I never intended on publishing my Spanish curriculum. I never even really intended on teaching Spanish. I graduated from Oral Roberts University with a bachelor’s in English Education. I went on to teach middle school language arts with Denver Public Schools (DPS) for ten years.

I had wanted to become fluent in Spanish ever since I started studying it in the seventh grade. I took Spanish for the next nine years. I got good grades, but I couldn’t speak the language. I decided that I would just have to wait for the opportunity to go to a Spanish-speaking country where I could live the language. While with DPS I had that opportunity, and spent six weeks studying at a language institute in Cuernavaca, Mexico. I came home speaking Spanish.

I went on to teach English as a Second Language within my school’s bilingual program. That inspired me to get my masters in Bilingual Special Education at the University of Colorado. A few years later I married a Venezuelan. When our first daughter was born, I left DPS and began looking for a part-time teaching position. A friend told me that Cherry Hills Christian Middle school was looking for a Spanish teacher. I thought about it, and decided that if I could teach English to Spanish-speakers, I could teach Spanish to English-speakers. I accepted the job.

The school had just purchased Spanish texts that followed the same method that was used in my education. That method didn’t produce very many bilingual students. I decided to teach Spanish following the steps that led to my becoming fluent. I had no idea how my students would compare to others when they went on to high school. Much to my amazement, they reported back that they were being placed into the advanced Spanish classes, and they were excelling.

I have been teaching Spanish for ten years now. Three years ago, a teacher at a private school called and asked what curriculum I was using. When I told her that I had developed my own curriculum, she asked if she could buy it. I was thrown into publishing. Both public and private schools continue to call inquiring about my curriculum, and I recently accepted a position at Valor Christian High School. After 20 years of teaching, my career is heading in new directions. It's exciting.

My goal is to change the way our country teaches world languages. It is so exciting to be able to show students that fluency is within their grasp. It is even more exciting to show them how they can use bilingualness to make a difference in the world.

Please contact me and let me help you renovate your school’s Spanish program.

Sinceramente,

Gina R. Alcalá

My goal is to change the way our country teaches world languages. It is so exciting to be able to show students that fluency is within their grasp. It is even more exciting to show them how they can use bilingualness to make a difference in the world.

Gina R. Alcalá, creator/author

Get Real SPANISH