March is here and can be an intense time of budget conversations, planning for next year and also focusing on all that is still in front of you for this year. Take care of yourself and reach out to colleagues or me if helpful to check-in. Hope you are enjoying brighter mornings and longer evenings.

This group met for the first time this past Tuesday, March 7th. 6 world language Spanish educators joined to discuss possible outcomes and ideas for each Spanish level. We will be focusing on ACTFL proficiency levels as well as how specific outcomes align with the adopted Senderos curriculum. We will have a document for anyone to try out and provide feedback on in May, 2023. If you are interested in looking more at the work we are doing you can find that on the Spanish Teams page under files. The next meeting is Tuesday, April 25th 4pm. Email for an invite. Hope you can join!

This group met for the first time on Thursday, March 2nd. Five world language educators joined to engage in discussion and also read an article together and discuss antiracist approaches in language education. We invite you to also read the article linked below and consider the questions in your own reflection or with a colleague. The next meeting is Thursday, March 30th 4pm. Email for an invite. Hope you can join!

From the authors..."Between the two of us, we speak five languages (African American Vernacular English (AAVE), Haitian Kreyol, Spanish, French and English). With few exceptions, most settings do not formally recognize AAVE or Haitian Kreyol as legitimate languages nor are Chicanx Spanish, Jamaican Patois, and the like recognized. In charting a path toward antiracism, as a profession we must challenge and newly imagine how we define languages. We call for educators to value the language of the classroom (languages traditionally taught, affirmed, and acknowledge), and also the language of the community (languages traditionally not taught, affirmed or acknowledged)" (Hines-Gaither, K. & Accilien, C., 2022, pgs. 18-19).

This year we have one remaining World Language Department Meeting. You should have received an Outlook invite already if a department chair. I look forward to seeing you then.

WL Department Chair Meeting - Wednesday, 4/5 4pm - 5pm

At this time district testing registration is closed for the remainder of the year because of the large amount of students that have signed up. If you know of a senior in need of testing, please reach out. You can also host testing at your school. Reach out for more details.

Interested in hosting a testing date at your school? Please contact tbwilliams@seattleschools.org to discuss details and schedule a date for this spring. Last year over 10 schools hosted site-based testing days. Thank you educators for leading this work!

Thank you to those who have shared ideas for the newsletter and also images.

Do you have something you would like shared? Please email tbwilliams@seattleschools.org and I can work on getting that in future newsletters.