Chapter 9 post 2

The topic of learning two languages caught my eye. I am a Spanish major here and I can say that learning a second language is very difficult at 20 years old. Of course I can understand it and pick up things here and there if I really try and work on it. However, while my teacher is speaking to me, I do translate word for word in my mind which slows me down on my response. When you know a language, there should be no translation in your mind. Your brain is suppose to be able to just switch and understand. If I speak a sentence word for word in Spanish as I would in English, most of the time it is grammatically wrong. On the other hand, my friend Jain was born in Moldova and has Russian as her first language. She only lived there until she was 9 years old so her vocabulary isn't all that professional. However, if we are hanging out and speaking English, as soon as her mother calls her she can speak in Russian without thinking twice. She has no Russian accent while trying to speak English and no English accent while speaking Russian. This is because she learned both languages before puberty and mastered both of them. Part of me wishes my household could've spoke to me in both languages as a child so it is easier now for me. My goal is to be fluent in the language. I just know that after reading this section of the chapter, I have a long road ahead of me.