I am a High School World Language Teacher of Spanish, French, ESL and Bi-lingual education with 25 years of experience teaching all levels K-University level language classes. I love teaching and always ask for new responsibilities to broaden my knowledge. I am a documentary buff so I also write movie guides on a variety of Social Studies and Health related topics in addition to World Languages. I am excited to be able to share lessons with others and welcome your feedback.
I am a High School World Language Teacher of Spanish, French, ESL and Bi-lingual education with 25 years of experience teaching all levels K-University level language classes. I love teaching and always ask for new responsibilities to broaden my knowledge. I am a documentary buff so I also write movie guides on a variety of Social Studies and Health related topics in addition to World Languages. I am excited to be able to share lessons with others and welcome your feedback.
This partner practice presents simple problems and students present simple solutions using the subjunctive tense and impersonal expressions. Students take turns presenting problems and giving advice while making verbs in in subjuntive. Partner practice takes 15-20 miinutes to run in class and works best with level III or higher who have been practicing subjunctive conjugation and usage for a few days.
This film (winner Cannes film 2012) is based on the true story of a marketing campaign to oust Pinochet from his Presidency rather than extending it for another 8 years. Against all odds, with little resources and a comically clever campaign the opposition triumphs and Chileans are finally free to choose a new leader. Gael Garcia Bernal does an excellent job in this serious, thrilling, but also lighthearted film. This film carries an R rating for language, but is otherwise appropriate for an upper level Spanish class. It works best after a lab day to do some presearch on the Pinochet dictatorship or after teaching about desparecidos so students can situate the importance of the plebiscite within the context of his reign.
Movie guide has both a Spanish version and an English version so it could be shown in a Social Studies class as well.
Roy Germano PhD in poli sci visits small Mexican towns to interview people about why many people risk their lives to leave for work in the US. Germano talks with workers, farmers, spouses, families and municipal employees to discover reasons people leave and what happens to their families when they go. This compelling documentary is 55 minutes long and fits neatly in 1 class. It is an excellent companion to one of the many movies about undocumented immigrants and their journeys to the US. Most of this film is in Spanish w English subtitles and works well with any level high school Spanish or Social Studies where you have spent time discussing the immigration. This film is very well made, not rated, and has won awards at film festivals, available on Netflix or for purchase on Amazon. Movie guide contains 22 questions that follow the film. I divide students into small groups and assign each group sections to answer, then share out. Questions included in Spanish and English.
A four day lesson plan for the short story EL HIJO includes: Pre-reading questions for discussion in small group, chart for drawing the story as students listen to the audio version on the cold read, activity for students to complete as they re-read the story in pairs, 2 essay prompts for students to choose for final assessment, and link to a good version of the story narrated. El Hijo is available on line for free from a variety of sources if you don't have the text, and is best for a level IV class or higher or Heritage speakers as the vocabulary is complex. Lesson takes about 4 days to complete with time in class for reading and discussion. Preview file contains a suggested plan for how to teach this story with my activities. This lesson does not contain an answer key because the students will create their own discussion, reactions, ideas and they will vary depending on how they interpreted the story.
This quiz works best for a level III or higher class where students have already been working with subjunctive verbs for awhile. I use it as my second quiz after students have completed my homework practice packet.
Quiz is 50 pts, takes one class to complete and is graduated in task level.
1) identification of expressions that take either Subj or Indicative tenses.
2) Practice sentences to complete in Subj, Ind or Infinitive
3) an essay prompt on a student familiar topic for them to answer creatively using subj and indicative tenses, work bank of starter expressions included for them.
This 90 minute documentary from PBS chronicles the life and career of Frida Kahlo, explains her work and her relationship with muralist Diego Rivera. If you are teaching Mexican art to Spanish students and don't want to show "Frida" because of its R rating and evocative scenes, this film gives all the information necessary to understand Frida's life, love and works, with beautiful up close visuals of many of her greatest paintings. Movie guide contains 30 questions that follow the film and two follow up topics for class discussion or to be assigned as an essay for homework. This film works well for Level III teaching Realidades unit on Art, or AP curriculum as well as for an art or social studies class. Movie will take 2-3 days to complete, depending on if you stop to discuss questions with students ( PBS documentary is available for purchase on Amazon starting at $10 or directly from their website for $24.99)
This 56 minute documentary on Netflix is the best thing I have seen this year for either a Spanish or Social Studies. 4 college students spend 56 days in a remote Guatemalan village on 1 dollar a day budget, while exploring effects of living in extreme poverty and some innovative solutions people have come up with to survive. Excellent for any Spanish class where you have been studying immigration and reasons people leave their home countries to risk their lives traveling to the US, or for a Social Studies class looking at underdeveloped countries and what it means to live in extreme poverty. My students loved this film bc it was created by four college students and used their observations and connections as narrative between interviews with people in the village. (Interviews are in Spanish with subtitles, narrative in English. ) Suitable for any level middle, high school, available on Netflix, this film was such a gem you will want to own a copy. Movie guide contains 29 questions.
This quick 40 pt quiz covers making commands with and without Direct Object and reflexive pronouns. Quiz is set up in a chart form for students to demonstrate knowledge of commands in TU, UD. UDS. and NOSOTROS in positive and negative forms. This quiz works best as a formative assessment to see if your students have the rules down for how to make them. Students complete the chart manipulating the pronouns between positive and negative. Chart contains some regular, irregular, weird YO and stem changer verbs. This is not a proficiency based quiz, but will give you a quick check to see if you are ready to take students to the next level with commands.
This wonderful movie produced by Edward James Olmos for HBO chronicles a student led intitative to stage citywide walkouts in order to protest discrimination against Chicano students and punishments for speaking Spanish in school. Based on a true story and co-written with actual participants in the walkouts, this movie is wonderful for any level of Spanish class or as part of a social studies unit on the civil rights movements of the late 60's. Discriminatory practices were not limited to African Americans, and this film gives great understanding to some of the unfair treatment Latino students experienced in California. The film is rated TV-14 and is suitable for students in either midde or high school. Dialogue is in English with options for Spanish. Movie guide contains 27 questions in chronological order and several follow up themes for discussion or as an independent writing assignment. Movie guide questions in both English and Spanish versions.
This 6 page organizer guides students through every stage of how to organize a persuasive presentation around a controversial topic. Download includes an outline of the components, two graphic organizers, a large list of controversial topics for suggestions, a list of transitional words and their definitions to improve students writing and a rubric for you to assess their final projects. This project is written to be presented as an oral presentation but could easily be adapted for a 5 paragraph essay. Project works best for AP V level students or Heritage learners who already have a good command of the language and are capable of conducting their on line research in Spanish. Budget one day to walk students through how to complete the organizer, 1-2 days to research supporting sources and one day at least to create the Prezi. Students may wish to work in pairs, and/or research opposite sides of an issue.
Powerpoint contains 20 slides of art from various famous Hispanic and spanish artists. In pairs, students imagine they are visiting an art museum and asking about each work of art. (Partner A asks about odd numbered paintings, Partner B evens) Students describe the paintings, their styles and reactions to each painting. This lesson works well with anyone teaching art from Realidades level III or any higher level Spanish class learning about art and art vocabulary. It ties in well with one of the AP prep themes on beauty and aesthetics.I broke the practice into two separate class periods and had students discuss 10 paintings total each day. If you use the powerpoint as a class as opposed to having students download it on their own device, you might want to set a timer for each picture for 2 minutes. Students will be speaking Spanish fast and furious to answer the questions bc their time on each is limited. Practice takes about 20 min.
This short newspaper article in Spanish discusses Latino student graduation rates in the US and some of the long term economic benefits of staying in school. I use this article and guided reading organizer with my Spanish for Spanish speakers classes where they already have a high reading comprehension level in the language, but an AP level class could easily complete the same assignment, although it may be less culturally relevant if the students doing it are not Latino. Download includes the actual article as well as a link to it, guided reading questions and partner think/pair/shares and an essay prompt on if students feel that teachers are positive or negative forces in the lives of students. Students write a short prompt with supporting evidence from their own scholastic experiences. Article and questions take one class period to complete with the essay as homework.
Suitable for level III or higher after learning the basics of Future tense conjugation. Quiz is 34 points, has a verb chart, fill in the blanks, finish the sentences (open ended) and answer the questions. Takes about 20 min to complete.
Brief quiz covering how to form presente perfecto y pluscuamperfecto, with box charts at top for helping verbs HABER and examples using regular and irregular verbs for conjugation. Works best as an easy intro quiz after students have been working with these tenses for a couple of days. Suitable for level III or higher. Takes about 15 minutes to complete. Answer key included.
This one hour documentary from PBS chronciles the Supreme Court Case Hernandez vs Texas as a critical moment in determining if Mexican Americans should be considered a protected class against discrimination under the 14th amendment of the Constitution. 19 questions in chronological order of the film, with answer key and translated version in Spanish. The DVD is available from PBS or on line from Amazon, and is suitable for either a social studies class studying civil rights, or a Spanish class where you want to provide students with a little history. DVD also has audio track in Spanish for Heritage Learner classes. Movie takes one class period to view.
This is just a file of large words that you can cut apart and have your students put up around the school. Its fun and "gets the word out" to the other students and the administration that you are making people aware of school vocabulary in Spanish. Kids love to put them up. I do this activity every year and its amazing how long the words actually stay up. Education by osmosis. Enjoy!
Film covers what happens when ICE agents invade a meat processing plant in Postville Iowa. A true story, this film is EXCELLENT at explaining how undocumented workers are detained, deported, separated from families, how they are processed, why they come to work, and the responsibilities of the people who own businesses that benefit from their presence. Movie guide contains 26 questions in chronological order of the film, with opportunities for students to brainstorm, pair share and discuss their reactions. Runs just over an hour and is available for purchase at http://abusedthepostvilleraid.blogspot.com/ or on demand at vimeo.
There are several links for follow up trailers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDG6-1zp52w&list=PL00B092D3FE38B664 if you want to track with students what happened a year later. This film works well for Social Studies class discussing immigration or Spanish class. The documentary is in English with subtitled interviews in Spanish.
This PBS documentary follows the Chilean judge who had to render a decision on whether to indict Pinochet for war crimes. It follows him as he investigates disappearances, deaths and torture of Chilean opposition members. The documentary is one hour twenty minutes and fits well in two class periods. This film works well for a social studies class or a higher level Spanish class who has been studying desaparecidos. The film is both in English and Spanish with subtitles. Movie guide contains 23 questions in chronological order and an answer key.
Movie Guide PBS The Judge and the General by Barbara Davis is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Fictional film based on true events, the Bolivian Water Wars of 2000 when the govt tried to privatize the water supply, raising rates 300% making clean water inaccessible for a large sector of population. A Spanish director filming a movie about Columbus conquest in Bolivia is an interplay between scripted scenes where the Spaniards exploited the Taino under Columbus, and Bartolome de las Casas defends them, while in modern day scenes villagers are exploited by the government and even by the film makers, until one man helps them mobilize and stand up for their rights. An excellent movie, It opens discussion for how little has changed for indigenous poor in much of Central & South America and parallels between the initial exploitation and modern day inequities. Best suited for older/higher level high school students studying the cutural aspects of Latin America as well as language. Contains questions, answer key, topics for discussion and a list of topics for follow up research.