If you're struggling to communicate with your Spanish-speaking students and their families, and you don't know your cabeza from your codo (that's your head from your elbow), don't worry—help is here!

Whether you took a Spanish class 20 years ago and just want to brush up a bit, or you have never taken a Spanish class, you'll learn the essential Spanish for teachers and bridge the communication gap with your Spanish-speaking students and parents. Rest assured that this won't be anything like your typical high school Spanish course. We'll skip the frills and focus on "survival Spanish" you can put to work immediately. We've tossed out long vocabulary lists and complex grammar rules and replaced them with games and stories to make learning easy, painless, and even fun. You'll learn new words in easy-to-digest bites, and each lesson will include Supplementary Material to help you keep expanding your vocabulary.

We'll start with the basics of Spanish pronunciation, and then we'll move right into simple words for everyday things, such as colors, numbers, and question words. Then you'll learn more of the basics of conversational phrases, family names, and directions. Next, we'll get into what it's like on the first day of school as we go over words related to enrolling new students, conversing in the classroom, talking about rules and behavior, and basic vocabulary for various academic subjects. We'll also cover Spanish words and phrases to use in the cafeteria, on the playground, and even in the nurses office! Finally, we'll delve into some survival phrases for the parent-teacher conference as you learn to describe how a child is doing, talk about academic or behavior problems, and discuss grades and homework

By the end of this course, you'll be well on the path to being a Spanish speaker and communicating more effectively with the Spanish-speakers all around you. ¡Vamos! (Let's go!)

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Syllabus:

A new section of each course starts monthly. If enrolling in a series of two or more courses, please be sure to space the start date for each course at least two months apart.

All courses run for six weeks, with a two-week grace period at the end. Two lessons are released each week for the six-week duration of the course. You do not have to be present when lessons are released. You will have access to all lessons until the course ends. However, the interactive discussion area that accompanies each lesson will automatically close two weeks after the lesson is released. As such, we strongly recommend that you complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

The final exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the final exam has been released, you will have two weeks to complete all of your course work, including the final exam.

Week One

Wednesday - Lesson 01

In this lesson, you'll discover that mastering the Spanish alphabet is as easy as A-B-C! You'll also learn simple tricks for pronouncing Spanish words, and you'll start building your vocabulary by learning to count from zero to nine.

Friday - Lesson 02

Today you'll learn the Spanish words for a rainbow of colors, and find out how to count all the way up to 199—all while learning fun facts about the culture of Latin America.

Week Two

Wednesday - Lesson 03

Family is all-important in Latin culture, and in this lesson you'll find out how to say the names of all your student's relatives. Also, you'll start putting your words into conversational phrases and sentences.

Friday - Lesson 04

Today we'll explore pronouns, an important building block of your Spanish vocabulary. In addition, you'll learn how to talk about the months of the year and the days of the week.

Week Three

Wednesday - Lesson 05

Super-charge your Spanish sentences with new power words! In this lesson, you'll learn prepositions, words for directions, and three new words for asking questions.

Friday - Lesson 06

If you think Spanish verbs are a big headache, you're in for a pleasant surprise today as we explore "easy" verb tenses. In addition, we'll delve into the difference between the "to be" verbs ser and estar.

Week Four

Wednesday - Lesson 07

You'll add to your repertoire of Spanish survival phrases in this lesson and discover a simple way to ask key questions when enrolling new students. You'll also master an important new skill: telling time in Spanish.

Friday - Lesson 08

Today we're off to school, to learn the Spanish words for common classroom objects and activities. We'll also beef up your communication skills with a host of new adjectives that'll come in handy both in and out of the classroom.

Week Five

Wednesday - Lesson 09

How are you feeling today? By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to answer that question in Spanish! You'll also know how to explain classroom rules, regulations, and instructions to students en español.

Friday - Lesson 10

Words for teaching, learning, and doing are at the top of our agenda today. In addition, we'll look at vocabulary builders you can use to explain concepts in English, math, science, and history.

Week Six

Wednesday - Lesson 11

If you need to assist a student in the cafeteria or on the playground, you'll have lots of helpful words at your fingertips after this lesson. You'll also learn key vocabulary words for talking about those medical emergencies that sometimes happen on campus.

Friday - Lesson 12

Parent-teacher conferences go much more smoothly when you can share information directly with Spanish-speaking moms and dads. Today, you'll learn lots of new words for describing your students' strengths, pointing out areas where they can improve, and praising their achievements!

This course includes a knowledgeable and caring instructor who will guide you through your lessons, facilitate discussions, and answer your questions. The instructor for this course will be Tara Williams.

Tara Bradley Williams has authored several Spanish textbooks and occupational Spanish reference guides, including the "¡A Conversar!" and "¡A Trabajar!" series. She taught Spanish and English as a Second Language at the high school and community college levels for over 10 years. She has also operated a Spanish language school and served as a medical interpreter. Tara has BA degrees in Spanish and Sociology from St. Norbert College and an MA in Higher Education and Adult Studies from the University of Denver. She has studied Spanish at the Universidad de Ortega y Gasset in Toledo, Spain and has lived and traveled extensively in Spain and Latin America.

Requirements:

Internet access, e-mail, the Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox Web browser, and the Adobe Flash and PDF plug-ins (two free and simple downloads you obtain at http://www.adobe.com/downloads by clicking Get Adobe Flash Player and Get Adobe Reader).

Student Reviews:

Reviews coming soon! Please check back next month.