Comprehending Speech

[chileno]

Originally Posted by Elaina

Yeah right!

Yeah right, I don't know grammar or you don't understand me?

[Elaina]

Originally Posted by chileno

Yeah right, I don't know grammar or you don't understand me?

I'm sure you know some grammar.......and you know darn well I understand you......

[chileno]

Originally Posted by Elaina

I'm sure you know some grammar.......and you know darn well I understand you......

I know some grammar. How much is some. I know the name adverbio I really do not know what it really is.

I have proved that I do not know much Spanish grammar and much less English grammar.

According to some people here and some other places, I shouldn't be able to do what I am doing right now, and much less being understood!

I was born in Chile, I came to the US little after my 25th birthday in 1979, I accomplished my acquiring of the English language in about a year, and it took me, say one more year to almost completely translate my Spanish vocabulary to English. I thought of getting into college and getting English grammar, but through those two first years of being in the country I met several people who would say it was impossible to do what I did without knowing grammar, so I decided not to take English grammar ever. And here I am explaining the same thing...over and over, although it's a bit different now. i have internet and the audience is wider. :-)

Now I get dizzy with grammar terms.

Some other day I will translate this to Spanish.

[bobjenkins]

To be considered to know grammar do you have to know all the names and rules associated with the language, "noun, verb, subjuntive, ect." or do you have just know how to use them properly?

Ex if someone said to you. I know that the words in Spanish end in "o" when your talking about yourself
hablo
escucho
ect.

¿Dirías que esa persona sabe gramática ? Pienso que es una pregunta que me interesa

[irmamar]

Un nativo en un idioma sabe las normas gramaticales de su lengua sin necesidad de estudiar gramática, simplemente las ha interiorizado en su aprendizaje. Una lengua es un sistema de signos, es un código que emisor y receptor conocen. Si no conoces el código, no podrás comunicarte. Pero dentro del código no sólo entra el vocabulario, sino muchas más cosas. Tal vez Chileno haya podido memorizar e interiorizar su nueva lengua, pero creo que es más fácil conocer las normas para crear palabras que aprenderse todas las palabras.

Por ejemplo, si estudio los verbos en español, salvo los irregulares, sé que si conozco el presente de indicativo de la primera conjugación, podré construir, tan solo conociendo el infinitivo, todos los demás presentes de todos los verbos regulares. En caso contrario, tendría que estudiarme todas las formas del presente de indicativo de toooodos los verbos. De ahí que, intrínsecamente, Chileno conoce la gramática inglesa, aunque no quiera reconocerlo. Si no la conociera, no podría crear derivados palabras a partir de la raíz, ni tampoco crear una nueva frase porque no conocería la sintaxis inglesa, etc.

[chileno]

Originally Posted by irmamar

Un nativo en un idioma sabe las normas gramaticales de su lengua sin necesidad de estudiar gramática, simplemente las ha interiorizado en su aprendizaje. Una lengua es un sistema de signos, es un código que emisor y receptor conocen. Si no conoces el código, no podrás comunicarte. Pero dentro del código no sólo entra el vocabulario, sino muchas más cosas. Tal vez Chileno haya podido memorizar e interiorizar su nueva lengua, pero creo que es más fácil conocer las normas para crear palabras que aprenderse todas las palabras.

Por ejemplo, si estudio los verbos en español, salvo los irregulares, sé que si conozco el presente de indicativo de la primera conjugación, podré construir, tan solo conociendo el infinitivo, todos los demás presentes de todos los verbos regulares. En caso contrario, tendría que estudiarme todas las formas del presente de indicativo de toooodos los verbos. De ahí que, intrínsecamente, Chileno conoce la gramática inglesa, aunque no quiera reconocerlo. Si no la conociera, no podría crear derivados palabras a partir de la raíz, ni tampoco crear una nueva frase porque no conocería la sintaxis inglesa, etc.

In part true.

That's why I recommend transcribing a novel. It will get you "accustomed" to writing and reading in the language.

[irmamar]

Originally Posted by chileno

In part true.

That's why I recommend transcribing a novel. It will get you "accustomed" to writing and reading in the language.

Tú eres muy listo, Chileno . I guess I need more than just a novel (two hundred, maybe?)

[laepelba]

Originally Posted by FrannyCakes

Hola,

How do you develop the skills needed to comprehend speech?

Gracias.

We can argue about intuitive understanding of language usage vs. studying grammar and vocabulary all day long. (We have previously, haven't we?) I know that Chileno doesn't agree with me on this point, but I believe that we all learn differently, and some of us need to take one angle on language learning, and others of us need a different angle.

Having said that, I think that what I'm hearing in the question from FrannyCakes is also about understanding Spanish, spoken as it is spoken by a native speaker at a native speaker's pace. One cannot do that unless you actually practice LISTENING.

Some of us don't have access to regular listening to spoken Spanish. Immersion is obviously the best option, but might not be practical for some of us who are home owners with jobs and who can't just take off for a long period of time to live in a foreign country.

Given that, I will repeat something here that I have posted on several other threads in this forum. Someone (here) pointed me out to these videos, posted by the University of Texas.

The link is: http://www.laits.utexas.edu/spe/index.html

Each video is quite short, and each comes with a transcript of the spoken Spanish. There are MANY videos, and they are grouped by topic, and from the very most basic and progressing through much more difficult material. Within each group of videos (I think the groups are 5-6 videos), they have Spanish speakers from different countries with different accents speaking on the same given topic.

So, for example, they may have a group on giving directions. Within that group of videos, they may have speakers from Mexico, Peru, Spain, and Chile. The speakers are NOT reading from prepared texts. They are asked to speak on a certain topic, and then they just talk. The transcripts of their monologues are made later.

I have found it EXTREMELY helpful to listen to these videos several times each: first without the transcript, to try to see how much I understand ... second (and sometimes third and/or fourth....) WITH the transcript to check myself to see if I really did understand everything correctly.

I HIGHLY recommend these videos!!

[CrOtALiTo]

Originally Posted by irmamar

Maybe some grammar would help you

Yes I believe the same.

[CrOtALiTo]

Originally Posted by irmamar

Both

(my dear Crotalito will be angry. Sorry )

I don't bothering me that, never I liked the Spanish class.

And well just I haven't time for the practice in grammatic.