Forgotten a whole language. Is it even worth learning again?

[GuineaPig08]

I did Spanish at school and I was really good, I got an A in a-level and I really enjoyed it. I definitely had a language brain!

However; that was 9 years ago. Out of pure boredom I found a very basic level A1 test and found I remembered nothing. I looked at some gcse papers and honestly, I wouldn’t have scored more than half.

I actually find it so sad how much I’ve forgotten. I could write whole essays and now I just know a handful of words. My brain feels like mush compared to what it did then.

My question is, I’d like to learn it again but I don’t exactly go to Spain often. I fear it’d be a waste of time (and would feel like I’m just revising but for no reason) and would just be an unnecessary use of time. But, I did used to love telling people I knew Spanish.

Do any of you learn a language just for fun?

Go for it, there are plenty of free resources out there now. You're just very rusty.

I’ve been learning Italian for a few years now, mainly for fun although there are family reasons too, & I’d recommend language learning to anyone!

Maybe start on Duolingo & see if it comes back, then look for a class?

Do Duolingo it'll come back to you

I went to Paris last year on holiday and was surprised at how quickly and well my French came back to me. Despite not have used it for nearly 3 decades.

According to some research (heard on radio 4!) if you spent an hour for each year you had not spoken the language for speaking it you would be remember 80% of everything you knew. So in just hours you could get back to where you were. 9 years is nothing. I did a GCSE in Spanish in evening classes pre kids and can still hold a drunken conversation (over 20 years ago!)

Get on Duolingo. Watch some Spanish TV shows with English subtitles and see how much you understand. Get some Spanish kids' books, play Spanish music. Immerse yourself in it, it'll come back.

You could do all that for free. A paid class would help too!

You'll have retained passive knowledge. Give it a shot and buy a Spanish newspaper, see how far you get, and just keep at that for a while until it all starts coming back to you. Massively more fun than Duolingo which I've always thought is overrated - most language acquisition is by context.

You probably know more Spanish than you think you do! Going cold into a test after a very long break doesn't really measure what you have learned. Language needs practice, you're just rusty and when you do visit Spain I am sure it starts to come back to you and it would feel very natural.

I've never been beyond GCSE but I've learned bits of languages just for fun, evening classes, language tapes (back in the old days!) and online, especially if it's somewhere we have a holiday planned. (Not yet tried DuoLingo though DC like it) I enjoy trying to say a few words and although I'm not a confident speaker (much less writer!) I can at least understand more of what I hear and read.

Whatever level you are at, re-learning a language is not "for no reason", it's keeping you in practice and some of it will be new anyway. And language learning is one of the best ways to de-mush your brain. So if you're interested then go for it!

It will come back to you ! It is still somewhere on the hard drive

It's still there somewhere!
I did A-level French and was pretty good. I could chat to people easily. Then I moved to the Netherlands and learnt Dutch. I have to use Dutch and German on a daily basis and as a result struggle to speak a word of French.
However, two to three days in France and it all starts coming back.

I only did french to GCSE a very long time ago, and very occasionally used it over the years. But I've been doing Duolingo for 6 weeks now ahead of spending a few weeks in Paris this year, and I've been surprised just how much I know and how it is coming back in terms of grammar and sentence construction.

I’ve tried learning four or five languages for fun. Love it.

Language is like a muscle, you lose it if you don’t use it. There’s only one language besides English that I am fluent in and it was my ex husband’s mother tongue and although we’re not married I keep it up because I love the country and like visiting.

Its hard to be fluent if you’re not using a language with native speakers so if you’re serious about it it’s worth trying to properly immerse yourself somehow: dualingo is great but only gets you so far.

Definitely a good thing to do though. Go for it.

If you got an A at A level you must have been good at it. There are free courses on Futurelearn, or you could use Duolingo as pp mentioned. Also have a look at Lingopie.

And languages are always useful. Spanish is spoken in a lot of places and helps you understand written French and Italian too. I don't speak Spanish but have basic French and Italian, so can read quite a lot of Spanish. And yes, it's good for de-mushing your brain.

There are lots of language courses on Futurelearn. The first one I did was a basic Dutch one and I loved it. They also have Portuguese, Norwegian and Korean, among others! All free to access, but you pay for the certificate.

If you like it why not. Some suggest that learning languages and working the brain in that way helps lower risk of dementia

you won’t have forgotten it all. The building blocks are all still in your brain, ready for you to build on. Go for it.

If you go to Spain on holiday, I think that you will likely find that it will all come back after a day or 2

If you are on Facebook ask on a local community page if there are any Spanish speakers who would be willing to assist with conversation.

Languages are always worth learning, and these days there are so many free resources. I am currently learning Hungarian (no previous understanding of the language) and I use these free resources:

Duolingo
Dubbed TV shows - Netflix and DisneyPlus is brilliant for this
Books in hungarian- I managed to get a load for free, but Spanish will be easy to get hold of
So many YouTube videos in foreign languages and audiobooks
HelloTalk app is fantastic it links native speakers with target language learners and has a translation function and the native person can correct your speech

This video is brilliant of this girl learning Norwegian on her own, as you can tell I am really passionate about this subject!

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uWQYqcFX8JE&pp=ygUWaG93IGkgbGVhcm4gbm9yd2VnaWFuIA%3D%3D

Your Spanish will come flooding back and you'll be so pleased you started to pick it up again.

It will all come back
There are so many resources online .
I use a resource called Italki whereby you can be tutored/ have conversation lessons with native speakers from all over the world
Learning a language is a great skill

I spent years learning a couple of Scandinavian languages, I used to go to classes plus had loads of books and some online input.
I had no reason to do so but loved it, I found it really stretched my brain and was far more interesting than crosswords or jigsaw puzzles!
I had trouble learning French as a youngster in school so thought I was never very good at languages, so I was doubly proud of myself in later life to learn new languages.
Your learning will still be in your brain somewhere and I would say, take it up again just for the love of language. Learning can be just for fun and nothing else, doesn't have to be for a reason.

I learned French at school and a bit at uni and did some classes this year. It was enjoyable but exhausting because I also work full time.

I booked a short break in Germany last year to visit my daughter who was studying there. Had no German at all! Found an online tutor and paid for 5 lessons. Had homework and other online resources. My visit was wonderful and I could hold a simple conversation which thrilled me.
To get your Spanish mojo going again I would suggest you do the same - you will have guidance but will probably whip through lots of revision. Try to enjoy your gift.