Note: A placement exam will be required when you arrive on site.

Beginning

There is no language prerequisite for courses at this language level. However, students must take a placement exam to determine the course level into which they will be able to enroll.

BEGINNING SPANISH CONVERSATION

OBJECTIVES:

• The student should reach a "survival level" of Spanish. He/she should be able to communicate his/her daily needs.
• Correct common errors of word agreement, meaning and pronunciation
• Increase ability to express opinions, ideas, personal needs and anxieties in an effort to motivate and help in language acquisition.
• Mold the student’s phonetic pronunciation
• Traditional structural conception of the language is replaced by a pragmatic and semantic approach. The actual grammatical structures are secondary.
• Student will respond to and produce phrases he/she encounters in everyday life as well as learn and practice these structures.

METHODOLOGY:

The methodology applied at the Language Center by the Department of Spanish includes various techniques:

• Communicative - concentrates on the student's ability to communicate effectively within the society
• Situational - students acquire the necessary tools to react comfortably to daily circumstances
• Personalized instruction
• Independent learning - students interact directly with the language and learn at their own pace, organizing and applying concepts

CONTENTS:

Informal greetings
Identifying oneself
“¿Cómo se dice….en español?”
Spelling

Identifying oneself (plural)
Formal presentation and greeting
Give thanks
Tú/usted

Locating objects
Describing objects
Ask/respond for an amount

Contacting others
Asking for directions
Locating establishments
Give directions
Ask/give time

Ask for food
Ask for value
Express wishes

Describe someone
Habits
Ask/give one’s age

Describe colors and materials
Ask for price
Ask permission
Call one’s attention
Express admiration
Ask for opinion
Express and justify preferences

Invite
Accept
Reject
Justify
Insist
Confirm appointment
Express obligation
Describe actions

Express intentions
Propose alternatives
Express doubt or probability
Express indifference
Talk about time
Express uncertainty

Talk about past events
Give excuses
Express terminated action
Talk about health

Interest in someone’s well-being
Describe state of minds/objects

Make predictions
Express deception
Phone conversations
Make comparisons

Ask for information
Talk about past habitual actions
Describe the past
Express happiness, surprise, relief
Express boredom, disgust, sadness, comparison
Express frequency

Express interrupted actions by another action
Narrate events and tell someone’s life
Compare

STUDENTS WILL MOVE ON TO:

Personal information
Express likes and fondness
Continuity/duration
State of mind
Character
Feelings
Agree and disagree
Affirmation and opinions
Obligation: personal and impersonal
Absence of obligation
Instructions and commands
Probability/hypothesis
Suggestions
Directions
Distance/time
Surprise
Affirm with emphasis
Congratulate
Relate what others have said
Ask information
Give news
Doubts
Plans
Compare
Health
Body positions
Identify
Elements of argumentation
Courteous actions
Narration