I remember when "graphic organizers" was the buzz word and at the school district in which I worked, if the teacher had "g.o." on his/her lesson plan, the principal was happy. I didn't like them at that time because they were basic and generic. Boring blocks or circles with spokes coming out of them that looked like bicycle wheels. The dull graphic organizers of the past are gone. I now see their value and use them often when reading novels with my students, and create ones that are specific to the text. When I start reading a new book with my students, my goal is to help them fully understand the characters, the problem, the tensions, etc. When that information is pulled together in a graphic organizer, it helps the students to connect to the characters and draws them into the story. Below are examples of graphic organizers that I use for the first chapters of several books. (my disclaimer: My artistic skills are challenged and the idea in my mind always looks better than what ends up in the paper.) FIESTA FATAL Download HERE LA GUERRA SUCIA Download HERE Robo en la noche Download HERE Vida o muerte en el Cusco Download HERE Robo en la noche (ch1-3) FInd the download HERE La vampirata Download HERE Two additional graphic organizers I use are from Martina Bex found on the link below: El nuevo Houdini - chapter 1 esquema Esperanza - chapter 1 esquema Information on many of the books listed above is used with permission by TPRS Publishing, Inc.
There’s an old song by a Basque band, Korroskada, called “Torero” which I have used for years in lessons, mostly for my own amusement. Nevertheless, it has become a part of the le…
Don't fall for any of these "false friends" tomorrow Year 11! @ketthighschool #spanish #GCSE #mfltwitterati
The title of this post should perhaps have been ’25 ideas for retrieval starters that can also be used as plenaries or simply basic lesson activities’ but it was less catchy… The only reason …
I first heard of this activity during my PGCE (although unfortunately can’t remember the name of the lady!) and it’s been one of my favourites ever since... This is a great way of practising both speaking and listening skills and every time I’ve used it the students have loved it! You create a text made up of several sentences, some of which have three possible endings. You then decide which is the correct ending and the students have to guess which one by reading the text out loud. Example used with KS4 Spanish on holidays: The students take it in turns to read out the text and if they guess the answer correctly, they can continue to the next one. If they guess it incorrectly, another person has to have a go but from the beginning. So it means that they all have to listen to each other carefully so that they don’t say the same incorrect answer twice. And there’s so much repetition that it helps the pronunciation too. When I’ve finished we normally go through the text and discuss the meaning and say what’s good about it (adjectives etc.) and how it could be improved (other tenses etc.). You could also get students to pick their own answers and play in pairs. D.
The quote above sums up why the #ililc conferences are so crucial for teachers. It is so important that we have access to as many ideas, pedagogies and approaches as possible to keep our methods of teaching - and the students' methods of learning - fresh and relevant. What makes being part of the #MFLTwitterati so worthwhile is that every week feels like a mini-version of the #ililc weekend - always learning, always sharing. I chose to deliver my session on the idea of Challenge and Differentiation. I believe that if there isn't suitable challenge in your lessons, then the differentiation isn't right. And if you differentiate your tasks, then there will be challenge. I believe the two are inseparable. Lee S Shulman, the originator of the quote above, worked with Bloom, who cropped up throughout my presentation. If you want to read more from him, go to http://www.leeshulman.net/. I started off my session, not only with this quote, but also with the reminder that I most certainly do not claim to have the answers, and that I wanted the purpose of the session to be to prompt discussion and reflection, which are crucial for continual development and improvement. I also said, although not as coherently as Lisa Stevens did in her Keynote soon after, that everyone in the room is an expert, and just because some of us have presented that day, they should not be overwhelmed or question their standing in the room. Speaking of standing, the session started with Rachel Smith not being able to sit on a chair properly. Which ruined my opening comedy-fall-off-my-chair routine I had planned. It is essential to remember at any CPD session that what works for others may not be the ideal solution for you, for your school, or for your class. What is equally as important, though, is that you are able to recognise ideas that may work and that can be manipulated and adapted. Never go to a CPD session with a closed mind. So how can we challenge? Many ways: An idea of how is noted below: While I am not going to go through each of these one by one, they all crop up and are intertwined. One of the big ideas that we are tackling at my school at the moment is the idea of the I CAN attitude - or the I CAN'T DO IT - YET approach. Students (and I know this isn't just at our school) would rather not attempt a task than run the risk of 'failing' - even though we want students to fail to be able to improve. It is ok to get it wrong. I have retweeted the picture below on a number of occasions, because it holds so much truth in it. But I needed to understand what that looked like in a classroom. How do we teach/train the students to have a growth mindset? If I had a penny for every time I counteracted a "I can't do it" with an "Of course you can", and went through the processes that students could adopt for the task... So imagine my joy when, during a parents' evening at school, I found a brilliant section in a fab book about how to go about this! Advancing Differentiation by Richard M Cash suddenly made it clear, in a few lines, in a sort of class pact: With that CAN DO in mind, I then set the delegates to task on an eye-drawing mission. 1. Draw an eye (3 minutes) 2. Card sort of 5 drawings of eyes, all of which are of different skill levels 3. Match your drawing with one of the 5 eyes 4. Draw another eye, using the 'better' eyes as guidance on how to improve your eye. Prompt sheet given out, How To Draw An Eye - step by step, for those needing the extra support. We did this at school in a mini-TeachMeet delivered by our Head of Art. It showed how to overcome the "I can't draw" attitude, as well as modelling different levels of ability, and step-by-step improvements. Students can start improving at the level they deem appropriate. Hello challenge and differentiation. The discussion then started, and we questioned whether it would have been better for the initial drawing if the 5 eyes were on the board. But that wouldn't show the inate starting point of each student. In some instances it might be the appropriate way to start. As I said, I don't have all the answers! I then wondered how we could apply that to MFL lessons and tasks. I trialled it with Year 9. I asked them to work in pairs to write a weather forecast, with no further input. I then asked them to compare their report to my 4 samples (equivalent of the 5 eyes) on the board. Once the students had worked out which one their report compared most to, they then had examples of the skills needed to be used to move up to the next example. Students understand (because of our colour group differentiation - see below!) that they do not have to stop at the next level, but they can move from red to blue, if they have the skills but just needed reminding. Something I have developed, trialled and embedded across the department is Colour Differentiation Groups. We call them the POG groups (Purple Orange Green - high order stuff!) and the grid above shows how we use the target levels to group the and allocate the students to differentiation groups. We use these in class - not for every task, not every single lesson - and the students all know which group they are in and why. It is a really easy way to set differentiation tasks - we use the same texts for reading, the same soundfiles for listening, but set different questions for the different groups. Below is an example from a year 7 class - it was a running dictation and students were grouped in POG groups (one of each colour, where possible). On creating this resource, I also tried to increase the complexity of the questioning (thank you, Mr Bloom) as I went through the POG groups. I am very mindful that, traditionally, when we plan lessons, we challenge fewer and fewer students with the higher order thinking skills as you go up the triangle of Bloom: This relates to @EddieKayshun's Spaced Learning session - are we right to begin a topic with delivering individual words to the whole class - shouldn't that be the differentiated delivery for the least able? Shouldn't we allow all students the chance to rise up, instead of capping their skills/development? Is this the way to go? This means that we are going to be adding a GOLD level for high achieving Purple students to aim for. Continuing the idea of different levels of entry, different starting points and choice, I asked the delegates to spend 5-6 minutes designing their own versions of the "Today's Number" that was doing the rounds on twitter a few weeks ago: I worked on an example which I have trialled - my challenge to anyone reading this is to make your own version, adapt it, and then Tweet it - let's have a #MotdeJour tag as well! (Oh, and tag me in as well!) Time was ticking closer to the end of the session, and with thanks to Gill Ramage, MFL Advisor in Suffolk, I finished with the following slide, showing what Blooms looks like in an MFL lesson: I love presenting, I love #ililc and I love the #MFLTwitterati.
Download and share this infographic with 13 facts about Spanish created by Speaking Latino to celebrate El Día E. 13 facts about the Spanish language with their sources. Historic and current facts about Spanish language plus a shareable info-graphic.
Spanish grammar can be confusing when you're first learning the language. These four shortcuts will help you remember the rules and learn Spanish grammar.
"Word Sneak" is a language game that Jimmy Fallon plays with guests on his talk show. Jimmy and his guest each receive 5 index cards with r...
Your home starter kit to teach kids Spanish - Includes Spanish learning printable materials, activities and more.
Thanks again, Anne! You're a star! You will need 2 sets of cards, one set with the Indonesian word and the other with either a picture or the English word. Hand out the Indonesian words to the students and divide the class into groups of 4 or more. I usually divide my class into 4 groups and have each group stand in a corner with their cards. Then call the English word or show the picture. The person with the Indonesian card gets to sit down. The first team with all its members sitting is the winner (Bingo!).
I have realized that most parents and even some teachers are unaware of how young learners can benefit from learning a second language from an early age. I decided then to create this infographic (my very first one) pointing out some of these "hidden" benefits. Here it is! You can check the full list with all references made by Professor Paradowski by clicking here. I used a site called Piktochart to make this infograph and it wasn't that hard. Thanks to Ana Luiza Uribe and Vicky Loras for reviewing my drafts! Frugs to all of you! Juan Did you like it? Share it!
Learning terms related to technology in Spanish is a savvy way to approach the language. Read this guide with many tech terms in Spanish!
Free Classroom Materials Free Spanish Agenda Labels: Tired of writing the same things on your daily agenda every day? No problem, just print out these labels (card stock keeps them nice throughout …
Great blog post with activities for Spanish class that are easy on the teacher for those days you aren't feeling well or need easy sub plans.
If your child is learning to read in Spanish you can use these free printable syllables in Spanish to help your little one learn sounds and form words.
YouTube is packed with videos to help you learn Spanish. Here's 10 of my favourite Spanish YouTubers to help you learn Spanish + a free Vocab Starter Guide!
Children acquire Spanish by hearing and reading the language in context. This picture match and mini-book for beginning readers use common Spanish verbs and support the meaning with cute pictures of cats. Common Spanish Verbs for Elementary Students I focus on high-frequency verbs in an effort to give students
When a gamer beats a level of a game and moves on to the next level, it is called “Leveling up”. In certain games, you can increase your chances by earning more points, collecting coins…
Do you want to learn Spanish fast? In only a few months? Discover the exact process I suggest you follow to learn Spanish quickly and successfully!
