Here are 5 websites you can use to work on your Spanish as well as our best tips on how to get started!
1. BuzzFeed
If you spend a lot of time on the internet – and use it for school or work- chances are you already spend a lot of time on your local version of BuzzFeed, or on similar websites. And procrastinating is probably also part of your routine. Therefore, why not take advantage of this seemingly problematic situation by working on your Spanish skills in the process? Just visit BuzzFeed in Spanish and learn new words all while having fun! BuzzFeed has very varied content, so you’ll be able to read up on the latest memes, food crazes, fashion trends and celebrity news all in one place. Also, BuzzFeed’s articles’ format makes them very easy to digest and the pictures will help you understand things even if you don’t know every word yet.
Just visit: http://www.buzzfeed.com/?country=es
2. Reddit
Reddit is not only a place where Internet trends are born and strange topics are discussed. It is also the best platform for you to connect with Spanish learners, native Spanish speakers and Spanish-speaking culture. You will find message boards dedicated to a large variety of topics – pretty much anything your mind can fathom, actually. They are called subreddits and can be accessed by typing www.reddit.com/r/ and the name of the subreddit you wish to access.
To help you learn Spanish, you can start by visiting subreddits dedicated to language learning to connect with other students. To improve your understanding, you will find the largest community of Spanish speakers on the Español thread. And if you want to learn by having fun, there are even subreddits dedicated to Spanish memes and Spanish-speaking music.
- Language learning https://www.reddit.com/r/Spanish/ or https://www.reddit.com/r/learnspanish
- General https://www.reddit.com/r/espanol
- Memes https://www.reddit.com/r/memexico
- Hispanic music https://www.reddit.com/r/hispanicmusic
3. Twitter
Twitter can help you a lot in your progression towards fluency in Spanish. First of all, if you use Twitter already, why don’t you simply add a few Spanish-speaking accounts to your followings? This way, you will be exposed to the language regularly and without even trying, which makes it the best option to learn on the go and easily. If you don’t use Twitter already, consider registering to follow some Spanish-speaking accounts, or just browse through their feed from time to time! The main asset of Twitter is its 140 character limit which makes it the perfect media for busy language learners like you! No need to read your way through long texts to look for relevant information. Also, these short pieces of content are very straightforward and to the point. Last but not least, Twitter incorporates a nice translation tool that might come in handy if you cannot figure out what a specific word means.
- To learn new things and interesting facts: https://twitter.com/ProfesorTweet and https://twitter.com/un_dato
- To stay up to date with current affairs: https://twitter.com/el_pais and https://twitter.com/elmundoes
- To read poetic or inspiring sentences: https://twitter.com/PoeticaAccion_ or https://twitter.com/nochedeletras
- For fun: https://twitter.com/HISPANlCPROBS or https://twitter.com/ElChisteLatino . You will also find more here
4.Tumblr
Like Reddit, Tumblr is where Internet trends are born. It is also an incredibly easy to use blogging platform that you will love if you aren’t very familiar with it already. Fresh content is posted and shared daily by its very lively community and you will find a blog on any topic you could think of. Remember the “Fuck yeah (insert celebrity name or hobby)” blogs? Or the “When you live in (…)” reaction GIFs craze? Yes, these were Tumblr-born!
Regarding language learning, Tumblr’s selling point is that it is a largely visual platform. This means that the pictures which are posted will definitely help you understand things better by adding context. Moreover, you will learn a lot about popular culture in Spanish-speaking countries!
- Learn interesting facts: http://blogcuriosidades.com/
- Discover Spanish memes: http://mememartes.tumblr.com/
- This one is a hamburger review website – perfect if you want to brush up your food-related vocabulary! http://hamburguesas.tumblr.com/
- Random Tumblr fun: http://likeazulmalobato.tumblr.com/
- Quotes and aphorisms in Spanish: http://soloconpalabras.tumblr.com/
- This tumblr is dedicated to the well-known little passive aggressive notes neighbors like to leave for each other. Pure comedy gold! http://dramaenelportal.tumblr.com/
5. Blogs
Now, bite-sized social media posts might not be enough to satisfy your craving for written content in Spanish. This is where blogs come into play! Reading blogs in Spanish is a great way to get used to reading longer texts and to read up on topics that you really enjoy. It will also help build up your vocabulary related to your field of interests. This is crucial as an important factor that language learners often forget is that you will need to be able to talk about yourself. Therefore, the vocabulary you’ll learn from textbooks might not be your best option! You will find some suggestions below, but just Google “mejores blogs de” followed by your topic to find the best blogs on the subject you are interested in.
