Why and how to join The Language Club?

Why should you join The Language Club? Language exchanges are known to be an excellent way to practice a language. What is a language exchange? How does it work? Every language exchange is different. It usually consists of meeting with native speakers to practice the language you are learning. Some people stay away from these types of meetings for fear of talking to strangers, and that’s a shame because a well-planned language exchange can significantly improve your language skills!

At TLC, we do things differently; our activities are carefully planned by our founder Marisol Vasquez, a linguist and a professional translator with valuable experience in language coaching. Our Communications Director, Diana Salguero, brings to TLC her knowledge as a psychologist with excellent people management skills. The Community Director Erin Eifert, brings to TLC her expertise in human and international relations, and is always there to ensure TLC is a safe place for all our members. Our facilitators and admin team all have one thing in common: they are language-lovers driven by the willingness to help others.

A little bit of our story

The Language Club is a free initiative created to help you improve your language skills with native speakers. We started by meeting physically in different venues, like restaurants and cafés. When the pandemic began, we decided to be resilient and become an online language exchange. TLC was created in 2015, and since then we have helped hundreds of people not only improve their language skills, but also integrate into their new communities, get better jobs, and much more. This video is a recap of what we have accomplished since 2015.

https://youtu.be/NKxgv4uveY4

First, understand our lingo

TLC: Abbreviation for “The Language Club.”

Admin Team: The leaders who oversee the management of The Language Club.

Facilitators: The amazing volunteers who take their time every week to help you practice a language.

Language Session: A weekly session managed by a native speaker that acts as a facilitator to help you practice his or her language.

Language Clubbers: That’s you! The person participating in the language sessions or language exchange activities. Welcome to the club!

Ko-fi: The platform where you can show your appreciation to The Language Club by buying us a “coffee.” All monies collected are used to maintain and enhance our club’s online experience and resources.

Language Exchange: An activity organized by the language club where you will be matched with a native speaker of the language you want to practice or learn.

Conversation Topic: The topic that will be used for the week’s discussion. We have weekly themes.

Grammar Workshops: Activities organized by TLC to help you improve your grammar skills.

Okay, but how does it really work?

From September to June (academic year), we organize conversation groups through different online platforms (Zoom, Webex, Skype, Google Meet, etc.) managed by facilitators. When you join “The Language Club” Facebook group, you will see a schedule posted every week, including the information and the links to register for the session. You can also access the schedule and the registration forms on our website: “The Language Portal.” Once registered, you will receive an email with the name of your TLC facilitator and the information you need to join your class.

Summer Language Exchange

During the summer, we will have an online language exchange. Once you join our meeting, you will be invited to a special platform where you will be matched with a language partner and given the conversation topic. A facilitator will always supervise the language exchange and propose other activities like games, role-playing, etc.

Workshops

For those who want to go the extra mile, TLC organizes language and communications workshops that will help you improve your language skills. Keep an eye on our social media channels to find out more about our workshops. Popular sessions have focused on pronunciation and verb conjugation.

What you need!

To have an efficient language exchange session, it is essential that you follow these simple rules:

Pick a quiet location where you live to avoid distractions.
We recommend you use a laptop, especially if you want to take notes on a Word document. Alternatively, if you are using the phone, make sure your hands are free by using a stand or propping your phone against something.
Please have your camera on at all times. If, for any reason, you need to have your camera off, please talk about it with your facilitator in advance. Each facilitator reserves the right to admit/not admit participants with cameras off.
Use earphones or headsets to avoid noise disruption. We have tried and tested o ne of the best noise canceling headsets.
Use a notebook and get a dictionary to consult during class (paper dictionaries can be more effective than online ones).
Be courteous towards your facilitator across all our media channels. They do a fantastic job by volunteering to help us all learn. Please address them in a respectful and thoughtful manner. Bring any concerns to facilitators privately or the Admin Team.
Be participative. Have your material ready for each language session.
Enjoy your language exchange.

Disclosure: The Language Club (TLC) is member-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend products we would use ourselves, and all opinions expressed here are our own.

So, don’t be shy! Join The Language Club today!