How to Use Facebook to Learn Real Spanish

Ideally, we shouldn’t spend so much time on Facebook. But, at the end, we all do. So, at least, you could learn some Spanish in the meantime! Let me present you a selection of tips on how you can use Facebook to learn and improve your Spanish.

Why Learn Spanish with Facebook?

• You are already there, so you won’t have to actively look for new content every time
• You can choose the topic of your preference
• The language is lively and real
• You’ll see the language and the culture as native speakers do
• You’ll learn lots of popular expressions
• You can interact with the content that you read: practice your writing in the comment section, asking questions, and reaching out directly to the people behind the post

What you Need to Know before Turning your Facebook into a Spanish Learning Machine

Of course, the first step is using Facebook itself in Spanish. Go to your preferences and change your interface language to Spanish. Soon you’ll be picking up on all kinds of useful Spanish vocabulary! These are the must-know words and phrases:

• Inicio = Home
• Comentar = To comment
• Compartir = To share
• Etiquetar foto = To tag a photo
• Me gusta = I like
• ¿Qué estás pensando? = What’s on your mind?

And just in case you need to bail out and switch back to English:

• Configuración= Settings

How to use Facebook to Learn Real Spanish – 3 steps

1.Choose 5 Top Spanish Pages that you will follow

Sometimes, less is more. If you follow an endless list of Facebook pages, it can be really overwhelming. Some pages post new content every day, so you’ll end up with too much stuff in Spanish that you won’t be able to read or dig in. That will likely make you feel discouraged – not the outcome we’re looking for!

Just choose your top 5 Spanish pages and follow them. In a week or so, you’ll be familiar with their style and it will be easier for you to understand their language. Of course, you can change them anytime.

2. Choose only the topics you like

I’ll break it down into 3 categories:

A. Personal Interests

If you are a vegan & yogi digital nomad, you won’t be interested in following the feed of the Spanish Bullfight Association (yes, that’s still a thing – shame on you, Spain). But you’ll have plenty of options for Spanish speaking yoga groups, retreats in coastal Mexico, and yummy worldwide recipes (Yes, it’s Tasty en español! Great for learning food vocabulary).

If you are a soccer lover, well, you can follow any of the worldwide famous Spanish teams – even the Spanish national team.

If you are a tech nerd, then you can follow your favorite service in their Spanish account – be it Apple, Amazon… you name it, there’s a Spanish fan page.

If you like literature, you can follow any of the Spanish speaking writers that you like – even the one that aren’t amongst us anymore! Yes, Cervantes has his own FB page.

Do you like Spanish music? If not, why don’t you take a look at this special suggestions from last post? Later, you can follow any of your favorite artist’s page, they’ll regularly post their latest news and updates. You can follow Shakira (although she often posts in English too), Maná, Jarabe de Palo…

B. The News

Following the main newspapers will give you the chance to stay informed and practice your Spanish at the same time. You can follow El País (for Spain), Reforma (Mexico), La Nación (Argentina), and so on. 

Also, any source of information here is very helpful, especially for more advanced levels. There are lots of publications out there in Spanish and many of them are high-quality level. My favorites are the Spanish version of the New York Times for international affairs. Medium en Español, with mainly Opinion Essays. El Mundo Today, a satirical newspaper with fiction news. And El País Semanal, the cultural magazine from El País.

C. Language Learning Facebook Pages

There are some FB pages dedicated specifically to improving your Spanish learning. You can follow some of them and fill your new with translations and examples. My recommendation is that you keep it low, just choosing one or two that you like most and focusing on them.

For example, in Hello Spanish (yes, it is my own Facebook project, specially curated for you, Spanish online learner!) you’ll find: daily-word flashcards from Instagram, online activities to practice Spanish research every week, interesting news from Spanish-speaking countries, and language learning articles. A special selection for Spanish learners  with everything you may need.

Keep it up with Hello Spanish Facebook updates in Spanish!

3. Train Facebook’s algorithm

Have you heard about Facebook algorithm? The more you interact with some specific content, the more Facebook will show it in your feed. So, if you want to keep the Spanish flowing, like the posts from your Spanish pages, comment on them, and share the ones that you find interesting with your friends. You’ll get better “curated” content for you from Facebook next time you log in.

But the most exciting part of it is that you can also interact with other Spanish speaking people and learners. It’s a way to use all the Spanish you already know, and who know, maybe you’ll get the notification: “Tienes una nueva solicitud de amistad”.

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What are your favorite Facebook pages in Spanish? Share in the comments, and let other Spanish learners improve their level through facebook.