Breaking the Barrier has offered Spanish curriculum since 1997, written by experienced classroom teachers with a time-tested methodology. The program combines structured print textbooks with an Online Access component, and is designed for middle and high school students. Each level is designed for completion in one school year.
Just starting Spanish? Students are guided step by step through the basics — building essential vocabulary, core grammar, and practical language skills. Lessons move at a steady pace, so students can build confidence from their first words through meaningful use of Spanish.
Online Access is designed to accompany the print textbook, but can also be used as a standalone resource in classroom settings.
Online Access includes:
- Audio recordings of native speakers for listening practice
- Instructional videos that explain key grammar concepts
- Twelve unique interactive exercise formats (including fill-in-the-blank, multiple choice, sentence building, translations, matching, and more)
- Cultural articles featuring notable people and landmarks from Spanish-speaking countries
- Instant, corrective feedback for every exercise
- Responsive flashcards with audio to reinforce vocabulary
- Oral questions and video instructional capsules
¡Vamos! Beginner “A”
The STEPS Section:
Students begin their journey with an engaging foundational section covering ten essential building blocks — greetings, family, telling time, numbers, weather, days of the week, home and school vocabulary, and more — that help students begin speaking immediately. Students build confidence from day one!
Core Content Covered:
After the STEPS section, students work through chapters that are thematically organized. Each chapter features a region of the Spanish-speaking world.
Each chapter includes:
- A visually designed cultural map of a part of the Spanish-speaking world
- Vocabulary with interactive flashcards for fun and easy practice
- Clear presentation and explanation of grammar topics with plenty of practice
- Practice activities online with correction feedback and the ability to repeat practice as needed
Key Grammar Topics covered:
- Present and preterite (past) tenses
- Subject pronouns
- Object pronouns
- Adjectives
- Ser and Estar verbs
- Prepositions and conjunctions
¿Recuerdas?
A section in the middle of each chapter called ¿Recuerdas? focuses on concepts presented in earlier chapters, so that students can review prior material as they learn new ideas.
Cultural Content:
Up-to-date cultural information from countries such as Mexico, Spain, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, and Ecuador is offered at the beginning of each chapter. Through immersive articles, videos, and literary selections, students encounter a variety of Spanish accents from across the Spanish-speaking world.
¡En camino! Beginner “B”
¡En camino! Beginner “B” picks up where ¡Vamos! Beginner “A” left off, and is designed for middle school or introductory high school students.
Students will first review the major vocabulary and grammar from ¡Vamos! Beginner “A,” including the present and preterite tenses, subject pronouns, object pronouns, adjectives, ser & estar verbs, prepositions, and conjunctions.
Key Grammar Topics covered:
- Imperfect tense
- Adverbs
- Saber and Conocer verbs
- Progressive tense
- Comparisons
- Formal commands
- Por & Para
- Immediate future
¿Recuerdas?
A section in the middle of each chapter called ¿Recuerdas? focuses on concepts presented in earlier chapters, so that students can review prior material as they learn new ideas.
Cultural Content:
Up-to-date cultural information is introduced at the beginning of each chapter from countries such as Venezuela, Bolivia, Chile, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Cuba, Uruguay, Paraguay, Guatemala, Honduras, Dominican Republic, and El Salvador. Through immersive articles, videos, and literary selections, students encounter a variety of Spanish accents from across the Spanish-speaking world.
Spanish Level 1/Beginner
Level 1 assumes no prior knowledge of Spanish. It starts from the very beginning by introducing simple words and phrases that can be used right away.
The “First Steps” lesson also presents all the sounds of the Spanish language so that students can develop an authentic accent. Theme-based vocabulary offers students opportunities to learn words relevant to their daily lives at home, school, and beyond.
An action-packed dialogue series appears throughout the book offering students reading and listening comprehension practice.
Throughout the chapters, easy-to-understand explanations unravel these essential building blocks of language:
- nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, conjunctions, and prepositions
- the present, preterite, imperfect, and progressive tenses
- formal commands
Review a print sample chapter. Click here for the table of contents.
Spanish Level 2/Intermediate
Level 2 first reviews key grammar topics to ensure that all students have a strong grounding in the present, preterite, and imperfect tenses.
- New lists of vocabulary further expand students’ ability to describe the world around them.
- An adventure series also is featured in Level 2 as characters travel to exciting new places with unexpected twists and turns.
- Written in the same student-friendly style as Level 1, the new material in Level 2 includes the following grammatical concepts:
- the future, conditional, present perfect, pluperfect, present subjunctive, and pluperfect subjunctive
- indefinites, demonstratives, and reflexive pronouns
- informal commands, comparisons
Review a print sample chapter. Click here for the table of contents.
Spanish Level 3/Advanced
Level 3/Advanced targets students in their 3rd or 4th year of Spanish. This level highlights all the key grammar found on AP, SAT II, IB, or college placement tests. In fact, author John Conner used to help write the AP tests!
Continuing the strategies established in Spanish Level 1/Beginner and Spanish Level 2/Intermediate, the Advanced Level begins by reviewing the major present, past, conditional and future tenses. Cultural articles with comprehension exercises help students get to know stories from people around the world.
Key topics covered:
- all perfect tenses, including the present perfect, pluperfect, future perfect and conditional perfect
- the subjunctive mood (with commands, verbs of emotion, hypothetical situations, adverbial phrases)
- comparatives, the passive voice, “if clauses,” punctuation, and uses of the infinitive
- intriguing vocabulary, with special focus on adjectives in early chapters, followed by nouns, verbs, and idiomatic expressions
The Advanced level ensures students master the full range of Spanish language rules, preparing them for a lifetime of meaningful engagement with the Spanish-speaking world.
Review a print sample chapter. Click here for the table of contents.