As the program Rocket Spanish, and many other teachers will express, the more you are exposed to the language of Spanish while learning it, the quicker and easier it will seem. Spanish can be found all around your community as well as neighboring countries to the United States. With so many more Spanish speakers now living in North America, television and movies have been altered or changed to allow a greater number of viewers to watch them.
 

TV Shows

Many prime-time shows have Spanish culture and heritage mixed in. Although it is not a lesson from a textbook or a list of vocabulary words, hearing Spanish culture mix with American culture can still provide additional help when learning Spanish. Prime-time shows such as Ugly Betty on ABC and Weeds on Showtime are just some of the examples where English-speaking characters have relationships with Spanish-speaking characters. These television shows can introduce some Spanish culture and are enjoyable as well by providing entertainment. Many people like to unwind by watching television at the end of the day, so why not make it semi-educational by immersing yourself in some more Spanish?
 

TV Stations

If you have had enough of the TV shows on all of the regular stations like NBC, ABC, and The WB, why not go all out and tune in to the local Spanish channels. Telemundo and UNI are two of the Spanish stations I found when scrolling through the TV Guide website. They feature talk shows, soap operas, and sitcoms just like the English-speaking local channels. The daily news is also a great program to watch in Spanish because with pictures and live video as context clues, you will be able to understand what they are saying. If you watch the nightly news on an English station earlier in the night and then turn in to a Spanish station later you will already be familiar with the headlines, making it easier to understand. Hearing Spanish being spoken whether you are sitting in front of the couch paying full attention to what is on or just having it on in the background while doing things around the house will keep your mind engaged in the language.
 

Movies

Movies on DVD are great for learning a new language! How? Well, if you are trying to learn Spanish, practice the following: Get a movie on DVD that you enjoy and are already familiar with the dialogue; make sure it has the option of being dubbed in Spanish and also the option to play Spanish subtitles. Watch the movie once in English, and then later play it with the Spanish subtitles. After, try watching it dubbed in Spanish, and see if you can correlate what they are saying to the lines in English. If you alternate watching it in the different ways you are sure to associate some Spanish lines with English lines. You can try this technique with many different movies, since most DVDs now have the option to play in other languages or show the subtitles as the film is going.