Spanish - Content
Absolute Beginners
Probably the best place for you to get started is the BBC website - specifically 'Spanish Steps'. This will give you a taste of the language and some good learning tips and you should get an idea of whether you want to take your learning further.
To add a bit of structure to your learning, you might find it helpful to sign up to the BBC 'Spahish in 12 weeks' weekly email that you'll find on the above link. You should also find their 'Learning Log' and 'Vocabulary List' useful.
Spnish About.com has a special section for beginners including introductory topics to help you organise your study
For that idle moment, YouTube has a lot of mini learn-Spanish videos. The quality is variable and the descriptions not always helpful, but the multi-media aspect can be very helpful for some learners to fix key information in their heads. Take the video below, for example. Although oddly described as 'Advanced' it would be perfectly suitable for a near total beginner to fix the key verb 'IR' in their minds.
If you find a useful video, it's always worth looking at the other suggested videos on the right.
GCSE Spanish
There are some great resources on this Pinterest board
Courses to follow - any level
However userful the 'Spanish Steps' course is, though, you need an awful lot of repetition, exposure and practice to begin to be able to express yourself in another language. Just think how many months you spent as a baby just listening to your first language before anyone had any series expectations that you would come out with a meaningful sentence. So set yourself reasonable expectations as you learn a foreign language - and try to get as much 'easy listening' practice as you can. This is where the internet and free language 'podcasts' can be really help out.
I suggest you explore some of the suggestions below and find one that suits you. Then use this as your main study 'thread', dipping in and out of the other suggestions to bulk up your exposure to the language and making use of other online tools such as personalised flashcards.
A word or warning, however. In almost all the suggestions below you are first asked to 'register', which is quick and easy. The 'core' part of the course is free - often the audio podcasts - but if you want to get hold of the 'extras', such as transcripts, extra material, grammar practice etc, you are invited to become a 'basic' or 'premium' member. You can learn a language without every signing up for these paid extras. I strongly suggest that, if you are tempted to do so, you make yourself wait until you've used the free material for a reasonable period of time to be sure that it's the best thing for you. Anyway ...
Sites to learn and practise Spanish
Below you'll find a 'tour' I've put together of websites you might find useful.
Click here to get started
On the 'tour' of useful websites you'll find my comments on the left. Above these you'll see the web address so you can visit a site direct. In the top left are two arrows to help you navigate through the 'tour'.
I hope you like it.