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There are some cooky programs that were made just for language learning, for example extr@ which tries to be a bit like Friends. It’s odd but entertaining. Then there’s a few fun YouTube channels, my favourite is Tío Spanish which is like a guys finger with a bullfighter hat on and a drawn in moustache and he does silly voices. It’s good, you’ll be amused.

As for actual shows I learned a lot watching The Walking Dead because they talk too much and repeat the same conversations over and over and nothing happens for hours. So, if you are watching with Spanish subtitles you can just keep hold of the thread and you start to think “hey, I think she’s pregnant” and when it turns out she is you feel proud for understanding. I couldn’t possibly sit through it in English though.

Another thing I did a lot it was taking movies where I know the dialogue inside out and watching Spanish versions with Spanish subtitles and watching it repeatedly. I must have watched the Back to the Future trilogy at least 50 times this way. This can also be confusing though as the subtitles rarely match the dubbing, so you are getting different synonyms thrown at you all the time.

Overall though I don’t think it is a good learning method. It can supplement your learning and it’s a good gauge of your improvement when you can read the subtitles less etc. To get the most out of it your level needs to be just under the level of the show, so that you follow everything except new vocabulary relating to the context or some kind of slang variant used. So, if your level is low shows with an appropriate level will be frustrating to watch such as Dora the Exploradora. When I was at that level I also searched kids tv from my own childhood to find Spanish versions because there’s nostalgia aspect plus you already know what is happening and who the characters are.

Rather than looking and sourcing stuff, just always watch everything set to the very least in English with Spanish subtitles or in Spanish with English subtitles and then don’t really try too hard just be passive with it.

Reading is a much better supplementary activity because of the pace and you will stop and look words up more, you will let things fly by in a show or movie. But again when your level is low this gets really frustrating too. Even up to today I’ve never read a book in Spanish cover to cover. Maybe if I tried again now it’d be more comfortable.

Really though, focused learning with tonnes of repetition plus some regular reason to improve is how you get most of your learning. Duolingo. From the beginning till now where I can just go about my day in Spanish working, socialising, dealing with legal and medical stuff without much of a second thought about it. All throughout, regular duolingo use plus the need to improve because my life depends upon it have been the keys to my learning.

Peace,

kowalski