Spanish is widely spoken in several nearby places. Venezuela lies on the South American mainland close to Trinidad. Cuba and the Dominican Republic are Caribbean countries where Spanish is spoken. Puerto Rico is a Caribbean territory of the United States where Spanish is widely spoken. It is not an independent country. We can learn about our neighbours without assuming every person in one place speaks only one language.

A country is a political place; its capital is the city where its national government is based. Venezuela’s capital is Caracas. Cuba’s capital is Havana, called La Habana in Spanish. The Dominican Republic’s capital is Santo Domingo. These names belong in pairs. Caracas is not another name for Venezuela, and Cuba is not a capital city.

Make a card pair for each country and capital. Put the country on the left and the city on the right. Read ‘Venezuela: Caracas’ and then ask which is the country. Add the Spanish pattern La capital de Venezuela es Caracas, meaning ‘The capital of Venezuela is Caracas.’ Use the same pattern for Cuba with La Habana. A correct pair is more useful than a list with no labels.

Find South America and then Venezuela on its northern coast. Find Cuba in the Greater Antilles. Next find Hispaniola, the island shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic occupies the eastern part of that island; Haiti occupies the western part. An island can contain more than one country. Do not label all of Hispaniola as the Dominican Republic.

Puerto Rico lies east of Hispaniola, and its capital is San Juan. On your chart label Puerto Rico as a territory, not as a fourth independent country. A map may show the outline of an island without explaining its political status. That is why both a map and a labelled reference chart help. The Caribbean region includes islands and nearby mainland places; Venezuela is mainland, not an island in the Antilles.

In English we often say Havana and Dominican Republic. In Spanish the names are La Habana and República Dominicana. Preserve accents when copying República. You can introduce a pair with La capital de Cuba es La Habana. Practise one pair at a time before mixing the cards. If you forget, consult the chart rather than inventing a city.

People in these places have varied lives, traditions and language experiences. Do not infer someone’s nationality, preferred language or abilities from their appearance. Ask politely what language they would like to use. The map activity helps us learn locations and names; it does not tell us everything about the people who live there. A good neighbour begins with curiosity, accurate information and respect.