Language Learning
As someone who was born in Cuba and raised in the United States, I was able to become fluent in Spanish and English simultaneously. My parents only have a basic understanding of the English language which allowed my brother and I to only speak Spanish at home. I learned English by watching cartoons growing up and by talking to my brother who was one year older than me. Since my parents didn’t know English, we were always the ones translating when it came to many things such as paying bills, ordering at a restaurant, asking for directions, etc. Even though I knew how to speak Spanish fluently, writing in my native tongue was something I struggled with at a young age.
It was not until eighth grade that I decided to take Spanish classes to learn how to properly write it. At first learning all the grammar rules was a bit difficult for me because I knew what was correct from being fluent, not by studying the rules. It took a lot of practice to focus on these rules that were subconscious to me. Once I finally grasped the why of the Spanish language, I was able to continue taking Spanish classes throughout high school. I took up to the highest level of Spanish offered at my school and even received college credit for scoring a 5 on my AP Spanish Exam.
Just a few Italian books I own!
Just a few Italian books I own!
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After 4 years of mastering my native language and receiving college credit for it, I decided to continue my language learning in college to something I had a desire in learning, Italian. One night in high school my mom and I were watching a Spanish music awards show where a young and upcoming Italian trio sang a traditional Italian song called “O Sole Mio” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFCF7v0OIcs). The unexpectedness of this band singing in a language I never heard before paired with the beauty of their voices sparked an interest for the Italian language in the back of my head. When I got to the University of Florida and saw that Italian classes were offered, I knew that it was something I had to take. Since I already had college credit to fulfill my language requirement, taking Beginning Italian 1 was a risk I choose to take since I didn’t need it to graduate. It was my desire to learn Italian that motivated me to take just one class.
Since Spanish and Italian are both romance languages, it was fairly easy to learn and understand the Italian language. That paired with a great Italian teacher who I consider the best professor I’ve ever had made me fall in love with Italian. After fulfilling my desire to learn Italian, even at the most basic level, I decided to not continue more classes since I didn’t need it for my major at the time (Animal Sciences). But after a long summer and fall semester, I was longing to continue taking Italian classes. After switching majors and adding on my Italian Studies minor, I was finally ready to learn as much Italian as I could.
After studying abroad in Italy, I took the two Intermediate Italian classes offered at UF followed by 4 advanced Italian language classes. My four year journey in becoming fluent in a third language has allowed me to travel across the globe and enrich my life. My language acquisition does not stop there though since I will have to learn a fourth language, Guarani, when I move to Paraguay later this year for Peace Corps. Language learning has always been a part of my life and my hope for the future is to continue speaking and practicing all these beautiful languages no matter where in the world I may be.
Italian conversation grammar guide!
Italian grammar workbook!