| Grade | |
| K | This term, students in kindergarten spent the bulk of the quarter creating imaginative class stories. From the infamous bad duck winding up in jail week after week, to parties celebrating his release, to the good duck’s cooking adventures, to Santa Claus getting caught in a snowstorm, to a witch shrinking all of the tables in the Spanish classroom, and to the appearance of a life-size castle, the linguistic journey never ceases to be original. In addition to honing their comprehension skills, students also worked on public speaking skills in the target language by commanding their peers with Spanish action words (baila/dance, corre/run, etc.). |
| 1 | This term, students in first grade changed their passwords to colors and foods. They also studied a plethora of weather expressions, and learned how to ask what the weather is like outside. When first graders felt confident with the new vocabulary, they worked in groups to rehearse their lines for a short News Show in the target language. After practicing, they presented – reading from the “teleprompter” when necessary – in the cardboard frame of a television. Students also wrote what they wanted to do each day (either on note cards or the whiteboard) after reading the Daily Board Message together with the class. |
| 2 | This term, students in second grade really focused on reading the target language. Instead of the teacher verbally articulating action commands, students read the word on the board and then performed the action. Second graders also read, illustrated, and stapled together their own miniature Spanish books. Near the end of the quarter, they even read and acted out a story about a student who stole a stuffed animal from another student, complained to the teacher, and then watched in disbelief as the teacher escaped with the stuffed animal! Finally, students identified words they knew in children’s Spanish books, and wrote those words on the board. “Books are a banquet for the mind… Stuff yourself.” -Charles Schultz |
| 3 | This term, students in third grade worked hard to understand subtle differences in the target language. Specifically, third graders learned how to change infinitives into gerunds (i.e., “to play” to “playing”) in Spanish; and how to differentiate the following: What do you want? What do you want to do? What are you doing? Do you want [to play]? Why? Following the Line Leader rotation of their regular classroom, students – instead of the teacher – also took turns demanding the password(s) from their peers as they entered the Spanish room. Finally, third graders made miniature flip cards in the target language (No me molestes, estoy jugando/Don’t bother me, I’m playing). Some students continue to carry these cards with them everywhere, for fear that they may be interrogated in the target language without one… |
| 4 | This term, students in fourth grade created a story in the target language about a man named Bob who wanted a cat named Bob. The story had multiple twists and turns, and ended up on the top of Mt. Everest. There, the man named Bob learned that the cat named Bob was guarded by an entire army, and that he needed the password to enter. At this point, fourth graders voted on how to end their epic tale of the notoriously daft Bob, but their conclusion was ultimately quite inconclusive. The Bobs’ fate will therefore be determined at a later date. Students then analyzed the story they had created from a grammatical perspective. Once they understood the basic sentence structure, fourth graders had the tools to piece together their own original sentences and produce their own mini storybooks. |
| 5 | This term, students in fifth grade received scripts and group assignments for two more Latin American legends. The first was called La casa embrujada (The Haunted/Enchanted House), and was based on a legend from Peru. The second was called El collar de oro (The Gold Necklace), and was based on a legend from New Mexico. For both of these plays, students began to take note of the details of good acting: Create movement with purpose! Expression matters! Always face the audience! To emphasize the latter, students used rubber ducks as their understudies, and drew pictures to represent the stage and scenery. Moving an object helped to emphasize where the actors were at all times, especially during stage entrances and exits. Students are becoming increasingly more creative in their performances, which is excellent to see. |
La cueva de español 