 | Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com | Integrating grammar and composition, this comprehensive new edition guides the advanced student through progressively more complex types of writing by organizing the grammar lessons on a functionalist basis around the needs of composition. This innovative approach to teaching Spanish grammar and composition promotes systematic language development and enables students to strengthen their expressive and editing skills in the language in order to write more effectively and more confidently. Refined by years of classroom testing and analysis of the problems students encounter, this bestselling textbook has been substantially rewritten and incorporates current research in composition, pedagogy, second-language acquisition, and linguistics. Expanded self-correcting exercises are also available online, making "Gramatica Para La Composicion" one of the most valuable textbooks available for advanced students of Spanish. This book focuses on work in six level-appropriate types of composition: description, synopsis, personal narrative, creative narrative, exposition, and argumentation. It is based on ACTFL guidelines for students progressing from intermediate to advanced levels of proficiency. It is structured around writing cycles, from prewriting to composition to revision. It integrates grammar into the preparation for each type of writing. It covers syntax, dictionary skills, problematic word distinctions, and rhetorical features of discourse structure. It contains exercises on grammar practice, working with sentences and paragraphs, guided essays, and free composition. Each lesson has been clearly divided into two distinct parts: Presentation (material that students prepare before class) and Aplicacion (the activities they do in class or as homework). Practicas individuales have been expanded and recreated as self-checking exercises that provide immediate feedback and scoring. These practicas are available for free online. Images from William Bull's "Visual Grammar of Spanish" help with distinctions that seem difficult. An Instructor's Manual - available for free online - reviews teaching and grading methodology for writing-intensive courses, offers suggestions for syllabus organization and for teaching each lesson, and provides additional exercises and activities. |
Average Customer Rating:   What a terrible book. I am currently using this text for my Advanced Spanish Grammar and Composition class. This book is not very good. Most explanations that this text gives are very short and do not go in depth on many topics. The exercises are not very helpful either. Many of the sentences you must construct or examples given are very silly and make absolutely no sense. I am a native Spanish speaker and I do not think this book is very user friendly. I also did not like the fact that the answers are not in the back of the book. This makes correcting ones mistakes very difficult to do. I do not agree with the other reviewers who said this book was good. It has some good things but overall I do not find myself recommending this book. Overall I can not recommend this book. Best Spanish Text I have used I have to agree with the other reviewers, this really is the best Spanish textbook I have used.
It's not graphically pleasant, you won't find many nice pictures or diagrams, nor will you find many variations in text formatting, it's going to be bold, italic, or normal.
However, the content truly is unrivaled. The time not spent flowering up the pages was clearly spent going through, revising, and qualifying everything with regional differentiations, semantic/syntactic examples, and notes about where to look in the book for more information about the topic.
The text is primarily in Spanish, however the author does use English in times of crucial importance, where idiomatically a translation would be misleading, etc.
I would definitely recommend this book. But, if you use it for a Spanish class, do yourself a favor and don't sell it back to the bookstore when your course ends. it's just as valuable 3 months later! A year after taking the class for which this was required, I am still constantly referencing and rereading it. Best Spanish Textbook I've Ever Used This textbook was simply amazing. I cannot think of one thing wrong with it. It is the perfect textbook for someone who is learning Spanish as a second language and is transitioning from the typical "high school Spanish" class to a more intermediate and independent level of learning.
Some of the pros: There is a large index simply for clarifications on which verb to use in certain ambiguous situations. The text includes illustrations to clarify the differences between verb tenses, sentence structure, etc. Includes instructions mostly in Spanish, but for more difficult sections, also includes instructions in English.
Essentially, the text clarifies almost every little nuance of grammar rules that you'd need to know - I'm glad I didn't have to ask the instructor every time I wanted to know something. With some books, you need to constantly work with someone (a teacher, instructor, etc.) who knows the language fluently. Not with this book - again, simply great. review I like the process that took to purchased the book and it did not take long for me to receive my purchase. Also, when I got the book it was in the condition I chose it. excellent! Book came in GREAT condition, no bent cover or anything..it was great...the only thing was that it took a whole week to be shipped...otherwise the product was great |  |
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