Rosetta Stone anyone?

[sbpebbles]

So I'm looking into buying a used set of Rosetta Stone Spanish, probably from someone on Craigslist since DD8 is eager to learn Spanish (I unfortunately took German throughout high school instead lol) plus for me it'll be good to know spanish in this job market..Does anyone has experience with this? I figure it'll cost me anywhere from $100-$200 since buying new is out of the question...Our local library has it but they are no longer taking names for it since that's how long the waitlist is for it..So i'm really looking for people's experience with this program, it's been 10 yrs almost since high school for me so I know this is gonna be a learning process...Does anyone recommend a better place to look to buy rather than craigslist? thanks much!

 

[pintamino]

So I'm looking into buying a used set of Rosetta Stone Spanish, probably from someone on Craigslist since DD8 is eager to learn Spanish (I unfortunately took German throughout high school instead lol) plus for me it'll be good to know spanish in this job market..Does anyone has experience with this? I figure it'll cost me anywhere from $100-$200 since buying new is out of the question...Our local library has it but they are no longer taking names for it since that's how long the waitlist is for it..So i'm really looking for people's experience with this program, it's been 10 yrs almost since high school for me so I know this is gonna be a learning process...Does anyone recommend a better place to look to buy rather than craigslist? thanks much!

IMO, Rosetta Stone is a fun way to get some basic knowledge but will NOT teach you anything long-term or really useful about the language. Friends of mine who natively speak other languages as well as language teachers of mine have more or less scoffed at it... I used it this summer (access provided through my summer job with the Army) to brush up on my French and found I got a lot more out of a French workbook, AP French review book, and "Coffee Break French" free podcasts.

You mileage may vary, but I think that much money is frankly more than the program is worth (I can't imagine the people who pay full price!! ) and would be better spent somewhere else.

 

[lori123]

I would be careful about buying it used - it can only be installed on two computers or devices. There is also a lot of pirated and fake RS floating arond out there. I did a lot of research awhile ago when we bought ours (Italian). We bought ours off Amazon.

 

[McKelly]

I agree with the poster above who stated don't count on it to teach you anything but the basics. I think Rosetta Stone is a good refresher for someone who has taken classroom Spanish in the past, or is looking to supplement their current language learning. It teaches you common, everyday, phrases/questions but never goes into the "whys" behind the language. For instance, it doesn't teach you, masculine/feminine, plurals, conjugation, etc.....all things important to know in speaking Spanish.

I shudder when I hear schools laying off their foreign language teachers and replacing them with Rosetta Stone. It is a serious disservice to those kids, especially since most colleges require foreign language for admittance. They are not getting anywhere near the knowledge they would receive in an actual class.

 

[Mickeypooh99]

My son started using it last summer when he was 8. I think it is great for an elementary school introduction to spanish. Our school does not offer language classes until 8th grade. I had a private tutor for DS when he was 7. That was once a week for about 3 months, but then she moved away. I couldn't find anyone else so we bought the Rosetta Stone.

He has learned a lot from it, and I'm glad we bought it. My youngest DS will start using it this year. I finally found a spanish class through a local church for their age. I'm going to sign them up for that next summer.

 

[worm761]

There are tons of free sources on the web. I would go that route first.

Some are:
www.livemocha.com
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/mividaloca/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/
http://nflrc.iastate.edu/pubs/units/unitsList.html
http://www.onlinefreespanish.com/
http://www.spanishunlimited.com/
http://www.gpb.org/salsa/term/episodes

If anyone would like some different languages, I have more. Just PM me.

 

[smkiya]

I'm trying to learn Spanish myself and have investigated Rosetta Stone. For the level I intend to achieve, I think Rosetta Stone cost a lot and provides little.

If you really want to learn...

1. Try workbooks and textbooks for the ins and outs. A great set of workbooks are "Practice Makes Perfect" sold on Amazon and any bookstore. Get a good dictionary!

2. Pimsleur is excellent for pronounciation. Get from the library. If you can't, you can practice with FSI Programmatic for free online http://fsi-language-courses.org/Content.php?page=Spanish Basic

3. Practice with native speakers at every opportunity. Now there are tons of language learning sites where you can practice speaking with a native speaker.

4. Talk to yourself. If you're in a situation that you've learned a phrase or a few words for, speak it out loud. Make sure you're pronounciating correctly.

5. Watch some Spanish TV. - On Saturday mornings the cartoons Dora, Dive Ollie Dive, and others are on the Spanish channels. Kid shows are great for listening skills. Also get hooked on a Spanish Soap Opera and watch it regularly. After a week or so while you may not understand the words, you'll get the content just from the situations and actions of the characters. Also, as you become more comfortable hearing them speak, you'll make out more and more individual words and it won't seem like they're speaking so fast.

6. There is a 52 episode video series called Destinos by PBS that you can watch for free online. Highly recommended! http://www.learner.org/resources/series75.html#

7. Listen to Spanish radio.

If you do this all regularly for one month you'll learn so much more than you'd learn sitting in a class for a year! It does require a little time invested, but you can watch/listen to the TV while cooking/cleaning, radio and Pimsleur while driving. Watch Destinos, each episode is less than 30 minutes. Do the workbook, even for 15 minutes a day. Make flashcards to do while in line. This is so inexpensive, but sooo effective! You can modify to make child appropriate (i.e. nix the Soaps... , get an inexpensive Spanish kids music CD or find kid songs online).

Good luck!

 

[JamesMom]

I'm trying to learn Spanish myself and have investigated Rosetta Stone. For the level I intend to achieve, I think Rosetta Stone cost a lot and provides little.

If you really want to learn...

1. Try workbooks and textbooks for the ins and outs. A great set of workbooks are "Practice Makes Perfect" sold on Amazon and any bookstore. Get a good dictionary!

2. Pimsleur is excellent for pronounciation. Get from the library. If you can't, you can practice with FSI Programmatic for free online http://fsi-language-courses.org/Content.php?page=Spanish Basic

3. Practice with native speakers at every opportunity. Now there are tons of language learning sites where you can practice speaking with a native speaker.

4. Talk to yourself. If you're in a situation that you've learned a phrase or a few words for, speak it out loud. Make sure you're pronounciating correctly.

5. Watch some Spanish TV. - On Saturday mornings the cartoons Dora, Dive Ollie Dive, and others are on the Spanish channels. Kid shows are great for listening skills. Also get hooked on a Spanish Soap Opera and watch it regularly. After a week or so while you may not understand the words, you'll get the content just from the situations and actions of the characters. Also, as you become more comfortable hearing them speak, you'll make out more and more individual words and it won't seem like they're speaking so fast.

6. There is a 52 episode video series called Destinos by PBS that you can watch for free online. Highly recommended! http://www.learner.org/resources/series75.html#

7. Listen to Spanish radio.

If you do this all regularly for one month you'll learn so much more than you'd learn sitting in a class for a year! It does require a little time invested, but you can watch/listen to the TV while cooking/cleaning, radio and Pimsleur while driving. Watch Destinos, each episode is less than 30 minutes. Do the workbook, even for 15 minutes a day. Make flashcards to do while in line. This is so inexpensive, but sooo effective! You can modify to make child appropriate (i.e. nix the Soaps... , get an inexpensive Spanish kids music CD or find kid songs online).

Good luck!

Wanted to add that now with multilanguage tracks on DVDs and Blurays - watch your favorite movies in that language. Same with TV shows from netflix. And be sure to turn on the subtitles in that language, too to boost reading skills.

I have a copy of Rosetta Stone and think it is appropriate for teaching children a second language. They learn by observing and listening - not drills and workbooks at that age. Then as they get older add classroom lessons. But nothing substitutes native speakers. Oh wanted to add that RS does cover several verb tenses, and male/female distinctions, etc, but does it in such a way that it is seamless and in context. You aren't preped in English that we are going to cover the difference between conditional and preterite today -here are the endings for -ar verbs, repeat 20 times, now go. You learn from context, not drills where you have to mentally translate - you "think" in the language from the get-go. Native speakers don't think about which verb tense is appropirate, they just speak. When was the last time you considered whether a verb was irregular in English? Do you know the future indicative of the verb "to be" in English? Just because you don't know the labels doesn't mean you don't know the language. JMHO.

 

[Purseval]

My wife got the RS Spanish edition. I learn more talking to the Mexicans at work than she does from that program.

 

[JoiseyMom]

Well my school district purchased it to replace all the Spanish teachers for grades k - 5. So I hope as heck it works! I do have to say, our district is top notch, and would not have gone this route if it wasn't going to teach the children properly.

 

[eliza61]

There are tons of free sources on the web. I would go that route first.

Some are:
www.livemocha.com
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/mividaloca/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/
http://nflrc.iastate.edu/pubs/units/unitsList.html
http://www.onlinefreespanish.com/
http://www.spanishunlimited.com/
http://www.gpb.org/salsa/term/episodes

If anyone would like some different languages, I have more. Just PM me.

Want to also second the bbc courses. You will get pretty much the same stuff here for free that is on the Rosetta stone.

 

[Michelle and crew]

I agree with the poster above who stated don't count on it to teach you anything but the basics. I think Rosetta Stone is a good refresher for someone who has taken classroom Spanish in the past, or is looking to supplement their current language learning. It teaches you common, everyday, phrases/questions but never goes into the "whys" behind the language. For instance, it doesn't teach you, masculine/feminine, plurals, conjugation, etc.....all things important to know in speaking Spanish.

I shudder when I hear schools laying off their foreign language teachers and replacing them with Rosetta Stone. It is a serious disservice to those kids, especially since most colleges require foreign language for admittance. They are not getting anywhere near the knowledge they would receive in an actual class.

I don't think any language that isn't routinely used is soon lost. I took 3 years of hs spanish, and 3 years french plus 2 college, and remember very little. So I don't think that Rosetta stone is any worse. My son has used it for 2 years and was able to skip the first year of spanish for college.

 

[lukenick1]

What about learning Greek? I have considered Rosetta Stone in Greek but it is $$$$$. Any thoughts???

 

[worm761]

What about learning Greek? I have considered Rosetta Stone in Greek but it is $$$$$. Any thoughts???

Learn it for free here: http://www.textkit.com/

 

[abmitch01]

I too have heard great things about the bbc for languages

 

[aprilgail2]

I would be careful about buying it used - it can only be installed on two computers or devices. There is also a lot of pirated and fake RS floating arond out there. I did a lot of research awhile ago when we bought ours (Italian). We bought ours off Amazon.

Really? Our public library has it that you can check out- how would that work if you can only install it twice???