Speak Spanish with confidence - Learn to Speak Spanish on 3 Audio CDs
Brand New : . 3
CDs
We’ve all travelled abroad with the best of intentions when it comes to speaking the language, only to falter when it comes to the crunch. This quick and constructive course gives you the Spanish you need to talk to the locals – and crucially, the confidence to put it into practice. As well as providing essential vocabulary and phrases, the course also aims to improve your understanding of spoken Spanish, so that you can feel sure of yourself in two-way conversations. Based on the ten situations you are most likely to find yourself in while travelling abroad, the course builds your knowledge and understanding gradually, and is suitable for complete beginners.
A booklet is included, with the dialogues and their English translations. A glossary of the words and phrases used also provides you with a handy phrasebook while you travel.
By the end of this course, you will be at Level A2 of the Common European Framework for Languages: Can understand sentences and frequently used expressions. Can communicate in simple and routine tasks
* Learn anywhere, any time with this convenient audio course which requires no reading or writing
* Focusing on ten realistic scenarios, you’re given the words and phrases you'll actually need to get by in Spanish
* Boosts your confidence by providing strategies for understanding what you hear, so you can start a conversation without being afraid of the response!
* No grammar means you’ll make fast progress, without learning boring rules or unnecessary vocabulary
Table of Contents:
CDs 1 and 2
ARRIVING:
Picking up the hire car
Booking into the hotel
MEETING AND GREETING:
Greeting people
Meeting
CAFÉ CULTURE:
Having a mid-morning drink
Aperitivo time
ORDERING A MEAL:
Ordering the first two courses
Ordering a dessert
KNOWING THE WAY:
Asking the way
Getting directions
PHONING FOR HELP:
Calling a garage
Fixing a shower
A BIT OF ENTERTAINMENT:
Planning to see a film
What time's the football?
ON THE MOVE:
At the railway station
At the bus station
SOME RETAIL THERAPY:
Buying clothes
Buying shoes
SHOPPING FOR FOOD:
In the market
At the grocer's
CD 3: Strategies and practice in understanding
About the Authors Juan Kattán-Ibarra and Angela Howkins
Juan Kattán-Ibarra is a university lecturer and best-selling author of Spanish courses. Angela Howkins, senior lecturer in Spanish at the University of Dundee, specialises in teaching beginners.
About the Spanish Language
Spanish (español ) or Castilian (castellano) is a Romance language originally from the northern area of Spain. From there, its use gradually spread inside the Kingdom of Castile, where it evolved and eventually became the principal language of the government and trade. It was later taken to Africa, the Americas and Asia Pacific when they were brought under Spanish colonial rule between the 15th and 19th centuries. The language is spoken by between 322 and 400 million people natively, making Spanish the most spoken Romance language and possibly the second most spoken language by number of native speakers.
Today, it is one of the official languages of Spain, most Latin American countries and Equatorial Guinea. In total, 21 nations use Spanish as their primary language. Spanish is also one of six official languages of the United Nations. Spaniards tend to call this language español (Spanish) when contrasting it with languages of other states, such as French and English, but call it castellano (Castilian), that is, the language of the Castile region, when contrasting it with other languages spoken in Spain such as Galician, Basque, and Catalan. This reasoning also holds true for the language's preferred name in some Hispanic American countries. In this manner, the Spanish Constitution of 1978 uses the term castellano to define the official language of the whole Spanish State The name castellano is however widely used for the language as a whole in Latin America. Some Spanish speakers consider castellano a generic term with no political or ideological links, much as "Spanish" is in English. Often Americans use it to differentiate their own variety of Spanish as opposed to the variety of Spanish spoken in Spain, or vice-versa, to refer to that variety of Spanish which is considered as standard in the region.
Mexico has the world's largest Spanish-speaking population. Spanish is the second most widely spoken language in the United States and by far the most popular studied foreign language in U.S. schools and universities. Spanish is among the most popular foreign languages for study in the rest of the nations of the Anglosphere in general, where on top of the widespread use of English globally, the large number of additional countries and geographic territory that Spanish allows exploring is an attractive prospect for many people. Due to proximity, linguistic similarities, and trade reasons it is also a very popular second language in France, Italy, Portugal, and particularly the southern states of Brazil. It is estimated that the combined total of native and non-native Spanish speakers is approximately 500 million, likely making it the fourth most spoken language by total number of speakers. Global internet usage statistics for 2007 show Spanish as the third most commonly used language on the internet, after English and Chinese. |
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