(edit title) Rosetta Stone Opinions Svenska baby! Options

[cressey77]

So who has used Rosetta Stone to learn svenska and loved it? What are some better ways to learn Swedish other than taking classes in Sweden in person?

[PDX]

What are some better ways to learn Swedish other than taking classes in Sweden in person?

Take classes with professional teacher, wherever you are, over Skype.

~~~PDX~~~

[corduroykid]

I gave up on Rosetta Stone when one of the phrases I had to learn was 'the men are eating some rice'. I figured this would never feature in any kind of daily or even annual vocabulary. In saying that, my Swedish still sucks.

[chazza]

what PDX said.

If you are serious about ever speaking Swedish then take a professional teacher in whatever context - skype, classroom etc.

[rtharper]

So who has used Rosetta Stone to learn svenska and loved it? What are some better ways to learn Swedish other than taking classes in Sweden in person?

Everyone learns differently, but the key to getting *good* in Swedish is practice, practice, practice. Their suggestion of a teacher is a good one. Personally, I happen to think that the main benefit is you get practice in Swedish in a "safe space", with someone who knows the language and rules well. As with many languages/peoples, Swedes usually know relatively little about their language and their corrections may be wrong, or, more likely, a correct correction will be followed up with a "rule" that simply isn't true.

As for Rosetta Stone, I have seen it in two languages, now, and I am a bit of a language learning veteran (everyone needs a hobby...). I would say that some people find it very useful, others don't. Regardless, it is never a "complete" solution to learning a language. It nice complements other learning, makes you hear and speak the language, but it will never replace learning grammar, memorising vocab, etc. It's a good way to engage stuff you learn elsewhere and help make it stick, as it does start slow and really hit you over the head a concept repeatedly before moving on.

It's rather expensive, though. Unless you are willing to spend money on it AND other resources, you can get far more bang for your buck elsewhere.

[entry]

what PDX said.. If you are serious about ever speaking Swedish then take a professional teacher in whatever context - skype, classroom etc.

This sounds very logical. Where would someone find a Swedish instructor that utilizes skype?

[deaninsweden]

This is a good resource for skype lessons

http://www.verbalplanet.com/

[Belize]

I'm not sure how well I speak Swedish but I did hold a conversation with 2 Swedes on the train in the States for about an hour. I have never taken any courses in Swedish not used any tapes. However, I speak Swedish every chance that I get. Most Swedes that I meet whether in the US or Belize are more then glad to speak Swedish with me so I can practice. The biggest problem is to get enough time practicing. Once you have a small vocabulary you just have to keep practicing.