<p>Hi. I’m taking Spanish II next year, and a noticeable portion of my grade will stem from classroom participation and/or speaking.</p>
<p>Last year, I wasn’t very inclined to speaking, though I excelled at writing essays and vocabulary. Whenever I practiced speaking, I’d mumble the words out meekly, and, since my voice is kind of deep, it would often sound indiscernible. </p>
<p>When it came time to the speaking exam (respond to a written prompt orally), not only did I fail to talk for a full minute (I only did 25 seconds or so), the words I said came out pretty bad, which reflected my final exam grade. Although I should note, I talked for so little because my mind went blank (I don’t know what to attribute this to. Maybe lack of practice or nervousness). I was only able to talk I still did well in the class, just not as well as I wanted it to be. </p>
<p>I know my predicament is kind of jumbled so if you could, CC community, answer these questions that I feel are relevant to this problem.</p>
<p>1) How to study for a Spanish (or any foreign language class) oral exam?
1a) How does one speak a foreign language? Should I just formulate the sentence in English first and translate it into Spanish? Usually when I do that, it causes a pause/silence when I speak, and I want to be able to speak non-stop.
1b) When you run out of things to say, what do you do?
2) How to overcome shyness? I’m pretty sure my shyness exists because I feel like if I were to try, I might get laughed at from my failure to say my sentences cohesively and fluently. Or when I stutter when I talk. And in addition to that, people usually regard me as a smart person, so when I talk (in class for participation or oral exams), I feel like if I say something wrong, I’ll look stupid or change this perception.
3) How to speak publicly? (Not really relevant but it’s something that I wish I was able to do, I’d like to learn how)</p>
<p>I’ve been trying to talk to others more, and the more I talk the easier it gets. Thank you!</p>