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Michel Thomas Foundation Course: Spanish (Michel Thomas Series)

Author: Michel Thomas
Publisher: Hodder Arnold
Category: Book

List Price: ~~Ł69.99~~
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Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

122 reviews
Sales Rank: 808

Format: Audiobook
Media: Audio CD
Edition: 2
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.5 x 3.2

ISBN: 0340938935
EAN: 9780340938935
ASIN: 0340938935

Publication Date: September 29, 2006
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: This item is brand new and comes in the manufacturers original packaging. Purchases posted within 24 hours.

Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 122

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A more natural way to learn August 12, 2007
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

Amazingly painless, and rapid results. There is no gimmickry involved, Michel Thomas simply focuses on the important structures of the language and builds them up piece by piece. You are expected to relax and absorb the language which I was skeptical about at first, but after forcing myself to put down the pen and the grammar books I realized I had effortlessly gained a good grasp of the language. His attention to emphasis and pronunciation in general is important because as with many languages the native Spanish speaker is listening out for these things; the rhythm of the phrase or sentence. The MT method is far better, and immeasurably more fun than using books.

1 out of 5 stars

UUUURRRRGH! August 9, 2007
5 out of 38 found this review helpful

This is absolutely the worst, timewasting crap that I have ever listened to. Endless single word pronounciation exercises that a ten minute repeatable session could do for once. Practically no grammar and the little grammar that is there is completely non-educational. Yes, it is just the money spent for two hours of tutoring but that would be better spent. I am not of short of attention span but the voice of Mr. Thomas puts me to sleep and his accent is UUUUUURRRRRRGH! If you fall asleep then the claim of PAINLESS Spanish learning would be correct, otherwise the pain to endure this awake is too much.

Sorry, had get this off my chest ...

5 out of 5 stars

Early days, excellent start. July 18, 2007
13 out of 15 found this review helpful

I am over 35 years old and have no knowledge of any other language, but set myself the challenge of learning Spanish, as I intend to visit the country extensively over the coming years. I decided to buy this course after reading the previous Amazon reviews. My intentions are to gain an overview of the spoken language and then to get into the grammar side of Spanish later.

The previous reviews explain the course format and so the aim of my review is to describe my experience to date.

I completed the first disc during my 30 min commutes to and from work. I enjoy being the third student and believe it does aid learning immensely. The male student is a little bit of a dope but I can put up with that for reasons I will explain later.

The greatest strength of the course is that it actually comes in three formats, each exactly mirroring the other two. So, aside from the 8 course CDs, you are also given 2 review CDs and a printed revision (index) guide. I used CD1 until I was happy with my knowledge. The printed guide is an excellent revision aid, allowing me to target weak areas (Have / Want / Need), but also to see the spellings and punctuation which will be important for later study. Once happy with the section, I use the revision CD to quickly review my knowledge to date; this also has the added advantage of covering everything in the course without the students (no more annoying male student).

As stated, I have completed only 1 CD in a week, but I am happy with my progress. I have put in approx 4 hours of work so far and maybe an hour in revision, but do consider myself to be very thorough and could probably have moved on faster if I wanted to. I do not expect the course to make me fluent and consider my expectations of it to be realistic. Also, as mentioned, I will study the grammar once I am ready. However, my goal is to be of a high standard of Spanish within 6 months and this course is giving me the start I wanted so far. I remain motivated, excited and interested in learning. I think that, after 1 week, this is a good measure of the quality of the course.

4 out of 5 stars

Question July 2, 2007
0 out of 14 found this review helpful

What's the difference between this and "Spanish with Michel Thomas--Complete Course 8 CD Set"?

5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic June 7, 2007
4 out of 6 found this review helpful

This CD is brilliant and I'd recommend it to anyone interested in learning Spanish. If you couple it with a more formal learning of the language then you have everything you need. Michel's approach is fantastic and his charisma makes listening to this CD a pleasure: certain phrases (the 'PREEEEEE-sent tense') will stick in your mind and make sure you don't forget the simple rules.