This action research study examined the experiences of a heritage speaker of Spanish who was training to become a Spanish teacher within a Spanish Education program that was in the process of transforming the traditional, front-loaded and theoretical methods course into a practice-based approach to teacher education. The goal of this transformation was to unite theory and practice in a relevant but realistic way. The pre-service teacher engaged in lesson planning, curriculum and material design, supervised teaching, and guided reflection within an innovative modern language teacher education program employing high-leverage teaching practices (HLTPs) as a framework for professional preparation. This qualitative study occurred within an established community-based learning (CBL) program in which Spanish Education majors teach Spanish to local children as part of their Language Teaching Methods course.