Section #2 Blogs

1. NewspaperMap.com is a WONDERFUL resource for the language-learner: it allows you to find all of the newspapers in the country of your choice, plus you can search via language which is especially helpful. I know that I emphasize speaking but I think that once you get to a high-beginner or intermediate level you should really put a lot of time into reading in your target language as much as possible.

2. Forvo: This is such a fantastic site, enter any word and listen to a native speaker pronounce it. Ever noticed that when you’re reading a foreign language you have trouble figuring out how to pronounce the words because you know that how it would be pronounced in English, with that spelling, probably isn’t correct? Problem solved.

3. Foro de Español is a forum that I don’t frequent much but that’s only for lack of time. It’s huge and specifically for people trying to learn Spanish (it’s the only one I know of entirely dedicated to Spanish).

4. Language Fixation is another great language-learning blog that I really like due to his analytical approach and extreme emphasis on numbers, analysis, record keeping, setting very specific goals, and in particular doing a great job of keeping track of his results and then publishing them for other people to see. He’s also of the input-only-to-begin-with school like Ramses but has also published some great advice on how to get speaking practice on your own that I found to be especially insightful and valuable.

5. Anki, the vocabulary memorization tool to beat all vocabulary memorization tools and methods. It’s something called SRS, which stands for Spaced Repetition Software, and it’s essentially a digital flashcard program that periodically brings up old vocabulary for review so that you don’t forget it and all of the timing/spacing has been handled for you, if you’re the type of person (many aren’t) who likes to learn vocabulary this way, then this is just the thing for you. But, like I said, keep in mind that you need to like learning things by rote memorization and many people don’t.