The best way to learn Spanish is by taking a Spanish class in Spanish. This is the most intense option to learn Spanish, and also considered the best by many individuals, is to study abroad.
This is along the same lines as taking college courses, but it involves physically relocating to a Spanish-speaking country to study language as well as culture. Not many people have the ability to do this, as it requires the freedom to leave your daily routine for a two-week, month, semester, or even a year course.
The most extreme courses could end up having options to spend more than one year learning how to speak Spanish while studying abroad. This method is considered a total immersion method to learn Spanish, and may force you to be able to communicate in Spanish much faster than any other way.
Although most countries are familiar with tourists who speak another language, studying abroad will somewhat force you to give up relying on your first language, and begin to focus on using Spanish.
Not only will you be learning and studying for a Spanish class in Spanish in the study abroad program, but you will also be using Spanish to do things like order food, buy bus tickets, and tell taxi drivers where you are trying to go.
You may find that using your new found ability to speak conversational Spanish during these classes in Spanish and doing routine activities will not only give you more confidence speaking, but will actually be crucial to becoming a better Spanish speaker.
When you say something that is not entirely correct, you will most likely be corrected by the locals in a polite and respectful way, since you are respecting them by trying to communicate in the language of their culture, rather than what most tourists do and expect them to use your first language.
When you are corrected by the locals, you will have a tendency to remember the right way to use that sentence or phrase; because it will most likely be something you are using often, while doing errands or traveling, so it will almost certainly come up again.
These are perfect practice situations! Real life circumstances are almost impossible to fake or recreate in a classroom setting, so the experience learning to speak Spanish gained while studying abroad is truly the most in-depth method there is. Taking a Spanish class in Spanish while living in a Spanish speaking country is the only way to go.
Again, a quick internet search for study abroad programs to Spanish speaking countries is a great start. Do your homework; Research and compare different programs, and make an earnest effort to communicate to people who run the program as well as people who have completed the program before you pay any money to anybody. Beware of scams and ill-prepared study abroad programs that promise too much and do not have the resources to make their promises come true.
Be realistic but don’t lose patience if you do not find the right program right away. Spanish study abroad programs have the most options of any by far, with the majority centering in Spain. Central and South America will have plenty of options as well. Mexico, Costa Rica and Argentina among many others offer a wide array of study abroad programs.
Any of these countries are a great decision if you want to learn how to speak Spanish.
