My Ideal Classroom
It is crucial to have a vision for your classroom. Sometimes we can get lost in the pixelated view of a single day or week; but we need to think bigger as educators. Can you paint a picture of how a perfect day would look, in terms of routines...
Hamster In A Piano
ACT 1: The play director signals the start of the play–but oh my, do interruptions abound! There is a woman who always has an idea, actors who forget their lines, and continuous musical outbursts as key words remind everyone of songs they know. The play itself begins with Pato (the...
Newsletter, 25-26 (4)
AUGUST 22: ¡Hola! This week, students in fourth grade began learning class rituals and routines. They started with a password to enter the Spanish room (dime la contraseña/ tell me the password), went to their assigned table numbers, and had a quick class meeting. Our first order of business was to...
Cuba- Animals
CUBA: Below you will find videos about four unique animals found in Cuba–Polymita (Painted) Snails, Spinner Dolphins, Bee Hummingbirds, and El Tocororo, Cuba’s national bird. Students could do all sorts of art projects with these beautiful creatures, or simply take one and make it the main character and hero...
Cuba- René Portocarrero
CUBA: René Portocarrero was a self-taught Cuban artist. His paintings earned him international awards and success. Third graders made colorful replicas in art class of his Landscape of Havana painting. The original plan was to laminate and glue all of their work onto tri-fold boards, thereby creating the “streets...
International Studies
My school does our “International Studies” unit a little differently every year. We are still tweaking and finding the best way to make this meaningful for students. The Enrichment/ Specialist team (music, art, etc.) is in charge of this task since we teach all students. I am listing the...
The Next Level
Glancing up from my laptop, I noticed that it was already evening. How had that happened? I had been working, and then working, and then working some more–and somehow, the time had slipped away. My thoughts became dark and cloudy as I realized that life was becoming a checklist....
Travels: Greece
Highlights: Athens- Open Air Ancient Greek Theater Performance, Hop On/Hop Off Bus, National Archeological Museum, Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, Changing of the Guards; OWR tour, Acropolis (Parthenon), Monastiraki Square, Plaka, ferry ride; Paros- Naoussa Village, Organic Farm, Parikia Village, catamaran and swimming off of Naxos and Small Cyclades, ferry...
Summer Packet 2025
My Dear Friends, Fellow Linguists, and Citizens of the World: This summer, find one or more activities to complete on the Spanish Summer Choice Board HERE. Anything underlined on the chart is a link. It is also embedded below, but this seems to only work on iPhones–and freezes on...
The Best Laid Plans
I have been teaching Spanish for 17 years now. As a result, I know a good deal about children ages 3-10, and the importance of routines and rituals in the classroom. I know how to simplify concepts so that students understand, and I know how to make children laugh...
Spain- Day of Books & Roses
SPAIN- Catalonia: April 23rd is called “El día del libro y la rosa” (The Day of Books and Roses), or Sant Jordi/ Saint George, and is a very special tradition in Catalonia, among other places. On the day of Saint George, friends exchange books and roses. In Catalonia, this...
Mission Possible — Just Not Likely.
Soundtrack The “Pato” Play (2024-25) ACT 1: Pato (Duck) does not show up for the first day of school. The narrators try to explain why, but also note that it is “a long story”. This explanation begins with a dramatic entrance by the “Evil Fruit Gang” (including Bad Apple),...
Story Map: The Pato Road
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Summer Packet 2024
PREVIOUS YEARS: Link to ALL SUMMER PACKETS! My Dear Friends, Fellow Linguists, and Citizens of the World: Much like the image above, there can be an air of mystery surrounding the subject matter I teach. There is actually a reason for this intangible, nebulous aura: you might not be able...
That Visceral Sea Monster
Kneeling down, she let her fingertips glide over the bead’s curved surface, marveling at the intricate detail, only halfway conscious of the murmur of marketplace chattering around her. The beads were wooden, of various shapes and sizes, and hand-painted. Her eyes paused on an unfamiliar word painted in tiny...
Duo Archives, 23-24
The posts below are language tips written for anyone taking the Adult Duolingo Class. Most Recent Archives Calling all Word Enthusiasts! The Wordle is back! Rather, I abandoned the Wordle for several months and was just reminded of its utility in learning another language. Thus…...
Semester Update, 23-24 (4)
SEMESTER 2 Week 00: Students worked on memorizing lines for their class play. It is not only about being able to pronounce and read words in another language, but also knowing when to say these lines! Fourth graders warmed up their brains at the start of class by completing...
Semester Update, 23-24 (3)
SEMESTER 1 This semester, students reviewed some basic Spanish language trivia (e.g., how many languages are there in the world?), and had a more advanced linguistic discussion about endangered languages (do they ‘count’, in the tabulation?). Next, they jumped right into learning on how to Salsa dance. Why Salsa?...
Semester Update, 23-24 (2)
SEMESTER 1 This semester, students started with a few basic facts: What is Spanish? A LANGUAGE. How do you say Spanish in Spanish? “¡Espa-ÑOL!” How many languages in the world are there? Seven thousand! How many Spanish-speaking countries are there? Twenty-one! And perhaps most relevant to our second grade...
Semester Update, 23-24 (1)
SEMESTER 1 This semester, students first differentiated between España (Spain- the place) and “¡Espa-ÑOL! (Spanish- the language), and then took an interactive flight to Spain. Why? To hike El Camino de Santiago, of course! First graders grabbed their mochilas/backpacks, botellas de agua/water bottles, boletos/ plane tickets, and pasaportes/passports; asked...
Semester Update, 23-24 (K)
SEMESTER 1 This semester, students started with the basics: What is Spanish? A LANGUAGE. How do you say Spanish in Spanish? “¡Espa-ÑOL!” Why are we learning Spanish? Because we live in CHILE now! Kindergarteners were immediately introduced to my Floor Map, and chose “where” they wanted to live in Chile...
Semester Update, 23-24 (PK)
SEMESTER 2: PK3 Week 00: Students learned about and then made their own Worry Dolls in class with string, cloth, and Popsicle sticks. For more info and a video, see THIS LINK. Week 0: Students made a house and tiled roof (ripping paper is a fine motor skill) for...
Bread, Apples, & Pineapples.
The first year I taught about Panama, Pato (my stuffed animal duck) misunderstood because he only heard the first syllable, “pan” (bread) and we went on a wild tangent… which resulted in kindergarteners building a “Bread Castle”. The following year, I decided to try a different approach, and we...
Duo- Week #11
Around the holiday season, I like to declutter and clean in preparation for a new year. Some of this is inspired by a Cuban tradition–for New Year’s, many Cubans mop their houses from top to bottom, and fill up a bucket with the dirty water. Next, they dump this water in...
Duo- Week #10
Calling all Word Enthusiasts! The Wordle is back! Ahem. That is to say, I abandoned the Wordle for several months and was just reminded of its utility in learning another language. Thus… This week, check out the “Guidebook” icon on the Duolingo app (see screenshot below), and scan the units you’ve completed to see...
The Huge Cup of Coffee
English Version One day, Pato is walking-walking-walking in the mountains of Chile WHEN **POOF** a cup of coffee appears. The cup of coffee is very big. It is really cold there [in Chile], but the coffee is hot. Pato says, “LOOK!” and drinks the whole cup. Glug, glug, glug....
Bob the Beetle: Story
English Version CHAPTER 1: There is a bug. His name is Bob the Beetle. The bug lives in a forest in Spain. His house is bigger than five red cars. Bob the Beetle has a [yellow] pickup truck. He doesn’t have a car; he has a pickup truck. He likes...
Bob the Beetle: Lesson Plan
Some days, we educators plan our lessons down to the minute. We have an excellent grasp of students’ abilities and how much content can reasonably be covered in a single class period. We have researched our subject, know it backwards and forwards, can predict potential tangents and plans gone...
Duo- Week #9
As we find ourselves in the midst of the holiday season, you might need to adjust your Duolingo goals. It is a busy time, and what began as a daily habit may now have waned to a few times a week of practice on the app. That’s okay! Just keep plugging...
Duo- Week #8
Are you making connections, or is your language study tucked away in a drawer? Do the words in your target language only surface in your mind when you are on the Duolingo app–and then remain dormant the rest of the day? If that is the case, don’t ask, “Why can’t I...
Duo- Week #7
This week, let’s extend a bit to culture. Have you tried cooking a dish from your target language’s culture? If you don’t have time to go all out on a full-fledged recipe, order out a meal you haven’t tried before. I like to have weekly, broad, ‘international’ themes at home sometimes, where...
Duo- Week #6
This week, consider journaling in your target language. This might mean writing down three words you remember. For example, if you had coffee sometime today, write “coffee” in the language you’re studying (if you know it). If you know, “I drink coffee” (or “I don’t drink coffee”), write that! Don’t worry...
Duo- Week #5
Are you skipping the “repeat aloud” lessons on Duolingo? Yes, I’m looking at you! Do you click the, “can’t talk now” button? DON’T! This week, be courageous. Repeat the sentences aloud… maybe even when you don’t have to. It will build your confidence. Just do it. (#FunFact- did you know that “Nike”...
Duo- Week #4
This week, reflect on WHY you are learning your target language. Do you want to travel and be able to communicate with people in that country? Would it make your job easier if you spoke XX language? Do your in-laws speak another language and you’d like to feel more like family...
Duo- Week #3
Pacing. This week, pay attention to pacing. Just like in a marathon, you can’t go out in a full sprint–and maintain that speed for 26.2 miles (or at least most of us can’t). Some of you may have started out pretty hardcore, but your pace has begun to slow....
The Case (Que-so?) of the Missing Golden Taco.
Soundtrack The “Pato” Play (2023-24) ONCE UPON A TIME, there lived a Golden Taco. It was a powerful, kind, strong, smart taco–and golden, of course. The Golden Taco lived in a castle in the Czech Republic, which was guarded by three of King Duo’s knights (Duo, as in the...
Cubby the Cuban Cube
Spanish Version 1715: España es muy fuerte y poderosa. Tiene muchos territorios. Pero el rey quiere más control. El rey se llama Felipe. El rey Felipe es impaciente. Él dice, “¡Quiero mi tesoro! ¡Ahora mismo!” Por eso (that’s why), los marineros van a la isla de Cuba. En Cuba,...
Duo- Week #2
I don’t have a full post to share with you this week, but rather a single thought that I hear myself repeating to my students on a regular basis: “That was great, but this time, say it like you mean it–with expression!” When you are fluent in a language, you...
Duo- Week #1
“The limits of my language are the limits of my universe.” -Goethe I like languages. And words. A lot. I like how they sound, how they look, how they feel, and how they are able to impart information from one person to another. Not surprisingly, my educational background is...
Spain: El Camino Journal (2018)
SPAIN: The Camino de Santiago is a 500-mile hike and pilgrimage across northern Spain. It takes about 30 days to complete on foot. You carry everything you need in a backpack, and follow the arrows and shells so you don’t get lost. I completed the walk over two summers with a few...
Spain: El Camino Journal (2017)
SPAIN: The Camino de Santiago is a 500-mile hike and pilgrimage across northern Spain. It takes about 30 days to complete on foot. You carry everything you need in a backpack, and follow the arrows and shells so you don’t get lost. I completed the walk over two summers with a few...
Welcome Back 2024-25!
My Dear Friends, Fellow Linguists, and Citizens of the World: Welcome back! For any new families, I am the Spanish teacher for students in PK3 through 4th grade. In the past, I have sent out notes and summaries of what students are working on in class after each quarter....
Fly Away With Me
Waves of cerulean lapped onto the shore, back and forth, back and forth—carelessly, yet with purpose and intention. Her toes reveled in delight at the mixture of wet sand and water, so distinct from their claustrophobic shoe shell. Change could be wonderfully refreshing. She had forgotten the rush of flying. Excitement...
Ventriloquism
Elementary-aged students can be brutally honest: they simply tell it like it is. “Why didn’t you do your hair, maestra?” (I actually did, but the humidity wrecked it.) “Your room smells funny today.” (Not my fault that the air-dry clay I bought has a weird after-smell.) Or… the one...
The Evil Onion
Spanish Version “Una noche, en un castillo en el bosque de España, una princesa está durmiendo–CUANDO (todos saltan) entra LA CEBOLLA MALVADA. La cebolla malvada TOMA sus pantuflas y se escapa. La princesa está enojada, muy enojada. Habla con su amiga. “¿Qué hago?” MIENTRAS… La cebolla malvada recibe una...
Cloudy Sparkles
Spanish Version Hay un cerdito. Es bueno. Se llama Cloudy Sparkles. Hay un zapato. El Sr. Zapato es el enemigo. Es malo. El cerdito vive en Chile. Su casa es pequeña pero perfecta. El Sr. Zapato vive en Puerto Rico. Su casa no es grande. ¡Es enorme! El cerdito...
Summer Packet 2023
Short Version – Summer Packet Click on your child’s grade level page below for song links, cartoons in Spanish, and much more. Click HERE for Culture Project ideas to explore this summer. **TAKEAWAY: Integrate as much Spanish language and culture into your summer as possible! Surround your family with...
It’s Raining Tacos
Many thanks to first graders, who serenaded me with the classic hit, “It’s Raining Tacos” last week in Spanish class, as we were going over the weather report. Little did I know, the English version of this song has over 63 million views. I am clearly late to the...
Adaptations
There has been a buzz around school this week about pop singers, mostly because a celebrity superstar will be performing in a nearby city soon. I love to tap into students’ interests, and actually used to have a hobby of finding both Spanish and multilingual covers–or, adaptations–of pop songs....
An Ode to Carbs
Okay, so I’m not actually going to compose an Ode to Carbs, although if I had the time in some futuristic parallel universe, I might enjoy the challenge. Instead, I want to reflect on a moment today when one of the second grade teachers told her students to study...
Mexico- Fried Crickets
MEXICO: It is very common in many parts of Mexico to eat, well, bugs. Really! Evidently, Mexico is the country with the greatest variety of edible insects: 549 species. Some insects (like chapulines) are eaten fried but plain, while others (like scorpions)–as one of my colleagues experienced–can be mixed...
Dominican Rep.- Dominoes
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC: While baseball is technically the sport of the Dominican, many also refer to Dominoes as the national sport of the country, due to its popularity as a pastime. The sound of “smacking” down the dominoes on the board is commonplace to hear while strolling about the tropical...
Andes Mountains- Quipu
You know that feeling you get when you really want something, but know that you shouldn’t have it? Well, recently, I’ve been frequenting the Teacher’s Lounge, only to find that it is littered with cupcakes, doughnuts, cookies, cookie cakes, and everything Sugar. I don’t know if this is a...
The Third Lap
Back in the day, I used to run Track and Field. As a long-distance runner, my events included the 800m, 4×800 meter relay, 1600m, and 3200m; but of the four, my focus was the mile (1600m). I just really liked that distance. You had to strategize for each lap:...
Definitely a Kiwi.
There is something about working with children that allows you to see beyond the Realm of the Ordinary on a daily basis. That ruler is a lightsaber. That mango and those markers are perfect for an indoor game of bowling. That table is a house (below), train (above), or...
Digging for Ideas
The Panama Canal is an iconic piece of maritime history, and yet, somehow–despite our country focus in Spanish class–I have never spent any real time on it in class. Today, that changed! Was it pretty? No, not at all. Did my students learn a ton and love what we...
Panama- Canal
PANAMA: The Panama Canal is an iconic piece of maritime history, but it has taken time to develop an age-appropriate lesson for younger students to appreciate. Lesson Plans Resources...
The Art of Subtraction
I remember subtraction being a big deal in first grade. There were dinosaur eggs on the classroom bulletin board with our names on them and, although I distinctly recall not liking subtraction (addition was so much easier!), I loved my teacher and school and wanted to do well. I...
Masculine/ Feminine Words
In case you hear blips of this at home, today in Spanish class we talked about how some words are “boy” [or “el” words], and other words are “girl” [or “la” words]–in grammatical terms, we call these masculine and feminine articles, but students won’t know them as this. Third...
Going to Spain.
Before PK4 enters my classroom each day, we sit in the hallway and say together in a sing-songy voice, “¡Yo hablo español!” (I speak Spanish), like the other grade levels do. We might chit-chat about this or that, but eventually put our hands in the middle (similar to a...
Columbus Day & Word Loans
A few weeks ago, my best friend lent me a heating pad after I injured my back. It was a very thoughtful gesture and much appreciated; but eventually, I returned it. The heating pad wasn’t mine to keep, after all. Objects and ownership are pretty straightforward, in that sense....
Gold of the Morning
I love the gold of the morning, those scintillating flecks of light peppering the ever-changing canvas of the night sky, as the latter slowly fades from view; mystical dew-filled cobwebs dotting the grass for reasons unbeknownst to me; birds’ cheery songs greeting the world, welcoming the dawn; the sensation...
Language-Learning Ideas
While you can explore hands-on Culture Projects for educators, families, and/or home schoolers on another page, I thought I’d group more linguistically oriented ideas here....
Chile- Valparaíso
CHILE: The coastal city of Valparaíso in Chile is perhaps most known for its colorful landscape and 43 cerros/ hills. Commonly known as the “La Joya del Pacífico,” (The Jewel of the Pacific), the street art scene here proves astounding. Valparaíso wasn’t always quite so colorful, but in response...
Paraguay- Bottle Dance
PARAGUAY: La Danza de La Botella, or Bottle Dance, is a traditional Paraguayan dance with unclear origins- although many say it is an offshoot of the galopa (a different folk dance). Dancers begin at a young age, balancing one glass bottle on their heads. As they gain more skill,...
The Dancing Pineapple
Soundtrack The “Pato” Play (2022-23) Pato is growing up, and now has his own personal secretary! The Spanish play musical begins with our stuffed animal duck hero dancing to traditional Spanish music from the 1500’s: a calm, mature tone is established. When the phone rings and his secretary answers,...
Car Rides to the Jungle
The day begins sitting outside my classroom in the hallway. “This is English,” I say. “I am speaking in English right now, but when I–*clap, clap*–yo cambio de un idioma a otro [I change from one language to another]. *Clap, clap.* Strange, isn’t it?!“ This game progresses a bit...
Parents Night- Videos
The Firefly Language has always been a story for me. You can go macro, the story of the world–or micro, the history of a single word. Or you can travel to another galaxy! With 7,000 languages on our planet, the possibilities are endless. My [master’s] dissertation/thesis actually traced the...
Spain- Caves
SPAIN: As you may know, the name of my website–The Spanish Cave–has its roots in the year I was moved into a tiny classroom with absurdly high ceilings. After a while, we started calling it La cueva/The Cave–and for whatever reason, the name stuck. Despite their prevalence around the...
Uruguay- Casapueblo
URUGUAY: Obviously, we need to do some sort of amazing artistic project on this art studio turned hotel with no straight lines (in the entire edifice, as per the artist’s preference, Carlos Paez Vilaró). I was thinking of using marshmallows as our medium, but the temptation to eat them...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (4)
Term 1 This term, students in fourth grade began with Daily Language Trivia outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students learned basic facts such as: How many Spanish-speaking countries are there in the...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (3)
Term 1 This term, students in third grade began with Daily Language Trivia outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students learned basic facts such as: How many Spanish-speaking countries are there in the...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (2)
Term 1 This term, students in second grade began with Daily Language Trivia outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students learned a few basic facts (How many Spanish-speaking countries are there in the...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (1)
Term 1 This term, students in first grade began with daily language warm-ups outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students focused on memorizing basic phrases: yo hablo español (I speak Spanish); yo hablo...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (K)
Term 1 This term, students in kindergarten began with daily language warm-ups outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students focused on memorizing basic phrases, such as: yo hablo español (I speak Spanish); yo hablo inglés...
Quarter Update, 22-23 (PK)
Term 1 This term, students in PK3 & PK4 began with daily language warm-ups outside of my classroom. (This is the official “English/ Spanish/ Spanglish” zone, as opposed to the “Spanish-only zone” inside my room.) Here, students focused on memorizing basic phrases, such as: yo hablo español (I speak Spanish); yo...
Spanish Constitution
I did not grow up in the city, and accordingly, sometimes I think my lessons sprawl out everywhere, like the rolling countryside. When does one lesson end and another begin? No one really knows. Let me provide an example (for detailed examples, see HERE). The school year is about...
Welcome Back 2022-23!
My Dear Friends, Fellow Linguists, and Citizens of the World: Welcome back! As we look forward to the start of another school year, I thought I would share a quick post of frequently asked questions. For any new families, I am the Spanish teacher for grades PK-4. NOTE: Students...
Weekly Spanish Challenges
NOTE: This page is a synopsis of challenges sent to families back in the 2020-2021 school year. Weekly Language Challenges below. Challenge #1 NOTE TO NATIVE SPEAKERS: Fluent Spanish-speakers are welcome to change the voiceover AND the subtitles, and notice the differences in translation. This can be pretty interesting...
Snacks/Meals
Snacks Meals...
Beverages
Beverages...
Desserts
Desserts Churros* “History is divided on how exactly churros came to exist. Some say they were the invention of nomadic Spanish shepherds. Living high in the mountains with no access to bakeries, the Spanish shepherds supposedly created churros, which were easy for them to cook in frying pans over...
Recipes- Central America
Food from Central America and beyond to make at home with your family. Turn on the radio to a Spanish station, and have fun! Note that the recipes are ordered alphabetically by country. Central America & Beyond...