Going to be a Student again this Fall

We are a week and a day away from the start of Fall semester and I find myself more jittery than usual. The reason is that I've decided to learn Spanish. In addition to teaching at CSN this semester, I'm going to be a student at CSN.

I'm nervous because this will be the 5th language I've tried to learn and the only one that has stuck in English. This is way out of my comfort zone. It will be interesting to see how it affects my teaching. I think I'm pretty empathetic already but it will definitely be a different perspective.

I do have a lot more support than previous attempts and Spanish is pervasive in Las Vegas. It won't be hard to have opportunities for immersion. The second language I attempted to learn was Latin and it was the one that stuck (took Latin in Jr. High, German in High School and French in undergrad). I'm hoping the Latin will help. I suspect it will.

The downside is that this is not my natural inclination and I'm old for learning languages. I've read the studies about language acquisition and multiple languages are best learned as a child. I did well in my French classes (in my late 30s), but within six weeks of finishing the course I lost it all. Well, maybe not all, but I can barely parse out writing in French.

It will be an interesting and challenging experience no matter what happens. I like learning new things. I will keep you posted.