World Languages Weekly Update
December 18, 2015
As seen this week in classrooms
Although a well-deserved break is upon us, I witnessed creative instruction with new tools, and plenty of student engagement this week. Below are some examples of:
- Specific I CAN learning outcomes
- Feedback/Conferring
- Visible thinking
- Annotation of text in the target language
- Authentic resources to support interpretive listening
- High Levels of Thinking on Interpretive Reading
Specific, Communicative I CAN Learning Objectives
Authentic Music for "musique mercredi"
Visible Thinking
An ongoing Word Wall in Spanish
Writing Process
A Spanish 1 student synthesizes information from a peer interview to construct a paragraph.
Compare/Contrast
Level 4 students viewed authentic videos and took notes about the advantages and disadvantages of urban vs rural life. Students shared their thinking in pairs, small groups and as a class.
Neato Mosquito! EdPuzzle Integration with Google Classroom
Just a heads up for the EdPuzzle fans and Google Classroom users. EdPuzzle now fully integrates with Google Classroom! Here's a quick video that explains the features: https://youtu.be/OVQgt1HIClU
Course selections for next year
Now is a great time to be talking with your current students about their upcoming course selections. Middle School teachers can discuss with current grade 6 students the choice for a 9-week experience or beginning Level 1 French or Spanish. To those who teach AP Spanish Language and Culture, please consider inviting in the next year AP Spanish Literature and Culture teacher to discuss the course with potential students, as this course launches next year.
As the middle school program expands to include level 2 in Grade 8, this is a great time to think creatively about some new elective courses in the middle school and high school.
Consult the resources below as you plan ahead in speaking with students about courses and Academic and Career Planning (ACP):
Personalized IPA for Exams? ¡Si, Oui!
Looking for creative ways to personalize the IPA in reading, sort of like the popular concept of "Genius Hour" ?
Read below and be inspired by how Laura Sexton uses Genius Hour with students to personalize the IPA with her novice students: