PERSONAL "A"

Sep 26, 11
Summary of rules for the USE of A:
A. Direction. From A to B
Voy a Chicago el viernes. I am going TO Chicago on Friday.
B. The Personal "A" is usually used in Spanish when the Direct Object of the Verb is human being (or an animal).
Yo veo a mi mama en la foto. I see my mother in the picture. Here the DIRECT OBJECT of the verb is MI MAMA, a human being. So I need to put "A" in front of this direct object of the verb VEO.
Yo veo la foto (I see the picture). Since the DIRECT OBJECT of the verb is an non-human object, I don't use A.
C. It is used after certain verbs to complete the idea of the action: AYIDAR (to help), APRENDER (to learn); ENSEÑAR (to teach).
Ana aprende a jugar beisbol. Ana learns to play baseball.