Summary

Welcome to Free Language's whirlwind tour about learning Spanish online for free. This is the third video screencast about learning languages for free. See all of them here.

This video will take you through some top essential resources for learning Spanish for free online. View the links below the video to access the resources highlighted in this video.

Here we cover places to find general resources, where to get learning materials, finding plenty of content online to expose yourself to the language and recommend the SpanishPod podcast for audio on-the-go as well as community atmosphere.

Spanish exercises, kid's games, interactive tools, news sources, radio stations, Web TV... it's all here. Enjoy!

Screencast Video

Helpful Links for this Screencast

General Resouces

http://freelanguage.org/spanish
http://freelanguage.org/learn/spanishpod

Social

http://www.palabea.net/spanish
http://www.italki.com/learn-spanish/en-us
http://www.livemocha.com

Lessons

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mundo/index.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/tv

Radio, Podcast

http://freelanguage.org/learn/spanishpod
http://www.listenlive.eu/spain.html
http://www.learn-spanish-help.com/Spanish-radio.html
http://www.radiotower.com
http://www.rollingrs.com/category/free

More Practice

http://www.studyspanish.com

Kids, Child, Games

http://onlinefreespanish.com

More Links

http://www.sussex.ac.uk/languages/1-6-4-7.html
http://teachinglearningspanish.blogspot.com/2009/08/20-free-online-resources-for-spanish.html

Newsletter

http://freelanguage.org/the-free-language-letter

Summary

From beginner to advanced levels, SpanishPod101.com is an excellent, all-around online environment for learning Spanish. The Pod101 platform, method and technology provide the necessary tools to get you immersed in the Spanish language and achieve the goals you desire and/or require.

Since SpanishPod101.com is web-based, you can access your personal Spanish Learning Center from anywhere, and it's really easy to download the podcasts and put them on your mp3 player (iPod, Zune, etc) or mobile phone to take them with you for practice and learning on the go.

One of the most important things when learning a language is good content - and SpanishPod101.com has this, and a steady flow of it. This constant flow of fresh content regards cultural aspects of Spanish you will want to know, interesting tidbits about navigating in Spanish society (whether on vacation or living abroad), practical information about getting by and much more.

Your Spanish Learning Center brings together audio podcast lessons, lesson notes and checklists, transcripts, PDFs, video lessons, vocabulary training with flashcards and quizzes plus a Spanish dictionary, grammar bank, a verb reference and plenty more.

And if you enjoy asking questions and learning from and helping other learners, a forum is available for all users.

It's simple to try it for free and upgrade if it works for you.

From Website

At SpanishPod101.com, our goal is to make learning the Spanish language easy and fun, while also incorporating culture and current issues into our lessons. We believe that the more you speak, the quicker you learn, so we have designed our program to get you speaking right away. Situational Spanish is heavily stressed, and our team role plays various situations to demonstrate the proper form of Spanish to use when speaking with friends, customers, executives, and so-on. Knowing the proper form to use separates good speakers from great speakers.

SpanishPod101.com was developed with the hope of showing the world how fun and easy learning Spanish can be. Here at SpanishPod101.com, we truly believe that learning can be fun, while at the same time convenient. We know how busy you are and that each day brings unexpected surprises. That is exactly why we bring the lessons to you and let you decide when they start.

Our innovative, fun, and easy to use language learning system is designed to get you speaking and interacting from the very first lesson. Learn Spanish at your own convenience and pace with short, effective, fun daily lessons and a comprehensive, state-of-the-art Learning Center that provides you with the tools to take your Spanish to the next level! Our interactive learning system consists of free daily audio podcast lessons, accompanying PDF materials, a Premium Learning Center, and a vibrant user community.

Our Method

SpanishPod101.com offers a unique learning experience that cannot be found in conventional classrooms. In addition to offering lessons that can be completed on your own time, we approve all of the content we release through a government certified Spanish teacher. Here are just a few of the revolutionary advantages of our method:

Exposure to native speakers and many different kinds of voices and speaking styles…

SpanishPod101.com aims to have you speaking Spanish after just one lesson! Our lessons focus on pronunciation and listening comprehension, so that you can start practicing what you learn from our professional teachers. Inside the PDF you will find the necessary tools for reading comprehension, and thorough explanations of phrases and key grammar points, in addition to segments on cultural insight. To address speaking practice, we have state-of-the-art software to allow you to record your own voice so you can compare your pronunciation to our teachers and continue to refine your speaking skills.

When all the aspects of SpanishPod101.com are put together, this program provides students of Spanish with ultimate self-study learning course. In addition, we often provide conversations between three people to more closely simulate real-life situations.

Fresh, up-to-date content...

Many Spanish teachers who live overseas have been out of the country for a long period of time and can be “out of the loop” on current words, culture, etc. This is another major gap that we fill. Lessons are carefully crafted to include current events, words, celebrities, and so-on. This is very dynamic content.

Borderless education on-demand...

We also fill a definite demand in remote locations. Our lessons provide you with a mobile classroom, as we bring you Spanish on Demand. Spanish lessons wherever you may be.

SpanishPod101.com offers our listeners a unique learning experience that delivers cutting-edge, dynamic content to be accessed at your convenience. With the inclusion of our lesson notes and Learning Center, we offer a full solution that provides the material, guidance, exercises, and testing to really make the knowledge your own. And it doesn’t even stop there - our vibrant and extremely helpful community provide each other not only quick answers to questions, but also give each other a sense of encouragement and motivation that is often lacking.

We focus on Spanish, and Spanish only...

Just Spanish! All we do is Spanish. SpanishPod101.com is not a generic package language learning course, such as some of the other big name language learning programs out there. Many other programs “scale” their solutions across several languages, simply recycling the same material over and over - the same pictures, the same conversations, just in a different language. But each language is unique, and at SpanishPod101.com we pride ourselves on developing a system that’s only about the Spanish language and Spanish culture!

One stop studying...

Have you ever found yourself lost on the information highway? Sometimes it’s like trying to drink from a fire hose! Hundreds of bookmarks, all with varying levels of quality and credibility. You finally find a great site, but it only updates once a year! SpanishPod101.com offers users one stop studying. The learning center has been carefully designed to provide you with the resources you will need to take your Spanish to the next level.

Visit SpanishPod101.com.

Summary

Apple recently released a new section of the wildly popular iTunes Store available through their iTunes software. This new section is called iTunes U, and collects podcasts from numerous universities and colleges to make them available for free download to your iPod or other mp3 player, mobile/cell phone, etc.

One of the sub-sections of iTunes U is (note: you need iTunes for this link to work) specifically for languages and language education - yay!

Currently there are 60 podcasts (probably more by the time you read this) available regarding both learning foreign languages as well as general topics regarding language in general. Many of these podcasts are called OpenCourseWare, considered Open Learning materials released in the Public Domain. This means they can be used truly freely by teachers and educators without worries about copyright issues - a big plus! Be sure to look at the license for each podcast to make sure of the licensing.

The podcast-based current courses available through iTunes U are English (Medieval and ESL), French, German, Greek, Japanese, Hebrew (various), Italian (Language and Theater), Romanian, Spanish (various) plus Language Technology and Lectures, Interviews, Clubs, Lectionary at Lunch and Storytelling Colombian Style. There are many more, too.

This is really exciting to see at this professional education level. Of couse, add this to the 982 language podcasts in the "regular" (non-iTunes U) iTunes store and that makes over a whopping 1,000 language-related podcasts for download through iTunes - all free. :)

Watch the iTunes U intro video below to learn more about this new feature:

From iTunes U

iTunes U puts the power of the iTunes Store to work for colleges and universities, so users can easily search, download, and play course content just like they do music, movies, and TV shows.

Always in session.

iTunes U delivers easy, 24/7 access to educational content from hundreds of top colleges, universities, and educationally focused organizations across the country. And it’s accessible to anyone with a Mac or PC.

Learning to go.

Students can sync iTunes U content with any iPod or iPhone, so they can go right on learning while they grab a meal, walk to class, or work out at the gym.

Keeps them motivated.

Engaging students on their home turf, iTunes U offers audio and video that make subjects more vivid than any printed page ever could.

Open-minded.

iTunes U lets schools open all or part of their content to the public, from parents to alumni to anyone with a love of learning.

Find out more about iTunes U.

Summary

Spanish News Bites offers quite interesting and varied audio news articles regarding Spain and Latin America. These are free, naturally.

It's a Spanish-speaking-world news source, a podcast and a written lesson all in one.

From Website

Spanish NewsBites is a free language-learning website designed to help you learn Spanish at the same time as you learn about what's happening TODAY throughout Spain and Latin America, whether you're a student or a teacher, or whether you're learning Spanish for fun.

So what's the Spanish NewsBites recipe? If you want to know more, click "Continue Reading" below. If you're returning to Spanish NewsBites and you're already in the know, just scroll down this page a few centimeters to read our latest entry. (You'll find one every couple of days.)

So just what is the Spanish NewsBites recipe?

• Three to four times a week, we choose a news story from Spain or Latin America and adapt it for language learners. Often, it's the kind of story you won't easily find anywhere in English.
• Then we add mouse rollover translation into English of key vocabulary. To see how this works, just roll your mouse over these words in bold.
• Then we prepare an audio transcript of the text for you to follow. This can be done straight from your browser, or it can be downloaded as an MP3 file.
• Then we add a PDF file of the text and glossary, so you can print it out and take it away with you.
• Then we add links which we think will give a little further context and generally enhance your reading.
• Then we add an online self-correction exercise.
• The news stories are classified into categories by theme or by Spanish level - beginner, intermediate or advanced. So you can choose what you read according to your interests or your level.

Visit Spanish News Bites.

Subscribe

Subscribe to Spanish NewsBites.

Summary

Online-Spanish-Course.com is a fast-loading, useful site for Spanish learners to manage and practice vocabulary lists (words and sentences). There are many existing word and sentence lists created by other users that you can snag and use right away. You can also create your own lists and sentences on-the-fly and test yourself until you know them all. As a result, this resource works for Spanish students of all levels, beginner to advanced. The self-testing is done via built-in flashcard software that you control.

The website has an integrated dictionary that gives explanations of individual terms and includes examples of how these are used in real sentences. In addition, when you view a sentence, you can scroll over the Spanish words and view annotations. NB: You can copy and paste any Spanish text you want into the site's Text Analyzer and it provides you with what you see below (see grey scroll-over pop-up in image for annotation). Words that are not in the system with be displayed in grey, such as the word "Mike" below.

Something you might find useful is the site's Sentence of the Day email. This sends a different sentence every day complete with a translation of the sentence.

If you upgrade to a premuim membership (~$5/month) you can also hear audio for the sentence. In fact, the only thing you cannot do without a membership is hear the audio on the site.

Bravo Oliver for this excellent site and keep up the great work!

P.S. If you're wondering about the "Me llamo Mike" thing, it's from The One Semester of Spanish Spanish Love Song.

From Website

Online-Spanish-Course.com started in April 2007. A lot of time has been invested to design an efficient system which enables you to learn new words in the shortest time possible. Make sure to read this introduction carefully so you understand how the system works. Once you know how this website works and you use it regularly it will become an important tool to learn Spanish. Ideally make time each day for 2 or 3 sessions a day, each lasting about 10 - 15 minutes.

Once you have created your own account you can set up your own word list. There are basically two different modes on how to add new words to your word list. One is automatically and one is manually.

Automatically

If you choose "automatically" then the system will choose random words for you to practice. Within the Auto-Mode there are two different choices. The first is "completely random words" and the second is "frequent words first". Obviously if you are a beginner you should focus on those frequent words firsts, so if you chose the level "Complete Newbie", "Basic" or "Intermediate" the system will just do that. If you chose the level "Upper Intermediate" or "Advanced" completely random words will be added to your word list.

Manually

If you would like more control over which word you learn switch to the manually mode. In this mode you have to choose which word you will learn, not the system. There are a few ways to add words manually. The first is to use the search function in the navigation bar on the left-hand side. You can search for Spanish or English words. On the result page every found word has an "Add Word" link next to it. Click it to add this word to your personal list. After you click it the link text will change to "Remove Word", so you can immediately remove the word from your list if you have added it by mistake.

The second way to add words manually is to click the link "Add new Words" in the navigation. This will show random words for you to add. They are sorted by frequency, the most common words will be at the top of this random list, while the rare words will be at the bottom of the list.

Finally you can add words manually by browsing through the "public word lists". These lists have been created by other users. These public lists normally have a common theme, like "animals", "computer terms", "fruits", etc. You can either pick some words of these public lists or copy the whole list.

You can also combine these methods, add words automatically but also occasionally add words manually.

Adding words automatically is the default setting. If you do not want to add words automatically you can change this in the settings.

The Loop

The main problem of learning new words is that over time word lists grow very big. This means that the learner feels overwhelmed and the time between word repetitions becomes too long. Thats where the Loop comes to the rescue. The Loop consists of a subset of only 20 words out of your word list. This means you can concentrate on a few words only, until you have memorized them properly. To keep a flashcard in the loop click on the link "Keep in the Loop".

If you have become familiar with a new word which is in the Loop click on "1 day", "7 days", "30 days" etc. Which means that the word will be shown only after the indicated time has passed. If you know a word very well click on "30 Days" or "3 Months" so the word will be shown only after a long time. After the indicated time has passed the word will be put into the Queue.

Once you remove a word from the Loop another one will be put in the Loop. The system will first check if there are any words in the "Queue". If the Queue is empty and you are in Auto-Mode the system will choose a new word for you and add it to your word list and into the Loop. If you are in "manually mode" the system will tell you that you need to add more more words in order to continue.

By default there are 20 words in the loop. You can change the number of words in the loop in the settings.

Word Lists

If the Loop system sounds too complicated to you, then you can also set up simple word lists. To do this click on "[Manage Lists]" in the navigation. Then click on "[Add List]" to create a new list. If you want to share this word list with other users tick the box "Public List". If you want to immediately add new words to this list tick "Also Activate". You can create as many lists as you want. In the navigation bar you can always see which list is active at the moment. Words will be added to the currently active list. To go back to the master list (which uses the loop), click on "[Manage Lists]" and the "[Leave List Mode]".

You can view this introduction anytime by clicking on "Help" in the navigation on the left hand side.

If you have questions don't hesitate to contact us online by clicking on Support Chat, also please leave feedback about this tutorial (if something is not clear or if something is missing for instance).

Visit Online-Spanish-Course.com

Summary

Loquella has done a great job of taking Public Domain language learning materials created by the US Foreign Service Instute and porting them into a web-based language learning platform.

Their website provides users with an online interface for learning Spanish by listening, reading and speaking. You can even customize how the site delivers the content to you by adjusting your preferences (no sign-up required!). This means you can choose to hear audio first in Spanish and then view the sentence in English or view the sentence in English and then hear the audio in Spanish. There are two other options as well.

Loquella also has a blog and a community area anyone can join and participate in a forum, and share photos and video. (View RSS feed for the community forum.)

All in all, Loquella is a great way to learn Spanish free online by listening, reading and repeating. In addition to the free materials, Loquella sells a download of all the Spanish MP3s with a 30-day money back guarantee.

From Website

About The Language Course

The Foreign Service Institute and Loquella

Loquella developed the language course based off the well-respected Foreign Service Institute's language lessons. The method Loquella uses to teach you languages is not new, the Foreign Service Institute has been using this method for over 30 years to teach thousands of serious language students. Loquella simply developed the language tool that you use to view and hear the Foreign Service Institute course, and we also improved on the Foreign Service Institute system by adding Dialects Interviews for the Spanish lessons. The Foreign Service Institute method emphasizes language drills and pronunciation drills to ensure that language students retain and comprehend all material before moving forward.

Improving On An Already Good Thing

Although the Loquella language tool is largely based on the foundation that the Foreign Service Institute created, we believe we have made many essential improvements to the system. Instead of having to follow along with work-books while listening to tapes, Loquella.com offers two unique language tools for accessing the lessons. The first is through the free online language tool. The second is through lessons that can be downloaded to your MP3 player. You follow along with either program at your own pace. You can stop the program at any time and pick back up where you left off.

"The Foreign Service Institute is the Federal Government's primary training institution for officers and support personnel of the U.S. foreign affairs community, preparing American diplomats and other professionals to advance U.S. foreign affairs interests overseas and in Washington."

- U.S. Department of State website.

Additional Notes On The Foreign Service Institute

Since the Loquella language tool pulls information from the Foreign Service Institute which was designed in the 1970's for government officers, professionals and diplomats, a large number of references to government entities and processes are referenced in the language lessons. Keep in mind that events and political figures referred to in some of the language lessons are most likely out dated by several decades. Instead of editing out all these items, the Loquella tool includes these items as they do not hinder students from learning, instead they can be seen as an interesting reminder of our own political and cultural history. We hope you enjoy the language lessons, and maybe you'll even get a brief history refresher as well.

Immerse Yourself In Your Language

We also encourage language students to try to immerse themselves in the language they are learning. Many experts agree that the best way to learn a language is to be surrounded by it constantly for a prolonged amount of time. If you have a couple weeks to spend in Mexico, bring your lap top and work with the Loquella language tool when you have some time, plug in to an audio tape when you are traveling and simply try to listen and speak to the locals any chance you get.

About The Foreign Service Institute Method

The main method for teaching used by the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), and also used in all the language courses offered by Loquella.com, is called "guided imitation". If you listen to the way you speak your native language, you will notice that you do not use the exact same variation of common phrases in every context. Instead, you change your way of speaking to adjust to each individual situation. Therefore, this language course is designed to help you master the foreign language in most situations that you could run into in daily life in a new country.

Pronunciation

The Foreign Service Institute method focuses heavily on teaching proper pronunciation. We focus the first language lessons in each level on pronunciation due to the importance that correct pronunciation will have on your ability to master the new language.

Basic Language Dialogs

The basic dialogs are the core of each language lesson. These dialogs are recreations of the real situations a language student is most likely to encounter, and the vocabulary and sentences are those he or she is most likely to need.

In the first language lessons, new vocabulary is introduced mainly in the basic dialogs. Sometimes, in the illustrations of grammar points, new words are introduced in order to fill out patterns needed to do the exercises. Each new word will reappear many times later in the language course to help you associate each word in many different contexts.

Language Pattern Drills and Grammar

The basic dialogs are the theme throughout the language course, and the language drills are the variations of those dialogs. Patterns of basic dialogs are expanded and changed in the drills.

Pattern drills are designed to allow you to practice the sentences and phrases you have learned, and the grammar tips are there to provide further explanation. At the beginning of each drill you will be given a basic sentence or dialog, then various kinds of drills that offer variations of those basic sentences and dialogs.

The language course consists of listening to and repeating basic sentences that illustrate the grammar point that is to be learned. This structure will give you enough clues to understand and use the pattern correctly in the drills that follow. These drills are mainly exercises that use substitutions, responses, and translations that highlight the grammar points that are being covered.

There are four kinds of language drills in each unit. Two are designed to vary some basic dialogs within the vocabulary you have already learned. The other two are oriented toward the structure of the language to provide coverage of important patterns.

Notes On Specific Language Lessons

The Spanish language lessons are set in a mythical country called Surlandia. A mythical country is used to represent a typical Latin American country due to the diversity of Spanish speaking countries.

You Choose Your Level Of Difficulty

No matter which language tool you decide to use, you choose your level of difficulty. You can skip ahead or continue to repeat a language lesson until you feel comfortable with it. Using the MP3 downloads, you can buy just the level you want, or the complete 50 hour package. Using the free online language tool, you can skip forward or backwards through each language lesson until you find your perfect level of difficulty.

Learning Dialects Using The Language Tool

As anyone who has tried to learn a language will tell you, it's one thing to understand and respond to a question in a foreign language when it is spoken in a slow and well-annunciated manner. It's completely different to listen and repeat when actual people are talking in real dialects. As you get deeper into any language you will start to hear that people speaking the same language have very different dialects. That's why we provide sections that allow you to hear dialects used in various parts of the world.