There are many different ways to learn Spanish.  Some are obviously more effective than others, but there are some advantages which set some methods apart as making the task easier. 

 

The first way of learning Spanish is the easiest.  It is can be learned by anyone who is fortunate enough to be born in a Spanish speaking household.  Infants and toddlers learn to speak in the language which they hear.  The parent begins children's games by questions and answers such as 'Where is your nose?"  Where is your ear?" and so on.  The child usually gets the right answer within a time or two of being nuzzled or kissed on the appropriate spot given a right answer.  The child learns because that is the only way that he or she hears to express themselves.

 

The second way to learn Spanish which is almost as easy is by total immersion in the language.   This is definitely a crash course in the language.  The person willingly goes into an environment where they hear, speak, and read nothing but Spanish for a period ranging from two to six weeks.  It's very high intensity training, with a one-on-one teacher who talks constantly to begin with.  Objects are named in Spanish, Questions are asked and must be answered in Spanish.  All conversation, granted very limited conversation with the student initially, is carried out in Spanish.  Depending on the intensity of the exposure to various situations while in total immersion, this level of language learning can make one fairly comfortable in day to day necessities within six weeks. The drawback to this method is that while it's going on, you don't have time for anything else.

 

The third way to learn Spanish is the audio lingual technique.  Extensive classroom and textbook exercises, extensive memorization--not of lists of words, but of dialogue--is followed by classroom recitation.  This is often a college level class and requires extra hours in a language lab each week working through exercises and drills with changes of verb tense, person and modifiers.  A year of this study will result in a basic understanding of written Spanish and gives excellent pronunciation skills, but may not carry over very well into day to day speech.  Still, in an English speaking country, this is probably the best alternative for study unless one can afford to attend a language learning class in a Spanish speaking country. 

 

Earlier ways to learn Spanish tended to be textbook exercises or memorization drills with pronunciation linked only to the closest English equivalent, which tends to be poor at best.  To spend hours memorizing which verb form is used in which situation or to memorize lists of words and be able to parrot them back doesn't give much grounding in actually being able to communicate thoughts and ideas in the language.  This is the poorest method and is the most likely to fade away without some exposure to actual communication in Spanish.

 

It is said that you can be fairly certain that you are understanding Spanish thoroughly when you realize you're dreaming in Spanish and understanding what is being said.