Spanish Courses for the mature student older than 50

All the courses at Melkart include:

Melkart now offers a new Course for mature students older than 50 who would like to enjoy a holiday in Andalusia as well as learn a little Spanish and get to know some of the diverse aspects of the culture, such as the gastronomy, history, geography and of course the spectacular flamenco shows.

Now you will be able to do this at Melkart as we have designed a 2 week complete programme where you can enjoy learning Spanish, together with your companions and teachers, in one of the most charming cities in Spain: Cadiz.

These courses are taught by teachers who have specialized in areas most relevant to a study of Spanish culture and who would love to share their knowledge with you. This, combined with studying alongside like-minded students, in a relaxed and friendly environment that is also entertaining and dynamic, makes this the ideal course for fully enjoying Spanish culture.

The course is taught at three levels: Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced; courses take place between October and June.

What do these courses consist of?

Depending on the level of Spanish the pupil has, the courses will contain:

• Ten 45 minute classes each week of
  General Spanish (focusing on communicated grammar)

These grammar classes are taught by communication alone, a form of making sure that the student develops ‘communicative competence’; or rather that each student learns to understand and express themselves in regard to, and performing, certain tasks. These tasks differ according to the levels of difficulty of Spanish being learnt by the student. The knowledge students acquire in these classes will be put to the test by the teacher in real-life situations. You will, for example, go shopping in the market, have breakfast in a local bar, go to the bank and so on.

• Ten 45 minute weekly classes of
  direct communication practice and Spanish culture

Communicative competence is the result of the student’s ability to successfully respond to a number of different social situations that can occur in everyday life, thus showing that knowledge has been truly assimilated. Students will have the opportunity, as mentioned earlier, to practice these responses with the help of their teacher.

At beginners’ level, students will practice these tasks in a way that is both visual and straightforward; they will be introduced to aspects of Spanish culture through experiencing the food, the traditions, parties, geography etc.

At intermediate level, conversational tasks will be more complex and besides learning about our culture through its gastronomy or traditions, students will be introduced to our history and politics.

At advanced level, as well as those aspects of Spanish culture referred to above, which the student will study in more depth, cultural themes such as history, politics, literature and social issues will also be studied.

Complementary Activities

These activities will take place in the afternoon and will include:

• Gastronomy Workshop (first and second Wednesday)
• Going for a snack and chatting (first Monday)
• Flamenco Show (first Tuesday)
• A trip to El Puerto de Santa Maria (first Thursday)
• A moonlit dinner (first Friday)
• A trip to Jerez to visit a sherry ‘bodega’ (second Thursday)
• We’ll eat a delicious local paella (second Tuesday)
• Going for tapas (of course!) Walking first through the city and viewing the sunset from La Caleta beach (second Monday)
• A farewell dinner

This activitiy will take place during the weekend and will consist of a full-day trip out:

Season A (May, June and October)

• Bolonia (beautiful beach with dune and important Roman archeological excavation)
• Tarifa (paradise for surfers and the most southern city of Europe from which you can see Africa)
• Vejer de la Frontera (beautiful white village with a spectacular view)

Season B (January, February, March, April, November and December)

• Arcos (typical white village located atop a rocky limestone ridge)
• Benamahoma (little mountain village known by its fresh water spring)
• Grazalema (beautiful white village located in a natural park designated a Unesco Biosphere reserve)

The minimum number of students on these courses is 3 and the maximum 7.

The price for 2 week course and activities consists of 595 €.

Accommodation

Accommodation is not included in the course price. We recommend to stay in one of the beautiful Hotels in Cádiz or Living with a Spanish family.