Top Tips

If you don't have children of Hispanic speakers in your classroom now, you will be blessed with them in the future.

Hispanics are the fastest growing population in the United States.

Sidebar

Why Study Spanish

Spanish is the world's third most spoken language, after Mandarin Chinese and English, and ranks second in terms of native speakers. Almost 500 million people worldwide speak Spanish!

Spanish is the second most used language in international communication

Spanish is the native language of approximately 350 million people in 21 countries.

The countries with the largest Spanish speaking populations are:

• Mexico: 98 million


• Spain: 39 million


• USA: 39 million


• Argentina: 35 million


• Colombia: 36 million


• Venezuela: 22 million


• Peru: 20 million

Hispanics account for 12.5% of the US population, and, 29 million US residents above the age of 5 speak Spanish at home. This is one in ten people who live here.

Source: Don Quijote .Org

Knowing a Language is not Enough: You have to Understand the Culture

Vocabulary and concepts do not a language make, at least not in its entirety. So, what else makes a language?

• Culture


• Attitudes and Beliefs


• Values and Ideals


• History


• Literature and the Arts


• Architecture and Dwellings

What cultural learning is available at Don Quijote .Com?

Spanish fiestas

Spanish music

Spanish cinema

Spanish food

Spanish flamenco

Spanish siesta

Spanish painters

Spanish writers

Languages in Spain

Spanish dances

Spanish History

Spanish Customs

Free Membership

Don Quijote offers a free membership.

Link to free Don Quijote Membership application

Impressive Quality and Depth of Information

Compare the quality of Don Quijote.com™ with a site like Thinkquest™

Thinkquest™

WikiPedia™ Culture of Mexico

You can see that Don Quijote™ offers a richer, deeper experience of the culture.

Online Courses and Study Abroad Opportunities

Don Quijote seems to have chosen strategic locations, i.e., great cultural, historical and tourist spots to offer immersion classes.

Link to Study with Don Quijote information…

Valuing Students and their Culture

Sharing appreciation for the richness of all cultures showcases a Master Teacher's ability to establish relationships with students and communicate at a deeper level. Showing and demonstrating this appreciation for each culture does more to convince students that their teacher is "for real" and not just trying to con them into cooperating.

Teaches can devote an entire year to thematic units based upon the cultural heritage of the students in their classes.