The Zócalo and Metropolitan Cathedral in Mexico City

Structure of the Lessons

Units

The lessons at VerbMaestro are grouped into Units which address a particular part of verb usage.

Here in Unit 0 you will find preparatory materials like this page, which explain how the site works and show you the features.

Then in Unit 1 the real learning begins, with a focus on using verbs in the present tense.

Don't worry if you are a more advanced student. If you have already mastered the material in a unit, you can skim the material as needed and skip directly to the quiz to confirm your understanding.

As you progress through the units, you can track your progress on your Dashboard.

Lessons

Each lesson covers a specific aspect of the material in the Unit. In each, you will find an explanation of the concept and a few examples. In addition, we will recommend a few outside resources for further study, including videos and other websites on the topic.

Exercises

Most of the lessons also have a linked group of exercises. These are the real heart of VerbMaestro, and it is through continued practice with the exercises that you will hone your ability to use Spanish verbs in conversation. The exercises for each lesson have many sentences that were hand-picked to illustrate the verb tense you are learning.

Quizzes

Most of the lessons also have a quiz attached. A quiz is simply a group of exercises that are graded to show your level of accuracy and understanding. During the quiz, you won't know how you are doing until you finish all the questions, usually 20 to 30 of them.

Once you complete a quiz, you will see your grade along with a summary of all your answers. In order to mark a lesson as complete, you will need to achieve 90% accuracy in the quiz. (To track your progress this way, you will need a free account here.)

Longer Term Goals

Even after you successfully pass a quiz and complete a level, the exercises for that level are still very useful for practice. Repeated practice is the key to quickly and accurately using the right form of the verb in conversation, and that should be your goal here.

The quizzes for prior lessons remain available for you to take as often as you would like. Don't worry, if you score under the 90% mark required to complete a course, you won't be penalized if you already completed the lesson previously.

Just remember that your purpose is not merely to gain a green check mark by all the lessons here at VerbMaestro. Instead, your purpose is to gain fluency in Spanish verbs. Practice makes perfect, and I hope you will use the tools here to solidify your verb conjugation and truly make it automatic.