Intermediate Spanish
So I'm taking an intermediate Spanish class at college this summer. I have been studying this language now for about 2 years, and doing total immersion for about a year and a half (about 3-4 hours of Spanish TV every day with a dictionary and IPOD and audio courses - Did Pimsleur, FSI, Rosetta, both Michel Thomas, bunches of others) . My vocabulary is good, and my pronunciation is good according to my Mexican friends, and I understand spoken Spanish pretty well. I consider myself advanced, mostly because of the endless stream of questions I lay at you guys....and my Mexican friends think I am advanced too....(thanks guys) the one thing that I have neglected is grammar. Do you think I have will have a problem in intermediate Spanish 1 college level? I have looked through the book that is used in that course and I understand it all (it's in easy/ medium level Spanish) and haven't encountered a word in there that I don't know. Seems to be mostly "What's listed in this picture?" and "What are the six types of identification and where would you need to use each one? IE airport etc...". So no problems so far. Of course I understand basic grammer like IO, DO...the four types of accents, and everything in Paralee's course. But I do not focus on grammar but more on conversational Spanish. Do you think I need to study up on some grammar stuff before I take that class? Gracias.
9 Answers
Jeezzle, from all of your threads I have to say that you will do very well in this course. I think you have a sufficient grasp of the language that the grammar will come to you quite easily. And as long you don't start your essays with "So ...." you will most likely be at the top of the class. Go get'um! 
I think you will have a reasonably easy time in an intermediate course.
In an advanced course, you'll have to work hard and stay on your toes! So what do you want? 
Hey Jeezle. You know there have been times when I wanted to take a class just to keep my foot in the door so to speak, and since I'm pretty limited as to when I can take a class, I have even repeated a couple of classes. (I usually manage to get one in about every 5 or 6 years or so.) Well I have always learned something new either from the professor or other students. So go, dominate, learn, and enjoy! 
You are going to sail through the class. And from the what I've seen from you on the boards here, you will probably give the teacher a run for the money.
If you are interested you can go to spanishpod.com and go to la Clave http://spanishpod.com/lessons/channels/list/La+Clave/2
You can use the site for a week before they want you to pay. Check out la Clave because they have really really cool videos you can download to your computer and ipod that teach grammar in a fun way. You might find something there to keep yourself occupied or inspire your to crack the grammar books, before your class starts.
¡Bueno suerte!
I think that you'll be fine and pick up on the grammar that you're lacking by taking the course. However, if you do want a grammar crash course, get the CLEP Spanish Language preparation book. It's set up to prepare you to take the CLEP test to get a couple of years worth of college credits. I took that and, if it's any indication of what's covered in the first four semesters of college Spanish, I would say that you are in good shape and will probably have a better grasp of the language than many of your classmates.
I learned Spanish the same way you did, except that I don't have native speakers to chat with all the time, and I took my first Spanish class at community college last semester. It was Spanish 212 (the second Intermediate class) and I did just fine. In fact, I knew a lot of what the teacher was teaching already and I hardly had to study to get an A.
I think you will be totally fine, if not a bit bored. You will probably speak loads better than anyone in that class. Anglo students in college Spanish classes can usually write and read OK but can hardly put together a spoken sentence without stammering.
It will really help you polish your grammar, writing and even speaking. It is very useful! My Spanish was ok but a bit rough around the edges but now I think I can write it pretty well.
Bust open one of your grammar textbooks though, if you are really worried.
Oye,
When you where asking about grammar where you referring to verbs or parts of speech(adjectives, adverbs, pronouns, articles, gender, etc). I'm asking because I just noticed that verbs and grammar are separated in the reference section of the web site this way.
In a previous post I recommended Spanishpod's el Clave videos, because of the focus on grammar review on conjugations. But maybe your worries are more on the other side of the equation. Or maybe just all of this. Let me know if you get a chance.
Back to studying for me...
Hola Jeezle,
Te va a ir súper bien. No te preocupes. Por lo que he leído de ti, sé que vas a estar bien. Además, recuerda que nos tienes a nosotros para ayudarte.
