Course description

Can you already get by in Spanish but find that longer conversations wear you out, or that you go quiet when people start talking about ideas? This course takes you from a shaky B1 to a solid one, using Spanish as it's spoken in Spain. You'll tell stories with all the past tenses, use the subjunctive with confidence, talk about what you would do if things were different, report what people said, give and defend opinions, and cope with real situations when something goes wrong.

It's a full course, not a phrase list. There are 10 sections and 50 written lessons, each with plenty of example sentences, a short dialogue and something to say out loud. You follow a fictional council planning officer from Devon through a year of practice with his exchange partner, ending with three weeks in a flat in Gijón, with the mistakes he made and how he fixed them. Every section has a worksheet, answers, a cheat sheet and printable tools.

What you'll learn

• Describing people, places and change: character and mood, towns and homes, relative clauses like en el que and cuyo, adjective position, and phrases such as ya no, seguir and dejar de.
• Stories and experiences: the four past tenses together, the past continuous, habits in the past, reacting to other people's stories and telling a story well.
• The present subjunctive in depth: para que, antes de que, cuando, busco un piso que tenga, quizás, aunque and polite arrangements.
• The imperfect subjunctive and hypotheses: si tuviera, ojalá, quería que, como si, quisiera and habría hecho.
• Reported speech: dijo que, me preguntó si, me pidió que, changing time words, reporting verbs and summarising.
• Se and impersonal Spanish: se dice, se venden, se me olvidó, verbs of becoming and verbs that change with se.
• Opinions and debate: creo que and no creo que, agreeing and disagreeing, taking turns, talking about issues and writing an opinion piece.
• Real situations: renting a flat, problems and complaints, the pharmacy, joining a conversation group and giving a short talk.

The final project

You'll set your own goals, write a 250-word opinion piece, give a five-minute spoken account of a conversation or event, then prepare for, hold and review a 30-minute conversation in Spanish. A project brief, a Spanish plan workbook, a discussion review sheet and a self-review checklist are included.

Who this course is for

• Adults who can already chat about familiar things in Spanish and want to reach a solid B1.
• People who know the subjunctive exists but don't use it yet, or freeze when a conversation turns to opinions and what-ifs.
• Anyone planning a longer stay in Spain, or with Spanish-speaking friends, family or colleagues.

How the course works

Read each lesson, say the Spanish out loud, then do the Try it task with the section's practice pack. There's no audio, so the course shows you how to find listening practice of your own and how to get the most from a conversation partner. You keep lifetime access, so you can come back whenever you need a reminder.

What will I learn?

• Describe people, places and how things have changed, with relative clauses and precise adjectives
• Tell stories and experiences using all four past tenses, and react naturally to other people's stories
• Use the present subjunctive for purpose, time, what you're looking for and uncertainty
• Talk about hypotheses, wishes and regrets with the imperfect subjunctive and si clauses
• Report what people said, asked and asked you to do
• Use se for general statements, the passive and unplanned events, and verbs of becoming
• Give, defend and write opinions, and take part in a discussion or debate
• Handle real situations in Spain, from renting a flat to the pharmacy, and give a short talk

Frequently asked questions