Writing & Languages

Beginner Spanish Conversation

Meets Mondays · 6:30 PM - 8:00 PM · on Zoom 13 enrolled Free to audit

this class is for adults who've never spoken a word of spanish and want to change that. no vocab lists to memorize alone at home. we talk, out loud, from minute one.

you'll pair up with the person next to you and practice the stuff you'll actually use — greetings, ordering, asking for help, getting out of a conversation when you're lost. i teach the phrases that get you out of trouble first. "i don't understand," "slower please," "how do you say." those buy you time for everything else.

you don't need a trip to spain. you need the checkout line at macey's. by the end you'll hold a real back-and-forth and be understood. good enough talks. ✨

What you'll learn

Greet strangers and introduce yourself in Spanish
Order food and drinks at a restaurant
Ask for prices, directions, and basic help
Pronounce vowels and tricky letters correctly
Hold a full beginner conversation start to finish

Materials & tools

What to bring

Spiral notebook or small journal for jotting phrases and sounds as you hear them — $2-5
A couple of pens or pencils — $2-4
Blank index cards, 3x5, for building a personal phrase/vocabulary deck — $2-4
Your smartphone, with a free Spanish dictionary app installed (SpanishDict or WordReference) — free
Water bottle — talking out loud for an hour gets your throat dry

Nice to have

A pocket English-Spanish dictionary for quick lookups without a screen — $6-10
Earbuds or headphones for listening practice between sessions — $10-25
A free flashcard app (Anki or Quizlet) to review your own phrase deck at home — free
A cheap voice-recorder app (built into most phones) to record yourself and hear your pronunciation — free

Lessons

Saying Hello and Introducing Yourself
The first exchanges: greeting a stranger, giving your name, and asking how someone is.
- buenos días and hello to a stranger15 min
- the phrases that get you out of trouble first20 min
- my name is, and what's yours15 min
- how are you, i'm fine, and you20 min
Making the Sounds and Reading Spanish Aloud
Vowels, the rolled r, tricky words, and sounding out a word you've never seen.
Out in Town: Shopping, Ordering, and Directions
Handling real errands in Spanish, from prices and taco orders to finding the bathroom.
- asking where something is20 min
- numbers you need for prices and quantities25 min
- how much is this, and is it on sale20 min
- please, thank you, and small talk in line15 min
- ordering at a taco place20 min
- i'd like, and can i have20 min
- for here, to go, and one more thing15 min
- i don't eat that, allergies and no thanks20 min
- asking for directions and understanding the answer25 min
- the bathroom, the hotel, the basics20 min
Holding a Real Conversation
Keeping a back-and-forth going, slowing people down, bowing out gracefully, and going all-Spanish.

Key terms

Cognate: A word that looks and means nearly the same in Spanish and English, like hospital or familia.
Conjugation: Changing a verb's ending to match who is acting and when (hablo, hablas, habla).
Ser vs. estar: Two verbs that both mean “to be” — ser for lasting traits, estar for states and locations.
Gender: Every Spanish noun is masculine or feminine, which changes its article and adjectives (el libro, la mesa).
Tú vs. usted: The informal (tú) and formal (usted) ways to say “you” when addressing someone.
False friend (falso amigo): A word that looks English but means something else — embarazada means pregnant, not embarrassed.
Present tense: The verb form for what happens now or regularly, the first tense most learners master.
Subject pronoun: The word for who is acting (yo, tú, él/ella), often dropped because the verb ending already shows it.
Rolled R: The trilled rr sound as in perro, made by vibrating the tongue against the roof of the mouth.
Immersion: Learning by surrounding yourself with the language — listening and speaking rather than translating.