Is this a stupid idea? Learning Spanish in Spain.

[DandelionDahlia]

The DC want to learn Spanish this summer.

They’re 13 and 10.

I’m happy to take them to Spain (DP can’t take holiday then).

I can’t drive and we like town/city not countryside.

I actually speak good Spanish but am a bit shy and have a comedy English accent. DC speak basic Spanish, they can hold a conversation.

I have 2 options and would REALLY value any feedback.

1. Two weeks in Castelldefels near Barcelona, language camp for the kids during the day (it’s called Don Quijote), lessons in the morning, activities in the afternoon, sleep in a holiday flat with me at night.

Advantage: not too scary. Fun place by the sea. Plenty for me to do during the day while they’re in camp.

Disadvantage: we are pale and don’t love the heat. Also will they just talk English all day? Also will they hear lots of Catalan and get confused?

1. A northern town - maybe Santander? Gijón? Bilbao? And a daily holiday camp aimed at Spanish kids. Something sporty or cookery. Sleep in a holiday flat with me.

Advantage: much cheaper. Cooler. The possibility of actually talking Spanish to Spanish kids.
Disadvantage: not sure their language level is really up to it. Hard to find and book from the UK. Feels like a leap into the unknown.

What would you do?
Any other options I’ve missed?

DD is 13, so this is relevant to now.

The main problem will be that children will speak to each other in the local dialect.

Schools break up mid June OP, FYI, August the whole family goes on holiday.

I love languages and am happy that Catalán has recovered so well in my lifetime.

I would not send a non Spanish speaker to learn Spanish in Catalunya.

The accent in Asturias is perfectly fine, Galicia will have a slight Portugueseness but really is not any more an issue than Spaniard learning English in Cardiff.

Oh, I'm sorry I totally misunderstood! I thought she wanted a summer camp with Spanish children!

In that case whole thing is moot. No, they won't learn a word more of Spanish then they already know. Area doesn't make a blind bit of difference! They'll have college late teens working there practising their English on them and putting it on their C.V.

@pixie5121

I agree. They really won't learn much at all.
I know people who have worked on these sorts of things and it's not great. (Only Madrid and Valencia, however) they get paid a pittance and the client gets charged a fortune.

They'll have a fabulous holiday though and be immersed in the culture!

Me banging on about summer camps and different dialects that have to be spoken (to a greater or lesser extent) was not helpful!

@adriftabroad

I agree. They really won't learn much at all. I know people who have worked on these sorts of things and it's not great. (Only Madrid and Valencia, however) they get paid a pittance and the client gets charged a fortune.

They'll have a fabulous holiday though and be immersed in the culture!

Me banging on about summer camps and different dialects that have to be spoken (to a greater or lesser extent) was not helpful!

They won't learn very much formal language, at all, no. Except the passion for languages, for Spain and its people and culture and a desire to communicate and speak to people in another language. It's called the Affective Dimension and it's the single most important element in language learning pedagogic theory. In short- if you don't like something, you'll never be much good at it because you won't feel personally motivated to do it.

Santiago de Compostela has some good language schools. The language school idea is fab, they’ll really enjoy it.

TheBareTree is there one in Santiago de Compostela you can recommend?

I’m a bit worried that some people think they won’t learn anything.

It would be the most expensive holiday we’ve ever had.

Thanks pixie5121

They do have lessons.

One of them would get a good GCSE if they took it now, maybe a seven.

The other one would get about a grade four and is good at listening and reading, less strong in writing and speaking.

The language school is £800 per fortnight per child for day camp. Then accommodation, flights and most food is in addition to that.

Why don't you just send them on a language exchange? Much cheaper and much more effective.

Send them separately though.

We just immersed our DDs in activities every summer. We went for six weeks in the summer for about 15 years and without doubt they learnt (or consolidated what they knew) by enrolling them in activities with Spanish kids.
For example when they were younger they were signed up for age appropriate water sessions where they would go to paddle board, windsurfing, kayaking and later sailing and diving, or pony camps if they were good!!
Cost an effing fortune but it was literally and metaphorically dropping them in at the deep end.
Now DD2 is 16 and is a moderate speaker but was thrilled to drop Spanish after her GCSEs and DD1 is in her final year at uni studying Spanish.
Felt it was worth the investment for both of them but really don't imagine two weeks in the summer would achieve much in the long run. Sorry

Another vote for Lingoo. We've had great experiences with language exchanges and paid stays through them. Would thoroughly recommend.

I did 3 months at Don Quijote Salamanca between A levels and uni and absolutely loved every minute of it. The classes and school events etc were run entirely in Spanish - no opportunity to drop back into English really. We tended to use Spanish as our main conversational language outside of class even though basically everyone was either British or effectively fluent in English - that was what we were paying to be there for so I guess we wanted to make the most of the opportunity.

I appreciate it's harder to get kids to stick to that, but there was such a massive range of nationalities there that the school just make it the norm to use Spanish as the common language, so hopefully they take this approach with the summer schools too and really try to immerse the kids in it. It's definitely the best way to learn faster.

I'd 100% recommend DQ based on my experience and Salamanca is a lovely place, big enough to have plenty to do but not a huge overwhelming city, so easy to feel at home there quickly.

Just thinking about it is making me want to go back and do it again!

San Sebastian in northern Spain is an amazing city. If you could find some Spanish classes there that would be great. There are 2 beaches in the city, the old town is great for pintxos bars. We went with a 4 and 6 year old and loved it.

I did a language exchange many many years ago - back in the last millennium - and it was great. We hadn't met the other family beforehand.

But I don't think I want to send the kids abroad without me this year. I would worry one might test positive and be unable to travel home.

If we could do a paid stay as a family, I'd totally be up for that.

Studying in Spain is an excellent idea. It'll be good not just in terms of language learning but also for their intercultural skills. I teach Spanish in a HE setting and most of my undergraduate students got the big for the language after a short stay in Spain when they were kids.

Can I recommend they do a little bit of fun reading to prepare before they go abroad? This bilingual book is great and I first heard about it on MN, if all places! Viaje a Madrid https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B097QGB35K

Despite the title, it's mostly set in a northern Spanish town, Santiago de Compostela. It might help the children get motivated .

Thanks for the book recommendation TR888, just bought that.

And have also signed them up for Italki classes and have found two great teachers, thanks TyrannosaurusRegina

Hi @DandelionDahlia, a few comments from me. I disagree with a previous poster about the language being difficult to understand in Asturias- I think it’s absolutely fine. Having said that, I studied in Granada so after that everything else is a breeze 😀.
Secondly, Malaga would be lovely but I suspect you’d find it easy to get away with speaking English there so might not meet your objective.
We’re spending a month in Gijón this summer on a similar mission. My husband is Spanish and the kids need a boot up the backside in terms of improving their Spanish so we’re going to try a bit of total immersion but more through some activities and sports classes / camps. You’ll also find the kids get involved just by decamping to a nice park in the afternoon and they will mix with local kids.

Gijón is a great city with a beach, and plenty to do. You can eat out very cheaply and there’s plenty of parks for you to sit with a kindle while the kids mingle. However, if you are considering it, there are lots of language schools. A friend of mine owns a school and could organise intercambios or whatever too.

Hope that helps!

Go where you want and find a spanish summer camp for your kids (one aimed at locals, not languages, which does activities your kids genuinely want to do. They'll have fun, and learn the language without studying. There will people who know English around for the basics and if not google translate is wonderful.
Likewise go somewhere where you will relax and have fun. You're own Spanish will improve and Spain has internet for translation apps in an emergency.

@DandelionDahlia

The DC want to learn Spanish this summer.

They’re 13 and 10.

I’m happy to take them to Spain (DP can’t take holiday then).

I can’t drive and we like town/city not countryside.

I actually speak good Spanish but am a bit shy and have a comedy English accent. DC speak basic Spanish, they can hold a conversation.

I have 2 options and would REALLY value any feedback.

1. Two weeks in Castelldefels near Barcelona, language camp for the kids during the day (it’s called Don Quijote), lessons in the morning, activities in the afternoon, sleep in a holiday flat with me at night.

Advantage: not too scary. Fun place by the sea. Plenty for me to do during the day while they’re in camp.

Disadvantage: we are pale and don’t love the heat. Also will they just talk English all day? Also will they hear lots of Catalan and get confused?

1. A northern town - maybe Santander? Gijón? Bilbao? And a daily holiday camp aimed at Spanish kids. Something sporty or cookery. Sleep in a holiday flat with me.

Advantage: much cheaper. Cooler. The possibility of actually talking Spanish to Spanish kids.
Disadvantage: not sure their language level is really up to it. Hard to find and book from the UK. Feels like a leap into the unknown.

What would you do?
Any other options I’ve missed?

Castelldefels is a very international town so you would hear more Castillian Spanish than Catalan on the streets. DQ is good in that the students come from all over so in order to communicate with each other it's Spanish or English, usually, or Russian, which is a prominent language in that area (not sure how it will be this summer). I don't think it is an issue at all to learn Spanish in one of the bilingual communities in Spain - in fact it can be a very educational experience for kids from monolingual countries! I know many people who learned Spanish in Barcelona, Bilbao and San Sebastian.

One thing I would try to discern before committing to DQ is the ratio of kids coming from UK and Ireland in the summer - too many and it'll dilute the immersive experience. Also - check out International House and Enforex - two other very established language course providers.

Do you know your kids' language level of Spanish? If they're at A2 pushing B1, they would find it hard but would benefit from a fully immersive experience. If there are no language lessons in the camp, I would maybe combine it with some private tuition for them - the camp might be able to recommend a local teacher?

What I would do is find a camp that includes accommodation with a native host family. This is where summer camp kids do most of their language practice and development.