Calling out to all Instagram fanatics, travel photography whizz-kids and landscape framing afficionados - here's your chance to get more than just 'likes' on Instagram for your efforts! Enter into our photography competition and we will display your beautiful piece for an entire month in both of our centres AND you could win a whole 15 hour course!
To make it both more fun and fair - the winner will be selected by popular vote: a people's choice award!
Read how to enter here! (It's super easy)
As a supplement to your study materials, El Patio is producing a serious series of useful language sheets, covering key grammar topics and tenses in clear and straightforward language to help you as you learn.
Craig gives the traditional paella a personal twist. He makes something that's possibly unconventional, but that is easy to prepare, very yummy and quite paella-like. Be inspired, go wild in the kitchen and have a crack at Craig's fill-in-the-gaps recipe exercise. The exercise practises the first person in the present tense, and is perfect for beginners - particularly if you're in Elementary 2 or 3.
If you've just started studying at El Patio right at the beginning, here are some ideas about how to get the most out of your course for your future success with speaking Spanish.
Have a look at this diagramme of all of our beginner courses - you can see that there are plenty of options for study.
Ana's latest story describes the daily grind of a high school History teacher. Pushed to the limit by the boredom of the curriculum and rebellious students, she decides to turn the tables, and invites the students to enact their versions of the past. Using Spanish idioms that involve the body, such as "cuesta un ojo de la cara" and "no tiene pelos en la lengua", and written entirely in the present tense, this story is perfect for students in the Elementary levels.
What is it to be a beginner? Is it something we get to leave behind? And if not, then how might the attitude of being a beginner help us as we learn?
Beginners! Check out our podcast of 1-minute lessons created by us to help you tip-toe through the minefield that is learning Spanish. It's free, available on iTunes, and there are 40 episodes. Not only that, they are modelled on the study path that our Elementary 1 courses take. Go get it!
Read the first of our stories in Spanish - graded for specific levels. This one is for beginners, or A1 in progress (A1 complete is when you've done Upper Elementary 3). It not only contains a glossary of nouns, and a list of conjugated verbs, but - wait for it - lesson on SER & ESTAR - hurrah!
Easy! Surprise your Spanish-learning friends, family or colleagues with a Gift Voucher. This voucher could be used toward a course fee and even texts. Once you have purchased your voucher, please El Patio of the…
Each month we'll send you Spanish language tips, practice exercises, useful links, special offers and fun upcoming events.
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