In the news, social media tends to be stigmatized as an addictive, brainwashing and vainplace on the internet that wastes people's time. The amount of articles expounding on the negative effects of social media juxtaposedto the positive ones are enormous. However in my personal use social media has been a great and useful tool. I have gotten the opportunity to come into contact with a lot of interesting people through Facebook, Instagram, Periscope and other platforms. Fortunately, through a language learning group on Facebook called, English with GiamoJC in the 305, I found Vero. She is a beautiful young woman who makes incredible Youtube videos that help people learn Spanish or English.
Thank you so much for doing this interview. Can you explain your background a little bit. Like where are you from? Where did you study?
I´m from Spain. I was raised in Madrid and I currently still live there,but not in the city center. I live in a little citynamed Villaviciosa de Odon onthe outskirts of Madrid, away from the city’s stressful lifestyle and heavy pollution. When I was a teenager I hated my city I considered it as a remote place in the middle of nowhere, that perception changed when I got older and now I think it is the perfect place to live.
I studied law at a university in Madrid andgot my degree in 2009.I work as a lawyer too but being a lawyer is less fun and more stressful than Ally Mcbeal, a TV show about a young female attorney.
How did you get your start in teaching Spanish/English as a second language?
Well, I needed some time off in 2014 so I decided to move out to Sydney, Australia, to learn English. I knew a little bit of English fromwhat I studied at school, but when you don´t use a language you lose it.
Studying and working for a year in Australia boosted my English to a higher level. I met people from all over the globe and many of them were interested in learning Spanish and told me many times to teach them. So I could say firstly I was anEnglish student and then I became a Spanish/English teacher out of the blue.
What motivated you to start teaching on Youtube?
It was the consequence of insomnia. One night I couldn’tsleep and grew tired of rolling over the bed. So for two hours I took my phone and started watching videos on youtube when suddenly a weird thought came into my mind,“I could use youtube to teach Spanish to my foreign friends!” The good thing about Youtube is people from all over the world have access to it for free which is a great tool if you don´t have enough income.
How many languages do you speak? What's the best way to study a language?
Right now I’m bilingual, I only speak Spanish and English and I know some of the basics of French. I think the key to learning a second language ishaving a good attitude, persevering in the learning process and studyingas much as your brain allows you. Alsohaving fun while learning is very important so you can use all the information in real life.
That´s what I did when I learned English. In the morning I went to school and during the evening I worked as a waitress which helped me to put into practice all my knowledge. In class we learn a lot of grammar and vocabulary,but then when you travel abroad you find out you are not able to either understand or speak the language. This is why it’s so important to use what you learn in the classroom in real life situations.
Which city is your favorite to visit in Spain and why?
As I said I´m from Madrid and we have an expression here which says, “from Madrid to heaven”. So everyone should visit Madrid once in a lifetime because it´s a city with a lot of history, amazing monuments and is very multicultural with open minded citizens. But apart from Madrid, Toledo is an incredible medieval city and isthe perfect place to escape from the rest of the world.
What are some characteristics of the Spanish culture that you like the most?
First of all I like our sense of humor, Spanish people are always kidding and joking which was one of the things I missed a lot while living abroad because most of the time I was kidding and laughing by myself because nobody understood me.
The second thing isthe gastronomy. Spain has a huge variety of delicious dishes ( paella, gazpacho, callos, fabada, potato omellete..) so you don´t get bored at lunch time .
And the last one is our way of living, we don´t live to work, we work to live and enjoy our free time traveling, meeting up with friends and basically having fun.
1. We use the present perfect to say that an action happened at an unspecified time before now. I have seen that movie 10 times. I have met her once before.
2. We often use the present perfect to talk about change that has happened over a period of time. They have grown since the last time I saw them. The government has spent more money on the military over the past 50 years than any other department.
3. We often use the present perfect to list the accomplishments of individual people and humanity. Kobe Bryant has won 5 NBA championship rings. Man has walked on the moon.
4. We often use the present perfect for an uncompleted action that we expect to happen, but has't been completed yet. The present perfect suggests we are waiting for the action to be completed.Maria has not returned from her job yet. I still have not mastered Spanish yet.
5. The present perfect can talk about several different actions which have occurred in the past at different times. Possible suggestion that more actions can continue to happen. I have had three tests so far this semester. Khole Kardashian has dated 4 famous people in her life so far. Present Perfect Exercises
Instructions: Fill in the blank with the verb given in the present perfect tense.
1. I ___ ____(to travel) to many countries in Latin America.
2. They ___ ____(to be) outside all day.
3. We ___ ____ (to walk ) to that movie theater several times.
4. He ___ ____ (to read) the book already.
5. You ____ ____ (to talk) to Megan a lot lately.
Instructions: Make the sentence negative
1. I have cheated on Sara before.
2. She has gone to the movies with Rodrigo.
3. We have cried in our apartment several times.
Instructions: Ask your teacher a question with the verbs given in the present perfect tense
1. to travel
2. to drive
3. to drink
Present Perfect Conversation Questions
1. What new English word(s) have you learned so far this month?
2. Who have you travelled with the most?
3. How many times have you seen your favorite film?
4. So far this month , have you talked with anyone from a different nationality than your own?
5. What is the most exciting thing you have done so far this week?
