Conversational Spanish – Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced:

 

Ecuador, Galapagos Islands, Peru, and Bolivia Semester

Mexico and Central America Semester

Working with a network of local teachers and professionals, we develop our Spanish language skills, with an emphasis on conversation.  The goal of this course is to give students the Spanish language skills and practice they need to communicate in these Spanish-speaking countries.  In addition to learning Spanish, students learn fundamentals of linguistics and the art of speaking a foreign language.

Spanish is the primary language spoken in the classroom.  Students are expected to improve their Spanish levels of reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension.  Students learn Spanish, and increase their fluency, with a combination of classroom lecture, grammar review, verb tenses, in-class discussion, instruction from native language speakers, dialogue with native speakers, and exercises in the community (for example, bargaining and buying almonds in a market while speaking Spanish in Cuzco, Peru).

This World Language course implements the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century from the National Standards in Foreign Language Education.  The emphasis for this course is taught using the 5 C's: Communication, Culture, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities.

The Languages of Southern Africa:

 

Southern Africa Semester

 

Working with a network of local teachers and professionals, students learn the basics of several different languages spoken in southern Africa.  In addition to learning specific languages, students learn fundamentals of linguistics and the art of speaking a foreign language. The languages include: Afrikaans (South Africa and Namibia), Xhosa (Bantu language widely spoken in South Africa), Zulu (a South African tribal language which uses a variety of “clicks,” very hard to pronounce!), and German (spoken widely in Namibia).  Students also learn basic Shona and Tswana.  Students learn these languages with a combination of classroom lecture, in-class discussion, instruction from native language speakers, dialogue with native speakers, and exercises in the community (for example, haggling and buying an orange in a market while speaking German in Swakopmund, Namibia).

This World Language course implements the Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century from the National Standards in Foreign Language Education.  The emphasis for this course is taught using the 5 C's: Communication, Culture, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities.

 

 

Assessment for all World Language Courses: 

All students will take weekly quizzes alternating between written, verbal, and presentations or projects. Students receive a weekly “communication” grade, based on daily communication in another language, speaking with native language speakers, and communication effort.  Students will have 4 tests during the semester.  Students will have a final project in which students will demonstrate language listening comprehension, communication through various purposes, reading comprehension, written communication, and demonstrating knowledge of a culture through the use of the language.

 

Communication

The communication standard stresses the use of language for communication in "real life" situations. It emphasizes, "What students can do with language" rather than "what they know about language." Students are asked to communicate in oral and written form, interpret oral and written messages, show cultural understanding, and present oral and written information to various audiences for a variety of purposes.

 

Cultures

Cultural understanding is important to world languages education. Experiencing other cultures develops understanding and appreciation of the relationship between languages and other cultures, and the student's native culture. Students understand other people's points of view, ways of life, and contributions to the world.

 

Connections

World languages instruction connected with other subject areas. Content from other subject areas is integrated with world language instruction through lessons that are developed around common themes.

 

Comparisons

Students are encouraged to compare and contrast languages and cultures. They discover patterns, make predictions, and analyze similarities and differences across languages and cultures. Students often come to understand their native language and culture better through such comparisons.

 

Communities

Extending learning experiences from the world language classroom to the home and multilingual and multicultural community emphasizes living in a global society.

1. All students will engage in conversation, provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions.
2. All students will understand and interpret spoken and/or written language on a variety of topics.
3. All students will convey information, concepts, and ideas to listeners and/or readers for a variety of purposes.
4. All students will demonstrate an understanding of the relationship between the perspectives, practices, and products/contributions of cultures studied, and use this knowledge to interact effectively in cultural contexts.
5. All students will reinforce and increase her knowledge of other disciplines through world languages.
6. All students will acquire information and perspectives through authentic materials in world languages and within cultures.
7. All students will recognize that different languages use different patterns and can apply this knowledge to her own language.
8. All students will demonstrate an understanding of the concept of culture through comparisons of the culture studied and her own.
9. All students will apply language skills and cultural knowledge in daily life.