Adventure Time!

What time is it?
Adventure time!

One of the great things about learning a second language, is being able to watch TV guilt free. Not all TV is beneficial to learning a second language (i.e. Spongebob squarepants will do you nothing), but Ben and I have found a great cocktail of shows to watch here.
Here are Ben and my recommendations when choosing shows for low to intermediate levels in a foreign language.
1. Clear speech - Choose shows where the characters speak clearly, no funny voices, make sure the characters don't speak too quickly
2. Easy story lines - Don't add confusion to your learning, no stories like Momento or Inception
3. Visuals to support the dialog - Cartoons reign supreme here, characters speak about what they are doing, they talk about what's happening at the moment, soap operas are not very useful because characters often speak about characters not on screen in abstract ways.

Ben and I generally watch TV while we're cooking dinner. We usually watch The Simpsons, The Disney Channel, Duraimon, or Adventure time. Children's shows are pretty great in general, but I have to say, Adventure Time is the most effective at teaching us Spanish.

 It is comical to watch a character say "I am running" as they are running, or "Look it's raining knives" as it is raining knives, in your native language. When learning a second language, this is like a goldmine, I have learned more from this show than I dare to admit.