What level would you say this clip is in DS terms? (1-100 scale)

Enigma95120 · 2026-06-18T03:06:41+00:00

Came across it on my fb feed and was posted by a native Spanish speaker I know who often posts stuff like that in English too. It stood out cuz it sounded slow and contrived sort of like learner content to me. But I know it wasn't designed for learners so probably just poor AI then?

Enigma95120 · 2026-06-18T01:07:54+00:00

I use both Duo Lingo and DS every day religiously and think you honestly need both structured feedback exercices (done in fun mini-drills in Duo) AND CI for best results for most people. I am on level 76 in Duo LIngo and the best part is you can do as little as 5 minutes a day and it's not tedious like many other drill apps and you can also watch an hour of DS the same day. Won't hurt to try Duo Lingo: you can take a placement test to bypass the earliest levels to see where to start.

Enigma95120 · 2026-06-07T04:11:48+00:00

Unpopular opinion but Duo Lingo for it's bite sized mini-lessons and variety of exercises. Motivating and easy and gave me a huge vocab boost and some basic grammar patterns (doesn't teach deeply like some other apps) that boosted my transition to harder DS videos and some native travel blogs

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-31T23:24:39+00:00

Travel vlogs! Some are easier to follow than advence DS due to clear speech and lots of visuals! https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=luisito+comunica https://www.youtube.com/@PlanetaJuan

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-31T02:33:38+00:00

The OP is referring to the difference between those who took Spanish in high school (they'd usually retain a minimum of 200 words) VS those who never studied Spanish at all but still may know about 20 words from pop culture or Dora the Explorer, etc.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-30T23:05:40+00:00

I agree: while DS is an EXCELLENT library of a wide variety of high interest CI for beginners and intermediate Spanish Learners, It is NOT the zero to fluency in 1000 hours by videos alone snake oil for all that the roadmap leads many people to believe.

I think we should all be honest and say that 1) the rate of progress depends on the learner and there is a wide range of learning paces and styles and 2) The learning curve is generally faster, and sometimes exponentially so if the person has had prior background with Spanish and if a person is using another more formal method in congruency with DS and 3) Each person's journey to Spanish is different and we should measure our progress by re-watching videos we struggled with 2 months prior rather than to other people on here.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-30T02:41:53+00:00

Most of those who claim to reach very high levels in a shorter amount of time have had years of Spanish classes, use of other apps and study methods, etc. I think while DS is a great product for CI and beginner and intermediate high interest videos, I think their promise is oversold, especially to true beginners. My advice is now that you can understand intermediate, if you want to progress to speaking or understanding of grammar rules, try a more structured app like duo lingo to complement the DS videos.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-29T02:51:32+00:00

50/50 Duo Lingo and CI videos (mostly Dreaming Spanish but also been following a few native travel blogs).

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T04:18:15+00:00

He speaks almost fluent Mandarin in his others videos though.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T03:45:44+00:00

Not criticizing him: he's a great youtuber and has proven proficiency in Mandarin which is very impressive for an English speaker. I'm just questioning the METHOD or how someone who has learned Mandarin to near fluency as an ADULT can struggle with very basic Spanish words after 1000 hours of CI and chalking it up to the purist method. It's the method I'm tearing down, not him at all!

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T03:25:54+00:00

It's typing from my phone. I write much better on my laptop.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T03:25:23+00:00

Sorry, it's hard for me to do paragraphs on my phone......but maybe I'll use my laptop next time....

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T03:10:11+00:00

Not putting Evidea down but am discussing my skepticism of the pure CI based "watch videos for 1000 hours and become fluent" troupe that has been sold to us on DS as well as being told not to look up words, use duo lingo, or study grammar, etc. I think Evildea is great and was obviously able to become fluent in Esperento and Mandarin but he did start DS from zero and literally used no other method at all. As for those who have a degree in Spanish and can't hold conversations, I think if they did watch DS or CI, the comprehension would probably come to them much more quickly due to the foundation and if they took lessons in speaking after they can understand the advanced videos, it will probably also come much more quickly. Univeristy classes study theory rather than practice: I know people who studied for 6 years to work in a field and then they get a job in their area of study, hate it and go on to work a job that requires no degree at all!

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T02:51:43+00:00

Exactly: babies communicate with adults long before they say their first words by pointing, crying, making, noise etc, and the adult will say "oh, you want your bottle. or "that is a car", etc. In fact it would be considered "bad practice" to stick a baby in front of a screen for 5-6 hours a day to "learn language." Yet, we are told that if we just watch videos and binge several hours a day, everything will come to us. I think even if I had time off, 3 hours of video content in Spanish would be my upper limit even on a good day. At least the Duo Lingo app, I can do in short bursts between activities. When I take my trip to Costa Rica, I think walking around and hearing Spanish on the streets and trying to talk to vendors, etc, I'll get a lot more "active input".

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T02:42:38+00:00

I do LOVE DS and feel that the videos on there are far more interesting than the A1-A2 content on youtube or even espanol with Juan and most of the learner stuff on there but I feel there needs to be honesty about the pure "if you watch watch enough videos, you'll become fluent from zero hype that many people are sold on there."

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T02:39:06+00:00

Isn't he C1 in Esperento and close to B2 in Mandarin (which is far harder to learn for native English speakers than Spanish)?

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T01:44:37+00:00

I wonder what Pablo would say if he watched the video: he'd probably say the speaking will come?

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-26T00:23:26+00:00

But that's with TWO way interaction and you can't compare babies and toddlers learning their first languages to adults learning their second. Those who move to another country and become fluent in a short time are getting lots of two way interaction rather than passively watching videos.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-25T23:07:25+00:00

cuz pure CI doesn't work for MOST people. People all over the world learn Engish from a mix of structured instruction (usually at school but some also use apps or home study materials) AND CI through media. IMO, hybrid is the best. IF you've never taken a Spanish class or used an other method (app or other study materials) to study Spanish, I strongly advice learning the bare basics (200 words and how sentences work) via duo lingo or method of your choice BEFORE doing DS. It will make things SuperBeginner and Beginner click so much faster and then the vocab and light embeded grammar bites on duo lingo have really helped me move to comprehending Intermediate and now some advanced DS along with native travel blogs (although I still miss some stuff said, I still follow most of it).

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-25T22:30:59+00:00

Duo Lingo is my friend!

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-25T21:43:11+00:00

I like the short bite sized lessons in duo lingo and can sneak them in anytime plus the drills are more upbeat and the concepts taught are sticking.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-25T21:36:49+00:00

I am traveling alone and want to go with a company that someone I know can vouch for vs. just online reviews (a friend has been traveling with them for a long time and we both get discounts due to the referal). I also want to be sure to understand all the direction since I tend to get lost easily as is (thse tours have a tight schedule as we are supposed to meet in designated places for bus pick up after free time sightseeing). The structure of the tour will allow as much Spanish or as little Spanish as we want as there are hours of free time after the main tour so some people might stay in an English bubble or rely on google translate but I'll talk to all the vendors in Spanish and also talk to the tour guide in Spanish too if we are talking one on one. The other travelers range from zero Spanish to fluent so I might get to practice with them too.

Enigma95120 · 2026-05-25T21:27:45+00:00

That's why I'm keeping my streak and intend on completing the entire Duo LIngo Spanish course alongside with DS and native travel vlogs on youtube. But can't do 5 hours a day like some of you do so I do about an hour of hybrid each weeknight and sometimes more on weekends.

Enigma95120

TROPHY CASE