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The Official "Ask Dave" Section -----
Question
...In question of what I'm really having trouble with is articles, singular and definite plural and indefinite articles singular and plural and when to use un, uno unas, el, la, las, los , from this I think that it will give you a pretty good idea of what i'm having trouble with.
Thank you,
Caridad
Answer
Hola Caridad,
Here are some charts, taken from the complete Visual Link Spanish™ course, that show the basics of how this concept works.
| MASCULINE | FEMININE | |
| a/an | un | una | SINGULAR |
| some | unos | unas | PLURAL |
| MASCULINE | FEMININE | |
| the | el | la | SINGULAR |
| the (-s) | los | las | PLURAL |
Examples:
Masculine (Singular)
a bank - un banco
a car - un carro
Masculine (Plural)
some banks - unos bancos
some cars - unos carros
Feminine (Singular)
a magazine - una revista
a house - una casa
Feminine (Plural)
some magazines - unas revistas
some houses - unas casas
More information and practices on this topic are found in the grammar section of your complete Visual Link Spanish™ course.
Culture ----- The Truth about Latinos Learning English
This week's topic is a sensitive issue for many people in the U.S. There are people that have strong feelings on both sides of the issue. I'm going to touch on this topic and share insights from my own perspective. As I've mentioned in past newsletters, I lived in Latin America for two years. Here in the U.S. I've also worked extensively with the Latino people. I've provided business training seminars for them, become friends with them, and my business has taught hundreds of Latinos to speak English.
There is an overwhelming sentiment in the U.S. that when Latino people come here to the U.S. they ought to learn English--end of discussion. People argue that when many of our European ancestors came to the U.S., they had to learn English and so should the Latino people.
I agree with this to a point, and I believe that most Latino people in the U.S. also agree and truly want to learn English. The challenge is, while some Latino people that come to the U.S. are professionals, many of them have had only a few years of elementary school; as a result it is very difficult for them to learn English. I saw this over and over again first hand as my company taught them English. Some of them wanted to learn English desperately, but it just didn't seem to stick.
One of the challenges is that many Latino people move to sectors of cities where there are Mexican restaurants and stores and many other Latino people. They feel comfortable only speaking Spanish. This fact frustrates a lot of Americans who think everyone should know English, and they themselves don't want to expend any effort to learn Spanish.
Now here's the other side of the story; the part that most people don't realize. When Latino families come to the U.S. a high percentage of them want their children to learn English to such a degree that they only permit their children to speak English in the home so they won't have the "stereotyped stigma" of knowing Spanish. The sad part is that many second-generation Latinos here in the U.S. don't speak Spanish because their parents made them speak English in the home. If they would have learned both languages fluently, they would have been that much farther ahead in life. Of course there are exceptions to this and some become truly bilingual, actually translating and interpreting for their parents. However, I have personally known hundreds of Latinos where this is the case--they became fluent only in English as they grow up and lose any Spanish skills they had.
Many of us have one point of view on certain issues; we think that people should learn our language and we shouldn't have to learn theirs since we are perfectly fine just knowing English. I believe the fact that someone knows two languages should inspire respect for their achievement instead of thinking of them as "not as smart" because they have a foreign accent.
I hope this newsletter has inspired some thought and cultural understanding. I realize there are many views on this topic, and I would appreciate your thoughts on both sides of this issue. Please e-mail them to: dave@spanishprograms.com
Sneak peek at next week: "Do Animals Speak Different in Spanish?"
¡Hasta la próxima! (Until the next one!)
David S. Clark -- President / Director
Visual Link Spanish™
Fun, Interactive Spanish Courses
http://www.spanishprograms.com
dave_c@spanishprogramscom
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Responses to Past Newsletters:
Note: Any links recommended by newsletter subscribers are not necessarily endorsed by the U.S. Institute of Languages™ - use at your own risk. Formatting on responses may have been changed to fit your screen.
Response #1
Hola Dave,
My name is Julie and this fall when my sophomore year of high school starts, I will be entering Spanish 3. With that being said, I just wanted to tell you I think you're absolutely right about everything you said in your newsletter this week. As I've been learning the language, I noticed that when I talk to my Hispanic friends in Spanish, my personality changes. However, I always thought of it as a fault. I figured since I still can't say certain things exactly the way I'd want to in English, I would just have to wait until I learned the language fluently. I was happy to learn that a lot of other people say their personality changes as well too, and now I don't feel as if it's a problem. I really enjoy reading your weekly newsletters and look forward to the interesting cultural stories very much. Thanks for all your help!
Gracias,
Julie
Response #2
Hola Dave,
I thoroughly enjoy your newsletters and have shared them with others. I am in agreement with all those who have sent e-mails stating that your program is one of the best ever for those who want to learn Spanish.
In reference to your letter on people being affected when they are learning another language, I want to share my experience. ( I have not yet read about this in your news letter.) I am Mexican American and here is my delema; I can understand Spanish very well, but I do not speak it fluently. When I was growing up, my parents spoke to my brothers and sisters and I in Spanish; but we responded back in English. Therefore, we grew up understanding the language extremely well, but never really learned how to speak it. I can speak enough to get by, but I struggle with putting my sentences together.
Many Spanish speaking people that I encounter will speak to me in Spanish, and because I understand everything they are saying, they expect me to respond to them in Spanish. In the best way that I can, I explain to them that I do not speak Spanish very well.
Most of the time I get lectured about how I should not be embarrassed or ashamed to speak Spanish. Dave, I love the Spanish language and the only thing I am embarrassed or ashamed about is the fact that I did not learn how to speak it fluently. (That is why I ordered your program.) Have you encountered this problem with others who understand the language, but have a hard time speaking it? Please comment about this in your newsletter.
Hasta luego,
Irma
Response #3
I'm not proficient enough in another language to agree or disagree, but I think that Charlemagne, King of the Franks would agree with you. Of course this has necessarily been translated, but the following is attributed to him.
"To know another language is to have a second soul."
Anonymous
Response #4
Gracias por continuar enviandome the newsletter.
Mi parte favorita es la que habla de la cultura.
"A different language is a different vision of life" F.Fellini.
Como nombrais en la carta de esta semana, hablar y pensar en otro idioma hace que tu propia personalidad pueda cambiar.
Yo recuerdo al principio al estar aprendiendo ingles, que la gente me decia que si yo era timida. Al no tener mucha confianza en mi "ingles" no hablaba mucho, o no hacia bromas...
Lleva tiempo tener esa confianza, y aun hoy sigo cometiendo errores!
Gracias por los comentarios acerca de Espa;a. Yo soy Espa;ola y es muy cierto que para nosotros, al igual que el resto de los latinos, juntarnos con nuestras familias y amigos y pasarlo bien. Musica, comida, bailes...
Hasta pronto! :)
Cristina
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