Most verbs allow for objects but do not always require one. In other words, many verb may be used as intransitive in one sentence, and as transitive in another.

Examples:

Voy a correr. (I'm going to run: non-transitive)

Voy a correr un maratón. (I'm going to run a marathon: transitive)

In general, intransitive verbs often involve weather terms, involuntary processes, states, bodily functions, motion, action processes, cognition, sensation, and emotion.

Assignment 1

Choose 10 verbs that are new to you—ones you'd like to learn. If you can use the verb intransitively in a sentence, do so. If you can use the verb transitively in a sentence, do so. You will wind up with 10-20 sentences, depending on the nature of the verbs. PLEASE DOUBLE SPACE.

Assignment 2

This applies to every other week during the course. Read a book (or an article, or part of a longer book) in Spanish at whatever level you feel comfortable (I encourage you the explore the Spanish materials at the library!) and bring it to class to share what you’ve read with one or two other students.

CELESTE HOMEWORK 2 (due at class 3)

Lesson 1: La "a" Personal

In Spanish, when a direct object is a person, it is correct to insert the preposition "a" before the person in the sentence.

(This is also true for nonhuman creatures with whom the speaker has a relationship, like a pet: the speaker recognizes

the creature's "personality.")

Examples:

Yo veo las rosas.

Yo veo a Rosa.

Lesson 2: Prepositional Prounouns

After a preposition, most of the personal pronouns work, but not "yo" or "tú."

a mí

a ti

a él

a ella

a usted

a nosotros

a vosotros (in Spain)

a ellos

a ellas

a ustedes

Here are some prepositions:

para

por

sobre

desde

con

sin

Note: In combination with the preposition "con," "mí" and "ti" become "conmigo" and "contigo."

Lesson 3: Direct Object pronouns

Here are the direct object pronouns:

nos

os (vosotros: in Spain)

los

las

When used in conjunction with conjugated verbs, these pronouns are placed before the verb.

Example:

Simón lee el libro. ("El libro" is the direct object.)

Simón lo lee. ("Lo" represents "el libro.")

Assignment 1

Rewrite your 10 sentences from last week so that the direct object is replaced with a direct object pronoun.

Assignment 2

Write 5 new sentences in which there is a stated direct object and it is human.

Assignment 3

Rewrite these 5 sentences using the appropriate direct object pronoun.

CELESTE HOMEWORK 3 (due at class 4)

Lesson: Direct Object Pronouns After Certain Verb Forms

You know that direct object pronouns come before most conjugated verb forms.

Example: Yo leo el libro. = Yo lo leo.

But with certain verb forms, these pronouns come afterward.

A. Infinitives

These pronouns get attached to the end of an infinitive.

Example: Para comprar un carro, tengo que verlo. (In order to buy a car, I have to see it.)

Notice that the infinitive (verlo) is part of a verbal expression (tener que + infinitive). The pronoun can actually go before the conjugated verb in the expression (tengo) as well as after the infinitive verb: two verb forms, two options. This does not change the meaning.

B. Affirmative Imperative (commands)

These pronouns get attached to the end of positive commands. (They go before the verb with negative commands.)

Example: Yo trabajé muy duro para prepararle ese taco. Cómalo. (I worked hard to prepare you that taco. Eat it.)

Note in the example above that the verb has an accent mark on it. That's because the addition of the pronoun also adds a syllable to the word, which changes the customary position of the stressed syllable. The accent mark indicates where the stress should be in the new word.

C. Present Participles

These pronouns get attached to the end of an present participles.

Examples:

1. Juan: ¿Dónde está mi taco? Juana: El perro está comiéndolo. (Juan: Where's my taco. Juana: The dog's eating it.)

2. Ramón tiene nueva novia. Pasó toda la fiesta besándola. (Ramón has a new girlfriend. He spent the whole party kissing her.)

In example 1, notice that the present participle (comiendo) is part of the compound tense called the "present progressive" (estar + present participle). This is how the present participle is most commonly used. With this compound tense, the pronoun can actually go before the conjugated verb in the expression (está) as well as after the present participle: two verb forms, two options. This does not change the meaning.

In example 2, notice that the present participle is used independently. This is a lot less common. The present participle is NOT used as the subject of a sentence as it is in English.

Assignment 1:

Read a book, a chapter of a book, or an article of your choice and come to class prepared to tell a fellow student about it.

Assignment 2:

Write 3 examples like my example under “A. Infinitives,” above. Make sure to establish what your object is before you use the direct object pronouns.

Assignment 3:

Write 3 examples like my example under “B. Affirmative Imperative (commands),” above. Pay attention to the accent marks. Here are 10 commands you can use:

(I'm offering you "usted" commands because I think they're more essential.)

coma

escriba

hable

escuche

mire

diga

escriba

beba

corte

limpie

Assignment 4:

Write 3 examples like my examples under “C. Present Participles,” above. Make sure you establish what your object is before you use the pronoun.

CELESTE HOMEWORK 4 (Due at class 5)

Assignment: 20 Clues

(Based on 20 Questions)

Think of something relatively common (a carrot, chocolate, a dog), then write statements about it in which the "something" is presented as the DIRECT OBJECT of the verb.

Example: (lechuga)

1. La puedes comer.

2. Cuando la ves, ves el color verde.

3. Es posible meterla adentro de una bolsa.

Notice that, in this case, I used "la" because "lechuga" is feminine. You too should use the appropriate form for your "something." BE CAREFUL not to treat your "something" as the subject of any of your sentences. Do not say, for example, "Es verde," because then you're not practicing the direct object pronouns you're supposed to be practicing. Also do not say, "La es verde." That is grammatically nonsensical: La, Lo, Las, and Los are not subject pronouns. (Examples 2 and 3, above, for "lechuga," are ways of getting around this.)

Try to give at least five clues for one "something." If you don't give 20 clues for your "something," pick an additional "something" (or two, or three) so that your total number of clues amounts roughly to 20. (For example, you could pick four "somethings" and for each you could give five clues.)

CELESTE HOMEWORK 5 (due at class 6)

Lesson 1: Indirect Object Pronouns

An indirect object receives an action indirectly. Often it is the recipient of the direct object.

Example: Yo doy el regalo a Pedro.

In the above sentence, "el regalo" is the direct object. "Pedro" is the indirect object.

Here are the indirect object pronouns:

nos

les

Like direct object pronouns, indirect object pronouns are place before a conjugated verb.

Example: Yo le doy el regalo a Pedro.

Notice that BOTH the pronoun ("le") and the person or thing to which it refers ("Pedro") are present in the sentence. This is standard practice when establishing the meaning of "le" or "les." It's not necessary with the other pronouns because their meaning is self evident.

Lesson 2: Order of direct and indirect object pronouns

When both direct and indirect pronouns are used in a clause, the INDIRECT PRONOUN comes first.

Example:

Nosotros damos el regalo a ti.

Nosotros te lo damos.

NOTE: When either LE or LES comes before LO, LA, LOS, or LAS, the indirect object pronoun (LE or LES) becomes SE.

Example:

Yo le doy el regalo a Pedro.

Yo se lo doy. (SE = LE)

So say you have a sentence like: Yo te doy el regalo.

If you want to use the pronoun LO in subsequent sentences to represent EL REGALO in addition to using the pronoun TE, remember that the order of these pronouns is:

INDIRECT, DIRECT (the abbreviation ID might help you remember this)

Therefore, the sentence you get is: Yo te lo doy.

NOTE: When LE or LES comes before LO, LA, LOS, or LAS, the former become SE.

Example:

Yo le doy el regalo a Roberto.=Yo se lo doy.

Assignment 1

Read a book or article and come prepared to talk about it in class with another student or two.

Assignment 2

Write 10 sentences that have clearly stated direct and indirect objects and use the appropriate indirect object pronoun.

Assignment 3

Rewrite the 10 sentences using direct and indirect object pronouns. (REMEMBER THE ORDER OF THESE PRONOUNS IS: INDIRECT, DIRECT)

CELESTE HOMEWORK 6 (due at class 7)

Assignment

Look again at the lesson from Celeste Class 3 and do the assignments all over again but this time INCLUDING INDIRECT OBJECTS and INDIRECT OBJECT PRONOUNS.

CELESTE HOMEWORK 7 (due at class 8)

Lesson: Gustar

You probably know that GUSTAR is different from LIKE. In Spanish, it's not YOU that LIKES the a thing, it's A THING that PLEASES you.

Example: Me gusta el chocolate.

The subject of the verb is EL CHOCOLATE, not “Yo.”

It is also common to say: “A mí me gusta el chocolate.”

A MÍ (with “me”), A TI (with “te”), and A NOSOTROS (with “nos”), for example, are all used in this way, for emphasis. But they are optional.

However, when the pronoun in question is LE or LES, it is necessary to specify to whom or to what the pronoun is referring, even in the primary instance. That is to say, the moment you treat something or someone as an indirect object, you use BOTH the stated item AND the indirect object pronoun. (Yes, it’s redundant.)

Examples:

A ellos les gusta el chocolate.

A ella le gustan los caballos.

Similar verbs: encantar, fascinar, molestar, importar

Assignment 1

Read a book or article to share with a partner in class.

Assignment 2

Write five creative sentences using GUSTAR and similar verbs, varying the subject and object and using the phrase A TI, A ELLA, etc.

Example: A ti te gusta bañarte en la noche.

Assignment 3

Write a paragraph about an object in your life that you use, give to people, eat, send, throw, study, and/or dream about. The idea is to establish what it is, then talk about it using the direct and indirect object pronouns we've been studying. (NOTE: This is not a guessing game like the one from week 4.) PLEASE DOUBLE SPACE.

Example:

Me gusta hacer galletas. A veces se las hago para mis amigos. A veces se las regalo a mis vecinos. Recuerdo que mi mamá nos las hacía cuando yo era niño. Pero a veces ella las hacía y nos las escondía.