Interview with our Spanish teacher Irene Cañas Moreno

Our associates from an agency that represents our language school school us came to visit us in Prado del Rey and interviewed our teachers on the occasion of their visit with many interesting questions about teaching Spanish and learning languages and we want to share their answers with you. Some of you readers of the blog know Irene, Ángeles and Marina and their tips will be useful for you. And for the rest of you who do not know them yet, the interviews are certainly helpful for you to get an idea of what to expect in your Spanish at our language school in Prado del Rey.

Spanish teacher Irene in a customized private lesson

Today it’s Irene’s turn and in the next days we will publish the interview with Ángeles and Marina.

1. How long have you been teaching Spanish?

I’ve been teaching Spanish since February 2011 at Academia Pradoventura.

2. Why to learn Spanish?

Because Spanish is a language spoken by about 500 million people worldwide and it becomes increasingly more important. And also because Spanish is studied in more and more countries, it is an almost universal language, the second world language after English.

3. What do you like about teaching Spanish?

What I like best about teaching Spanish is the closeness that I have with people from other countries, with different cultures, the opportunity to meet new people, to show the culture of my country in all its areas and to see how the students advance in the use of the Spanish language.

4. What do your students most value in your classes and at the language school?

The students value the personalized attention towards them, the closeness, kindness and patience that we teachers have with them. The attention to diversity, i.e. to adapt the class to the needs and interests of the group members is always very important, and it motivates the students very much.

5. Can it be easy and quick to learn a new language?

It can be relatively easy and quick if the student is highly motivated to learn the new language, and if the teacher gives his/her all into the class to make it dynamic and entertaining and the students have fun while they learn. The time you have to invest also depends on the level of perfection you want to achieve. A good basic level to communicate in Spanish can be achieved in an intensive 4 week course. In order to perfect the language you should devote several years.

6. Which types of activities are the most used in your class?

I always propose different topics of conversation to practice speaking which is one of the most difficult skills for the students; for example, we do many role plays with dialogues or conversations you can have in real life, because students want what they learn in class is something real and practical. I propose conversation topics referring to the present, past, future, etc. and like that we can practice the tenses that each level requires. And I also use cards for different activities such as vocabulary, tenses, sayings, expressions, etc. to animate the students to practice their speaking, reading and listening skills.

7. What do you like most about your town?

Well, I live in Prado del Rey, a village of about 6000 inhabitants, and the truth is that I like all about my village, the surrounding environment, the views, the people, the atmosphere, the celebrations, etc.; and also because it’s in a privileged location in the Sierra de Cádiz.

8. Which sites do you recommend your students to visit?

If they ask me about Spain in general, I recommend them to visit Northern Spain for its stunning landscape; Madrid because it’s the capital and for its interesting museums; Barcelona because it’s a cosmopolitan city; Andalusia because for me it’s the best region of Spain in terms of its people, its cuisine, its culture, its architecture, its climate, etc.. And if I name some important cities to visit in Andalusia those are Cádiz, Seville, Córdoba and Granada because of their history and their monuments. And if they want to discover the nearby area, I recommend them to visit the Sierra de Cádiz with the Route of the White Villages, and the nearby Costa de la Luz such as Cádiz, Conil, Tarifa etc. for their beaches and history.

Thank you very much, Irene, for your interesting answers.

2 Responses to “Interview with our Spanish teacher Irene Cañas Moreno”

  1. Reinhold

    Hallo Irene,
    nachdem ich 3 Wochen bei Dir Unterricht hatte, kann ich nur bestätigen, was Du im Interview über das Spanisch lernen berichtest. Es war immer sehr interessant und abwechslungsreich, wenn auch gelegentlich recht anstrengend. Besonders haben mir die Debatten über aktuelle Themen gefallen. Dabei habe ich auch sehr viel über Land und Leute erfahren. Zurück in Deutschland bin ich jetzt richtig motiviert, mit dem Spanisch lernen fortzufahren. Vielen Dank für den guten Unterricht.

    Reply
    • Academia Pradoventura

      Muchas gracias Reinhold, para mí ha sido todo un placer darte clases. Me alegra saber que estas tres semanas te han servido para conocer mejor España y a los españoles…la verdad es que los temas actuales de debate eran bastante interesantes. Me alegra también saber que este tiempo aquí en España te ha servido como motivación para continuar con el aprendizaje del español en Alemania. Bueno espero que sigas aprendiendo español como hasta ahora y espero que te vaya muy bien. Muchas gracias por todo.

      Un saludo,
      Irene

      Reply

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