At Cronopios, we’ve been teaching Spanish to people from all over the world for over ten years. Thanks to this experience, we can confidently say that if your native language is Japanese, starting from the very first week of our A1 course can make a huge difference in your learning journey.
Why? Because we’ve developed a custom textbook for the first two weeks of level A1, specifically designed for students whose native language is very different from Spanish—such as Japanese, Farsi, Korean, or Chinese.
This material is unique to our school and can help you avoid frustration, gain confidence, and build a much more solid foundation in Spanish.
Learning Spanish from a Japanese base brings many challenges. Some of the most common are:
Gender and number agreement across different parts of a sentence, such as nouns, articles, and adjectives. In Japanese, gender and number are not grammatical categories, and there’s no need to mark masculine/feminine or plural. In Spanish, however, maintaining agreement—like in las niñas pequeñas—is essential.
Syntactic order is very different: in Japanese, the verb usually comes at the end of the sentence, while in Spanish, the usual structure is Subject + Verb + Object. Changing this structure doesn’t happen overnight—it requires time, practice, and above all, awareness of the difference.
Pronunciation of sounds and spellings that don’t exist in Japanese, such as the trilled “r”, the “j”, or the difference between Spanish ju and fu, or combinations like gue and gui. Without early attention, this can lead to insecurity when speaking and miscommunication—e.g., confusing juego with fuego.
Verbs and conjugation. The idea that verbs change form depending on the subject does not exist in Japanese and can be confusing at first unless addressed carefully.
The verbs ser and estar, and the subtle differences in meaning. These require clear examples and repeated practice to be properly understood.
Most A1-level Spanish textbooks are designed for students who speak Romance languages (like Italian, French, or Portuguese), which already share similar syntax, grammar structures, and vocabulary with Spanish.
But for someone who speaks Japanese, starting with one of those books is like trying to run before learning to walk.
At Cronopios, we’ve created a custom textbook for the first two weeks of our A1 course, designed to help students understand the core concepts of Spanish from a safe and steady foundation. This book is divided into three main sections:
We work on pronunciation from day one. We use dictations, repetition drills, and clear explanations of how to pronounce sounds that don’t exist in other languages—like the trilled “r”, the “j”, or the “ñ”. We also cover contrasts between vowels or different spellings for the same sound, always with a clear, practical, and patient approach—so you feel comfortable speaking from the first day.
We introduce the basics of Spanish grammar with clear and visual explanations. We practice sentence structure and reinforce the standard Spanish order (Subject + Verb + Object) through repetition and simple phrases. We use concrete, visual examples and avoid unnecessary jargon, so that when you start forming more complex sentences, it will feel natural.
We work with a focused group of fundamental topics like greetings, classroom objects, food, weather, transportation, and the city. All the phonetics and grammar exercises are connected through this small, targeted vocabulary list to help you memorize and use the words in context. This strengthens not just the meaning, but also the correct usage of each word.
In class, we also use a wide variety of playful resources: flashcards, games, visual aids…
Everything is designed to make learning enjoyable, dynamic, and—most of all—effective.
We care that you understand, but also that you enjoy and feel comfortable with your learning.
At the end of these two weeks, students take a short test to confirm they’ve mastered the basic tools they’ll need for the rest of the A1 level.
From there, they move on to our communicative approach textbook used with speakers of languages closer to Spanish—but with one key difference: those who’ve completed the first two weeks already have a strong foundation.
That allows them to participate confidently and on equal footing with students from Romance language backgrounds. This preparation also reduces the most common errors (like word order, article use, or pronunciation) from the start—improving confidence and long-term motivation.
At Cronopios, we offer a path made just for you, so you can move forward with confidence, clarity, and motivation.
Our classes are small, the atmosphere is friendly, and our entire teaching team is here to support you every step of the way.
If you want to learn Spanish seriously—but also with joy and understanding—we invite you to join our course from day one. Write to us or stop by, we’ll be happy to help you take the first step.
Bea holds a degree in Hispanic Philology from the Complutense University of Madrid, with postgraduate studies in Comparative Linguistics at Kyushu University, a master’s in Language Sciences from UNED, and a postgraduate diploma in Business Spanish Teaching from the Complutense University. She has over 15 years of experience teaching Spanish as a foreign language in corporate, diplomatic, and educational settings across Spain, Japan, and Argentina.
Cronopios Idiomas is a cooperative Spanish school in Madrid offering immersive Spanish courses for international students. We focus on task-based learning, high-quality materials, and personalized attention in a friendly and professional environment.
C. Espalter, 12. Madrid. 28014
CIF: F86423860
Tel: +34 915 222 014
Whatsapp: +34 660 754 138
hola@cronopiosidiomas.com
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Accredited by the Instituto Cervantes since 2014
