Google Alerts as a language learning tool

Google Alerts, according to its Web site, are "email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic". See the link below for a complete description.

http://www.google.com/alerts

This little free tool can be useful for language studies. You can, for example, create alerts for terms like "language learning", "Spanish language" or "learn German for free". The Web sites or blogs contained in these email alerts may include tidbits of your target language like "word of the day" or language learning products that might suit your needs. One of the alerts I received included a video that taught me some vocabulary in Spanish about sexuality, for example.

My favorite free websites for language learning

Free materials are everywhere, but so far I've found the following particularly useful.

1. SharedTalk (by Rosetta Stone)

It features a voice chat facility where you can talk to another member who speaks your target language(s) instantly if he's online. Alternatively, you can have text chats with them. For me, this site is the best place to find language exchange partners.

2. Spanish as a Second Language blog (ssl4you)

Short articles with audio (in which some vocabulary is explained) are published periodically. These are like short Spanish lessons. You need to know the Spanish language quite a bit (perhaps at intermediate level or above) to benefit from it.

3. LingQ

This site contains a large number of free podcasts (with transcripts) from different sources and in various languages like Spanish, Portuguese, German, Japanese, Mandarin and Swedish. Additional features include writing correction by and conversations with tutors. You may need to buy credit points for these services.

The above websites alone are by no means sufficient for learning a foreign language to fluency. However, they are good supplements to your learning materials. See resources in my website for more listing.