Reviews for Beginners Level: Spanish for Absolute Beginners

I can't believe how far I have come in just 10 weeks of Spanish class through Berges. With the small group size of each class, I'm able to ask every question that comes up, review all of my homework, and get lots of practice speaking Spanish with my classmates and professor. Speaking of professors, I can not speak highly enough of Rolando. He is engaging, clear, and has lots of ways to explain the language that help me make sense of how it's different than English. This makes Spanish feel more natural to me, as opposed to always trying to translate in my head. I'm so grateful that my friend recommended Berges to me, and I recommend it to everyone who asks about my new found linguistic skills! Don't hesitate - just commit to a class once a week and you'll be amazed at how quickly you can navigate a simple conversation with another Spanish speaker.

So far, I have had a great experience with the Berges Institute and my teacher Claudia! The course for beginners is well paced and small classes allow for lots of conversation practice. Claudia is very patient and covers material thoroughly, practicing key vocab and rules until we understand.

I did not realize this was an online zoom course; and the course was ultimately cancelled and I couldn't choose another option as none of them worked with my schedule. The actual course is good and functioned as expected. There was no demand to actually do the homework; so it felt like it was too easy to cruise through, though. which is my one complaint about the actual class.

Some teachers did a better job of speaking more in Spanish than others. But consistency is good amongst courses.

The course material was presented in an easy-to-follow manner. I learned at a nice pace and never felt confused or overwhelmed. The instructor explained the nuances of the language (for example, when to use ser vs estar). This is not an easy concept to learn from an app! The end result is that the grammatical rules make sense. I loved it!

This is an amazing course, I have learned so much! I have tried several different teachers throughout and all did an excellent job of teaching. Highly recommend whether you have any experience or not.

I liked the course. It's structured so that you learn enough to start conversing right away which is important to me as speaking is where I struggle the most. The homework is challenging but not too much. I can just do a little bit every day.

Great course with great instructors! The Berges Graf Method just works. The beginning course is heavy on grammar and vocabulary and is conducted in English. There are 10 units in the curriculum, and a homework assignment at the end of each unit that is reviewed at the following lesson. The instructors go above and beyond the class materials and make the class interesting. The classes are online and small (up to 5 people) and the instructors get all the students involved. Highly recommended!

Thoroughly enjoyed Nelson's beginner Spanish class! I was a little skeptical about learning Spanish virtually but could not have been more surprised and pleased with the classes! Nelson was AMAZING!! He made the learning fun and engaging - and was extremely patient (which I appreciated!) Would highly recommend this course - would highly recommend Nelson!

The material is similar to any you might encounter in a typical language course but the instructor(s) really were the ones to make it come alive. In the beginning, before the group and the instructor got to know each other well, a lot of time was spent going over the correct answers to the homework, which reduced the amount of time to focus ahead if homework concepts were clear with the whole group. As time progressed and the instructor got to know the group better, the homework review became more dynamic and engaging. I think this was more due to the structure of the lesson than the instructor. The book and other course material was very good and the support and flexibility from the organization was great.

A fantastic starter course. I learned a significant amount!

I enjoyed the class with Maria, she was always very cheerful and by reviewing the class work and homework the class stayed organized and the 90 minutes went by quickly and I was never bored. Also I liked the way she utilized the screen share to review the materials. She also made sure everyone was engaged by calling on everyone to answers questions and participate.

Overall the course is good. The reason for the 3 stars is due to having 3 different instructors within the 10weeks. All 3 instructors has different teaching styles. Although each new instructor tried to make the transition seamless the overall experience of the course was impacted by needing to readjust to each teachers style.

Berges Spanish was great! The class options allowed for taking classes when it worked in my schedule. The pace, practice, homework, and live lessons were supportive and truly moved me forward in learning Spanish. I will be starting the next level soon!

Juan is great! The way the classes are paced works well. The small classes and student participation ensures you’re always paying attention. ¡Excelente curso! ¡Gracias!

Hving taken other beginner Spanish language classes, I can say the pace and content of the classes is just right for this level. I feel I have a sure foundation to go on to the next level.

I enjoy how this course is structured to gradually introduce the fundamentals of learning to communicate in Spanish. Each week offers segmented batches of vocabulary, in addition to rules for how these words should be properly structured and used in everyday scenarios. If you put in the time to memorize and practice the new vocabulary introduced each week to stay up with the class, then you will surely see progress.

amazing . very good and structured.

Excellent course. I feel as though I learned a lot in a short amount of time. The classes were fun and interesting with Edgardo and he made concepts very clear. He was also very patient and supportive. I am continuing on with him, and feel that I will get the best possible education in Spanish.

Love the course material and structure. It definitely sets the foundation for my Spanish learning.

Really enjoyed the class. Every week I was surprised by my ability to put words together to create longer sentences. Nelson made the class fun and interactive which made all the difference. I also was able to make friends from work which was an added bonus! Definitely a lot to learn still, but am so happy with everything I learned in 10 weeks.

Great course. Excellent instructor. Very interactive. Forces you to learn and speak Spanish, instead of just listening and forgetting.

I had the privilege of being a student in Professor Sofia's Spanish class, and I must express my sincere appreciation for her exceptional teaching style. Sofia proved to be an amazing educator who adeptly delivered content in a manner that was both accessible and easy to digest. One of the standout qualities of Professor Sofia was her deliberate pace, ensuring that all students could follow along and comprehend the material thoroughly. Her use of relatable examples and clear explanations significantly enhanced the learning experience, making complex concepts more manageable. What truly set Professor Sofia apart was her ability to create a classroom environment that was not only educational but also enjoyable. She infused a sense of joy and enthusiasm into her lessons, making the learning process both engaging and dynamic. Importantly, Sofia fostered a safe and supportive atmosphere where students felt comfortable making mistakes without fear of embarrassment. In conclusion, I highly commend Professor Sofia for her dedication to her students' understanding and her commitment to cultivating a positive learning environment. Sofia's teaching style is a testament to her passion for education, and I feel fortunate to have benefited from her expertise.

It's a great course for the value! For those thinking about taking the courses from Berges Institute, just be aware that you have to commit time outside of the course to expand on what you learned in the class. You are not going to become proficient by only spending 90 minutes a week in class. Berges does a great job getting you started, but you do have to put in the work when you're not in class.

The course moved at a comfortable pace and the material presented was suitable for true beginner. I enjoyed the way the material was presented in the Berges textbook and the weekly homework assignments helped to reinforce each week's lesson. Although it might seem overwhelming at first, once you get into a consistent rhythm and schedule for doing the homework, it flies by. While the online only format is convenient, particularly if I am traveling for work, I do wish this was an in-person class. Or if there could be some way for students to communicate with each other for meetings outside the classroom in order to practice more.

I really liked Nelson, but the class was canceled half way through, I don't think I can leave more than a 2 star review since the class wasn't completed. Additionally, there isn't a good replacement for my schedule so I'm trying to rearrange but it's fairly difficult and I'm not sure when I'll be able to complete the class.

The course includes all aspects e.g. alphabet, grammar, phonetics, in away that from lesson 1, we learn new things from each aspect of the language.

Good material and good approach to learning Spanish. Interactive sessions in small groups are very helpful in learning Spanish, and I appreciate the focus on conversational aspects.

I have really enjoyed learning Spanish via Berges. The classes are well-paced and can be challenging but aren't overwhelming.

Spanish Level 1 for beginners or those who haven’t been studying Spanish for a long time. Basic concepts are taught. We learned about Ser/Estar, family, colors, emotional states, some of the most useful regular and irregular verbs, reflexive verbs, etc. As the course progressed, there was more conversation each lesson.

This was a wonderful beginning Spanish class. We were able to build sentences and convey basic information within just a couple of weeks, while understanding the building blocks of the language and where it differs from English.

Thank you Rolando Gonzalez! My class from last year was great, but this class was awesome!! Rolando's teaching style makes you want to learn and engage. Thank you for your patience, everything just clicked this go round. I hope to have you as my instructor for my level 2 class. It will make a difference in my learning to maintain the same instructor. Loved this class and will encourage others to take the class and get involved. Thank you for the opportunity to learn and expand my language skills!

The class provides a good foundation and it is very helpful that students are required to speak in Spanish from early in the course.

This was my first online class with Berges Institute. I took the beginners course. In my opinion it was a lot easier and effective for me. I really enjoyed it.

The course is packed full of material. It is a lot to get through and absorb in a 10 week class so choosing the right instructor is critical! Fortunately my instructor helped keep us on pace and reviewed homework thoroughly so we could learn and retain the knowledge.

For a begginers course you do leave with a lot of knowledge regarding understanding Spanish. As long as you practice as much as possible you can understand a lot of conversations around you and read quite a bit of Spanish. Speaking and conjugating sentences takes a lot more practice so just keep going with level 2, you'll get there. My instructor was Rolando Gonzalez and he is an incredible instructor reason our begginers group signed up for level 2 together.

I enjoyed the pace of this course. Lots of stuff to remember but it was manageable. Looking forward to my next lesson! Loved that most classes were pretty small and I was able to get lots of practice speaking Spanish.

Solid curriculum at a reasonable pace, with good interaction facilitated among classmates.

I was, overall, very happy with the course. The structure is set up very well to allow a beginner to feel like they are learning what they need to know without being overwhelming.

Awesome class

It is a fun course. It gets you going speaking and writing Spanish from the start.

The class was excellent and perfectly paced in accordance with the homework. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

The curriculum for the course was well thought out. I loved the course book; it served as a great study guide. The course covered everything for beginners and prepared me for general conversation. A lot of vocabulary is covered; being able to go back to the course materials was helpful.

This was beyond a boring class the first few sessions. It was an entire 90 minutes on going over pronunciation in the following sessions. The teacher often forgot the name of the students who to ask questions to next he never once deviated from the written workbook that you gave. A teacher is not a teacher if they just read the written, workbook, and give the same exercises. I did not take most of this course. I cannot learn with a teacher who just reads verbatim from a workbook. It was incredibly boring.

Not too much , not too little Perfect for all beginners, for easy start with your journey with Spanish

Fun and fast moving.

Even if I prefer in-person classes, online worked just as well. Great class!!

Awesome course - the teaching style and review is very formulaic and logical, which makes it easy with practice to retain what I'm learning. I love the supplemental material as well - newsletters, blog resources, and AI chat bot.

The teaching has been quite thorough with good explanations on why the sentences are constructed they way the are. The teacher has been patient with the students which makes for a calm atmosphere for learning.

Great course. I enrolled at Berges a little over a month ago and will continue through the program!