Today we talked about how Spanish has different ways to express the same idea. Depending on the situation, a word or expression can be formal, informal, or more respectful. Examples - Fallecer → Formal. I - Morir → More informal We also learned that the verb morir can be used figuratively: - Yo muero por verte este sábado. → I can't wait to see you this Saturday. - Estoy muerta, necesito dormir. / Estoy hecho polvo. → I'm exhausted. I need to sleep. Finally, we discussed how word choice can make our language more respectful: - Personas pobres → Poor people. (Very informal.) - Personas de escasos recursos → People with limited financial resources. (More formal.) - Personas en situación de calle → People experiencing homelessness. (More respectful and inclusive.) Thank you for attending today's class! 😊 I hope these examples help you continue improving your Spanish. @Susan McArthur @Emily Emilia S @Kari P @Tony K

Today we learned that Spanish pronunciation varies depending on the country and region. One example is the pronunciation of the letters LL and Y. In some varieties of Spanish, these two letters are pronounced differently. For example, some speakers pronounce lluvia with the LL sound, making a distinction between LL and Y, so it is not pronounced the same as yuvia. However, it is important to remember that every Spanish-speaking country has its own pronunciation and accent, and none of them is more correct than another. For example, in my country, Argentina, many speakers pronounce lluvia as /ʃuvia/ (similar to "shuvia"), while in other regions it may sound like /yuvia/ or /jʝuvia/. These differences are natural and are part of the linguistic diversity of the Spanish language. We also talked about the implicit subject (sujeto tácito). In Spanish, the subject is often omitted because the verb ending already tells us who is performing the action. For example: - Yo soy Jorge. - Soy Jorge. Both sentences mean exactly the same thing. In the second sentence, the subject yo is omitted because the verb soy already indicates the first person singular. This is called the implicit subject. This may sound unusual to English speakers because English almost always requires an explicit subject. For example: - I am Jorge. ✅ - Am Jorge. ❌ In English, we cannot omit the subject. The pronoun I must appear before the verb. Therefore, while Soy Jorge is perfectly correct in Spanish, the equivalent Am Jorge is not grammatically correct in English. The correct form is I am Jorge. This is one of the main grammatical differences between Spanish and English. @David Rivera @Marvin Marshall @Kari P

I’ve set myself a new challenge: I’m going to stop using Google Translate when speaking in class. I know I’ll still experience those mental blocks, but I feel that relying on a translator to hold conversations is holding me back more and more. This group feels like a safe space to take risks and just give it a go, so I’ve just had my first class without it. While it wasn’t easy, I’m glad I did. Does anyone else go blank when trying to speak Spanish in class? Curious how others handle this.

Today we talked about a sensitive topic that required some very specific vocabulary. Expressing yourself on a topic like this isn't easy, but everyone did a great job. Thank you for making it such a respectful and engaging discussion. @Sarah P @Emily Emilia S @Palle Raun @Marvin Marshall @Tony K @Kari P @Trevor Anderson We'll be back next time with something a little more cheerful! ☀️☕🇪🇸

It was a very interesting conversation where everyone shared their ideas, goals, and dreams. 📌 Fun facts I learned in class: - 😄 Toly told us that his friend had four different wives. What a story! - 🎨 Sonia said she knows how to paint. I definitely want to see her artwork! - 🤫 And there was also some gossip... but it's Kari's secret, so it stays in the classroom. 😅 Thank you all for joining the class and making it such a fun and enjoyable experience. See you in the next class! 😊 @Dana Buck @Sophia Carter @Tony K @Emily Emilia S @Kari P @Marvin Marshall @Alisa K. @Sonia C. C. Torres @Derick Jay Mitchell @Chris Fernandez @Meredith P. @Trevor Anderson