CARLA: Spanish Grammar Strategies

I'm looking for a strategy that someone has used successfully to learn a specific grammar form. Moods Subjunctive Imperfect subjunctive Conditional Conditional perfect and pluperfect subjunctive Commands Pronouns Relative pronouns Simultaneous use of direct and indirect object pronouns Direct and indirect object pronouns in affirmative and negative tú commands Reflexive pronouns in present perfect constructions Tenses / Aspect Preterite Imperfect Preterite vs. imperfect Ser and estar Por vs. para Gender / Agreement Gender of nouns Gender and number agreement Other Demonstrative adjectives Lo + adjective Hacer and desde in time expressions Negative words Superlatives I'm looking for strategies that match my learning style and that can apply to various grammar forms. Auditory Rhymes Songs and chants Talking to native speakers Visual Color coding Decision maps Drawings / Mental images Note cards Playing with verbs Quasi-math formulas Quick grammar references Kinesthetic Physical behaviors Writing it over Memory aids Acronyms Initials as a vehicle for mnemonics Phrases as memory aids Phrases as vehicles for syntax Cognitive English sentences with Spanish syntax English sentences with Spanish words inserted Focusing on meaning Learning material as a chunk Learning grammar by explaining it Using archetypical sentences Using L1 to keep forms and functions straight Context-based Making associations Observing use in context Other Avoiding avoidance Combining perceptual modes What's the reason for using one strategy or another? Spanish grammar sites Glossary

What do my learning style preferences have to do with my choice of grammar strategies?

Learning style preferences refer to the various ways you like to learn. Your learning style preferences will make specific learning strategies more appealing to you than others (Ehrman, 1996, p. 49).

You may already have a general sense of your preferences to learn grammar. However, deepening your understanding of the ways you prefer to learn can assist you in:

how you approach the learning of grammar - for example, through a visual, auditory, hands on approach or a combination of these.

knowing when and how to style-stretch - for example, in being willing to be less reflective in speaking by not monitoring every form for accuracy.

But, how can I discover more about my own learning style?

Taking the Learning Style Survey (pdf) will help! This survey, developed by Cohen, Oxford, and Chi, will allow you to compare and contrast 11 different learning styles.

Given your learning style preferences, some of the strategies presented on the website may have special appeal to you. For example, some learners find using jingles is a good strategy for remembering irregular forms. If you have an auditory preference, you can remember the forms by remembering the tune. If you are more visual, you may visualize the lyrics.

Throughout the website you'll find links between style preferences and strategies.

Since the purpose of this website is to reinforce your repertoire of grammar learning strategies and not to teach you about grammatical terminology, key grammatical terms and concepts are glossed. For further information about grammatical terminology, a good resource is Emily Spinelli's (1998) English Grammar for Students of Spanish.

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I'm looking for a strategy that someone has used successfully to learn a specific grammar form.

I'm looking for strategies that match my learning style and that can apply to various grammar forms.