Having lived in many places, traveled extensively throughout Europe, Central and South America, and taught literally hundreds of students has contributed to my unique ability to connect with people from all backgrounds.  My favorite part of teaching one-on-one lessons is getting to know my students and form meaningful relationships with them.  This closeness allows me to tap into their goals, interests, and motivations, as well as identify how they learn best, enabling me to tailor instruction to meet each individual’s needs.

Lessons are conducted on Google Meet, where I share my screen to display a Google Doc. Throughout the class, I take detailed notes on new vocabulary terms, grammatical concepts, cultural points, and pronunciation.  All homework assignments, document uploads, and relevant links are also housed in this document for students to access between classes.  

My teaching method is based on four pillars: Storytelling with TPRS® (Teaching Proficiency through Reading and Storytelling), grammatical foundations with VHL’s (Vistas Higher Learning) online platform, vocabulary study with Quizlet, and personally relevant real-world resources. 

TPRS: A language teaching method that uses stories to teach the most high-frequency vocabulary and grammar structures.  Students are introduced to complex language structures early on (without grammatical explanations), which they master through repetition, memorization, and retelling.  Once students are able to use the words and phrases they have acquired to communicate basic elements of their lives, it is time to introduce grammar with the VHL online textbook.

VHL: Vistas Higher Learning is a current, college-level online textbook.  Each chapter focuses on a specific Spanish-speaking country, a single vocabulary theme, 3-4 grammar concepts, and includes a “fotonovela” (educational telenovela) that ties it all together.  Students will have detailed notes on each grammar lesson in their Google Docs and study sets in Quizlet that cover all of the vocabulary terms from the chapter.

Quizlet: Each student will have his/her/their own “class” in Quizlet where I assign the vocabulary sets that accompany each chapter as we progress through the textbook.  Students may also create their own study sets based on the vocabulary that is most relevant to their daily lives/needs.  I always encourage students to download the app so they have access to this study tool on-the-go.  I love to share best practices for this portable vocabulary study system that I have been using to help students maximize their vocabulary acquisition for over 15 years.

Real-World Resources: I have taught farmers, gardeners, vineyard managers, event supervisors, lawyers, firefighters, teachers…and more!  Each student comes to Spanish lessons with a unique set of needs and motivations for learning the language.  Together, we create personalized glossaries, apply new grammar concepts to relevant role-play scenarios, and brainstorm engaging writing assignments, like journal entries that allow students to creatively share their passions, or summaries of Spanish book chapters and TV series episodes.  In this way, my students and I engage in a dynamic process of co-creation, building a customized learning plan that is both appropriate and inspiring!