One of the best classroom management strategies I have is using music. Everyday I play an artist that represents a Spanish singer. I mix it up with Country, Rap, Salsa, Cumbia, and more. Instead of just playing the music...I like to introduce the artist on Monday and give some information over the artist (where they are from, how old, languages they speak). Throughout the week I will play songs of that singer.
Here's my classroom management tip: I am always playing music while the students are switching classes. I am out in the hall welcoming my students in and using this time to ask Spanish questions. My students usually love to talk to me and try to answer Spanish questions. My rule is...when the bell rings I am IMMEDIATELY coming into my room and shutting the door. I am then making my way to my desk to turn off the music. IF you are not in your seat by the time I turn off the music, you are considered tardy and points will be deducted from your weekly participation grade.
AMAZING!!!!!! It works! You HAVE HAVE HAVE to stay consistent with it and do it everyday. There have been a few days where I got side-tracked and didn't get the music going and it made a huge difference. It broke their routine, their stability. From now on, I keep a loaded you-tube page up on computer with the daily song ready to go.
Here's a list of popular artists I play that the kids
1. Shakira
2. Ricky Martin
3. J-LO
4. Prince Royce
5. Fanny Lu
6. Enrique Iglesias
7. Santana
8. Paulina
9. Celia Cruz
10. Marc Anthony
11. Alejandre Pires
12. Juanes
So I teach AP Spanish and anyone who teaches this knows that we usually take our AP Spanish test very very early (May 6th to be exact). After taking the tests...try telling SENIORS that we are going to continue class "and learn"...ha, (hold up shield for the tomatoes thrown at face).
This year I didn't want to just "quit" after the test...with the snow and lovely KY weather this year...we're here to June. (Swallow Valium) So I was thinking what can I do that will be fun but not intense that will challenge the kids but not overwhelm them and just be "FUN LEARNING" So I have come up with a mini-idea list...enjoy!!!
(Some of these activities were actually done in Spanish 3 and AP but are great repeats because you can switch them up.)
1. Mock Court Cases - Let the kids create their own crazy trial, organize the positions, allow them time to work on what they will say and ask, present and enjoy!
2. Bizarre News Reports - Let the kids organize "fake" news reports. We actually do this in Spanish 3 and it's always really fun to watch. Put them in small groups and have them create at least 3 stories: You can do top news, sports, weather, etc. Always fun to watch. You can also give them cameras and let them record their reports!!!
3. Helping Out Lower Levels - Let them be the "teacher" and prepare a mini-lesson for the lower levels. Let them pick a topic, organize a level. It's cool if you can actually pull them out of class to teach this lesson. If not, just record and show lower level classes.
4. Create a song and dance - There are so many grammar topics that are just easier with a little tune and a little jig. Give the groups a topic and let them prepare this. Record and show your lower levels (if they let you) ;-)
Hope these activities will keep your Spanish mojo flowing and allow the kids to have a little fun with Spanish being the center :)
God Bless,
Britt
As a language teacher, I think we all have our favorite when it comes to reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Have you noticed that maybe in class you are getting your students engaged in the area that YOU are best at? When having this discussion with a friend who also teaches Spanish, we came to the realization that WE (the teachers) are pushing the activities that WE are best at. I was a translator for an agriculture office in college and I was constantly reading and verbally translating for others. I think it's safe to say my kids do A LOT of reading. I also love to SPEAK in Spanish, so my kids are constantly speaking.
I am not going to lie when I say my kids need MORE practice with writing and reading. It's hard sometimes to do writing activities in Spanish 1 because they know so little. But I created this MINI chart for a reminder that each lesson....every single component needs to be in there in someway. It's helped me out a ton but I am struggling to think of writing ideas:
-I have my Spanish 3 & AP writing over notebook topics everyday for 10 minutes. Easy for Spanish 3 because they have the knowledge to write over these topics.
-I let my Spanish 1 have quiet, free writing time where they can go anywhere in the room and then write for 10 minutes straight about whatever they like. Sometimes I even say "OK, here is your goal: Use your -AR verbs conjugated in this writing"
-I have my Spanish 1 kids translate sentences but this is more guided writing than their production. We occasionally do essays but like I said, this is more guided.
So.....Let's have a SHAREFEST!!! Post your ideas for writing below in the comments section!!!!
God Bless,
Brittany
So I try to do as many on-hand activities with conjugating verbs right after the students are given the basic lesson of conjugating verbs. I personally HATE worksheets and you won't see alot of worksheet ideas from me. I like them for basic assessment checks, sub work, and a little quick practice activity but as far as checking knowledge, thorough practicing, and really diving into the material...worksheets OUT! This idea I'm getting ready to talk about is a super duper EASY activity AND the kids really enjoy it. :)
First of all...you need to visit your teacher resource room and get about 5 to 7 large pieces of colorful paper (like the butcher paper). Stash them in your classroom for later use.
Next, make sure you TEACH the infinitives and the students are comfortable with the meaning of the infinitives. There are lots of activities for that (and I'll come back to that at a later time).
After you feel like your students understand the basic concept of conjugating, why it's important, and the whole PURPOSE of conjugating...then let's practice!
Tell the kids to form groups of 3 to 5 (or however many you feel comfortable with working together in a group).
Next, give each group a large piece of colorful butcher paper and some markers (you want to be able to display these later on).
Tell them to do basic conjugations such as "Ella habla" or "Nosotros pasamos" and you can even throw in some -er or -ir verbs. Tell them with each conjugation they need to draw a basic little picture that illustrates their conjugations.
I told my kids they could be creative and set up the conjugations anyway they like: bubbles, draw a picture and let the conjugations create the picture, little boxes, and more. I let their creativity come out.
Here are some examples of the ones that were created. Warning: there are a few mistakes. (They are practicing and that's okay). They are given a small little paper rubric so I don't mark on their creation where it's showing in the hallway with my pen markings all over it and the world to see their grade.
God Bless,
Brittany
First of all, I want to apologize for the huge leave of absence. As you can tell...my last entry was in August...before my baby! Now it's March (almost 5 months AFTER my baby). Life is starting to get back into motion and our new normal is well...just the normal. Shew, a new baby is ALOT of work but the BEST blessing in this world! With that being said...I am back and ready to pick up where I left off. Heck, maybe I can throw in a few posts involving being a mom and balancing the classroom (and life)...or maybe you guys can send ME some advice! Good to be back!
God Bless,
Brittany
So this year I am teaching a new way and I have to say, I LIKE IT SOOOO MUCH! The kids are learning faster, they are remembering past material taught, and they are so engaged! I call it "Chunk Teaching"
So with a language we move from concept to concept...teaching brand new grammar, vocabulary, and conversation...hoping to God that little Johnny didn't forget the past concept I taught him. :/ You know it's true?! I'll be honest I always feel like I'm a good judge of character for my students because I get bored easy just like a bunch of teenagers...my viewpoint is "If I'm bored teaching it...they HAVE to be bored learning it." Sooooo, I switched things up a bit this year.
First thing you'll need to do is tell every student that they need to construct a little book from blank sheets of paper...I told my kids take 6 sheets of paper, make a booklet, decorate the front ANYWAY you like, and staple it so it will hold together.
So this book? Yeah, IT'S THEIR NOTES! Do you know how easy it is to get them to take notes now? I just say "Sacan los libros" and bam...easy peazy. Something about taking notes on a blank sheet of paper must be a dramatic experience for kids but when they are filling up these books day by day, they are addicted. They can easily look down, flip the page, and see how much Spanish they already know (and need to know).
The reason I did this....I'm going on maternity leave in the fall (late October to be exact) and I really really needed some way that I knew my kids would have the material at their hands. Also, I thought....how can I get through the material a LITTLE quicker than last year...I don't want to leave and the kids have three months of Spanish left with a month to go...ahh, nightmare!
So here's how "Chunk Teaching" works....I am also a Psychology major as well as Spanish...I know, very diversified but science proves our brain works better and "learns" better and retains the information longer if we learn concepts in "chunks" We can learn multiple concepts but like info must be in chunks "small pieces" so...I figured why not try this in my class?
The first concepts we teach in Spanish 1 are: Alphabet, Spanish Speaking Countries, and Basic Greetings. I usually try to throw a cognate lesson in there as well. So instead of spending two WHOLE classes learning the alphabet and then wondering if they got it....I said "let's open our new fresh books" and title the first page "The alphabet" (but in Spanish). I then taught them 5 to 6 letters (THAT'S IT).....We did pronunciation, we talked about how well they related to English, blah blah blah. Then, I said okay we're going to talk about Spanish Speaking Countries now...start a new page and call it "Spanish Speaking Countries" and then we only did like 5 or 6 with the capitals, talked about each one and done.
Then, last concept....we did greetings...I always teach them "Me llamo (my name is)", Soy de (I am from), and "Como estas" (accents included but keyboard won't do it right at this moment)...this way I can quiz them the next day at the door with telling me THESE 3 things about themselves.
There are alot of activities to do to practice like presenting each other, presenting yourself, going around the room and filling up a hand (5 peers) by telling them these three things, etc.
The next day....it's like magic! They actually REMEMBER!!!! You're not OVERLOADING THEM! They can remember like concepts...they can remember chunk information and retain it longer.
I do this EVERY class...we are on the 11th day of school and my kids CAN: say their alphabet (in Spanish), list and name some Spanish speaking countries with their capitals, know ALL their basic greetings (hello, how are you, i'm good, thanks, where are you from, what's your name, my name is, etc). Also my kids can conjugate in the YO form and the Tu form...they know 15 infinitives, they know adjective placement (putting the adjective AFTER the noun), definite articles, etc. If you don't believe me....take a look at our quiz which was done on the NINTH...yes I said that right....NINTH day of school!
Chunk teaching....amazing!
Here is evidence of EXCELLENCE from my freshmen Spanish 1 class:
Here is the back of the test so you can see what all they did in NINE days of school!!! LOVE CHUNK TEACHING! :)))
God Bless,
Brittany B.
So I think we can say as a language teacher...it's ridiculous how little the kids want to speak the target language....why...they are scared...they know English...and usually NO ONE is holding them accountable to speaking that language.
Now, old school teachers, I might take a whopping for this but having the kids copy notes, do a worksheet, work their conjugations in a little boot is NOT working...they are becoming experts at getting their work done, and doing the task...but can they take that conjugated verb and go out in the world and produce a sentence? Many CAN'T!
The other day I was teaching my Spanish 3 and I noticed that the kids "thought" they felt very confident about being able to conjugate present tense verbs. I said "Alright, if I said...here's the verb "Escribir" right now...create a sentence using the nosotros form...who can do it?" Yep, what I thought...every single one of them were picturing that little boot and the nosotros form and trying to figure out what sentence to make...took on average about 45 seconds to a minute to get a sentence together....not good for Spanish 3.
So I listed a bunch of infinitves on the board and I said "Get up"...they looked at me like I was weird...I said "Get up, c'mon, stand up" So then they got up...I said "Walk around in the room right now" Once again, weird looks (I am use to it by now). I said "STOP WHERE YOU ARE" I said look at the person who is standing the closest to you...and right now take the verb "trabajar" and create a sentence using the "ella" form....pause, pause, pause, and then I hear a little chattering....they were USING their verbs!!!! They were FINALLY speaking to each other. I then said okay, other partner....translate in ENGLISH what he just said.
We went on and did this for about 15 more minutes...walking around, stopping, choosing partners, and talking. I walked around and listened to each kid and I was soooo impressed that after 15 minutes it was coming to them so much faster. Bam, they got off their butts and talked.
Yes, I am doing this EVERY CLASS, EVERY LEVEL!!!!
God Bless,
Brittany B.
