Real-life story of how I helped my Spanish learning friend turn a ChatGPT language learning fail into a fun success, and what I’d recommend for you if you want to learn with ChatGPT too.
AI is everywhere these days, but using it for language learning still feels very hit-and-miss. Does anyone need another “AI Tutor” that’s just a flashcard in disguise? I say NO, and there are better ways.
In this post, I’m sharing exactly what happened when my friend tried to practise Spanish with ChatGPT…and what actually worked.
Meet Jenny, a Real Life Spanish Learner
If you’ve ever thought “I’d love to practise speaking a language right now” but there’s no patient speaker around, you’ve got company. True story: My friend ran into exactly that problem while visiting me recently.
My jet-lagged, yet adventurous US friend Jenny’s travelling around Europe, and she came to visit me a few weeks ago. While we were hanging out, she mentioned she wanted to practice her Spanish for the trip.
Now, I’m the friend who’s got a whole website about learning with AI. I’m eager to make good impression with something cool and fresh!
Trying to Learn Spanish with ChatGPT
I thought let’s try speaking with ChatGPT!
Her first reaction was unsure: “But you can’t talk to ChatGPT can you?”
Me: “Oh yes, and it will know the language you’re speaking. Give it a try!”
Phone out, wifi on, app downloaded. After some fumbling for the right button to press, we were off.
“Hola, hablame en Español”
ChatGPT was ready to fire back:
“¡Si claro! [a huge wall of fast spoken words]”
The answer came back immediately, but it was faster than Daddy Yankee in Despacito (you know the bit). Her face said: “I love you but maybe Duolingo was fine actually.”
The problem: AI isn’t magic on its own
She tried to slow it down, but it was hard to figure out how.
She asked simple questions about flights, and ChatGPT responded with more speedy TED Talk-length answers.
I looked at my friend, who appeared close to throwing her phone at my head, as if I’d personally invented this crappy AI app. “AI Language learning” was quickly unravelling into a waste of time.
In that moment I had to turn things around, and QUICKLY.
AI Language Club saves the day
I opened the AI Language Club library and we picked the Travel Planner tutorial.
Within minutes, we were using ChatGPT to research her next Portugal trip, practising Spanish while exploring Portuguese road signs and phrases. Now she was laughing, chatting, and actually enjoying herself.
"This is actually fun! So glad I had you here to help."
(Yay, friendship success!)
What You Can Take Away From Our AI Language Lesson
Most of us have AI tools right there in our pockets.
But to turn them into useful language practice, you need a plan. It’s not useful to say something like “hey, talk to me in German”, but with a few tweaks things get a whole lot easier.
Whenever you can, start your interaction with a very clear goal or scenario, for example:
Travel planning or restaurant research
Finding a recipe for authentic breakfast in your target country
Creating a story or song lyrics
Give AI tools like Gemini or ChatGPT very specific instructions: tell it which language to use, how fast to speak, at which level, and how short to keep the answers.
Start with learning activities that already work for you, and introduce AI gradually. For example, I like to do fill-in-the-gap practice and now I sometimes use AI tools to help me come up with extra ideas for the gaps.
With a bit of planning, AI can open up a mind-blowing new learning experience for you.
On the blog: Why AI Works for Language Learners & 3 Prompts to Try Now
What’s Your Language Learning Superpower?
Over on the AI Language Club website, we’ve put together a quiz to help you find your special language skill and show you how to bring in AI to speed up your study results and try fresh ideas.
👉 Curious? Check out the language superpower quiz here.