Summary
This highly practical low-intermediate course (A2.1) will give you a solid introduction to the Spanish past tenses while teaching you to converse about travel, work and customs in the Spanish-speaking world. A proven communicative approach that teaches real-life situations will improve your speaking, listening, reading and writing abilities. We have added an additional conversation session at no additional cost while we transition from one curriculum to another. See Outline for more details.
Prerequisite: Spanish 2.
Find out if this is the right level for you with these placement tests: Spanish 2 self–placement test, Spanish 3 self–placement test.
Note: You will not be able to view the course on your Canvas Dashboard or access the materials until the course start date.
Course format
Instructional videos and interactive online materials in the Canvas course platform introduce new grammar and vocabulary and teach pronunciation, listening and reading skills. Participants should budget 3-4 hours a week to work through the online asynchronous materials in preparation for the live online conversation groups. Participants practice speaking live with the instructor in weekly sessions. For the first sessions, you will meet with your instructor in small groups of 3-6 students for 30-minutes, then move to one-hour sessions with 6-12 students. Participants should be available the entire one-hour time slot. Online course materials are available one week before the first live conversation class and remain accessible for one month after the course ends.
Want to know more about learning a language online? Read Dr. Julie Dahl’s blog post about our online course format.
Printable workbook (PDF) included in the price.
Textbook purchase required Spanish 3 & 4 textbook.
Course Outline
Lesson 1: My luggage
Themes and communication goals
- Expressing preferences
- Language learning
- Material and function
- People's character
- Emphasizing
Language skills
- Irregular past verbs
- Workplace vocabulary
- Lo que
- Adjectives
- How long with hacer and desde
Culture
- Spanish as an international language
- Famous people
- Christmas traditions in Mexico and Spain
Lesson 2: Time for rest
Themes and communication goals
- Symptoms and illness
- Making recommendations
- Going to a pharmacy
- Narrating a story in the past
Language skills
- Parts of the body
- Demasiado, bastante
- More adverbs
- More adjectives
- The imperfect tense
Culture
- La siesta
- Hot springs today and in the pre Colombian world
- Carnaval in Bolivia and in Spain
Lesson 3: Remember when?
Themes and communication goals
- Talking about childhood memories
- Describing the way it used to be
- Telling stories
Language skills
- Past tenses contrasted
- Connectors
- Diminutives
- Animals
- Reflexive verbs
Culture
- El ratoncito Pérez
- Las Fallas de Valencia
Lesson 4: Let's review and practice!
Lesson 5: I want it all
Themes and communication goals
- Asking for things in a store
- Describing clothes
- Shopping habits
- Introducing and ending a story
Language skills
- Indefinite pronouns
- Definite pronouns
- Que vs. cual
- Empezar a, dejar de, seguir…
Culture
- Flea markets in Madrid
- Famous people
- Semana Santa
Lesson 6: How nice!
Themes and communication goals
- Congratulating
- Accepting and turning down invitations
- Introducing people
- Offering food and drinks
- Giving permission
Language skills
- Affirmative commands
- Pronoun positions
- Ir vs. venir
- Llevar vs. traer
- Good, better, best
- -ísimo
Culture
- Cultural differences with invitations
- Fiestas in Venezuela
Earn Continuing Education Hours
By participating in this class you will earn:
| Instructional Hours | 35 |
| University of Wisconsin Continuing Education Units | 3.5 |
Upcoming dates
Not scheduled at this time. Join the mailing list.