Several years ago, I was given the opportunity to travel to Mexico with my eighth grade Spanish teacher and a handful of other students. It was an exciting experience to be traveling to a new place with friends and my teacher, who was the person who kickstarted my adoration of the Spanish language and culture. Before the trip, I can remember being so nervous about having to speak Spanish to native speakers. At this point, I had only spoken Spanish surrounded by four concrete walls and under the watchful eye of my  teachers. I was now being thrown into a Spanish-speaking country with minimal experience. Would I be able to speak with others? Would I die of embarrassment if I said something wrong? Well, being that I am here writing this post now, I clearly did not die of embarrassment. I realized during this trip that practicing my Spanish skills was truly the only way I was going to get better. I could not just rely on native Spanish speakers to hopefully speak English every time I needed something.

Fast forward to now, I have to fall back on what I learned in Mexico. I have been trying to practice my Spanish every chance I get, and hopefully, practice should make perfect. How have I been practicing my Spanish, you may ask? Here are some of the ways:

  • Reading books, newspapers, etc. This is one of the more difficult approaches to take in practicing Spanish for me. I am currently reading the novel Como agua para chocolate, of which I have seen the movie twice. Being that I have seen the movie, I already had an understanding of the plot. Nonetheless, reading helps opens doors to new vocabulary that I usually would not be exposed to. I also downloaded the El Mundo app, which sends me Spanish news stories. Being able to stay updated on the news and practice reading at the same time has been so helpful!
  • Watching television and movies. My host mom, Basi, loves to watch television. Whenever she is home, the television is on. For this reason, I have been watching a lot of Spanish television. It has really helped my listening skills in ways that I am very thankful for. It has helped me pick up new vocabulary and sayings. Right now my favorite show is Bob Esponja (aka Spongebob) which I watch with Basi’s five year old granddaughter. Being an avid spongebob fan from a young age, I have loved seeing the differences and similarities before Bob Esponja and his American counterpart.
  • Listening to music. This is probably the most fun way I have practicing Spanish. I have always loved listening to Spanish songs, but it has been a little hard here in Spain because they listen to a lot of American music! Nonetheless, I tend to have my Spotify account playing Spanish hits, of which I have learned the words to a few new songs. Opening my ears to the Spanish language and culture through music has helped a ton with my listening skills.
  • Attending Intercambios. Truth be told, I initially thought I would not like Intercambios. It pretty much consists of going to a local restaurant/bar at night (which is a struggle in itself) and talking to strangers from all of the world who want to practice either their Spanish or English skills. After going to my first event, I came to love the experience! I met people from the states, the United Kingdom, and plenty of people from Spain. Being able to talk with so many new people who are willing to help me improve on my speaking skills.
  • Talking with my host mom. If there is one thing Basi loves more than television, it is talking. She seriously talks so much, but I do not really mind because it makes for ample opportunities to practice speaking! We talk about everything–our families, the foods we love to eat, the weather, and even Donald Trump. Sometimes if she does not understand what I am trying to say, she may look at me funny and I will have to feel re-explains which pushes me to figure out how to express myself.
  • Talking with kids. Talking to native Spanish speakers who also happen to be children is the best. My host mom has two young grandchildren, Cayetana (age 5) and Gabriel (age 3), and I love talking to them. Their Spanish is easier to understand than some adults, because they are not yet fast-talking Spaniards like everyone else. Cayetana also likes to teach me “new” Spanish words, like when she taught me that hola means hello. Another time she taught how to say remote when I held up the television remote and asked her what it is called, to which she responded in Spanish, “You do not have remotes in America?” Needless to say, she has been very helpful. 
  • Talking to my American friends… in Spanish! All day in classes, at home, and in the streets I am surrounded by Spanish, so when it comes time to talk to my American friends here in Spain, we sometimes tend to revert to English. Occasionally, when I am with a few friends and I am tired of hearing English, I will randomly declare Spanish only and we will only talk in Spanish for a bit. At first, some others were not a big fan of this, but it is pretty fun especially with a big group. It might seem simple, but it stepping outside of my comfort zone and speaking Spanish with English speakers is a great way for us all to practice.

What Mexico, and studying abroad in Spain, has taught me is that practice is so important. No matter how busy I am, it is never too hard to practice my Spanish. With all these fun ways to practice, I better be fluent by the end of this experience! We will see…