Author's Note

Author's Note

Ahora Empezamos exists for many reasons and is a product of many years. Before finding my home in the Spanish classroom, I taught bilingual education, English as a Second Language, and English as a Foreign Language. Then, I transitioned to teaching Spanish, where I have been in a formal educational setting for more than 36 years. Outside of the classroom, one of my favorite activities has always been writing my own teaching materials, and then finding fun and creative ways to use them. I enjoy creating activities to encourage my students to communicate, and watching them become more confident as they do so. And, I very much enjoy experiencing and learning about new cultures in a variety of places and ways, and then sharing what I learn with others. In short, I love learning and watching others learn, especially anything related to language and culture, and I have been fortunate enough to have enjoyed these activities for many years.

Languages and all related to them fascinate me. On my own I have studied Portuguese, Italian, French, Catalan, Latin, and Esperanto. Explaining the various components of learning Spanish to others and having them understand is extremely rewarding for me. The first books I wrote introduced children to Spanish. The next book I wrote focused exclusively on the subjunctive. When I was writing an online course, I could not find a book to cover the vocabulary, grammar, and culture in the way that I wanted to include them, and so I created a way for students to self-generate a weekly vocabulary list, wrote all of the grammar explanations and activities, and created cultural activities for the course. During Covid, I wrote some story books, resulting hard and on-line copies. After Covid, I wanted to continue to write. I realized that students were coming back to the classroom, but no longer wanted or were willing to buy expensive textbooks. So, I started writing more grammar practice sheets so they could extend their learning and practice beyond the classroom. Last year I wrote an intermediate level Open Educational Resource, Ahora Entendemos. So, writing an elementary level text seemed like a logical next step. Thus, Ahora Empezamos grew over the course of a year that included a spring semester sabbatical.

Why this book? This book is exactly what I think my students need. I want them to understand and be able to explain the Spanish language. I understand that students come from a variety of learning backgrounds. I believe there are different competencies one should strive to achieve in and with any language. To really understand a language, one must examine, practice, and learn the grammar. Too much education is about regurgitating information without processing it. It is necessary to be able to put concepts and explanations in one's own words. Language is a living, dynamic thing that grows and changes and needs to be used. Learning occurs every time a language is used and it can be used in a variety of settings, some more fun and entertaining than others. Most of all, I want others to enjoy the process of learning Spanish.

Learning a language develops critical thinking and communication skills. Learning a new language should include the careful examination of how things are done differently by diverse individuals in a variety of settings. Students should realize that there never really is only one way to do any one thing, especially communicate. Students should be encouraged to develop interpersonal skills when studying and using a language. The typical foreign language classroom involves a variety of activities and usually incorporates individual, large group, small group, partner and whole classroom groupings. This resource has activities that can be used as they are written. They can also be duplicated, expanded, or adapted to best suit the needs of any group of learners.

Ahora Empezamos is intended for all learners just starting or reviewing basic components of the Spanish language. This resource is written in English at an elementary level with the assumption that the learner has been exposed to only a little Spanish. Effective learning environments and good learning materials are open and inviting to all learners. Students learn best when they are encouraged to learn in a supportive way. Studying Spanish should be a welcoming experience for everyone because all individuals have important contributions to make in a language classroom, in the community in which they live, and in the world as a whole.

I find that there is a richness in our lives when we know and can use more than one language, and can effectively communicate with others. For me, language learning is a magical process that exposes all involved to new ways of learning, thinking, communicating, understanding, and living. Ahora Empezamos is intended to be a starting place for learning or reviewing Spanish. My hope is that all who use it will enjoy using and adapting it to fill their needs.

~ DLHatcher