Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Reviewing Second Languages--Audio and Visual Method

This week I am reviewing my Spanish, bringing myself more "up to speed."  Today I started a new approach in my review.  Working with the DaVinci Code by Dan Brown, I started listening to the unabridged audio in English and reading along in an  unabridged Spanish companion book.  This way I hear the English and see how it has been translated into Spanish.

I have suggested that audiobooks and companion books are a great way for English language learners (ELLs) to build their English skills.  This was by listening to unabridged audiobooks in English and reading the unabridged companion book in English.

Now I am exploring a different arrangement.  Listen to an unabridged audiobook in one language and read the unabridged companion book in a second language.  Currently I am practicing by listening to the audiobook in English and reading it in Spanish.  In the car I am listening to the same audiobook in Spanish.  For another book, I will listen to the audiobook in Spanish and read it in English simultaneously.

This is a challenging way to advance in second languages and to put practice into practical use.

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