Join this course to enhance your conversational skills in a range of simple everyday situations. To benefit from the course, participants will have done one of the following:
1) studied Spanish for two terms/1 year.
2) completed Parts 1 and 2 of our Spanish Beginners level, or
3) achieved or are near Level A1 of the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR) for Languages.
Course starts: 20 Apr 2026
Enhance your Spanish conversational skills with our elementary-level conversation class, designed for learners with a basic foundation in the language! The course focuses on developing listening and speaking skills, expanding vocabulary, and improving grammar accuracy in basic everyday situations. Through interactive activities and tasks, multimedia resources, and constructive feedback, you'll refine your language and improve your speaking skills.
Our open-access courses cater for mixed-ability groups, fostering a collaborative environment where students work together to achieve their learning goals. The weekly course schedule below provides an overview of the main topics likely to be covered in each session. Please note that these may sometimes change at the tutor’s discretion to reflect the interests of course participants.
Week 1: Talking about yourself and your occupation
Week 2: Daily routine and eating habits
Week 3: Leisure and entertainment preferences
Week 4: Travel and holiday experiences
Week 5: Discussing plans and resolutions
Week 6: Shopping and describing clothes
Week 7: Describing physical appearance
Week 8: Talking about the weather and the seasons
Week 9: Talking about health and well-being
Week 10: At the restaurant and ordering food
Key grammar points
- present tense, regular and irregular verbs, ser + profession, dedicarse a + activity.
- Reflexive verbs, time adverbs, comparative forms.
- Pronominal verbs, indirect object, verbs me gusta, me encanta, me interesa.
- Present perfect (pretérito perfecto) haber + past participle
- Near future: voy a + infinitive; quiero, pienso + infinitive
- Demonstrative adjectives: este, ese, aquel; Adjective-noun agreement
- Verbs ser, estar, tener; adjectives for physical and personality traits
- Weather expressions: hace, hay, está; review of present continuous and future tenses
- Verb doler, sentirse, tener expressions; pronominal verbs
- Polite requests: quisiera, me gustaría; direct object pronouns: lo, la, los, las
Key functions:
- Saying who we are, describing jobs, and talking about professions
- Exploring Spanish mealtime customs and comparing activities with our own
- Discussing favourite free-time activities and types of entertainment
- Recounting past experiences
- Making plans and setting goals
- Expressing preferences and prices
- Describing yourself and others, appearance and personality
- Talking about seasons and activities; expressing what you do depending on the weather
- Describing symptoms and health conditions; talking about healthy habits
- Ordering food and drink; expressing likes, dislikes, and food preference
All weekly class students may become borrowing members of the Rewley House Continuing Education Library for the duration of their course. Prospective students whose courses have not yet started are welcome to use the Library for reference. More information can be found on the Library website.
There is a Guide for Weekly Class students which will give you further information.
No Course book required. All course materials will be provided by the course tutor.
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be issued with an official digital badge from the Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford. In order to be issued with your badge, you will need to have attended at least 80% of the course.
After the course, you will receive an email with a link and instructions on how to download your digital badge. You will be able to add this badge to your email signature and share it on social media if you choose to do so.
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course fee | £300.00 |
If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, you are a full-time student in the UK or a student on a low income, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:
Esteban Cichello-Hubner has an extensive academic background, having pursued International Relations, Applied Linguistics, and Second Language Acquisition at Hertford College, University of Oxford. He also completed a teaching degree at the OU Education Department. Furthering his expertise, Esteban specialised in Spanish Philology at the prestigious University of Salamanca. As an accomplished author and seasoned foreign modern languages tutor, he has successfully taught numerous courses at the Oxford University Language Centre and OUDCE.
Leonardo Sagor is a qualified Modern Foreign Languages tutor from South America with extensive teaching experience at the University of Oxford’s Department for Continuing Education and the Oxford Language Centre. He studied at the University of Salamanca and earned his PGCE from the University of Bedfordshire. A musician and vocalist, Leonardo has recorded for the Michel Thomas language courses. His dynamic, culturally rich lessons aim to create a fun and immersive classroom experience that brings the language to life. A passionate traveller, he has explored over 50 countries, adding a global perspective to his teaching.
Leonardo Sagor is a native qualified Modern Foreign Languages tutor. He is originally from South America and has taught several courses at the Oxford University Department for Continuing Education throughout his career. He is also a composer, a guitar player and a talented singer. Leonardo graduated from the University of Salamanca and obtained his PGCE at the University of Bedfordshire. He is a tireless traveller who has explored more than 50 countries. He recorded his voice for the legendary Michel Thomas language courses and is currently working on teaching Spanish through cinema.
To assist learners with basic proficiency in Spanish in consolidating their conversational skills across a variety of practical everyday situations, thereby laying the groundwork for further study.
Course objectives:
1. improve Pronunciation and intonation to ensure clear communication.
2. enhance learners' ability to understand spoken language through various activities, such as listening activities, simple dialogues, guided role-plays and tasks.
3. encourage learners to participate in simple conversations on everyday topics and gain confidence in speaking.
4. expand vocabulary pertinent to practical everyday contexts and consolidate the application of fundamental grammar structures in spoken language.
Our language courses promote collaborative learning, encouraging peer interaction and real-life activities. You will learn through participating in engaging activities and tasks in the target language. These are likely to include listening activities, guided role-plays, pair- and small-group work conducted in a supportive, friendly and informal learning environment. The course has been structured to help you primarily to develop your speaking and listening skills.
By the end of the course, students will be better prepared to:
1. engage in basic conversations and ask and answer simple questions.
2. recognise and use key phrases for daily routines.
3. construct grammatically correct sentences to provide basic information and express needs.
4. demonstrate some basic knowledge of the cultural nuances and etiquette of the language
Formative assessment will be implemented through a series of class activities ranging from guided role-plays and structured pair-work to less structured dialogues and simple tasks. Learners will be encouraged to participate in class activities to benefit from tutor feedback.
Please use the 'Book now' button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an Enrolment form for short courses | Oxford University Department for Continuing Education
