So Awesome Thing No. 2. (dun dun-un DUN) is free foreign language learning online. Mango Languages, a popularly-subscribed-to library database, is about five thousand times more fun than Rosetta Stone. Really. Srsly. How do I know? Because my husband tried to learn Spanish from Rosetta Stone while sitting in the bath tub, and I listened in, and it wasn't nearly as entertaining as my glimpses at Mango Languages have been. While you may find this evidence subjective, you should still give it a shot if you have any desire to learn more about another language.
The interface is attractive and intuitive, multiple languages are available, and quick flashcard lessons teach you words and sentences, as well as offering cultural notes and grammar lessons where you can watch the part of a sentence light up in English and the foreign language to better understand a language's structure.
Before I tell you the full list of languages, here's the best one, which I just discovered. Yes, Mango offers pirate lessons. International Talk Like a Pirate Day is coming up in just over a month, so it's definitely time to brush up. Here are (or arggggggggh) some screen shots of pirate lessons in action.
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| The front page of Pirate lessons |
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| A flash card |
And now here are all of the languages you could potentially learn for free. I believe these will link to HDPL's Mango sign in if you have an HDPL card. Otherwise, see if the library you use subscribes by going to their website.
- Arabic (Levantine)
- Chinese (Cantonese)
- Chinese (Mandarin)
- Croatian
- Czech
- Danish
- Dari
- Dutch
- Farsi (Persian)
- Finnish
- French
- French (Canadian)
- German
- Greek
- Greek (Ancient)
Ahoy Matey!
ReplyDeleteMango is such a great resource. I am going to check out the pirate speak lessons before Sept. 19th. Hey, Talk Like a Pirate Day is on the last day of LIBR203...it must be some kind of sign :)