Anyone using Learnables for Spanish (or intentionally *Not* using it)?...

[Rhondabee]

Does it work? What do you like/dislike? Do you like it better than Rosetta Stone?

 

 

This would be for my 5th grade ds, and maybe my 8th grader - if he's interested and can find the time.

 

Thanks for any feedback!

Rhonda

[HollyinNNV]

Here's a great site for reviews of Spanish curricula.

http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/spanishcurriculum.htm

My own experience is that my dd hated Learnables after a while cuz it was boring. Rosetta Stone wasn't our cup of tea either. We ended up switching to Latin.

[MIch elle]

because it's easy and there is minimal writing and grammar. We like to listen in the car. This is perfect for us because Latin takes up the bulk of our foreign language time.

 

I also have Rosetta Stone Italian and the repetition drove me crazy.

[Rhondabee]

Actually, this would be a break from Latin. I'm a little worried that LC2 will be overwhelming for him - this is one of those "up the ante" sort of years for him. (Bless his little heart, he's not gonna know what hit him! - LOL)

 

Also, one of his good friends is Hispanic - parents speak no English. So, there's motivation there.

 

I was confused - but now I see they have just started offering a CD-Rom for the computer along with a workbook. So, maybe some of the boring-ness has been dealt with. (I'm hopeful, anyway. "Boring" was mentioned in just about every review!)

 

Thanks for the link!

Rhonda

[Rhondabee]

Did you get to use the CD-Rom for the computer?

 

=)

[Margo out of lurking]

We began using The Learnables Spanish when my kids were 1st and 4th. What I liked: easy; quick; no reading, auditory only; no computer; I could pop in the CD and do something while the kids listened. They learned, and we would have Spanish conversations in the car.

 

What I didn't like: the kids found it SO boring (but it was so easy and quick!); every word/phrase was for travelers, i.e., restaurants, transportation, emergency help. (Because of this, all of our Spanish conversations were faked, usually involving ordering food, lol!)

 

They finished the first set/book in a year. An older child would be expected to complete it more quickly. We began the second book which required writing. It was more of a struggle for my younger son. For various reasons, I ended deciding I would no longer teach Spanish, but it had nothing to do with the curriculum. We switched to Latin the following year.

 

I would definitely consider The Learnables if my children were interested in another language, although they might balk since they found it so boring. I would not consider Rosetta Stone, I don't think it'd be a good fit for us based on what I've seen.

[siloam]

Does it work? What do you like/dislike? Do you like it better than Rosetta Stone?

 

 

This would be for my 5th grade ds, and maybe my 8th grader - if he's interested and can find the time.

 

Thanks for any feedback!

Rhonda

 

I like the Learnables (have it on computer), but the kids think it is...

 

 

 

 

 

 

no wait for it....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BORING! Bet that surprised you with the other posts. ;)

 

I think I am going to try RS, if I can quit hyperventilating over the cost. She (my oldest) really wants to do RS. When I tried it when she was younger (the demo) I wasn't impressed because she was going for a speed record, and didn't really even try to listen and learn. If I can find a better alternative that doesn't require a huge amount of teacher involvement I would quickly abandon RS.

 

Heather

 

 

 

[MIch elle]

nt

[Rhondabee]

Awww, man! I thought the computer stuff was fun. Guess I'm easily entertained, huh?

 

Better have ds take a look first......(like, he's *so* in the mood to discuss school right now - LOL!)

 

Thanks, it's helpful to hear from someone who *did* use the computer!

Rhonda

[siloam]

Awww, man! I thought the computer stuff was fun. Guess I'm easily entertained, huh?

 

Better have ds take a look first......(like, he's *so* in the mood to discuss school right now - LOL!)

 

Thanks, it's helpful to hear from someone who *did* use the computer!

Rhonda

If the child were motivated I think it could still work. I didn't mind it, but speaking was my weakest area in High School Spanish class, so it was nice to hear it properly pronounced. As often as I needed to hear it (which is a lot). Though side note: The Learnables asks you don't repeat the pronunciations till you complete the WHOLE program, to train your ear and keep you from developing bad pronunciations. Then you are just supposed to be able to speak, and speak it correctly. That would never work here, well all repeated the pronunciations, with enthusiasm (it was something to do!).

 

But it is still just a set of pictures (I think 10 per page) and the audio says the word, while you look at the picture. It highlights what picture you are on. There is no English equivalent listed anywhere, so if you don't have a Spanish background, you might get a little frusterated (but RS has the same potential problem, from what I remember).

 

There are a few games, but they quickly repeat. If I remember right on the Tic Tac Toe the never change what squares are what pictures/answers. They also have a few video clips more like RS.

 

We are going to start Latin, so I am secretly hopping that in a couple of years, she will have enough maturity to get over the boring part and use The Learnables. It is a stronger reading program, and my oldest is a reader.

 

Heather

[kRenee]

This is a qualified endorsement for The Learnables. I have used Levels 1 and 2. Last year we used United Streaming grade 5/6 Spanish, found it nearly unbearable, and this year we are going back to level 3.

 

I started when my kids were 2nd and 4th grade. I quickly realized that we COULD NOT repeat lessons as recommended. The early lessons are teaching individual words, usually nouns, and they are relatively easy to pick up. Later, we did watch a lesson twice but did it by reviewing 2 pages and watching 2 new pages. Yes, 4 pages per day was about as much as we could all take.

 

As an adult, and a more visual learner, I didn't like that it was all auditory. I insisted on writing down each new word or phrase. Sometimes this is hard when you are new to a language because spelling can be tricky. But I managed to find/spell most of the words. I usually did this before listening to the lesson with the kids, and because I was able to explain some of the trickier/new/unclear words I think my kids got more out of the lessons.

 

Another thing that was tricky is that before you understand the conjugations of spanish verbs, you hear a word that is kinda familiar but is definitely different. I finally realized they were different forms of a verb but had no idea when one form was used over another. We muddled through - we could figure out what the base verb was and I assured my kids I would find out what the heck was going on and let them know. Now I can do that.

 

At the back of the Basic Structures 2 book there is a list of all vocabulary learned to date. It would be very nice if that was included as part of each segment - it would have saved me some time.

 

So, I like The Learnables. It's designed as an immersion program, but it could benefit from some sort of teacher's manual. My kids have definitely learned lots of spanish vocabulary and have heard the grammar of Spanish.

 

I looked at Rosetta Stone in the beginning, but I did not go with it because it showed the spanish words/sentence along with a picture and saying it. I thought my kids would focus on the written word, try to pronounce words using English phonics and not really listen. They were very young and still learning English phonics so your older kids may respond differently to RS.

[hsmamainva]

My oldest dd will be a Senior this fall and she's about to start The Learnables Spanish 4.

 

It was a little tedious at first, but now it's quite challenging.

 

My 9th grader will be using The Learnables Spanish 1 this fall.

 

So...for us, it's worked very well.

[Rhondabee]

I know there's a crowd who thinks Rosetta Stone isn't really enough for a high school credit by itself. I guess they supplement grammar and reading?

 

(Frankly, I haven't paid that much attention! And, I probably wouldn't supplement for middle school. But your post got me thinking about high school, which is only a year away - yikes!)

 

Do Levels 3 and 4 have the student reading and writing as well as "conversing"?

 

Thanks for chiming in!

Rhonda

 

 

My oldest dd will be a Senior this fall and she's about to start The Learnables Spanish 4.

 

It was a little tedious at first, but now it's quite challenging.

 

My 9th grader will be using The Learnables Spanish 1 this fall.

 

So...for us, it's worked very well.

[Rhondabee]

Thanks! I'm very visual, too. And even having taken Spanish in high school, it still ires me when they switch a "v" to a "b" sound. (Not that an English speaker really has room to complain about non-phonetic pronunciation - LOL!!) The vocabulary list does sound like something we would use.

 

Or, maybe I should just use the La Clase Divertida that's gathering dust in the corner?

 

I think this will be high on my priority list at convention next week - the only thing besides hearing SWB!!!

 

=)

Rhonda

[nmoira]

My oldest dd will be a Senior this fall and she's about to start The Learnables Spanish 4.

Is she using any other programs?

 

It was a little tedious at first, but now it's quite challenging.

Level 1 was occasionally tedious. We kept ourselves sane by making wisecracks about the silly woman who kept giving her baby raw eggs to drop, then threaten to call CPS when she spanked him. Grammar Enhancement was the worst.... but also very helpful. I'm glad we spent extra time with it before moving on. Level 2, however, is downright enjoyable, and we're looking forward to starting Basic Structures in a couple months. I wouldn't recommend The Learnables to any but motivated learners.

 

In addition to The Learnables, we're also doing Visual Link Spanish, and I'm reading Madrigal's Magic Key to Spanish. In Visual Link, we're learning how to order beer and wine, but its great strength is in getting you to talk. I'm finding it to be a good program to use in combination with The Learnables.

 

I'd recommend getting the CD-ROMs when available. The pictures are bigger and clearer, and I find it easier to pay attention. The software implementation is simple, but effective.