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5 Simple Habits to Learn Spanish Faster
All Spanish students dream of a magic way to speed up their learning.
I am sure you have seen advertisements like:
‘Learn Spanish in one week’. Or ‘Become fluent in one month.’
Sounds great, doesn’t it?
Unfortunately, I have not found the magic words to turn these promises into true (at least not yet). However, after many years teaching Spanish I can give you some advice 
Learning Spanish has many things in common with sports. For example, you will have better results if you practice a little every day than if you study long hours one day a week. Also, it is hard to start again after a long period without practicing. And the first days are the most exhausting.
Acquiring habits that we can include in our routine and, above all, that we can maintain over time will be the key to our success.
In this article, I propose 5 simple habits that you can start doing today that will help you learn Spanish faster.
If you already have other habits to improve your Spanish, let me know in a comment to help other students
Contents on this post
Simple Habits to Learn Spanish faster #1 Start the day in Spanish
The first few minutes of the day are crucial.
These are the minutes we have to make it clear to our brain what to focus on for the rest of the day.
Don’t worry, I’m not saying you have to start the day studying! But make sure you receive information in Spanish as soon as you get up.
How to do it will depend on your level:
⇒ If you are a beginner:
Write on a post-it the name in Spanish of basic objects that you have at home such as «la mesa», «la nevera», «el vaso»… It’s a classic. Because it works. Why don’t you give it a try today?
Start the day with a song in Spanish. Many songs use a basic vocabulary such as “Tengo” from Macaco or “Esta soy yo” from El Sueño de Morfeo.
Subscribe to Spanish YouTube channels for beginners and watch a video over breakfast. You can start with “Tio Spanish”.
⇒ If your level is intermediate or advanced:
- Listen to music, a podcast, or the radio in Spanish.
- Read the newspaper in Spanish. Understanding the news in Spanish can be a bit difficult at first, but you can start with the habit of reading the headlines and at least one news article a day.
- Write a diary in Spanish. A few lines are enough to train your writing. You can start by writing down what you did the day before or your resolutions for the day.
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Learn Spanish with live online lessons
¡Hola!
We are CactusBCN Languages, a Spanish language school located in Barcelona.
In March 2020, the pandemic situation encouraged us to start teaching online. All our students were happy with this change so we will keep teaching online for a while.
The school was founded and is run by enthusiastic teachers. Out team was teaching Spanish around the world for a few years and when we come back to Spain, we decided to start our own school.
It is a small local business. We work with small groups because we like to get to know all our students and design personalized lessons.
We are looking forward to meeting you in class!
Do you want to get free resources and materials for learning Spanish?
Simple Habits to Learn Spanish faster #2 Include Spanish in your routines
Making small changes to your routine will help you improve your Spanish without realizing it.
Surely the first thing you have thought about is changing the language of your phone or computer to Spanish. Perfect! It’s a great idea. But we can go further: change the language of your email manager, your social media apps, and all the apps you use every day.
Are you one of those who spend a lot of time on YouTube, Facebook, or Instagram? Follow channels, accounts, and groups in Spanish. In social media, you will find a lot of free content to learn Spanish.
In addition, you can follow accounts that deal with topics that interest you but that do so in Spanish.
• Are you interested in nutrition and food? Follow the popular nutritionist Carlos Ríos.
• Do you like to be informed about the news? Follow a newspaper like El País or La Vanguardia.
‘• Do you want to be entertained by the everyday dramas of a real couple? Follow the hilarious podcast ‘¡Sí Es Lo Que Parece!’
These are just a few examples, but you can find the accounts that best suit your interests using hashtags in Spanish.
Simple Habits to Learn Spanish faster #3 Read in Spanish
Choosing what to read will depend on your level of Spanish. But the habit of reading in Spanish is essential for all levels.
♦ If your level is initial, get a basic grad reading book.
♦ If your level is intermediate or advanced, graded reading is also a good choice to improve your grammar and vocabulary. Also, dare to read real materials in Spanish like newspapers and books.
If you are not in the habit of reading in your own language, it is normal that it is difficult for you to do so in Spanish. Start with an easy habit to stick to, like 10 minutes a day and gradually increase the time.
Always reading at the same time will help you to maintain the habit, for example before going to bed or when traveling by public transport.
You can also take some time to study and work on grammar and vocabulary books, but they don’t replace the benefits of reading. When you are into a story in a novel or in a magazine your brain is recording the language structures and you will notice a quick improvement when you speak or write in Spanish.
Simple Habits to Learn Spanish faster #4 Find friends who want to speak Spanish with you
Watching series is a habit that will help you improve your Spanish without realizing it. Depending on your level, you can do it with or without subtitles.
If you want to start watching series without subtitles you can watch one that you have seen before but dubbed into Spanish. Dubbed series are not as good as original versions but they can help you to understand the plot and enjoy listening without subtitles.
In addition to the Netflix and HBO platforms, you can find many series in Spanish on MovistarPlus.
Not sure which series to choose? In this article I recommend you some of my favorites.
You can put into practice today these 5 easy habits to learn Spanish faster and you will see your improvement in a couple of weeks. Let me know if you try!
In your opinion, what are the most important habits to get to improve your Spanish?
Leave a comment and help other students.
Simple Habits to Learn Spanish faster #5 Get hooked on a series in Spanish
Watching series is a habit that will help you improve your Spanish without realizing it. Depending on your level, you can do it with or without subtitles.
If you want to start watching series without subtitles you can watch one that you have seen before but dubbed into Spanish. Dubbed series are not as good as original versions but they can help you to understand the plot and enjoy listening without subtitles.
In addition to the Netflix and HBO platforms, you can find many series in Spanish on MovistarPlus.
Not sure which series to choose? In this article I recommend you some of my favorites.
You can put into practice today these 5 easy habits to learn Spanish faster and you will see your improvement in a couple of weeks. Let me know if you try!
In your opinion, what are the most important habits to get to improve your Spanish?
Leave a comment and help other students.
Who wrote this post?
Small school,
big learning.
We are CactusBCN Languages, a Spanish language school located in Barcelona.
In March 2020, the pandemic situation encouraged us to start teaching online. All our students were happy with this change so we will keep teaching online for a while 🙂
The school was founded and is run by enthusiastic teachers. Our team was teaching Spanish around the world for a few years and when we came back to Spain, we decided to start our own school.
It is a small local business. We work with small groups because we like to get to know all our students and design personalized lessons.
We are looking forward to meeting you in class!
Why should I take an online Spanish course?
Online classes are as fun as face-to-face classes but with the added benefits of online learning:
- You can save time and money on travel.
- Continue to study from anywhere. You don't have to interrupt your classes or change schools if you move to another city or travel.
- Access your class materials at any time. Digital materials are always available to study or do homework.
