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I learned a lot !
I took a one-week intermediate Spanish class at YESI. My teacher was Jean, YESI’s owner and principal teacher. In Yelapa most people call her Juanita.
First of all, I had a WONDERFUL time. Not only did I learn a lot of Spanish, I also learned a lot about the local culture and customs.
Jean has the ability to teach in a way that accelerates learning. She emphasizes understanding in lieu of mindless memorization whenever it makes sense. She knows when to explain and when to teach by repetition. Jean corrected several areas that I had learned incorrectly in the past and found a way to make it pleasant. She repeated the corrected subject matter several times during the week to make sure that I remembered. Since Jean is not a native Spanish speaker she understands the specific challenges foreigners face while learning Spanish. She focuses right in on those challenges and offers excellent solutions, explanations and practice opportunities.
Although I was an intermediate learner Jean also reached back to some basic concepts, such as the usage of the words ‘ser’ and ‘estar’, and we explored many different scenarios. Each time she reinforced the reason why one is used versus the other. I found out that in some cases I had been using them incorrectly.
Before my arrival in Yelapa Jean had compiled a binder with materials appropriate for my level: It was an excellent assortment of stories, mystery, grammar drills, song lyrics, jokes, etc.! The optional ‘homework’ assignments all had the answers in the back, so I was free to do them at any time. However, I wound up doing most of them in Yelapa because Jean inspired me to learn.
My class was conducted at several different sites. The change in location helped me memorize the material better because I was able to associate specific instructions with specific places. One session was on the patio of her palapa house with a beautiful view of the bay and the flowering trees, the next in a quaint restaurant next to a waterfall and included conversations with the restaurant’s owner, in Spanish, the next hiking along a river looking for exotic birds and describing their colorations and activities in Spanish, the next again on her patio, followed by visiting local shops and friends, immersing me into the real world listening to local people discuss a wide variety of subjects in Spanish.
I did not only learn Spanish at YESI: We discussed, both in Spanish and English, Mexican culture, history and customs, life in the village of Yelapa and in Mexico in general, geography, biology and much more. I have a much greater understanding of the local culture, with a clearer understanding why people do things the way they do.
Jean is very flexible. I wrote to her before arriving in Yelapa that I would not be able to attend class on Friday, so she added time to my other classes to make up for the missed hours. I definitely got my money’s worth! By the middle of the week I seemed to have fallen into the Mexican custom of being late for class. Jean was not angry and even gratiously added time to the end - thank you!
Jean made arrangements for me to hike into the jungle with a local guide. Besides seing beautiful scenery I had the opportunity to practice my Spanish non-stop for several hours straight. The guide was very curteous and helped me reinforce the grammatical corrections that Jean had been studying with me earlier. He clearly enjoyed teaching Spanish.
Jean placed me with a host family per my request. When I first arrived in Yelapa I had trouble understanding my hosts and they had to repeat most sentences several times. Several days later I was able to carry on conversations that lasted for hours, discussing a wide range of topics. The family treated me like a daughter and I truly felt part of their family.
I can warmly recommend YESI as a language school. Come with an open mind, immerse yourself in the local culture, and you will learn Spanish and much more.
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Yelapa English Spanish Institute