- You'll find that you will be able to recognize quite a lot of words in Spanish already, because 20% are very similar to English
This is from some material I made for teaching Spanish speakers English.
- Remember pronouciation is different as Spanish has completely regular pronouciation and look for the patterns in Spanish like "a" at the end if feminine words and "o" or "e" at the end of masculine words and "tion" becoming "cíon" 
Stew Green

List of Words the same in Spanish and English

 

 

written same

 

no accent

 

 actor

 color

 gas

 material 

 area

 conclusion 

 consul

 

 animal

 doctor

 general

 motor 

  bus

 religion

melon

 

 auto

 familiar

 hospital 

 original

 

 capital

 personal

 hotel

 simple

one consonant

 

 central

 probable

 humor

 terrible 

antenna

 intelligible

impossible

 possible

 

 cereal

 regular

 idea

 total

annual

 occasion

intellectual

 professional

 chocolate 

 similar 

 

 usual

commercial

 official

 

taxi

 radio

alcohol

 

no vowel at end in English

 

f=ph

 

 list

 liquid 

cost

restaurant

 phrase

 physical 

 telephone 

     

 map

 porter

 part

music

j=x

     

 problem

 product

 press

 rob

 execute

 exercise 

 example

 fix

     

car

     

end vowel changes to "e"

 

ia, io -> e

     

 cause 

 practice

 favorite

 tube

 absence

 difference 

 distance

 service

     

 figure 

 rose

 minute

 use

 experience

 notice

 justice

 guarantee

     

 medicine 

 state

 note

 style 

 police 

 commerce

 silence

     

to move

adhesive

     
     

o,u -> ou

 

t -> th

     

 hour

 mountain

 announce

 soup

 author

authority

 sympathy 

     

 court

 announce

 sound

 found

theatre

 theory

     
 

 course

     

c or qu = k or ck

 

z ->ce

     

 frank

 sack

 park

 attack

 commence

 race

 force

     
     

ia,ia -> y

 

i -> y

     

 company

 family

 history

 

 style

 mystery

 system

     

 secretary 

 remedy

 territory

 

rhythm

     
     

other

     

 automobile 

 special

 question

type

 cigar

school

 college

 university

     

 origin

bank

 bicycle 

 to catch

towel

 cocaine 

 heroin

 marijuana 

     

cigarette 

to paint 

 to count

 train

 air force

castle

 fort

 miltary

     

tomato

potato

motorbike

 spagetti

to constuct

 to cut

centre

     

banana

 television

 hamburger

 vinegar

vacation

equal

president

     
     

imported fom other languages

     

pasta

folder

 fax

bus

ferryboat

     
     

Some of the first words you need.

                   

English

Spanish

understand 

 

basic conversation 

     

hello etc

hi, how are, fine

bye

name

my

your

his

     

I, you, we, they

he, she, it

 

her

its

 our

 their 

     

yes

good

no

bad

married

brothers and sisters 

     
 

children

how old

     
     

numbers 1 

basic verbs

 

classroom words

personal 

question words

     

help

want

learn

class

 

mother

do

     

to be

give

start

class room

 

 father

 does

     

the

walk

stop

teacher

 

 brother

 what

     

a

like

_ing

student 

 

 sister

 how long

     

from

drink

ed

pen

 

son 

 how much

     

not

eat

 was

pencil

 

 daughter 

how

     

human

have got

were

eraser

 

 who

     

girl

go

sleep

chair

 

where

     

boy

see

please

table 

 

today

 which

     

man

look

thankyou

book

 

 yesterday 

     

woman

watch

not

paper

 

 tomorrow 

happy

     

men

come from

do not

white board

 

 now

sad

     

women

shower

sleep

folder

 

hot

     

excuse me

wash

work

 speak

 

short forms

cold

     

sorry

clean

live

say

 

here

basketball

     

don't 

buy

 

talk 

 

there

     

understand

sell

 make

talk to

 

 this

     

dog

teach

 do

repeat

 

 that

     

cat

difficult

have got

tell me

 

 these

     

fruit

 easy

 have a 

listen

 

 those

     

food

 big

 think

write

     

happy

 small

 know

 look

     

sad

 cheap

 know about

be quiet !

     

husband

 expensive 

 

sorry

     

wife

 _er

 

read aloud 

     

single

 more

 

how do you say

     

married

_est

 

think

     

water 

 fast

 

sit down

     

bread

 quick

 

show me

     

 milk

 slow

 

please repeat that

     

beer

 interesting 

     

to sort

boring

     

 sort

 

church

pray

     
 

altar

priest

     
 

work

my work

     
     
 

God

     
 

sing

     
 

job