“You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.” -Madeleine L’Engle
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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;…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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.…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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),…
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…
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…
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,…
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…
Working Vocabulary
“The limits of my language are the limits of my universe.” -Goethe Sight Words “Licenses” Wall Words Simple Phrases To Get You Started **My thoughts…
Vocabulary Lists
Yes, I was that Spanish student who went home and memorized any and every list of vocabulary my teacher gave me. Believe it or not,…
Bullfighting and A Bug.
Yesterday, I subbed for Library class, but got the times mixed up–and consequently, first graders were only able to hear the beginning of a story…
The Bread Castle
There are moments in your life when you have to make serious decisions. And then there are moments in your life when the PSA (Professional…
Legends
LINKS: Why The Rooster Crows in the Morning, Simple Stories in Spanish (legends), A World of Stories, Cuentos Infantiles (podcasts), Los loros disfrazados (leyenda), LORO coloring page, Mitos y leyendas para…
Read-Alouds for Spanish Class
Sub plans for language teachers are always a bit tricky. I remember once when I was told that my sub would be Spanish-speaking. Thoroughly delighted,…
In Theaters Now!
Soundtrack On Thursday, fourth graders performed a play in Spanish about our beloved stuffed animal hero, Pato (Duck). This was a play within a play about…
A Condo Inside the Alhambra?
During the month of December, students in first grade have focused their attention on Spain, or España. While this is part of the first grade curriculum, I…
A Shoe Sandwich & The Train
By far, my favorite lessons are the ones that begin with a plan, veer off course completely, and then somehow end up at the final destination,…
The Post Office Pulley System
Post Office Drop Box (Spain/España). Post Office Drop Box (USA). In class, we cover a lot of territory. I am constantly throwing culture, geography, grammar–first…
Cardboard Cars & Table Trains
This morning, students in PK3 voted on which two songs to watch and dance to (from four options: Chumbala Cachumbala; Corre, Pocoyó; ¿Te Gusta El Helado De Brócoli?; and Rompe…
Center Work & Chickens
We left off last time with Pato (my stuffed animal duck) going on a treasure map adventure with pirates, rough ocean seas, and baking soda & vinegar volcanoes…
Train Rides
This morning, students in PK4 danced to our newest class song called Chumbala Cachumbala, and then went through the “How are you?” daily routine. Next, I asked in Spanish,…
Racing Along
Some days in Spanish class, we lollygag and I allow time for vocabulary and Culture Projects to sift through students’ minds. It doesn’t feel–at least on paper–like…
Quechua & MJ
This morning, third graders tapped into their “One Voice Can Make a Difference” theme in Spanish class. First, they learned some basic linguistic facts: there are about…
Gold Fairy Dust
In class this afternoon, first graders came to Spanish and happened to notice that my classroom was–almost literally–coated in glitter: from the carpet to the tables,…
Breaking News!
Every year, our Spanish News Show gets a little wackier. We just keep adding and spiraling, and suddenly, a student is shouting, “¡Seguridad!” (security!) because…
The Fruit Gang
Soundtrack On Wednesday, fourth graders performed a play in Spanish about our beloved stuffed animal hero, Pato (Duck), who was (gasp!) framed for robbing the bank.…
Resumen, 20-21 (All Grades)
This year, I changed schools and began writing blog posts about lessons, as opposed to quarter summaries. Our school also did a mix of hybrid…
Yes to Pizza.
Once upon a time, there was a Spanish teacher who awakened very early one Friday morning and knew–without a doubt–that it was going to be…
Quantum Leaps
LANGUAGE IS weird. Bizarre. Quirky. Odd. Let me clarify: yes, language encompasses all of those things–each and every language has its own particular quirks and oddities…
Tango, Sharks, & Ziplines
WEEKS 3-4: Just so you are aware, any lesson involving Pato tends to grow and evolve and become an all-out saga that goes on and…
Did the Gato eat Pato?
UPDATE: Students in PK-4 have been experiencing a 100% immersive classroom environment in Spanish class. We begin each day with a song, followed by knocking…
Pato & The 2D House
September of 2020 My Dearest Pato: You are very sweet to write. Your penmanship, however, seems to have regressed. Then again, I am not as…
Lava Lamps & Pirates
WEEKS 3-4: After spending one lesson last week identifying objects that float and sink–and adding food coloring to plain water/agua (not vinegar/vinagre) to observe the…
Just Keep Walking
Week #2: This week, students in fourth grade had another dance party–see video below–making sure to sing, “Es viernes (‘bee-AIR-nace’)/It’s Fri-day” as they settled into…
Storytime! Hungry Hikers
Week #2: This week, students in third grade entered the wonderful world of storytelling. Here, the teacher provides a bare-bones outline of a scripted story,…
Water or Vinegar?
Week #2: This week, students in kindergarten experienced 95% immersion in the target language. They usually begin class with some sort of movement warm-up, either…
A Whirlwind Adventure
Week #1: This week, fourth graders embarked on a whirlwind adventure of language and culture. The first class was spent almost entirely in the target…
Pato Who?
This week, following introductions, students in first grade named as many words that they could think of in the target language (e.g., red/rojo, blue/azul, green/verde,…
Pato Vs. Gravity
Week #1: This week, students in PK-4 were officially introduced to Pato, a stuffed animal duck who has a big heart but always seems to…
Hiking the Camino
Week #1: Today in third grade, students first told me about their favorite places, and then I shared about one of my favorite trips, during…
Camino Shells & Pato
Weeks 1-2: This week, students in second grade–along with several other classes–met a stuffed animal duck named Pato (which conveniently means duck in Spanish). Pato has…
Just Play
As a child, I played “school” a lot. My mother says that in kindergarten, I would coerce others to be my students and scribble lessons…
Imports & Exports
The current political/media state has brought to the world’s attention how incredibly dependent and interdependent we–along with millions of people–are on other country’s products and services. An Apple…
Memoir Excerpt
In what seems like a lifetime ago, I used to take ballroom dance lessons. This “phase” lasted for close to seven years. While my dance…
Heritage Survey Results
**Interactive Map** For the 100th Day this year, we wanted to see if students in Lower School represented 100 or more countries, by heritage. By…
Museum Gallery 2019-20
This is a digital collection of our Spanish art/science/history museum. To see the “Museum Exhibits” page and a description of the project, click HERE. Update:…
The 15-Minute Class (PK)
November: Because children are experiencing immersion in the target language, it is difficult to know when to send an update. They respond to me in…
Native Speakers
Recently, I have had several questions about native (and heritage) speakers and how to improve their reading and writing skills in the target language. In…
Museum Exhibits
*To see the digital collection and your child’s work, please visit THIS LINK. Students in Lower School have been working for the past few weeks on…
Country Presentations
Today, kindergarteners and third graders had a special presentation about Mexico [from Regina and Isabella’s mom and grandmother]. In it, students learned that the Aztecs were…
Invitation for Speakers
As the year has progressed (we are already in the third trimester!), I have learned that many families have a connection with one or more…
App Challenge
Happy New Year! It is a new year, and a new you. Fifth grade is a fabulous class, but because we only meet twice a…
Food for Thought
LANGUAGE-LEARNING IS HARD- TRUE OR FALSE?: We live in an ‘instant-gratification’ society these days. In a way, the time it takes to pronounce the word…
Tips for New Students
As there are new students in nearly every grade level in Lower School this year, please be assured that your child is not the only…
AP Spanish
“El ‘ahora’ que es ahora, ese momento, nunca ha existido antes, desde que el mundo fue creado. Y ese momento no existirá ya nunca más.…