All SISAI teachers have university qualifications and with extensive teaching experience. All are native Spanish speakers,which means Spanish is their first language. This is very important when selecting a Spanish school. SISAI teachers have a certification in teaching Spanish as a secondary language. The teachers enjoy working at SISAI, and it shows! Many of the teachers have worked at SISAI for more than 10+ years.
Special emphasis is placed on:
* Linguistic and cultural content
* Spoken communication
* Listening
* Reading and comprehension
* Writing skills
SISAI Spanish teachers are trained to teach Spanish in all four learning styles:
- Visually with pictures and handouts
- Auditory with 1-on-1 conversations and mini-conferences
- Reading and writing in Spanish – daily practice
- Kinesthetic teaching with hands on how-to classes such as cooking or salsa dancing
The daily after school activities and weekend excursions are perfect examples of using all 4 learning styles to improve your Spanish while having fun!
A view of SISAI
Weekly Lesson Plans:
Each week your instructor will write a lesson plan, and will review it with you. There will be occasional assessments to help determine areas that you may need additional focus or practice. This content will then be added into your weekly lesson plans. The daily notes from all of your lessons will be provided to you for your own study, as well as future review and study once you have complete your time at SISAI. At the end of your stay, all of your lesson plans will be made available to take home for your ongoing reference.
Mini Conferences:
Each teacher researches, arranges and presents topics for weekly mini-conferences. The mini conferences consist of many topics about Guatemala, from Mayan history to current Guatemala governmental policies. The mini-conferences are designed to help further listening skills in Spanish while learning about Guatemala. Conferences are translated by an intermediate or advanced student (which is a great learning experience for them!). This provides and excellent opportunity for all
students.