Newsletter archive
Spanish-learning notes
Every newsletter doubles as a blog post. Techniques that actually work, the science behind them, and the stories that prove them, written for adult learners who’ve hit the textbook ceiling.
Happy Birthday, Kiki el Mono!: a story about sharing
A bilingual picture book in English and Spanish for ages 2 to 5: Kiki el Mono gets a rainbow ball for his birthday and learns to say 'you first, then me.' Plus how to talk about taking turns in Spanish.
Read it tonight. Read it again in the morning.
Why you forget Spanish words overnight, what a sleep study of 40 adults learning Swahili vocabulary found about the best time to study, and a two-story experiment that tests it on your own Spanish reading this week.
Kiki el Mono Visits the Planets: a story about gratitude
A bilingual picture book in English and Spanish for ages 2 to 5: Kiki el Mono flies a cardboard rocket to Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune, and finds out what he's thankful for. Plus a three-thank-yous bedtime habit in Spanish.
Kiki el Mono and the Dinosaurs: a story about friendship
A bilingual picture book in English and Spanish for ages 2 to 5: Kiki el Mono meets Trici, a little triceratops the big dinosaurs say is too small to play. Plus five Spanish words from the book worth learning yourself.
The little monkey my father made up for me
Where Kiki el Mono comes from, why a bilingual picture book in English and Spanish is some of the gentlest Spanish practice there is, and a small read-aloud experiment for anyone with a little one nearby.
Stop fighting the English voice in your head
Why you keep translating Spanish in your head while you read, what a study of 51 language learners found about when mental translation fades, and a ten-minute re-reading experiment that shows you where it has already stopped.
You can read it. You just can't hear where the words end.
Why you can read Spanish but not understand it spoken, how Spanish hands a word's last consonant to the next word so *el hombre* arrives as *e-lom-bre*, and the ten-minute audio-plus-text experiment that teaches your ear where Spanish words actually end.
The Best Themed Spanish Short Stories for Adult A2 Learners (Beyond Generic Beginner Books)
Six themed Spanish short story collections for A2 adult learners who want real subjects, not airport dialogues. Honest picks with limitations.
The cognate trap: the Spanish words you already know are lying to you.
Why the Spanish words that look like English words ('embarazada', 'constipado', 'molestar') are the most dangerous part of your vocabulary, and the 2-second context check that stops false-friend mistakes before they happen.
The Best Slow-Paced Spanish Short Stories for Intermediate Learners (Not Action-Driven)
Eight quiet, gentle Spanish short story collections for B1-B2 learners who want reflection and emotion over chase scenes and plot twists.
The dirtiest secret of fluency: you'll always feel a little dumb.
Why even fluent Spanish speakers still feel dumb sometimes, why that feeling is the strongest signal you're actually learning, and how to use it instead of suppress it.
Stop apologizing for your accent.
The over-rehearsed 'lo siento, mi español es malo' you say before a single Spanish sentence is doing more damage than your accent ever could. What native speakers are actually doing on the other side of the conversation, and the one accent fix that moves the needle.
You don't have a memory problem. You have a context problem.
Why you keep forgetting Spanish words you just learned, what comprehensible input actually does to your brain that flashcards can't, and the 20-minute experiment that replaces a week of Anki.