Conversations with Native Spanish Speakers

This past week, High School Spanish 3 and 4 Honors students had their first individual  live conversations with native Spanish speakers.  The online platform Boomalang empowers  students  to confidently converse in a foreign language through a series of  15-minute chat sessions. 

Students choose from a group of 76 coaches  recruited from trusted partner universities and institutions in over 27 countries.  Students can see bios that include their country, what they’re studying, their hobbies and interests, to sign up at least 12 hours in advance for a conversation.  Topics are suggested by the Island School  teacher and previewed in class to add the opportunity for students to also  prepare questions for their coach. All coaches are  Boomalang certified, studying and refining circumlocution techniques to subtly correct or "rescue" students during the conversations as needed. 

Boomalang is intended to

Island School students commented:

“They don't overload you too much and they find ways to work around the words you don't know. They keep the conversation moving and give opportunities to ask about them as well. Alejandro was great at being friendly and making connections with me during the conversation. I think he did a great job helping me through the conversation and made it a lot less stressful.”

“My Boomalang was great! My coach and I had so much in common, we are both from Chile and grew up in the same city. She was very patient and super nice, she also was very understanding if you messed up. I felt very comfortable and safe, I know she wouldn't judge if I messed up. I had a very successful Boomalang experience.”

“I loved having the opportunity to have a one-on-one conversation with a natural Spanish speaker. I was nervous that I was going to be late but I ended up being on-time and waiting for Yein to enter. My conversation, I believe, was very fluid and I was able to continue the conversation with some vocab help.”

“My experience was very good! She didn't speak a lot of English so I had a hard time finding a word when I lost it but she was very supportive and sweet. She kept the conversation going really well and she told me about her experiences, creating new questions and conversations.”