Today begins our series for Thursdays:
What About (fill in the blank)?
Today’s topic is group classes. I will give a general overview of what to expect when you attend our group classes at any of our schools, how to estimate your Spanish level, and our free tutoring services.
For how long do I get to learn the majestic Spanish language?
Group classes are 20 hours per week, so each weekday you will study for 4 hours, generally from 9:00 AM until 1:00 PM. You’ll get breaks, of course, during which you can socialize and snack on our free drinks and food. That’s right, free.
Your instructor will teach you with a variety of different methods to be sure that you learn in the best way for you. You’ll get plenty of hands-on practice (and gentle correction).
How can I figure out my Spanish level?
On the first day of classes your Spanish level will be tested on both a written and on an oral level. You will then be placed into the group that best suits you. If at any time you feel you were placed incorrectly, you can request to move to a new group until you find the one in which you feel the most comfortable.
You can see our general Spanish level guidelines here:
Beginner Levels: (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B) pronunciation, identifying people and things, present tense, family members,”ser” and “estar”,interrogative pronouns, indefinite/definite articles, greetings, demonstrative adjectives, present progressive tense, “hay” and “tener”, days and months, possessive adjectives. Reflexive verbs and pronouns, sports and activities, future informal (“ir”+), preferences and desires, “nunca”/”siempre”, imperative tense, ordinal numbers, “tener que “, “haber”, “deber”, prepositions of time and place, imperfect tense.
Intermediate levels: (1A, 1B, 2A, 2B) relative pronouns, interrogative pronouns, “para” and “por”, past perfect irregulares, future imperfect, conditional tense, present subjunctve, uses of subjunctive verbs, “seguir” and “quedar”, preterite perfect “estar”+ gerund, irregular subjunctive verbs. preterit perfect subjunctive, passive voice, use of “se”, verbs with preposition, adverbial expressions,diminutives and augmentatives, idiomatic expressions, preterit imperfect subjunctive, prepositional phrases, synonyms and antonyms.
Advanced and Superior levels: (A, B, Superior) Continuation of speech practice, perfecting spoken grammar, analysis of literature and composition. Rotation of conversation themes.
What’s this about free tutoring?
ECELA provides extra language assistance to students to help them work on problem areas. Every day a teacher is available to assist students in reviewing specific topics in which they may be struggling. They can also provide reading suggestions and address questions related to homework. This is a valuable service; it’s not comparable to private instruction but definitely beneficial to all students.