Cultural input: the prisons in Bolivia (or how to engage Spanish learners)

How to get students engaged and producing a lot of language???? Well.... I recommend purchasing Martina Bex 7-day lesson plans about Los niños prisioneros de Bolivia as it is truly worth the investment! Not only did it save me a lot of prep-time, it also made my students had a meaningful discussion in the target language!

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a favor1 Bolivia1 comprehend10 comprehensible41 comprehension31 conversation12 debate3 debe2 discuss1 discussion3 Education8 effort1 en contra1 engage14 family16 high interest5 input39 interest9 interesting9 issues1 key structures7 listen6 listening29 lo que hace1 Martina Bex10 meaningful4 output10 performance2 prison1 read7 reading36 reflect3 reflection4 skills24 social relationships2 South American1 Spanish27 speaking37 story34 storytelling28 structures6 target8 target language12 TPRS34

The Spanish alphabet

This is a simple activity to do with Spanish beginners when you are teaching the alphabet: students create their own alphabet page by looking for words which start with each letter of the Spanish alphabet. This is the first year in my teaching career that I do this activity and I have found out that my grade 6 students (11-12 years old) had a lot of fun doing this.

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activity13 alphabet1 beginner10 browse1 browsing1 dictionary3 enjoy2 find2 finding1 foreign language5 fun13 grade 68 language26 letter1 letters1 looking for1 reading36 research1 simple7 skills24 Spanish27 writing17

Pablo Picasso y el Guernica for Spanish beginners

As the school year draws to a close, I have chosen to read a book in Spanish with my students. If we don't manage to finish the book, my students will have to finish reading it over the summer holidays which will be an excellent practice to keep up their Spanish.

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acquire28 Agentes secretos y el mural de Picasso1 book10 civil war1 cognates3 connect3 easy reader1 Guernica1 interactive2 key structures7 Mira Canion1 mural1 novel4 painting5 personalized13 Picasso1 PowerPoint2 presentation10 questions19 reading36 recycle2 renew1 repeat3 skills24 slideshow2 Spanish27 speaking37 video32

Civilization project to use the past tense in Spanish

I have covered the past tense in Spanish with my grade 8 students (13-14 years old) this term and I want them to be able to describe past events confidently and accurately. Over my teaching experience I have found out that doing the traditional grammar exercises such as filling in the gaps with the correct verb forms does not really work with students.

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acquire28 acquired3 acquisition33 civilization1 collaboration work1 collaborative2 communication7 communicative7 comprehend10 comprehensible41 Education8 fluency15 grade 85 group work5 history5 imperfect2 incas1 independent3 information5 informative1 innate1 input39 internalize1 invented1 language26 language skills1 listening29 mayas1 oral11 output10 pair work2 past5 poster2 presentation10 proficiency8 project10 simple past4 skills24 Spanish27 speaking37 storylistening2 video32

Back to school!

I am officially back to work after a wonderful holiday with my family in France and in Spain. It has actually been more than a week that I am back to school but it has been a shock to the system (getting back to the routine after more than a year of maternity leave!).

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3d1 3d printer1 acquisition33 back1 backtoschool2 center3 class2 classroom8 decorate1 display1 Education8 experience1 first week1 hispanic4 interact1 interactive2 language26 learning14 leearner1 middle school3 posters1 printer1 printing1 response1 school5 school year1 setting1 shape1 Spanish27 stories3 storytelling28

Marceline Loridan-Ivens: a moving account.

When I prepare dinner in the evening, I like to listen to the radio and it usually falls during Le Grand Entretien on France Inter. François Busnel, a journalist spends an hour interviewing different people from authors to comedians to politicians. I like the way this journalist conducts the interviews.

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acquired3 acquiring5 acquisition33 advanced3 biograhy1 cinema1 comprehensible41 comprehension31 French20 history5 input39 interview1 interviewee1 journalist1 life3 listen6 listening29 Marceline Loridan-Ivens1 past5 personal8 personalized13 podcast3 radio2 risks1 speaking37 story34 storytelling28 war1

¡Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

Today was a great day! Not only it was sunny and warm and we could for once enjoy the beautiful springy outdoors but it was also the Cinco de Mayo. The excuse to celebrate and have Mexican food! Well... As French people we shouldn't really be celebrated this date as it marks the defeat of the French army (which I didn't know!): "on May 5,

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cinco de mayo1 Cooking17 Education8 flag1 food13 geography2 heritage1 history5 map2 Mexican2 Mexico1 personal8