Online Resources
At the very minumum the following are a good way to start out:
- The Pimsleur Method (available from
) - An Easy Reader
- Practice Makes Perfect drill series
- A good translation dictionary
- A good in-the-language dictionary
But there are also some excellent sites on the internet. Over time, as I discover new sites, I will add new online resources to this list.
Best Online Resources for Italian:
CyberItalian - if you are learning Italian, do not hesitate to sign up for these courses. Inexpensive and well-worth the time. They include links to the Italian wikipedia, a pronunciation tool like the one on this site, cultural education, links to YouTube videos in Italian, and easy to read articles in side-by-side Italian and English. They also have a placement test. This is a definite must for anyone in that intermediate no-mans land.
Learn Italian Pod - Sign up for this if you can. There is a free podcast, and if you sign up for the website there are short paragraphs in both Italian and English. Download these, listen to them, and then read them aloud yourself.
Best Online Resources for Spanish:
Study Spanish - This site has excellent pronunciation tools for FREE.
Best Online Resources for German:
Deutsch: Warum Nicht? (German: Why not?) - An excellent language course from Radio Deusche Welle. Take the time to look around their website. There are a lot of resources here. And their language courses are all FREE.
Wieso Nicht? - Also from Deutsche Welle, this is for more advanced students.
German on About.com - A bit difficult to navigate, but there are some nice tools here.
Best Online Resources for English, Italian, Spanish, French, German & Russian
WordReference - There is one site that all language learners of the above languages MUST be aware of and that is WordReference. I'd be very surprised if you're not already using it. There are native speakers on the discussion boards and you can ask questions and get answers that you will not find anywhere else. Bookmark this one immediately.
Once you complete the Pimsleur Method and spend a little time with the Living Language series, you are probably an intermediate level learner. See the Learning Tips for how to find the right mix of study aids.
