Testimonials

When I first moved to Spain I attended an intercambio group that was organised by two teachers from the local village instituto (high school/college). It enabled me to practise the Spanish I had already learned at evening classes in England and it taught me about some really interesting Spanish ways and customs. Aside from that I made some amazing friends both Spanish and English, with whom I am still in contact. After later moving to the coast, I am pleased to have attended a new group for the first time last night. It is organised by a fantastic little language school in Estepona.

What exactly is an Intercambio?
An intercambio is a group of people meeting up and exchanging their languages. In my case it is a group of Spanish people wanting to improve their English and a group of English people wanting to improve their Spanish. The group usually meet for an hour or an hour and a half and chat together for half the time in English and half the time in Spanish. In this way, both sides of the group benefit from learning a language and helping others to learn.

Ideal conditions for Spanish/English Intercambio:
An ideal intercambio group should have the following conditions:
-    An even number of Spanish and English speakers
-    People attending who can already speak some of the language they wish to improve. Large groups can then be broken down into smaller groups and organised by level.
-    A good location where people can hear each other well. Bars and cafes are fine as long as they are quiet enough and a little cerveza or copa de vino can even help the linguistic juices flow!
-    Bringing a topic to the evening helps to keep the conversation flowing, raises some interesting debates and highlights some often surprising differences between cultures.
-    Having a good organiser/moderator that can help keep the balance among the group so that everyone has a chance to participate - as well as keep an eye on the time so that it’s evenly divided.

If you would like to find an intercambio group in your area, try contacting your local English or Spanish language school to see if they have one – and if not, you can suggest setting up one of your own. Of course, one of the best things about intercambio is that it’s free and yet you have the chance to learn so much. It is also the perfect compliment to a Spanish course and will give you further value for money as you can practise what you’ve learned in class on your new intercambio friends.

For any further information on intercambio groups or Spanish courses in Spain, just drop us a line.

¡Buena suerte!