¡Bienvenidos!
Iowa City’s Little Spanish School
La Escuelita welcomes elementary-aged children to learn Spanish in an engaging, relaxed environment. Our mission is for young children to learn Spanish during a time in their lives when language learning is a natural experience. Now is a fantastic time to start this journey!
About La Escuelita
La Escuelita opened in 2018. La Escuelita means “little school” in Spanish. La Escuelita is located in downtown Iowa City (105 Iowa Ave.) and welcomes all levels of Spanish language learners.
About Raquel
Raquel MacKay is the founder and teacher of La Escuelita. She has called Iowa City her home for over fifteen years. She feels a strong connection to her community and is excited to share her love of the Spanish language with others. Raquel grew up speaking Spanish and English. Her mother is from Colombia and this cultural connection inspires her teaching. She earned her BA in Spanish, Communication Studies, and K-12 Foreign Language Education from the University of Iowa. When she is not teaching Spanish, she loves to dance, hike, go on bike rides, do projects at home, read, and most of all— go on adventures with her husband and two young sons.
About the Classes
Students are immersed in language through listening, speaking, reading, and writing activities.
Classes follow a familiar structure each week. After every class, the Google slides will be shared with you so that you can see what your child did in class and practice throughout the week if you would like to.
Typical Class Structure:
Welcome Song
Warm-up (movement activity in Spanish)
Question of the Day
Vocabulary Review
Introduction of New Vocabulary
Song
Game or Activity
Book or Writing/Drawing Activity
Goodbye Song
BEGINNERS CLASSES will cover greetings, calendar vocabulary (numbers, days of the week, months), feelings, colors, and how to talk about likes and dislikes.
INTERMEDIATE CLASSES are centered around thematic units. Each session will have a different thematic unit. These classes also include material learned in the beginners course, but at a faster pace.
It is recommended that students take 1-2 sessions of BEGINNERS CLASSES before transitioning to INTERMEDIATE CLASSES. If your child has a background in Spanish already, then they can move straight to INTERMEDIATE CLASSES.
Late Spring 2026 Classes
Tuesday 4:00-4:45 AGES 5-8 Intermediate Class
Tuesdays, 4:00-4:45pm (May 12-June 2)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
CLASS IS FULL. Please email laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
Wednesday 4:30-5:15 AGES 5-8 Beginners Class
Wednesdays, 4:30-5:15pm (May 13-June 3)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
$92 for the 4-week session
Thursday 4:30-5:15 AGES 5-8 Beginners Class
Thursdays, 4:30-5:15pm (May 14-June 4)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
$92 for the 4-week session
CLASS IS FULL. Please email laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
Thursday 6:30-7:15 AGES 9-13 Beg/Intermediate Class
Thursdays, 6:30-7:15pm (May 14-June 4)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 9-13
Class limit: 7 students
$92 for the 4-week session
Saturday, May 30th 10:00-10:30 Adult/Child Class
Saturday, 10:00-10:30 (May 30)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Babies through age 4
Limit: 5 families
$15 pay per class (classes every last Saturday of the month)
CLASS IS FULL. Please email laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
Summer 2026 Classes and Mini Camps
SUMMER 2026 Tuesday 4:00-4:45 All Levels Class
Tuesdays, 4:00-4:45pm (June 16-August 4, no class 7/7 or 7/28)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
We will pretend to travel to several Spanish speaking countries, as we visit the beach, the mountains, the big city, and more!
$138 for the 6-week session
CLASS IS FULL. Please email laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
SUMMER 2026 Thursday AGES 9-13 3:30-4:15 All Levels Class
Thursdays, 3:30-4:15pm (June 25-August 6, no class 7/30)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 9-13
Class limit: 7 students
We will pretend to travel to several Spanish speaking countries, as we visit the beach, the mountains, the big city, and more!
$138 for the 6-week session
SUMMER 2026 Thursday 4:30-5:15 All Levels Class
Thursdays, 4:30-5:15pm (June 25-August 6, no class 7/30)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
We will pretend to travel to several Spanish speaking countries, as we visit the beach, the mountains, the big city, and more!
$138 for the 6-week session
CLASS IS FULL. Please email lasescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
SUMMER 2026 June Weeklong Mini Camp 2:00-3:00 All Levels
Monday through Friday, 2:00-3:00pm (June 22-26)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
Passports will be ready! The theme for this summer camp will be Colombia! We will pretend to travel by bus, car, and airplane to the beach, to the mountains, and to a big city... all in Colombia!
$135 for the week
SUMMER 2026 July Weeklong Mini Camp 2:00-3:00 All Levels
Monday through Friday, 2:00-3:00pm (July 13-17)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
Passports will be ready! The theme for this summer camp will be Spain! We will pretend to travel by bus, car, and airplane to the beach, to the mountains, and to a big city... all in Spain!
$135 for the week
CLASS IS FULL. Please email laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com to join the waitlist.
SUMMER 2026 August Weeklong Mini Camp 2:00-3:00 All Levels
Monday through Friday, 2:00-3:00pm (August 10-14)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Ages 5-8
Class limit: 7 students
Passports will be ready! The theme for this summer camp will be Costa Rica! We will pretend to travel by bus, car, and airplane to the beach, to a volcano, and to the jungle.. all in Costa Rica!
$135 for the week
Saturday, 10:00-10:30 Adult/Child Class
Saturday, 10:00-10:30 (June 27 and July 25)
Classes are held at 105 Iowa Ave, #299, Iowa City
Babies through age 4
Limit: 5 families
$15 pay per class (classes every last Saturday of the month)
I Hear a Búho
Author: Raquel MacKay
Illustrator: Armando Fonseca
Publisher: Scribble, 2024
A dPICTUS 100 Outstanding Picture Books selection for 2024
Penguin Random House Australia Best Designed Children's Picture Book at the 73rd Australian Book Design Awards (2025)
I Hear a Búho is a rhyming story with text in English and Spanish, which encompasses language, the parent-child bond, nature, and the benefit of being still, and listening.
A mother and daughter are snuggling together on their porch, listening to the sounds of the night. A girl makes animal calls and her mother responds sweetly. To their surprise a real owl appears and flies across the night sky.
‘A vibrantly artsy wind-down book.’ —Publishers Weekly
‘As with many well-written picture books that appear at first glance to be for the very young, in the hands of an imaginative teacher they can become powerful teaching tools for all ages, and this one has great potential too.’ ―Barbara Braxton, teacher librarian
‘It is both a lovely exploration of the bond between parent and child, and the beauty of stillness and quiet appreciation of our natural world. The illustrations are so very striking that they will instantly engage young readers.’ ―Sue Warren, Just So Stories
'A brilliant bedtime book for introducing young children to a new language - one to treasure!’ ―Dr. Naomi Thompson, Little Library Owl
Contact
Please reach out with any questions about classes or registration. Looking forward to hearing from you!
Email
laescuelitaiowacity@gmail.com