Our first Catalan lesson brought together students from different levels to discover the sounds of the language and take their first steps towards speaking it.
We're already speaking a little Catalan at Dime!
Last Wednesday, November 11th, we kicked off a new Gente DIME activity, part of our community for current and former students: Catalan Month, a short four-session course designed for anyone who wants to take their first steps in learning the language.
Our first lesson was a great success! Many students from different Spanish courses and levels joined us, all sharing something in common: their curiosity about Catalan and their enthusiasm for starting to use it in their everyday lives in Barcelona.
Discovering What Catalan Sounds Like
The first session, led by our teacher Jorge, focused on pronunciation and some of the main differences between Catalan and Spanish.
Why do some vowels sound different? How do you pronounce words like cotxe, platja, or caixa? And what happens to consonants that are written but barely pronounced?
Through explanations, examples, jokes, and a few grammar rules along the way, Jorge guided students through the sounds of Catalan. There was also plenty of time to listen, repeat words, and practise short conversations based on everyday situations.
It was a lively, fun, and, above all, useful lesson that helped students begin to recognise a language they hear every day in Barcelona's streets, shops, and neighbourhoods.
Learning Catalan Is Also Part of Feeling at Home in Barcelona
For many of our students, learning Spanish is one of the first steps in their experience of living in Barcelona. But getting to know a few Catalan words and expressions is also a wonderful way to connect with local culture, better understand their surroundings, and feel more at home in the city.
The goal isn't to master the language in four lessons, but rather to become more comfortable hearing it, pronouncing those first few words, and daring to use simple expressions in everyday situations.
Gente DIME: Much More Than Language Lessons
This course is part of Gente DIME, a project through which we aim to create opportunities for our students to meet, share experiences, and continue building a community beyond their regular Spanish lessons.
And this first session was a perfect example: people from different countries, courses, and levels sitting around the same table, sharing their curiosity and enthusiasm for learning something new.
We still have three more sessions to continue discovering Catalan and, who knows, perhaps we'll soon be hearing a few more bon dia, si us plau, and moltes gràcies around DIME!
Gràcies a tots per participar-hi!
See you at the next lesson!
