ES
I start my classes asking my students “¿qué tal”? or “¿cómo están?”. Their most common answer is “bien”. If we tell them that they cannot use “bien” to reply, we have a conversation starter. When they choose words such as cansado, aburrido, enfermo, nervioso or triste, we just ask them why and we’re starting the class with a meaningful and … Read More
El mes de la historia negra (1 de febrero – 1 de marzo)
Most of my students are black. When we learned about colors, introducing the word “negro” created a bit of a commotion. We can’t just tell students: that’s the Spanish word for black, like it or not. I think we need to offer a proper and detailed explanation. Our resources for Black history month include that explanation, as well as a … Read More
San Valentín
Our priority in the Spanish class has to be to motivate students.Without motivation, they won’t learn much.Without motivation, they won’t continue studying until they master the language.They’ll eventually quit, and begin to forget what they learnt.Looking for interesting topics is therefore key.Love and friendship, no matter how old your students are, are great motivating topics.So let’s embrace St. Valentine’s Day … Read More
La fiesta de los animales (17 de enero)
Can you think of a more engaging topic than animals for your Spanish class? 17 January is an excellent opportunity to talk about pets, since it’s the day of San Antón (Anthony the Great.)In Spain, and several other Hispanic countries, San Antón is honored as the patron saint of domestic animals. On that day, pets are blessed on a big … Read More
Un regalo de Navidad
If you’re looking for a different lesson, one that uses authentic and engaging resources, such as a TikTok video and a Spanish newspaper, you’re in the right spot. And it’s all thanks to Andrea. You may already know her. She’s the wonderful presenter of our Cuatro tradiciones de Navidad video. At the end of that video, Andrea sings El burrito … Read More
Primeras clases del nuevo año
On the last day before the Christmas break, I saw my colleague Lisa by the copy machine. There was a big smile on her face. Why? She proudly told me she had the copies she needed for the first class of the new year. She was ready. That means she wouldn’t need to plan during the holiday. She wouldn’t need … Read More
Los Reyes Magos
We’re at school almost every day. For some good reason, we rarely get sick. 6th January is the exception. We’ll take a sick or personal day and there’s no way we’ll be at school. This is how important El Día de Reyes is for us. It’s a day to be at home when our kids get up, so we can … Read More
Navidad
At the end of November, I explained to my students that Spanish-speaking countries do not celebrate Thanksgiving (Puerto Rico is the only exception). When we were back from the break they asked me: And Christmas? Do you celebrate Christmas? Well, if only they knew… But that’s our job, that they know. And that’s why in Bablingua we have so many … Read More
Una familia con encanto
Tell beginner students that Bruno es el tío de Mirabel. Even if they don’t know the word tío, it’ll be fairly easy for them to guess what it means. Chances are most of them have seen Encanto, and they may know the Madrigal family tree pretty well. We wanted to take advantage of that background knowledge, and make a lesson … Read More
El día de Acción de Gracias
If you teach in the U.S. or Canada, you’ll sure want your students to talk about Thanksgiving in the days before the holiday. El día de Acción de Gracias is celebrated annually on the fourth Thursday of November. In the Spanish-speaking countries? Your students will ask. Well, not really. But Puerto Rico does celebrate it. Here are some great Thanksgiving … Read More