Customer Reviews

Behind the Wheel - Spanish 2

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am visiting Spain in 4 days, to attend a friend's wedding. I had 4 years of Spanish in High School, and did an exchange program when I was in High School, where a girl (whose wedding I'm now attending!) came and spent a summer w/ my family, and my sister and I spent a summer with hers, in Northern Spain. I'm 32 now, and the last time I was in Spain I had just turned 17, so it's been a while! I first purchased "Spanish For Dummies" - the 3 disc set, and if you have absolutely no previous experience, I would recommend that set, but I found myself blitzing through it, and very quickly ordered this one, instead. The host of the program, whose name I don't know (or just can't recall), is great, he's very conversational, and even occasionally pokes fun at some of the programs ie: "it's not this, it's that"- "No es una paraguas, es una casa!" (It's not an umbrella, it's a house!). There are short stories, and also word and pronunciation reviews. There are 2 native speakers, and I prefer the male. As someone who travels to Spain, but not South America, I also really appreciate that they talk about how certain words are used in Spain, while other words are used in the Americas. For example, "conducir and manejar" both mean "to drive"- the former used in Spain, the latter used in the Americas- they also make a note of certain words used in just Mexico, when applicable.

The word or phrase is spoken in English, and then spoken twice in Spanish, for you to repeat. If you already know/remember the basics, like how to say your name, ask for the bathroom, etc, but want to recall or learn some better words/phrases, I would definitely suggest this program.

I finished Behind the Wheel Spanish 1 and had to get the next level. It seems so effortless to listen to these CDs in the car and really be able to learn enough to make your own sentences very quickly using the tables given in the book. Vocabulary is often introduced in sentences which is much less boring that listening to a list of words. You get practice making sentences plus get added vocab in context. I do miss Luis (the speaker on Spanish 1) who spoke so slowly and clearly, but I quickly got used to the new native speakers (there are several) and I appreciate that listening to them speak at a normal speed will help with understanding Spanish speakers out in the real world. Can't wait to get through to Spanish 3!

I have had beginning Spanish classes and have been studying on my own for about a year. I ordered Behind the Wheel Spanish 2 and it is at just the right level for me. Whenever I am in my car I pop one of the discs in and have found my fluency increasing almost effortlessly.
The only drawback that I can think of is for people who have had absolutely no previous spanish exposure, it sould be hard to relate the spoken words to the way they are written. I think having some grammar rules, understanding of pronunciation, verb forms, etc. is very helpful. Maybe this is covered in Behind the Wheel Spanish 1?

I bought this based on using "Behind The Wheel Spanish I" which I enjoyed and learned from. It led Spanish learning in a step by step approach and added vocabulary by rote. This Part II take a different approach - learning by hearing speakers translate short English sentences in a short dialog into Spanish. I found this difficult for me to learn because Spanish words are used that are not in my vocabulary. I have to reverse the cd to hear the English sentence to match up the words - and do this several times. This is inconvenient when one is driving.

The female voices speak too fast to understand the unfamiliar words or words not already in my vocabulary - so I have to wait to read the text in the provided book at a time when I am not driving. I suppose this technique would work well at home but is not suited for "Behind The Wheel" learning as part I was. As much as I enjoyed learning by part I, I am disappointed by part II.

I do a lot walking and this course is perfect for getting the most out of my time. The way I use it is to listen and repeat the first and second times through, then I listen again and try to give the correct answer in Spanish before it is read out. That way I use it as a kind of a quiz or as audio flash cards. I would say that I had to listen to each cd at least four times before I was familiar enough with it to move on.

I would not recommend this as a stand alone course. There is a good degree of verb conjugation in the course: mostly preterite (after present of course), some imperfect, perfect, progressive and command forms. I don't remember much future tense or any subjunctive at all. These verb forms just show up without much explanation - which is fine with me, but I read books on grammar so I can understand what is going on. These cds are more for practice and rote learning than instruction. Some times the materials are unfamiliar and I have to go the transcript in the book to figure out what was said, but that is not so common - more me it was about 2 or 3 times per disc. The transcripts aren't easy to read, but at least you don't have to look at them that often. I guess that might be different depending on the level of the student.

There are eight disc with this course, so you get a lot. There is a degree of repetition, but new material comes up at just the right pace I feel.

I already ordered level 3. If level three continues that the pace of this course, I don't think I will be fluent by the time I finish it, but I'll sure be a lot closer than I already am.

I enjoy the content of this almost as much as the First book/study. There are a few changes in here. For one, Luis Santa Maria is no longer on the audio. And he is replaced with two equally-good native speakers. I like the Male speaker, but the Female speaker, speaks alot faster and on the 2nd time of reapeating the sentence...she goes even faster. When she goes faster on the second pass, its overwhelming when you can't get the information you need becuase you almost understood it on first pass. So i find it frustrating, im guessing it will take some time listening to the audio a few times before it really sets in. Other than that they are pretty good and time and repition + effort will make it more usuable and im sure easier. i guess level 2 should be harder then level 1 :D

I'm a physician assistant and started learning spanish for an ER in the bronx. I got a good medical grounding with Mcgraw Hill Spanish for Healthcare Providers (Great product too)but got stymied whenever the conversation would stray from patient symptoms etc. I've used 3 or 4 other intermediate audio spanish products to listen to on the subway. This one is far and away the best. Great pace. Great vocabulary. Great for listening comprehension too as it sounds things out, then repeats them at conversational pace. Highly recommend!

I bought Behind the Wheel Spanish because I had such great luck with Behind the Wheel French. I had only taken a French class for about 2 months and with the CDs alone was able to communicate in French (in Paris and south of France) with ease. The topics were completely relevant to a French vacation and included asking for directions, ordering food, wine, and communicating one's preferences when doing so, introductions, casual conversation--everything normal people would say and hear on a French vacation. This is what makes Behind the Wheel Spanish such a disappointment.

French version:

Finding directions to a chateau
Ordering dinner, wine, and asking the waiter's preferences with regard to entrees
Communicating that something in the hotel is broken
Buying flowers or produce at a market

Spanish version:

Not paying the bill
Watching TV (while sitting on the floor) and talking about all the types of programming
Getting a job with plenty of vacation time
Building a house with a hammer
Working on the computer

I am reviewing Spanish (3 years in high school and 2 semesters in college) for a trip to Spain. You spend way too much time talking about la familia and lamenting the reasons for working and the costs of living. I purchased this to review the same things I'd like to use on a Spanish vacation--ordering wine, asking for a carafe of water, asking directions to cafes, museums, and towns. Maybe they need two versions, a Spanish version and a Latin American version.

Having purchased Pimsleur and Learning Spanish Like Crazy which are both good courses, I bought the second and third Behind The Wheels and am very happy with both courses.
For the PRICE...you just cant beat it, highly recommend this product!

I play Behind the Wheel-Spanish Level 2 CDs on my way to and from work every day. The CDs provide a great way for me to review and to learn more. I especially like the longer stories spoken at a normal pace because they give me some excellent practice in understanding spoken Spanish. I can repeat CD sections if I want or skip over them entirely. The small book that comes along with the CDs is very useful because it contains a translation of the material on the CDs. These audio transcripts allow me to see in print the words that I do not understand when listening to the CDs and to focus my attention on them. I am at a low intermediate level as a Spanish student. I find CDs like these to be much more effective than attending intermediate-level classes offered through continuing education programs. These classes usually are too elementary for me, and occasionally they are too advanced. I have been able to develop a nice self-study course of instruction by supplementing Spanish language CDs with Spanish reading materials and listening to Spanish language radio stations.