JUDITH INTERVIEW
#TalksWithTeachers
Online Spanish classes are more popular today than ever before. Students choose to learn Spanish online because they can have flexibility when booking classes and can learn from native speakers.
But who are the private tutors sharing their knowledge with eager students? Today, we talked to Judith about her experience teaching Spanish online. She told us why she became an online tutor and shared a funny teaching story. Keep reading!
1) When did you start teaching online?
I started teaching during my last year of university. I realized that it wasn’t going to be easy to find work in my field outside my country. So I decided that I needed a job I could do with more flexibility and fewer restrictions. And teaching online gave me that.
2) What is the question you get the most from your students?
They always ask me why Spanish has so many verbal tenses!
3) What’s a funny story you can tell us about your online teaching experience?
When it happened, it wasn’t funny at all. But now, I can laugh about it — more or less! I’m terrified of iguanas and of any kind of lizard. A few years ago, I had a new student who was thirteen and didn’t know that I hated lizards. So one day he decided it was a good idea to call me with his ugly lizard around his neck… Of course, I screamed and the boy (and the lizard) got scared! It was a mess… Fortunately, after that, we didn’t have any other problems. I taught him for a year and we always laughed about the incident!
4) What’s the hardest part about learning Spanish? Can you give learners of Spanish any tips?
If your native language is English, you need to accept that Spanish is very, very different from your native language. Therefore you need to embrace those differences and not get frustrated. Also, learn the difference between “ser” and “estar.” If you move forward not mastering these two verbs, it will be much more difficult to fix it later.
5) Do you think learning Spanish online is any different from learning it in person?
I think it is different. For starters, it is more comfortable to learn it from home. You can do it in your pajamas and at the time that works best for you. So I think all this makes learning Spanish easier, as you will be in the right mood. Also, because online Spanish lessons are usually one-on-one, your teacher can pay more attention to you, which is always beneficial.
6) When you’re not teaching, what are you doing?
If I'm not teaching, I’m probably studying, doing yoga or pilates or eating with my friends.
7) Imagine that you won the lottery tomorrow — what are the first 3 things you would do?
I would probably invest in an online business, donate a part of it to charity, and travel the world while teaching and working online. Oh, and I would probably also buy lots of shoes!
What did you think of this new feature? If you want to learn Spanish in a fun way, Judith is here to teach you! Book your free trial lesson today with her and become fluent in Spanish!