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SPANISH I

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This grammar course is intended for students who have never before studied Spanish or for those who have not used the language for so long that they need to start over. The class period is 1 1/2 hours long.

Prerequisite: None.

COURSE OBJECTIVE: Completion of the following chapters and topics:

Lección Preliminar: Greetings, Introductions, and Other Expressions

• Introduction to the world of Mariana

• The Spanish alphabet

• The verb ser

• Interrogative words

• The verb estar

• The numbers 0-20

• Definite articles, indefinite articles, and nouns

• Vocabulary

• Pronunciation

• Cultural readings

Lección 1: En la Universidad

• Dialogue - Así es Mariana – En el campus

• Vocabulary

• The present indicative of –ar verbs

• The numbers 21-100

• Telling time

• The verbs hacer and ir

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 2: En clase

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La clase de Mariana

• Vocabulary

• The present indicative of –er and –ir verbs

• Adjectives

• Placement of adjectives

• More about ser, estar, and hay

• The contractions al and del

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 3: Necesito trabajar

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – El nuevo empleado

• Vocabulary

• Stem-changing verbs - the present tense of e > ie

• Stem-changing verbs - the present tense of o > ue

• Expressions with the verb tener

• Possessive adjectives

• Indefinite and negative expressions

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

COURSE MATERIAL:

Así Es (textbook): Fourth Edition

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN: 0-8384-5815-7

ISBN-13: 978-0838458150

Workbook/Lab Manual for Asi Es 4^th

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN-10: 0838459285

ISBN-13: 9780838459287

INSTRUCTOR: Paula Mitre

SPANISH II

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This grammar course is for students who have been introduced to the Spanish language but are still at a beginning level. The class period is 1 1/2 hours long.

Prerequisite: The material covered in Spanish I at La Causerie, in Así Es Preliminary Lesson and Lessons 1, 2, and 3, or the equivalent. 

COURSE OBJECTIVE: Completion of the following chapters and topics:

Lección 4: Así es mi familia

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La familia de Mariana

• Vocabulary

• More irregular verbs in the present tense

• The personal a

• The verbs saber and conocer

• Weather expressions

• The seasons, months, and days of the week

• Numbers above 100

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 5: Así es mi casa

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La tarea doméstica

• Vocabulary

• Prepositional Pronouns

• The present progressive tense

• Stem-changing verbs: The present tense of e > i

• Demonstrative adjectives and pronouns

• Direct object pronouns

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 6: Pasando el día en casa

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La tecnología

• Vocabulary

• Indirect object pronouns

• Direct and indirect object pronouns used together

• The preterit tense of regular verbs

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 7: En el restaurant

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – Un plato cubano

• Vocabulary

• Gustar and similar verbs

• The uses of por and para

• The preterit of more irregular verbs

• The preterit of stem-changing verbs

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 8: ¡Qué comida más fresca!

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – En el supermerdado

• Vocabulary

• The imperfect tense

• The use of the preterit and imperfect

• Se to express an indefinite subject

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

COURSE MATERIAL:

Así Es (textbook): Fourth Edition

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN: 0-8384-5815-7

ISBN-13: 978-0838458150

Workbook/Lab Manual for Asi Es 4^th

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN-10: 0838459285

ISBN-13: 9780838459287

INSTRUCTOR: Patricia Siqueiros

SPANISH III

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This grammar course is for students who have learned the basic elements of the Spanish language. This course builds on what has been learned in Spanish I and II and introduces the present subjunctive tense. The class period is 1 1/2 hours long.

Prerequisite: The material covered in Spanish II at La Causerie, in Así Es Lessons 4, 5, 6, and 7, or the equivalent. 

COURSE OBJECTIVE: Completion of the following chapters and topics:

Lección 9: ¡Toma y pruébatelo!

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana - Ropa y más ropa

• Vocabulary

• Reflexive verbs

• Formal commands with usted and ustedes

• Informal commands with tú

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 10: En la agencia de viajes

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana - ¿Dónde está mi boleto?

• Vocabulary

• The present subjunctive: form and meaning

• The present subjunctive with impersonal expressions

• Relative pronouns

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 11: En la gasolinera

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La llanta desinflada

• Vocabulary

• The present subjunctive in noun clauses

• Se to express unplanned occurrences

• Commands: Nosotros

• Pronunciation

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 12: Busco un hotel que tenga…

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – Una visita a México

• Vocabulary

• The present subjunctive in adjective clauses to express the indefinite/nonexistent

• Ordinal numbers

• Comparatives and superlatives

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 13: Cuidando el cuerpo

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana - ¡Me duele todo!

• Vocabulary

• The past participle

• The present perfect and the pluperfect tenses

• Se to express passive action

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

COURSE MATERIAL:

Así Es (textbook): Fourth Edition

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN: 0-8384-5815-7

ISBN-13: 978-0838458150

Workbook/Lab Manual for Asi Es 4^th

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN-10: 0838459285

ISBN-13: 9780838459287

INSTRUCTOR: Patricia Siqueiros

SPANISH IV

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This grammar course builds on the foundations of what you learned in Spanish I, II, and III, continues developing the present subjunctive, and introduces the past subjunctive, future tense, conditional tense, and perfect tenses. The instructor will assign lessons from the workbook and will answer questions about them but will not review the answers in class, thus the purchase of the workbook for Spanish IV is optional. The class period is 1 hour long.

Prerequisite: The material covered in Spanish III at La Causerie, in Así Es Lessons 8, 9, 10, and 11, or the equivalent. 

COURSE OBJECTIVE: Completion of the following chapters and topics:

Lección 14: La vida deportiva

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – El gran campeón

• Vocabulary

• The future tense

• Adverbs

• The present subjunctive in adverial clauses of time

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 15: Hay que divertirse

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – San Diego y sus atracciones

• The imperfect subjunctive

• The subjunctive in adverbial clauses of purpose and dependency

• Sequences of tenses I: the present and present perfect subjunctive

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 16: Con todo mi corazón

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La telenovela

• Vocabulary

• The conditional

• Conditional if- clauses

• Sequence of tenses II: the imperfect subjunctive

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 17: Problemas sentimentales

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La pareja ideal

• Vocabulary

• Review of the subjunctive mood

• Adjuctives used as nouns

• Possessive pronouns and the stressed form of possessive adjectives

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

Lección 18: Celebraciones

• Dialogue – Así es Mariana – La fiesta de fin de año

• Vocabulary

• Review of the use of the preterit and imperfect

• Reciprocal actions with se

• Listening, speaking, reading, and writing exercises

COURSE MATERIAL:

Así Es (textbook): Fourth Edition

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN: 0-8384-5815-7

ISBN-13: 978-0838458150

Optional:

Workbook/Lab Manual for Asi Es 4^th

Publisher: Thomson Heinle

Authors: Nancy Levy-Konesky and Karen Daggett

ISBN-10: 0838459285

ISBN-13: 9780838459287

INSTRUCTOR: Douglas Eikermann

SPANISH V – READING AND DISCUSSION 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This course will use selected readings to provide exposure to written Spanish in literary, historical, and cultural contexts. The students will read approximately twenty pages of written material per week, and the instructor will lead a discussion in Spanish of the assigned reading. The discussion will include explanations of important grammatical points raised by the text, identification of vocabulary words, and conversation about the plot, characters, literary techniques, symbolism, and other aspects of the reading. The class period is one hour long.

Prerequisite: The material covered in Spanish IV at La Causerie, in Así Es, Lessons 12, 13, 14, and 15, or the equivalent. 

COURSE MATERIAL:

En el tiempo de las Mariposas, Spanish edition
By: Julia Alvarez
ISBN: 978-0-452-28686-3

INSTRUCTOR: Douglas Eikermann

INTERMEDIATE SPANISH CONVERSATION DRILL 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This conversation course is intended to help students gain fluency and confidence in speaking and understanding spoken Spanish. The instructor will facilitate the conversation and assist with the correct use of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation. The format of the class is question-and-answer drill with some emphasis on verb conjugations. The instructor will create a controlled environment in which each student gets equal speaking time and the focus is on understanding and forming complete sentences. The class period is one hour long.

PREREQUISITE: Spanish III or IV at La Causerie, three years of high-school Spanish, three semesters of college Spanish, or the equivalent.

COURSE MATERIAL: There is no required textbook. The purchase of Practice Makes Perfect: Spanish Vocabulary, McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc., 2007, by Dorothy Richmond is optional. The topics to be discussed will be determined by the instructor.

INSTRUCTOR: Douglas Eikermann

ADVANCED SPANISH CONVERSATION 

COURSE DESCRIPTION: This conversation course is intended to allow students to practice speaking and listening to spoken Spanish through dynamic conversations and discussions of some depth. The class period is one hour long.

Prerequisite: Students should be able to participate in dialogue without disruptive pauses. Students should be able to speak with sufficient grammatical accuracy and sufficient   vocabulary so that they can enter into lengthy and complex conversations. Preferred placement is given to students not enrolled in another Spanish conversation class at La Causerie.

COURSE MATERIAL: There is no required textbook. Topics and material are determined by the instructor.

INSTRUCTOR: This course is not offered at this time.