Behind the Wheel - Spanish 3

My General Impressions:I give this course a strong four-and-a-half stars and an enthusiastic two-thumbs-up.To speak the Spanish language properly - and truly fluently - the non-native speaker must understand and be able to employ that language's complex verb constructions; especially the moods and meanings that the Castilian subjunctive tense so precisely and poetically expresses. The Macmillan's audio course entitled "Behind the Wheel Spanish - Level 3" was created with language fluency in mind.I really liked the way the native speakers model the practice phrases and sentences. The phrases or sentences are said at moderate speed the first time, then at a considerably faster pace the second time. This enables the learner to accurately emulate not only the pronunciation but also the real-time pace at which the language is spoken.If fluency is the goal, Macmillan's Behind the Wheel Spanish 3 audio method will measurably improve the serious student's understanding of and comfort in using the subjunctive and other moods and tenses as they manifest themselves in the Spanish language. For lots of intensive practice with advanced verb tenses, this course is worth a listen.My Detailed and Specific Comments:Starting with the subjunctive tense, the eight CDs include practice with the present and pluperfect tenses, the conditional tense and side-by-side comparisons of the preterit and imperfect past tenses in both their indicative and subjunctive forms. Reflexive forms of verbs are reviewed. There are also periodic reminders about choosing the proper verb `person' when the subject pronoun is not specified. Loads of vocabulary words as well as dozens of common phrases, figures of speech, and expressions are sprinkled throughout the lessons.This course is not Spanish 101. The listener is expected to be at a high intermediate or advanced level. Mastery of infinitives and verb conjugations in the indicative tenses is necessary to be able to understand the orthographic changes required by the subjunctive or pluperfect ones. This course was designed for those who are well-grounded in verb conjugation basics and wish to take their knowledge - and fluency - to a higher level.I think that a brief - very brief, maybe eight or ten-page - written explanation of each of the subjunctive and other tenses and their proper uses would be helpful. Sometimes it is helpful to read an explanation at one's own pace, as many times as necessary, and then take a few minutes to reflect on it, to let it sink in, instead of having to think fast in order to keep up with the narrative or to rerun the tract a dozen times, an inconvenience if listening while driving.I also wish that the print of the twenty-four page transcript booklet would have been considerably larger. I would have gladly paid an extra buck for a booklet with forty-four, instead of only twenty-four, pages.

I had purchased Behind the Wheel: Portuguese 1, and was surprised at how beneficial the CDs actually were. I started picking up words and phrases so easily in Portuguese without any formal classes.Soon I wondered if the CDs would work for Spanish. Since I had already had experience in Spanish, I decided to skip Spanish 1 and use Spanish 2 and 3. While Spanish 2 was actually more of a review, Spanish 3 definitely was a perfect fit.These CDs are essential if you are a serious student of Spanish. The CDs concentrate heavily on verbs. They go through the subjunctive (present, imperfect, and perfect), the preterit, imperfect, and past-perfect indicative tenses; and the conditional. They are definitely not for beginners! I would say maybe for Spanish 4-5 in high school and above 101 in college.My only complaint is that the editing on the CDs is really bad. The majority of the time you listen to a male speaker, but in the beginning there is a female speaker. However, sometimes a second male speaker is used at random for a few phrases. Also, some of the responses were cut off, while some were even given the wrong words. For example, on one of the tracks you can hear the Spanish speaker say "pasar" instead of "gastar" (to spend). If you've already had experience in Spanish you should be able to notice the mistakes with no problems though. The audio transcript also shows the correct responses.In spite of the editing, I would definitely recommend these CDs to upper-intermediate and advanced students. The CDs definitely work! As long as you committed to listen to them several times through, you will find yourself retaining the words and phrases effortlessly.I hope there will be a Spanish 4 soon, possibly with more vocabulary, idioms, and a section on mandates.

I liked Behind the Wheel-Spanish 2, so when I finished it, I purchased Behind the Wheel-Spanish 3. I am only on CD #2 in the Spanish 3 set, but so far, so good. The content is very heavy on the subjunctive, and I am learning that tense for the first time via Behind the Wheel. Behind the Wheel also gives me the opportunity to review the present, imperfect, and preterite tenses. The choice of vocabulary on the CDs allows me to review words I already know as well as learn some new ones. The presentation is very clear. I like the brief explanations, the native speakers, and the amount of repetition. I listen to these CDs in the car on my way to and from work, and I usually go through a CD several times before going on to the next one. Therefore, Behind the Wheel is easy to adapt to my personal needs and is very effective for helping me to learn Spanish. The only weakness from my perspective is that the Spanish presentation is limited to words, phrases, or single sentences. At my stage of learning, I would like occasional presentation of something like 3 to 4 sentences at a time without a pause so that I can work on understanding Spanish spoken in "real time."

A good variety of conversational subjects. Well explained in a pleasant, non distracting voices ( important on the road). My only complain is some of very useful phrases that should be memorized are not repeated, so you need to restart the whole chapter to hear one phrase.Overall, really good for both learning and re-fleshing Spanish between trips.

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