Welcome to Hablarama, a brand new site dedicated to the Spanish language. We’re here to help you learn real Spanish more quickly and more efficiently, and to make the whole experience a lot more fun while we’re at it. Whether you’re studying Spanish at university, need the language for business, or just want to be able to get by on holiday, we’re going to be giving you some great advice, some neat tips, and loads of useful contacts and links to make the trip from beginner to fluent a whole lot easier.
Hablarama & Linguabanca
Hablarama belongs to the Linguabanca network of language-learning websites. Our sister sites mainly focus on teaching English to Spanish speakers, and we go from beginner level (ingles23.com) right up to advanced business English with inglesnegocios23.com. We also have Business English 23, a site which aims to teach Telephone English and Email English to students and professionals anywhere in the world!
Who are the team behind Hablarama?
We’re a team of native English speakers who have travelled extensively in Latin America, but now call mainland Spain our home (the pretty Catalan village of Cadaqués to be precise). We know what it’s like to arrive in a Spanish-speaking country with a vocabulary that a parrot would be ashamed of. It ain’t pretty. And we really don’t want you to make the same mistakes that we made. So we’ve sat down and we’ve put our heads together to come up with a site that will be full of the type of useful help, advice and resources that we wished we’d had access to when we needed to communicate in Spanish. All of the Spanish language materials are written or reviewed by native Spanish language teachers, and all audio files are recorded by native Spanish-speakers, usually professional actors or voice-over artists.
Here’s some of the stuff we’ll be writing about…
Don’t look like an idiot in…
Forget the grammar, your first contact with Spanish is likely to be in a shop, bar or restaurant while on vacation, whether that be Mexico, the Balearic islands, or up a mountain in the Andes. While it would be nice to know the correct use of the subjunctive tense, it’s a lot more useful to know how to order a beer, buy some sun screen or get some information from the hotel receptionist. That’s where our don’t-look-like-an-idiot guides come in handy. No grammar involved (well, ok, we may sneak a couple of points in, but it won’t hurt, honestly), just the phrases you’re really going to need. Notice that ‘really’? At Hablarama we’re all about practical everyday Spanish. The stuff people actually use, not the staid and sometimes outdated lines you’ll get fed by textbooks.
Where to study Spanish abroad.
Studying languages abroad is a great way of improving fluency. However, it can be a headache deciding exactly where to go, and what sort of course to take. At Hablarama, our team of experts will aim to give you the inside story on a host of cities in both Spain and Latin America. They’ll look into a whole range of destinations so that you’ll have a much firmer idea of which type of place is right for you. We’ll also publish more specific information on language schools, talking to directors and teachers about the pros and cons of their particular school, city and country.
Tests and reviews
We love apps, and we’re pretty enthusiastic about the internet as an educational tool in general. There are some great online Spanish courses and mobile apps out there. They range from simple games for kids to full blown language ‘communities’ which combine learning with a strong social element. Of course, there is also a lot of rubbish too, so we’re going to sift the wheat from the chaff and tell you what’s worth checking out, and what isn’t. And our reviews aren’t only limited to the digital world. Our extended team of experts will be casting a knowing eye over good old books too (remember those?).
Our own materials
We don’t just review other people’s resources, we are also going to put our money where are mouth is and produce our own materials. From ebooks to videos and audio-recordings, expect Hablarama’s material to be practical and entertaining. We’re not into duplication, so we’ll only produce our own resources where we see a genuine need for them.
We’re particularly proud of our listening section. Check out the original material our writers, teachers and actors have produced.
Educators and Authors
If you’re a teacher or education professional we hope you’ll check in with Hablarama to keep up with the latest developments and innovations in language teaching, as well as free resources, which you can use in your own classes. We’re also hoping to be a reference point for everyone involved in the production of Spanish-learning materials, from authors, to publishing houses and digital innovators.
