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Getting Started with TANDEM

Okay, so you’ve found somebody on Tandem: you want to improve your Spanish and she wants to improve her English. But what do you do now? Here are a few ideas to help you get started:

First

Send the person a message through Tandem in the Message window.  

The message is sent to the person’s email address and Tandem mailbox, and will look like this:

Second

Wendy will, you hope, email you back. Now you can get an email conversation going. You can tell her about yourself, what you like to do, what you are studying, where you are employed – and why you would like to have a Tandem Buddy!

Third

The next thing you may want to do is to arrange to “meet”. Okay, so you might not meet in person, seeing how your Tandem Buddy likely lives in a different country. But you can meet using our Video Chat. This you access after you have logged in (see the link to Chat at the top of the page).

Now see the camera at the bottom there? Click on it, wait for your Tandem Buddy to accept the chat request, and off you go!

Tandem even tells you who is online, so you can begin chatting right away.

You will know when you are ready to start video chatting. It takes time to get to know somebody, especially in a different language. It can also be quite challenging, so keep the first meetings short until you both feel comfortable.

Fourth

How often do you want to “meet” on Tandem? You may prefer to use Skype than our Video Chat. Or you may even prefer email communication… Use both your own language in the messages as well as your Tandem Buddy’s language (at least as best you can!). This way, you can practise your skills and also begin a meaningful discussion.

Fifth

It’s a sad truth that not everything works out in life L. If your Tandem Buddy does not respond, move on and find somebody else!

Sixth

Remember to tell your friends and colleagues about Tandem. After all, it’s a free way to practise languages as well as to meet people from many interesting cultural backgrounds.

Good luck!  Have fun! And here’s wishing you lots of great Tandem communication!