Method vieja | Livinglavida

living la vida: learn spanish in context

Do you feel embarrassed or insecure when talking in Spanish? I feel you.

I felt the same when I learned English. Years and years of analyzing grammar points, doing mechanical exercises, learning long lists of vocabulary and I wasn’t able to talk. I also wanted to speak English perfectly, I wanted to speak the way I spoke my mother tongue. I was focused on saying all the things right, I was centered in analyzing the grammar the whole time and that stopped me from gaining fluency.

That frustrated me a lot.

I learned the traditional way and it wasn’t helping me speak in English fluently.

But there is another way.

How are classes at Living la Vida?

We focus on communicating in Spanish in context from minute 1 in a way that is comprehensible for you. The material is explained in simple language, visually, and with resources to give your learning a boost.

We don’t study grammar, but we use grammar in context.

We don’t use text books, we use different resources such as pictures, articles, a video, a piece of music, a story… as a starting point to have a guided talk about a real life topic.

Through repetition of frequent words in context, you will be able to use them in a conversation from the very beginning, just by hearing me repeat them again and again.

You will be able to speak more freely at your own pace. First using some words, then sentences, then more complex paragraphs.

We want to offer a fear-free experimenting bubble where you can explore the adventure of the language and lose the fear of talking. Because making mistakes is part of the natural process of learning a language, the most important thing is to communicate what you want to say.

You will feel motivated and confident to express yourself in Spanish fluently.

The class is centered on connecting the content and Spanish culture with the learners.

how to know if
living la vida is for you:

✏️ Do you think the speed at which locals speak makes it hard to understand?

✏️ Do you find it hard to follow conversations in real life?

✏️ Do you freeze when speaking?

✏️ Do you find it difficult to catch what people are talking or asking?

✏️ Do you think you don’t have enough vocabulary to express what you need?

If the answer to any of the above is YES, schedule a free book call with me.

On that call, we'll identify what your main challenges are and map out some ways we can tackle them.

SAY HI!

If you want to...

Have meaningful impact across conversations

Feel more confident exploring the city on your own

Communicate better to make the most of your time in Barcelona

Be able to speak in Spanish with your relatives and friends here in Spain and feel more included.

Have more interaction and social life and you can bring out more your personality

Communicate with people in the supermarket, in the gym, in the store…

And integrate with locals in daily life.

SCHEDULE A FREE SESSION

What will you achieve?

After the first class, you will be able to answer 5 questions about you.

After five classes, you will be able to understand spoken and written Spanish in specific everyday contexts

After class number 10 you will be able to have an informal short conversation in Spanish

living la vida: learn spanish in context

The theory behind

Our approach is based on Krashen’s theory of language acquisition.

According to him and a significant amount of studies on language acquisition, a language is acquired through:

Plenty of opportunities to listen to and read in the language. This is called the “input”.
This input (all this amount of language) needs to be comprehensible and compelling for you.
The focus is on communicating a message, not on the correctness of the language. The “monitor” term refers to the mechanism in our brain that consciously controls or checks what we say or write. When learning a new language, we often rely on the "monitor" to ensure we're using the correct grammar, appropriate vocabulary, etc. However, this process can be slow and unnatural, especially in situations that require quick or spontaneous speech. That is why we focus on communicating a message before speaking with correctness. We focus on gaining fluency rather than accuracy. The main goal in natural language acquisition is to achieve fluency, where communication is smooth and efficient, rather than being perfect in terms of grammar and vocabulary. Overuse of the monitor can hinder fluency because the learner is constantly self-correcting. While accuracy is important, it should not come at the expense of being able to communicate effectively in real-time situations.
Repetition of frequent words in different contexts. This way they become more internalized and automatic, reducing the need to rely on the monitor.
Using the Language in Context: To reduce reliance on the monitor and acquire the language more naturally, it’s essential to use the language in real contexts. This means that instead of focusing solely on grammatical rules or isolated exercises, we practice the language in everyday situations, like conversations, reading meaningful texts, or watching content in Spanish.
The affective filter or emotional barrier should be as low as possible.
We achieve this by creating a safe and motivating environment in the classroom and building self-confidence, always respecting your pace. This leads to better language assimilation.
Progressive Difficulty: It’s important to start with simple structures and gradually increase complexity. This allows the brain to get used to new forms without feeling overwhelmed, promoting a more natural and effective acquisition.