Real Life Language

Learning Spanish Narration with Chat Mats

In the short video “Learning Spanish Narration with Chat Mats” I share a classroom-tested activity that helps learners master narrating in the past. Chat mats are simple, repeatable, and perfect for building confidence with the preterite and the imperfect through short, guided conversations and presentations. Why chat mats work Chat mats turn abstract grammar into […]

Engaging Activities for Language Learners

Teaching World Languages

In this post I share a collection of practical, classroom-tested activities designed to bring proficiency-based language teaching to life. They focus on clear targets, low-prep games, meaningful reading and writing tasks, and ways to build student risk-taking and engagement. Why a proficiency orientation matters Start by asking two questions: What level is the goal

Teaching Spanish Classroom Routines with Weather: Warm-ups That Work

Teaching World Languages

Here’s a short guide to share simple, repeatable ideas for Teaching Spanish Classroom Routines with Weather that get students speaking from the first minute of class. These routines are easy to slot into your calendar time or warm-up and are designed to recycle vocabulary, build confidence, and make language use feel natural. Why focus on

Writing activity to learn Spanish: a simple autobiography project

Spanish Lesson Plans, Teaching World Languages

Introduction This writing activity to learn Spanish is a quick, flexible way to review core vocabulary and basic grammar while getting students talking about themselves. I present a short autobiography project that works as a written assignment, a video, a presentation—or as a spoken warm-up using chat mats. The activity encourages meaningful interaction, natural repetition,

Second Language Acquisition Crash Course: A Practical Guide for Teachers

Teaching World Languages

This article is based on the original video “Teaching Languages | Second Language Acquisition Crash Course” and distils its key ideas into a practical, classroom-ready guide. If you teach languages (or plan to), this Second Langauge Acquisition Crash Course will give you a clear framework: what changed from traditional methods, how to design lessons for

Chat Slides for Spanish Class

Spanish Class Resources, Teaching World Languages

Teaching Spanish (or any language) day after day, week after week, you inevitably run into two challenges: What Are Chat Slides? Chat Slides are visual conversation prompts you project (or share digitally) to spark short Spanish conversations among students. Each slide typically includes a question, image, or sentence starter that students can respond to using