Foundation of the Spanish Language - Valladolid

Mary P.

I can’t recommend this school enough, I literally couldn’t wait to go to classes every morning! The teachers were friendly, helpful and professional and didn’t just teach the Spanish language but also various aspects of Spanish/Castillian culture such as gestures, culture, food, etc. The methods used regarding explaining grammar were the best I’ve seen and being an English teacher myself, will use some of them in my own classes. And I have to add that Valladolid is a beautiful city and the perfect place to learn Spanish. Hope I will be able to return next year.

Ameer S.

I had a wonderful 2 week experience with the fundación.
The school is in the center of the city and Valladolid is a perfect location to immerse yourself in Spanish as there are not many foreigners there and the locals seemed interested in having conversations. I chose the family homestay option and had an incredible time with my host who introduced me to some of her friends. Alber took time to organize different cultural activities in the evening. Although we did not get to complete the list of topics we had planned, Anabel was a great teacher and kept the classes fun and interesting. She also did a great job with involving everyone in the conversation.

I was a little anxious about choosing this program, because they split you up into groups based on your level once you arrive, but thankfully, there were 4 other people at my level. You obviously cannot control how many people arrive with the same level as you, but they do their best to accommodate everyone. In this regard, I was quite lucky.

Natalia, the director, was very helpful and friendly, but I would recommend reaching out via whatsapp instead of email if you feel discouraged by the sometimes long wait times for responses to emails as they are quite responsive to whatsapp.

There is the option to stay for just 1 week, but I would strongly recommend against staying for just 1 week as the experience is really designed to be 2 weeks. For example, the first day is mostly just information about the city, taking a placement test, and then a group tour of the city. The 2nd day was spent understanding our goals and preferred methods of learning.

mayrina T.

I entered the school last year. I picked an individual class for several months. Now, im in a group class. Either individual or in a group, I always have good experience from several teachers. My Spanish improved too. A lot of improvement! Thanks to Natalia who always provides the best teachers for us.

Utku A.

I would recommend this course if you want to improve your spoken Spanish and immerse yourself in the language. I went to the Fundación in August 2024 for a two-week course, having obtained a scholarship via my university in Turkey.

After an exam on the first day, I was placed in a A2-B1 level course, which was a bit below my level in terms of grammar but very much what I needed in terms of vocabulary and daily spoken Spanish. Of the 10 students there at the time, 6 were in my class. Our professor, Alfonso, asked us about our expectations about the course and tailored the class according to our needs. He was a very good, humble and funny professor. He was very attentive when we did not understand something and always provided relevant vocabulary or cultural details to our conversations whenever he could, which was what we wanted. We did a number of activities and games to improve our grammar, vocabulary, knowledge of local expressions, and natural speaking skills. The class, which was 4 hours with a half-hour break in the middle, never got boring for me.

The Fundación also provided a trip in Valladolid and an excursion to Salamanca. Special thanks to Álber for organizing a trip to Salamanca on a public holiday, accompanying us, and taking time off his personal schedule to show us around Valladolid on two separate evenings. He shared a more personal side of Valladolid that I will not forget.

I cannot personally speak to the Fundación's accommodations as I found an AirBnB place to stay, which was a cheaper option at the time. However, some of my classmates stayed at the university residence and were happy with the rooms and the food.

Overall, I would definitely recommend the Fundación. Special thanks to Alfonso and Álber once more 🙂

Mihailo S.

To anyone wanting to massively develop their overall Spanish language skills, this foundation is by far the best place to study. When it comes to the structure of the lessons, there is always a mix of well selected activities in class; whether being, interactive speaking, useful activity tasks, listening practice tasks or general worksheets. The location of the foundation is fantastic, right in the centre of the city, surrounded by many architectural sites, churches, bars, cafes etc. The staff are very kind, helpful and most importantly, very informative. This means that if there is a request you might need, for example, you are still not sure how to use the subjunctive or you might want to book a day trip to Salamanca, staff members will always go out of their way to help their students, prioritising them first.
The foundation also organises activities for their students such as reggaeton dance classes, visits and day trips which are a major selling point in order to get the whole experience of being in Castile y Leon.
The institution itself is very neat, tidy and makes you feel comfortable whilst you are learning.
In my experience the sense of the passion to teach at the foundation, the helpfulness of the teachers, effective learning techniques and the pool of many other fellow students are many of the factors that made me enjoy my time here whilst also drastically improving my linguistic and grammatical skills in Spanish. I can't mention enough, how good this place is. Plus, I also noticed that the form of spoken Spanish in Valladolid is quite slow, clear and well enunciated making it easier to communicated with everyone whilst improving your Spanish.
I highly recommend Fundación de la Lengua Española, you'll love it!

George G.

While the teachers and staff were friendly and taught well for the most part, I cannot recommend going here outside of high season. I attended in May/June on the Scholarship/Beca and, although the city itself is nice and is a great location to explore the local region (Segovia, Leon, Burgos, Avila and Salamanca are only a stone's throw away), I found that my class was mixed with levels ranging from B1 to C1. The school did not organise any activities in the evenings meaning that, if travelling there solo, it can be a very quiet experience. Moreover, the excursions organised weekly only take place with 6 people minimum, however even if not taking place there are no classes on that day, as well as on the first day. As for pros, the classes were a full 4 hours a day, whereas most schools offer 4 classes of 50 mins and the teachers were friendly and good. Finally, I certainly would avoid the home-stay option as the food was poor, there wasn't any wifi and it was a lot of money for a cultural experience that I never received, just get an AirBnB.

F V.

If you seriously plan to improve your Spanish on an advanced level, make sure you do not use this school outside of high season (July/Aug). They just mixed A2 with final B2 levels in one class, hence offered poor content and teaching. Furthermore, if you want to enjoy their becas, which is a great initiative to promote the Spanish language, be aware that classes will not be 20hrs/week but only 12-16h due to Intro Day and (cancelled) Excursions.

Maria B. T. R.

Tuve una experiencia excepcional en la Fundación de La Lengua. Las profesoras Anabel y Carla hicieron que el aprendizaje fuera fácil y dinámico, con un enfoque completo que abarca tanto la parte cultural e histórica como la gramática. ¡Definitivamente volvería! Recomiendo muchísimo para quienes buscan una verdadera inmersión en el idioma español.