Joke Book Lets Spanish Language Students Laugh As They Learn

LONDON - Sept. 11, 2014 - PRLog -- The “Learn Spanish Substitution Method Joke Book” is a bumper book of jokes with a difference. Each joke starts off in English, but as the jokes progress, an increasing number of Spanish words and phrases are gradually introduced.

Readers with no knowledge or interest in Spanish can read and understand the book as they would any other joke book, soaking up new language in context without needing to reach for a dictionary. But because the jokes are also provided in pure 100% Spanish (corresponding to advanced level) as well as intermediate 50% Spanish versions, the book can also be used as a study aid by more serious students.

This method of mixing target and native languages in the same text is known as the diglot weave (from the roots “di” meaning two and “glot” meaning language). It was first used in the 70s to teach Russian students. Since then it has been a major ingredient in many language-learning courses and media, but this is the first time it has been used via the medium of jokes.

An example of a diglot weave joke would be something like this:

An hombre walks into a bar and orders a beer. He then takes a frog out of his pocket and puts it on the counter. The rana says to the landlord, “I’ll have a cerveza too.” The patrón is amazed. “Wow, a talking rana! Where did you get it?” The hombre says, “Well, it’s a long story...

As well as using the diglot weave (also known as the sandwich method, the bilingual method and the substitution method), the “Learn Spanish Substitution Method Joke Book” makes the most of ebook technology by employing special links which enable readers to navigate the different levels and quickly switch between different versions of the same joke.

The author, Neil McFarlane, explains: “Language learning is developing at a dizzying pace as a result of new technology and innovations. It used to be an onerous activity requiring students to plough through books of frankly uninspiring text. We’ve all been there: ‘Hello, how are you? Tom is American. How much is that cabbage?’ Since time immemorial, this has been seen as acceptable content for language textbooks. This new book exploits some special functions of ebooks and also – equally important in my opinion – attempts to make the content entertaining, the kind of content you might read even if you weren’t studying the language. I feel that this should be a criterion by which all language-learning texts should be judged, namely: would I want to read this in my free time? Would it interest me even if I wasn’t studying the language? I hope this book passes that test and that readers find it an ‘edutaining’ read."

About the Author

Neil McFarlane, has been involved in language teaching for over ten years having mostly worked in Taiwan and China. He studied Spanish at university level and also holds an MA in TEFL.

Book Details

Title: Learn Spanish Substitution Method Joke Book

Format: Digital ebook

Length: approx. 337 pages

Publisher: London House Titles

Publication date: 10th September 2014

Language: English, Spanish

ASIN: B00NGKDO90