of the verbs that have to do with morning and night routines are reflexive.

The second reason a verb may be reflexive is to differentiate it from its "non-reflexive" counterpart: two verbs that have slightly different meanings.

Take dormir and dormirse. Dormir means to sleep. Dormirse means to fall asleep.

In the the song "Me Voy" , Julieta Venegas uses one of each type of reflexive verb.

Irse means "to leave," as in "I'm gone, outa here, see ya later."
Depedirse de is a concept that has to do Spanish culture. It means "to say good-bye" in the sense of "releasing yourself from another person." It's a polite thing to do when leaving for a long period of time, beyond just saying the words "Adiós."

Meanwhile, enjoy this classic song from "Los Hombres G" - who are getting themselves ready (a reflexive situation) to go out for a run time (pasarselo bien).

Valentine's Day for Little People

Casí llega el día de San Valentín. In my opinion, there has to be at least one other girl in the room in order to drum up any excitement whatsoever about this particular holiday. That's been my experience, at least. My male children, for their part, pretty much "flat line" whenever I mention making Valentine's Day cards.

The youngest boys need tarjetas for school, Pioneer Club and Sunday School. If I bother to do the math that's

(2 x 20) + (2 x 20) + (2 x 20)= (dos por veinte) más (dos por veinte) más (dos por veinte)= Son muchas!!!!

I love poetry, candy, flowers, hearts and all of the symbols associated with el día de San Valentín! Me encantan! Even globos de gas!
Two of my favorite poets who have written romantic poetry in Spanish are Pablo Neruda and Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer.

Below you'll find a video that I think is muy romántico, made for the Amaral song, "Resurrección" (the title does not intend to reference the Biblical use of this word).

The small dolls used in the video became so popular that the group took them on tour.

You might consider using dolls or puppets in your own oral presentations for Spanish class.

La trompeta - aprender algo nuevo, de nuevo

Estos días me dedico a estudiar el trombón.Hace 30 años que incluso toco un instrumento de viento. Estudié el trombón cuando tenía como diez años. Lo dejé y nunca volví a tocarlo.

Hasta ahora. Decidí volver a estudiarlo porque un hombre muy generoso está enseñandonos todos a tocar un instrumento. Todos los mienbros de la familia. Y la leccion es gratis. Somos todos miembros de un grupo musical y en julio habrá un concierto para el público.

Hay gran cantidad de "sonido" (mejor dicho, "ruido") en la casa Miller.

Para mi fiesta pongo la música de...

"break it down, break it down, break it down
woah woah woah
she want some reggaeton, reggaeton, reggaeton, reggaeton
woah woah woah woah"

"Mamacita" por Daddy Yankee


Mañana es mi cumpleaños. Es el día 5 de febrero. La fiesta será pequeña. Estarán mis hijos y mi esposo. (Pedí una tarta hecha por Wegmans Patisserie, cualquiera)

Pretendo poner la música que más me gusta y en la lista saldrá por lo menos una canción reggaeton.
"
Reggaetón blends West-Indian music influences of reggae and dancehall with those of Latin America, such as bomba, plena, salsa, merengue, latin pop, cumbia and bachata as well as that of hip hop, contemporary R&B, and electronica" (from Wikipedia). It's said that it began in Panama and quickly spread to other parts of Latin America and the U.S.

I prefer reggaetón songs that utilize traditional and folk instruments like the pan pipes or the accordian. I also prefer the traditional dem bow rythem.

It's difficult to recommend reggaeton music to students, however, because the videos are sometimes graphic, violent, and downright raunchy. (Take Calle 13, for example - they infuse poetry and politics into their lyrics and their music is innovative. Yet they also push the limits of lewdness) (Please don't consider this a referral but rather a warning/un aviso)

There are "clean" reggaetón videos by artists who chose not to focus on sex and violence. One can listen to songs without videos on YouTube such as Daddy Yankee's "Que Tengo Que Hacer?" (clean)



Several songs by Amaral (image) will also surely be among the songs on my birthday party playlist. I appreciate the pure, raw talent represented by this couple (and, I love her shoes! Me encantan sus zapatos!). Their songs have been at the top of the charts in Spain for ten years or more, partly because they continually stretch and grow musically.

You can check out TopLatino to hear the most popular songs across Latin America (much like "America's Top 40")

Ahora,

A celebrar! A bailar!

Is there a better way?

WAY back in 1991 I studied under Itziar Laka in the Linguistics program at the University of Rochester (we, her students, used to privately call her "the borg" because she wore black leather, head to toe, and she was tough as nails.) She was also brilliant and she had studied under Noam Chomsky at MIT.

For her syntax class she required that we write a paper about the usage of the English word "they're." Word-processed (not typed), 40 pages minimum, including sentence tree illustrations. (I hope that right now you're feeling happy that you are studying Spanish and not linguistics).

It was not so common, then, for students to use computers to write their papers. I struggled. In fact, I remember spending a lot of time in the college's computer lab during the historic ice storm of 1991.

To think I ever preferred to type a 40 page paper on a typewriter!

Now I face a decision about technology in my own classes. I would prefer to require that all students in on-line classes create and post a video for their oral presentations.

In the past, I've given students a choice. I asked for feedback, "Would you prefer to use the telephone or YouTube?"

One student, just last semester, replied, "what is YouTube?"

It will take extra time for students who don't already know how to create a video with sound, edit it, and upload it.

Students might have to travel to a campus, borrow someone's computer/microphone, or seek out technical advice.

Will they thank me? Have I become "the borg?" (That last link includes a treat for Trekkies, Star Trek wallpapers for your computer).

Lost in translation

Translation is tricky business. There are many legends about the mistranslation of product names like the Chevy Nova (a car, that with its English name "Nova" announced to potential Spanish-speaking consumers "doesn't go.")

Who can forget the wonderful scene in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" where the heroine's fiancé wants to learn a few phrases in Greek to impress his future-inlaws. In jest, the men in the family teach him vulgarities that he subsequently (foolishly) shouts from the rooftop.

It's no wonder new speakers of any language tend to be worried about translation! I might argue that young children are not so worried. They adopt new words quickly and easily, especially if they like the way they sound or if the word illicits a strong reaction. When my 4-year-old started to speak Russian, he ran around calling everyone "pupsik" (Baby!)

I happened to stumble upon the translation of the title of the popular television program "Lost" today. At the request of a student, who wisely doubted Google's translation of a phrase she wanted to say, I was looking for a Spanish TV guide on the internet. I was looking for what we teachers call "realia." (the real deal - the authentic stuff)

In English, we don't have to ask ourselves the question "Who's lost?" A man? A woman? Lots of people? In order to translate "Lost" into Spanish we have to know the answer...who does this adjective refer to?

There are four possible translations into Spanish for one single English word:

perdido
perdida
perdidos
perdidas

I recommend that you test out translated phrases that you doubt by using Google. Put the phrase in quotes, but be sure to do an advanced search, choosing pages originally written in Spanish. This way, you can see if native Spanish speakers are using the words in the same way.

You can further refine your search by country to learn about usage by a group. For example, how are young people using the word "padre" in Mexico? Que padre!!!!!!!!!!!!

El Peqeño

¿Tienes un perro? ¿Te gustan los perros?

Antes creía que los grandes eran superiores a los pequeños. Tuve una vez un pastor alemán. Tuve una vez un dalmáta. De las razas españoles, me encanta El Perro de Montaña Los Pirineos de M. Son fuertes, inteligentes y nobles. (El Líder de los Scouts tenía uno muy guapo que se llamaba "Tor.")

Pero mi hijo acaba de "adoptar" un perro pequeño.Es un caniche ( o "poodle")(un "Toy" se reconocen tres variedades de acuerdo a su tamaño: El Estándar, el Miniatura y el Toy).

Y...tengo que confesar que....me encanta. Es una mascota divertida y simpática.

¿Cúal es la raza de perro que más te gusta?

Profesora Julia Loses Her Cool

WARNING - the following posting contains violent images and strong language

When American Journalist Daniel Pearl was murdered, execution style, in Pakistan in 2002, the world watched, quite literally, in horror. I don't mean to minimize this tragedy in any way, but rather to provide a high-profile example of a journalist's death, one that you might remember.

Are you aware of the mounting numbers of journalists murdered and tortured in Juarez Mexico?
(I am grateful to Meredith Levande. She ws the first person to present the topic of "Violence in Juarez" to my students.)

Journalist Killed
NY Times Article 1/16/2010

The gruesome discovery marks the 59th journalist killed in Mexico since 2000, according to Mexico's National Human Rights Commission.

Some of these journalists died while trying to expose violence against women in Ciudad Juarez. Young women are disappearing.

Drug cartels have been emboldened by the U.S. and Colombia's inability to control the situation in that country. They use the mamed bodies of victims to send messages to the authorities and opposing cartels.


SALTILLO -
Brutal, competing drug gangs often send their adversaries grim warnings with written messages, beheadings or dismemberments.

Valdes' body bore five bullet wounds and signs of torture, the prosecutor's office said.">Police on Friday found the body of one of two recently-abducted Mexican journalists in Saltillo, northern Mexico, their newspaper reported online.

The body of Valentin Valdes Espinosa, a local news reporter, lay outside a hotel along with a warning message, in the city in northern Coahuila state, the daily Zocalo Saltillo said on its website.

The text said: "This will happen to those who don't understand," the Coahuila prosecutor's office said in a statement.

Valdes' body bore five bullet wounds and signs of torture, the prosecutor's office said.

Do the big networks like ABC and Fox adequately cover news coming out of South America?

This news from Juarez, news of senseless violence against innocents and media censorship via murder and torture is....
heartbreaking.

The image used is from Eye Magazine, "Femicide posters"

Also see: World Minitor

Just make some "noise"

I think it's safe to say that two of the principals behind Will Smith's success have been
1) his willingness to take risks
2) his work ethic

I admire his work, both on-stage and in the area of charitable giving. One of my favorite television performances was this appearance on the Spanish show "El Fary."



He discusses his latest film projects, Obama's election, and more. If you have time, you might watch the entire show on Youtube (my apologies for the quality of the video here).

Here you can see Will Smith "try" to sing in Spanish (by default, he can rap and make noises and make us laugh).

What I love about this is Will Smith's approach....his spirit...

C'mon now (admit it, you're NOT on television in front of thousands or millions of viewers and yet sometime you might feel hesitant or embarrassed)...just make some noise!

In this older video,Will Smith admits to not understanding Spanish...but he can speak "un poquito."

Breaking Down the Brick Wall

At some point in your study of Spanish you may feel as if you've hit the proverbial "brick wall." This is a time when you feel that no matter what amount of study, number of flash cards, or time watching videos...nothing seems to stick. If you are an adult learner, this feeling is likely to come sooner rather than later (we will talk about critical period in a future post).

I've been there too. Several years ago we hosted a child from Chechnya for the summer (through Project LIfe). Since language books in Chechen are rare (the country's own libraries and universities have been destroyed), I opted to learn some phrases in Russian to prepare for my new son's arrival (Chechen children study Russian and sometimes English).

I started listening to Russian podcasts and I borrowed every book on the Russian language on file with the local library system. I was highly motivated because I felt an enormous burden to keep this child safe...a 9-year-old traveling some 3,000 miles from his home.

I needed to say "mom things" like..."There are bees in the outhouse." "Do you have on clean underwear!" "Careful, hot water!"

I wasn't even trying to learn to read or write Russian (have you seen the their alphabet? Yikes!)

I couldn't do it. Not a single word seemed to stick in my brain.

Until this beautiful, reckless, highly-intelligent child was actually running through the living room could I make any sense of the Russian language. I'll admit, I did go around the county Fair snorting like a pig (it was his first week with us and as a Muslim, he was wary of pork products. I needed to communicate that I was buying all beef hot dogs instead of pork). Privyet!

The Russian word Sabota...Saturday ("I'm sorry, you can't go on the rides until Saturday"...by the time I'd said this word to him 50 times it stuck (for me at least).

How can you invite Spanish into your home? Via TV or the radio? Find a program you really want to understand. Find a neighbor or co-worker who is Spanish-speaking. I once had a student who really liked the music of Daddy Yankee and reggaetón (me too - although sometimes the lyrics and images are "strong"). That was his reason for learning Spanish.

Thankfully, Spanish has many immediate real-world applications. One former student, a criminal justice major, used her Spanish on the job in the first weeks of class. A car had tipped over during her night shift as an EMT and Spanish-speakers were trapped inside. Granted, she didn't know the words yet for "jaws of life" but the words she knew offered those folks comfort.

Break it down!

Meaningful Connection

All words have meaning....a representation in the "real world." The English word "tree" refers to oaks, maples, seedlings, and even family trees. In general, something with roots, a trunk, and a few branches. Meaning is another word for semantics.

All words also have a grammatical function. This is referred to as syntax...sometimes called the "parts of speech." This has to do with the way the word relates to others in a sentence - adjectives amplify nouns, adverbs amplify verbs, etc.

Think about the evolution of the word "google. (or Google with an uppercase "G")"According to Wikipedia, The Oxford English Dictionary lists an older verb 'google' (without initial capital), meaning to bowl a googly in the game of cricket.

Google was once the name of a search engine. It was largely used as a noun. Now it is used as a verb. "I'll just Google it and see what I find."

Language, languages, change. The meaning and usage of words can change. Can you think of other examples?

I've recently been listening to a lecture by Dr. Michael Wesch at the University of Kansas. He urges teachers (and students) to consider two types of meaningful connections in order to foster deep learning.

Notes from his lecture:

Two types of meaning

• Semantic: A word, concept or idea is not just meaningful for what it is, but for how it relates, connecs, and contrsts with other words, concepts and ideas.

• Personal: A person finds his/her own meaning not just in "who they are" but in how they relate, connect, and contrast with other people.

How does this relate to language learning?

Semantic: When you learn a new word in Spanish and what it means, consider its usage and how it contrasts with other words, concepts and ideas.

Make the word personal: insert it in sentences in place of English words. Do you like the way the word sounds? How does it look in your own writing? What would someone think of you if you uttered this word? What does usage of this new word allow you to communicate? (Trust me, I've heard, "una cerveza, por favor, from my students a few times before !)

A Noun by Any Other Name

Each semester I like to, on the very first day, ask my students, "What is a noun?"

Invariably, a student answers, "A person, place or thing."

I smile politely and offer up further questions to challenge that age-old definition and to further the class discussion.

"Sure, but what about vegetables and animals? Aren't those nouns too?"

"And what about emotions or philosophies or ideas? What about love, peace, and joy?"

Would we have to make an exhaustive list of descriptions in order to include the meaning of all nouns? In other words, would we want to say "A noun is a person, place, animal, insect, vegetable, emotion, idea, philosophy...?"

It's time to think about nouns beyond "person, place, or thing."

Here are just a few suggestions...

1. Nouns fit "nicely" in certain spots in sentences. Take the following:

I like__________. Many nouns (or verbs being used as nouns) fit there. I like Spam. I like meatballs, I like bipartisanship.

I like oiuygfdoiuy. (What's that? Well, you might guess that the word is a noun.)

2. Nouns can often be quantified or qualified.

__________ are mean. Tall____________.

Think of this like "Mad Libs"

Bulldogs are mean. Tall buildings, etc.

3. Nouns can often be made plural.

ant-ants, pea - peas

In Spanish, nouns have gender. They are masculine or feminine. The definite article (el or la) listed in front of the noun (any noun) lets you know which gender is assigned.

Please learn these as a pair...el lápiz, el laboratorio, el día, etc.
Don't rely on the word's ending for information about its gender.


Today's tech tip: Try using Google images to search for pictures of a new noun you are learning. What does a "pupitre" look like? I often do this, in English and Spanish, for words that are difficult for me, like those that describe architectural features.