Agreed. The FSI method is the best I’ve found, and Pimsleur is the best implementation of it. The biggest weakness IMO was that it was about listening and speaking and had only a minor reading component. The new software versions correct for that.
From there, you should be able to have some simple conversations and watch TV shows, at least with the foreign subtitles on. As a note, I found that (as in English) the subs might not match the spoken words, but I found that in some types of media (eg telenovellas) they match pretty well.
Yes. The basic method is listen and repeat with variations thrown in. You might be able to get the old FSI recordings for free, and I think there’s a commercial remastering or something like that available for sale. I got those out of curiosity at one point. Pimsleur is an updated version of the same approach with better structure, better voice actors, and in the most updated version available as an app/application.
I’m going off of memory here, but they’re a series of about 3-5 courses (the most popular languages go further) of 30 hour long sessions each, and I would do them while commuting. It would generally take me a few times to get through each course, but it’s really remarkable to think about how in the first course (and many after) what starts out sounding like a string of completely undifferentiated sounds turns into language. At some point some dial really starts to turn and you’ll have your first dream in Spanish or whatever. It’s pretty amazing.
Agreed. The FSI method is the best I’ve found, and Pimsleur is the best implementation of it. The biggest weakness IMO was that it was about listening and speaking and had only a minor reading component. The new software versions correct for that.
From there, you should be able to have some simple conversations and watch TV shows, at least with the foreign subtitles on. As a note, I found that (as in English) the subs might not match the spoken words, but I found that in some types of media (eg telenovellas) they match pretty well.
Does pimsluer use the FSI method?
Yes. The basic method is listen and repeat with variations thrown in. You might be able to get the old FSI recordings for free, and I think there’s a commercial remastering or something like that available for sale. I got those out of curiosity at one point. Pimsleur is an updated version of the same approach with better structure, better voice actors, and in the most updated version available as an app/application.
I’m going off of memory here, but they’re a series of about 3-5 courses (the most popular languages go further) of 30 hour long sessions each, and I would do them while commuting. It would generally take me a few times to get through each course, but it’s really remarkable to think about how in the first course (and many after) what starts out sounding like a string of completely undifferentiated sounds turns into language. At some point some dial really starts to turn and you’ll have your first dream in Spanish or whatever. It’s pretty amazing.