I started taking Spanish classes at LALC about 6 months ago to be able to speak with family (soy Latino), friends, and colleagues. I'm now at an intermediate level and feel confident having basic conversations. The classes are a great mix of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The teachers are outstanding and blend traditional learning with fun games and everyday conversation. They use homework, the Duolingo app, Spanish music and movies, crosswords, and more to keep you engaged outside of class. Before the pandemic, they offered happy hours after class, group dinners and more live events for English and Spanish speakers to mingle. They also pair you with a native Spanish speaking partner to connect weekly. My partner, Isamar, lives in Chile and has become a friend who provides me a lot of learning and perspective! Beyond being a top-notch educational program, Mara and the LALC team are the most caring, fun, genuine people you will meet and truly want to help everyone communicate better. Whether you're looking to learn Spanish or English, I cannot recommend the LALC more! read more

I thoroughly enjoy my classes with Mara. She tailors them for adult learning for people with busy professional lives. We always start class by playing a game as a warm up exercise. With quarantine, she's converted the weekly social events into Zoom Meetings with native Spanish speakers joining from all over Latin America. I don't know where else you would find this sort of opportunity. In addition, you're given access to websites with movies and programs so that you can watch them in Spanish. In addition, you're encouraged to find a native speaker language partner to practice with weekly. If you don't have one, they will help you find someone. She also sends me crossword puzzles and magazine articles in the mail. These sorts of value add are amazing. read more

I have had private lessons with Elvira, Ruby and Mara, and they are all are fantastic. They are all native speakers from different countries, so you can hear different accents and words. They each have different teaching styles, but I feel like I get a balance of conversation at my level and structured grammar for areas I need more of that. They challenge me and try to get me to talk as much as I can in Spanish, and I think even in the two months I've been going there I have learned so much and built my confidence! I think the building is very comfortable. I always enjoy being there and feel like I'm just hanging out with friends, it's great! Definitely recommend for people of all ages and all levels of Spanish. read more

I have worked with Mara for 2 years of private lessons to elevate my Spanish language skills and it has been a excellent experience. Mara is a fantastic teacher who tailors the lessons and content to each students' needs. The one on one conversations during classes were imperative in elevating my skills to the advanced level. As a native speaker Mara's insight was especially helpful when learning the more difficult tenses and themes. Mara does a great job utilizing technology to cover all three elements of Spanish (writing, speaking and listening). If you are looking to learn Spanish for the first time or take your language skills to the next level Mara is the teacher to help you on that path. read more

I've lived and studied in Spain and Latin America for a little of two years. Most of the language schools I have studied at weren't worth going to and I ended up wasting money and not going to class. I started classes with Diana a few weeks ago and can already tell I will be sticking around for a while. The private lessons are more interactive than just talking and reading from a book and the lessons are designed to make you use and learn different aspects of the language in different situations. It is hard to find language classes that can hold my attention and make me feel as if it is something I am obligated to go to. I recommended contacting Diana and seeing if she is available. read more

Highly recommend. I took spanish classes with Mara for the year I was living in Chicago and absolutely loved it. The class is all about increasing conversational skills (which is what I need) and it is small so you have plenty of time to talk each class. Mara makes the class and engaging and fun, but you will also learn a lot. I especially appreciated her ability to teach the subjunctive which is a grammatical structure I have scheduled with for a long time. The classes are well priced and I really can't imagine a better place to take classes for improving your spanish. I only stopped because I moved and I will definitely miss my LAL classes. read more

I took Spanish throughout High School (and I got pretty good..), but stopped practicing after that. Looking for something fun to do and with a social element (who wants to leave work -- and then do something that feels like work?), I decided to revisit Spanish as a hobby. In short, LALC is great. The instructor was fun, well-prepared, and engaging. I looked forward to leaving work and going to class -- and I could feel myself getting better. Do the homework, apply yourself, and enjoy conversing in another language with people of the same skill level as you. I'm hoping to sign up for a second batch of classes soon -- five stars! read more

Taking private lessons with Mara is one of the best decisions I could have made for myself. I took 10 years of Spanish in junior high, high school, and college, and nothing has stuck like this. Before these classes, I had a hard time putting together one sentence. Her teaching style is very effective, and I am already having full conversations after only a month of classes. Mara is passionate about what she does and takes the time to make sure you are at the right level, but are still being challenged. I definitely recommend taking classes or private lessons with her. Thank you Mara, and I look forward to even more classes with you! read more

I found Mara through craigslist when I was looking for a Spanish tutor before I moved to Chile. I could tell right away that Mara was very organized and enthusiastic about teaching. In the four months of classes I improved my Spanish dramatically. Mara's classes are fun and she uses a variety of methods to teach. However, what I appreciated most about Mara was her interest in me and what I was doing (moving to Chile and needing to learn to communicate there) and tailoring my lessons to those needs and moving at a pace that was challenging and effective, which given the short time frame I had to learn was very important to me. read more

Mara is a wonderful Spanish teacher with a unique approach to learning. She is very engaging with students and easy to talk to. The class structure is flexible and built to support each student as an individual. I take one on one lessons focusing on medical vocabulary in preparation for a language exam. Mara has helped me build my fundamental grammar skills with complex tenses, given me the opportunity to practice conversational Spanish, and built curriculum around my area of study. I highly recommend the program for those looking to build practical skills in a fun environment for affordable prices. read more

I took beginner level Spanish through LALC in preparation for a trip to Latin America this spring. After a one on one consultation with Mara, I was placed in a class lead by Elvia and have nothing but good things to say about her approach to teaching the class. I thought I could get by with self-guided (and free) learning via Duolingo in the past, but this class proved to be worth the money and helped a lot with my grammar. Very flexible scheduling if you have to miss a class. I was able to come in on a weekend for a private lesson to make up for my missed class. Overall, great experience with LALC read more

My family, friends and I have noticed a great deal of improvement since I've started studying with Mara over six months ago. She taps into her personal experience of learning and living with a foreign language to keep the learning process enjoyable. Each lesson is visual and incorporates speech, vocabulary, reading, writing, and listening. The classes and homework are all on Google Docs which I find to be convenient and organized. Taking classes with Mara via Skype allows me to have a flexible studying schedule and ensures that we never miss a class no matter where we are in the world. read more

I was referred to Mara by a friend who took weekly classes with her leading up to a trip to South America. Obviously my friend had an excellent Spanish-learning experience as Mara came highly recommended. I was slightly apprehensive as I live in San Francisco and Mara is located in Chicago... Meaning classes would be conducted via Skype, which I had never done before. I have had 3 classes now with Mara and it is fabulous! She somehow seems to understand exactly how I learn (after just 3 hours together!) I look forward to advancing my Spanish further with Mara. read more

I was very eager to improve my Spanish and heard about LALC from a meetup group. The classes were very rewarding and very different in how we were taught. We played games, held extended conversations, partnered up with other students and could even e-mail questions throughout the week if we had any. We covered all of the parts of speech, spoke in length about stem changing verbs, and every week the vocabulary list had a theme. The pace wasn't too slow or too fast. If you're serious about taking Spanish classes I highly recommend LALC. read more

This is a great place to learn Spanish! I've tried Rosetta Stone and other language schools in Chicago and never progressed mainly because it was learning out of a text book. LALC is great because it is interactive and social. They set you up with the tools to really learn how to read and speak in Spanish fluently. LALC also encourages their students to attend their Spanish Meetups to practice at various Spanish restaurants in Chicago. If you are looking for conversational Spanish I highly recommend it! read more

I found Mara through Yelp when I was searching for Spanish lessons. The first time we met she explained her teaching style and how her classes were set up. From there I decided to take one on one lessons with her. I've been taking classes with her for about 4 months and my Spanish knowledge has increased a lot. I find myself wanting to speak Spanish all the time now since I feel more confident. If you want an organized, energetic, understandable and knowledgeable Spanish teach I highly recommend Mara. read more

Very friendly and inviting atmosphere, laidback and social. Mara and the other instructors are very polite, fun, and encourage participation. In my specific class I really appreciated the approach of getting to a "conversational" level quickly and the events/mixers help with that. Compared to other options LALC is also competitively priced and Mara is VERY fair when working with students on a budget. Overall I would recommend LALC to anyone trying to get conversational quickly. Thanks Mara!! read more

What an amazing experience I've had thus far at LALC! They truly know how to communicate the language on a basic level to build their customers to the level of a fluent speaker. I was intimidated at first, but they helped ease my nervousness to reveal the beauty in learning. Their newest instructor, Ashley, is soooo welcoming and down-to-earth. I am excited to eventually get to the point where I can hold conversations with native speakers, and I am certain that LALC will get me there! read more

I have been attending classes at LAL for the last couple of months. The program and dedication of the teachers is really amazing. Although I knew a small amount of Spanish at the start of my lessons, my fluency has increased markedly. The classes are very well run and the subject matter is top notch. I am honestly very surprised by the level of fluency I have gained in only a couple months. This is a really great program with extremely dedicated instructors! I really love it! read more