Spanish
Overview
- Spanish Kindergarten
- Spanish Grade 1
- Spanish Grade 2
- Spanish Grade 3
- Spanish Grade 4
- Spanish Grade 5
- Spanish Grade 6
- Spanish Grade 7
- Spanish Grade 8
- Spanish Grade 8 B
- Spanish 1
- Spanish 3
Spanish Kindergarten
Kindergarten Spanish Unit 1
Bienvenidos! Welcome to Spanish class! Kindergarten students will begin their once a week adventure into exploring Spanish. Students will be introduced to the puppet Tomás el Tucán, a new friend from Costa Rica, who will accompany them on their Spanish adventure. This welcome unit will expose students to high frequency words associated with greetings, introductions and farewells, basic courtesies, asking someone how they are, and basic responses. Students will reflect on what makes them a good citizen in their Spanish classroom. Students will acquire high frequency words using the TPRS method. Students will learn TPR gestures for each high frequency word, listen to and participate in engaging mini-stories, as well as activities related to this topic.
21st Century Capacities: Citizenship
Kindergarten Spanish Unit 2
Kindergarten students continue on their Spanish adventure (la aventura) through the jungle (la selva). Students met Tomás el Tucán in the previous unit, and will now meet his friend Manny the Mono (monkey) who will continue on the adventure with them. This unit will expose students to high frequency words, including high frequency verbs like is, has, and eats. Students will also learn how to say boy and girl and tell what their names are. Students will learn TPR gestures for each high frequency word, listen to and participate in mini-stories, and other engaging activities. Students will ultimately build on their citizenship skill from the previous unit by producing their own book to give back to their school library/nursery. The class will compile a big book of little stories. The jungle adventure will end when students make it to El Volcán. Put on your sombrero, grab your maraca, and let's have a ¡FIESTA!
21st Century Capacities: Product Creation
Spanish Grade 1
Grade 1 Unit 1
In unit one of first grade, students will be taking an adventure to Machu Picchu, Perú, with a new friend named Billy. Students will be exposed to Perú and its culture, including items of clothing, like chullos and ponchos. Throughout the unit students will create graphic sentence strips to add to their handmade ponchos reflecting the high frequency words they have learned in each section of the unit. The concept of asking for help and being helpful is also addressed in this unit. Students will ultimately participate in a PBA where they will help Billy's abuela in Perú design a poncho to sell in her store, listening carefully to her instructions and accurately representing what she says on a poncho. Students will acquire high frequency words using comprehensible input and the TPRS method. Students will learn TPR gestures for each high frequency word, and demonstrate listening comprehension of engaging texts containing high frequency vocabulary by using accurate images and gestures. High frequency words for the unit include expressions of weather, family members, and high frequency verbs.
21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing
Grade 1 Unit 2
In unit 2 of first grade we continue our adventure in Perú. Students will continue to be exposed to Perú and its culture including llamas, alpacas, and some of the food grown there. Throughout the unit students will go on an adventure with Billy and Camila following a map that will lead them to The Lost City of Machu Picchu. Students will ultimately participate in a two part PBA where they will create two products; (1) their own maps to "sell" at the Abuela's store and, (2) a sign letting customers know that there are maps, and other favorite items, for sale at Abuela's store. Students will acquire high frequency words using comprehensible input and the TPRS method. Students will learn TPR gestures for each high frequency word, and demonstrate listening comprehension of engaging texts containing high frequency vocabulary by using accurate images and gestures. High frequency words for the unit include feelings, expressions of needing/finding something, and interrogative words.
21st Century Capacities: Product Creation
Spanish Grade 2
Unit | Description |
¡Yo soy único! (I'm unique!) | In unit one of second grade, students will learn how to talk about themselves by describing some of their physical characteristics and personality traits, as well as their family, in Spanish. Throughout the unit, students will create artifacts to capture interesting facts about themselves, while utilizing the high frequency words and other vocabulary they have learned in each section of the unit. Students will acquire high frequency words using comprehensible input and the TPRS method. Students will learn TPR gestures for each high frequency word, and demonstrate listening comprehension of engaging texts containing high frequency vocabulary by using accurate images and gestures. In addition to high frequency words, students will learn about cognates and their value in second language learning. During this unit the students will participate in a PBA where they will be presenting their "all about me" artifacts to their classmates. The PBA presentations will serve as the content for a video, the final product to this unit, where the teacher will produce a video with clips from all of the 2nd grade students' individual presentations. This video will be shown to the incoming 2nd graders during the following school year. By the end of the unit, students will have enough information about themselves and their classmates to be prepared to begin unit 2 and discussions of their being "especial/diferente/único" as individuals, and the importance and value of their differences and similarities. 21st Century Capacities: Presentation |
Somos un arco iris (We are a rainbow)
| This unit's main theme is "be who you are; it's ok to be you". Second graders will discuss the importance and value of their differences and similarities. In Unit 2 of second grade, students will continue to learn how to describe and speak about themselves, and will begin learning how to describe and speak about others, in Spanish. Students will acquire high frequency words using comprehensible input and the TPRS method. Students will learn TPR gestures for some of the high frequency words, and demonstrate knowledge through gestures and verbal responses. Students will continue to identify and use cognates, and learn about their value in second language learning. This unit's cultural component will introduce students to some games children play in Latin American countries. Students will participate in a PBA in which they will be welcoming DJ and DJ's family, who are visiting from Mexico. During DJ's visit, the child's family will decide if Madison is a good town for them to move to. The family would like to stay with one of the students. Students will help the visitors decide which student's family to stay with by gathering, reviewing, and comparing information about themselves and DJ. This information will include identifying similarities and differences pertaining to family, personality traits, physical traits, as well as their likes/dislikes. 21st Century Capacities: Analyzing |
Spanish Grade 3
Unit | Description |
| This unit begins to introduce grade 3 students to the cultures of different Spanish speaking countries through music. Students will begin to identify where Spanish is spoken on a map, play traditional instruments, sing and dance to music in the target language. With this cultural knowledge students will then identify and discuss the varying weather patterns around the world. Students will collaborate with peers as they work on orally producing Spanish in order to increase their proficiency. Students will ultimately serve as a meteorologist for the International Weather Channel and broadcast the weather of a variety of Spanish speaking countries. 21st Century Capacities: Presentation |
Unit 2Creaciones (Creations) | In Grade 3, students will continue to deepen their knowledge of Spanish as they use the language to describe physical characteristics about themselves and others. All while working closely with peers, students will read, write and listen in Spanish and take part in a personalized skit based on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein that culminates in the creation of their own mythical monster. Throughout the unit students will focus on learning how to interpret text, and will ultimately analyze and interpret summer camp journals to visually represent various summer camp photos. 21st Century Capacities: Analyzing |
Spanish Grade 4
Unit | Description |
Unit 1Cultura y Celebraciones (Culture and Celebrations) | Cultural Heritage is an expression of the ways of living developed by a community and passed on from generation to generation, including customs, practices, places, objects, artistic expressions and values. Throughout MPS' WL elementary school curriculum our students have been exposed to Spanish cultural heritage components. In 1st grade our students learned about Peruvian traditions and artifacts. In 2nd grade students learned about games played by children in Spanish speaking countries. In 3rd grade students were exposed to different Spanish speaking countries through music and weather trends. As a culmination of their journey as elementary school student WL learners, the 4th graders will experience an entire unit focused on Spanish Culture as its main theme. Throughout the unit, the students will discuss the importance and value of passing on these cultural components from one generation to another. Fourth graders will be introduced to a brief history of the Spanish language and its propagation through the world. Students will also learn about Spanish culture through the life and work of renowned Spanish artist, Pablo Picasso. As a 4th grade group, students will share their knowledge about cultural celebrations in Spain and in Spanish speaking countries in Latin America with the purpose of spreading knowledge of Spanish/Hispanic cultural heritage to our schools' staff and student body. Concurrently, students will gain a more in depth insight of cognates, and their value in improving their listening and reading Spanish comprehension. 21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing |
Unit 2FANTASÍA Y FICCIÓN (Fantasy and Fiction) | In unit 2 of fourth grade, students will continue to build on their knowledge and understanding of cognates as they bring their Elementary Spanish experience full circle. Students will become familiar with a version of Little Red Riding Hood in Spanish and the unit will come to a close with a presentation of the story for first graders. Students will continue to persevere as they take their knowledge of the Spanish language and finish off their elementary experience with the reading of a short novel Brandon Brown dice la verdad. 21st Century Capacities: Perseverance |
Spanish Grade 5
Spanish Grade 6
Unit | Description |
Unit 1Tenemos talento! (We've got talent!) | In this unit, students will describe their own personal talents and interests, as well as the hobbies and talents of others. Students knowledge of the structure of the language will be expanded upon, as they will use first, second, and third person verb forms to communicate. Vocabulary throughout the unit will be personalized each year based on students and their own interests. Students will receive comprehensible input through a variety of Movie Talk clips, and through viewing Tiene Talentovideos from the Spanish speaking world. They will be able to describe their own talents, those of their classmates, and even those of people who live abroad. Ultimately, students will be interviewed to be a contestant on America Tiene Talentoand will respond spontaneously in the target language demonstrating their comprehension of content and the use of the 1st person singular. This unit will push students to persevere, finding ways to communicate spontaenously while engaged in dynamic situation. 21st Century Capacities: Perseverance |
Unit 2La aventura de la vida (The adventure of a lifetime)
| In this unit, students will continue expanding their knowledge of the language by using both the 1st and 3rd person of the verb to communicate. Students will begin with discussion of where they travel, where they want to travel, and where they have traveled (using the preterite tense in context). This will springboard into a deeper discussion of what is beyond the sights we see when we travel, touching upon the cultural and historical products that are evident in our sightseeing. "How can travel enrich my life?" Students will receive comprehensible input through various mini-stories based on authentic cultural products, and will read a novel based on a character travelling to the Yucatan with his family. Ultimately, students will create their own mini-stories with high frequency vocabulary using a new cultural product as the context for their story. 21st Century Capacities: Collective Intelligence |
Unit 3Yo puedo cambiar el mundo (I can change the world) | In unit three of 6th grade students will take a closer look at the nature that surrounds them. Students will be exposed to a variety of high frequency words that are related to the environment and also to environmental problems that are being faced globally. As part of the unit, students will take a survey to reflect on their own behaviors as they relate to the environment, for example, use of the school bus/car and using reusable bags. How can I impact the environment? Students will be exposed to a variety of global environmental issues to reflect on and then make connections locally. Students will ultimately be exposed to a variety of scenarios where they have to use their current knowledge to make environmentally conscious decisions. 21st Century Capacities: Engaging in global issues |
Unit 4Leaving your libro legacy | Students' study of Spanish at Brown School will come full "circle" in this final unit of Grade 6 Spanish. In this unit students will participate in the literature circle process where they will work with one of six compelling and comprehensible novels in the target language. In order to work successfully in groups, students will also learn meaningful collective intelligence skills throughout the unit. The classroom library and novels have been an important part of their experience at Brown school. Students will ultimately leave their "libro legacy" for future 5th and 6th grade students of Spanish using a digital recorded QR code in one of the books in the classroom library that has inspired them the most during their Spanish career. 21st Century Capacities:Synthesizing, Collective Intelligence |
Spanish Grade 7
Spanish Grade 8
Unit | Description |
Unit 1Mi viaje a Madrid (My trip to Madrid) | Students will take a trip to Madrid, Spain where they will have several shopping experiences. Students will prepare for their trip by packing clothes based on the current weather report in Madrid, and even learn how to convert their Dollars to Euros. Students will have the opportunity to explore the shopping experience and the cultural differences between Spain and United States. This unit goes into detail about how to express one's preferences about shopping, as well as describe what occurred in the past. Ultimately students will reflect on their shopping experiences and choose the best medium to share their reflection with a friend or relative. 21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing, Product Creation |
Unit 2Manos en la comunidad (Hands on the community)
| In unit two of grade 8, "Manos en la comunidad (Hands on the community)" students will take a closer look at things they do in the community. Teachers will personalize vocabulary based on what students do and are interested in doing to help the community. Within the unit, students will be reading the novel, Robo en la noche, which takes place in Costa Rica. Students will learn more about the country of Costa Rica and further explore MINAE, an organization that exists there. The grammatical structures of indirect object pronouns and additional preterite tense is included within the context of giving back to the community. Students will ultimately participate in a PBA where they will engage in a true community service project and document their experience to their classmates in the form a virtual classroom exhibition. 21st Century Capacities: Presentation, Citizenship |
Unit 3Cuando era niño (When I was a kid) | What were you like when you were a kid? What did you used to play with? Where did you go? What were you like? In this unit grade 8 students will reflect on their own childhoods. In Spanish, the imperfect is the tense used to reflect on these past events. Students will be exposed to this new grammatical concept through the lense of childhood. Students will further examine and discuss a popular book from their youth, El arbol generoso by Shel Silverstein which is written predominantly in the imperfect tense. Throughout the unit students will also explore children's books in their own classroom libraries and focus on what techniques or patterns good storytellers use. For the PBA, students will engage in a design process to synthesize their imperfect and storytelling knowledge to create their own children's book to be shared with Madison's own K-4 Spanish students. 21st Century Capacities:Design, Product Creation |
Unit 4Había una vez (Once upon a time) | Ole! Students will explore the culture of bullfighting through various activities. They will engage in activities that familiarize them with the pros and cons of bullfighting. This unit also goes into detail about the differences between the preterite and imperfect tense and how they are applied when describing the past. Throughout the unit, students will also read a novel about a famous "torero" and his family. The unit will conclude with a debate about whether or not bullfighting should be permitted in Spain. 21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing, Collective Intelligence |
Unit 5El noticiero (Newscast) | Students will learn about vocabulary related to natural disasters. They will look at news articles and videos from natural disasters that have happened in Spanish speaking countries. They will further explore the differences between the preterite and imperfect tenses and how they apply them when describing current events. The unit will end with students creating their own televised newscast reporting on current events focusing on a disaster. 21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing, Product Creation |
Spanish Grade 8 B
Unit | Description |
Unit 1Los deportes (Sports) |
Students will explore the sports world by talking about their favorite sports as well as what they play. Students will have the opportunity to read about famous Hispanic athletes as well as watch a movie about a Mexican little league team. At the end of the unit students will explore the life of a famous athlete.They will research an athlete of their choice and personify the athlete for their classmates. 21st Century Capacities: Presentation |
Unit 2La amistad (Friendship) |
Students will analyze what friendship is and what it means to them. They will look closely at their own friendships and create a tribute to a special friend. Throughout the unit, students will apply the present tense of ER/IR verbs to talk about friendships. They will also apply ir a + infinitive to talk about the future. In addition, students will also read the novel "Piratas del caribe y el mapa secreto" and compare the relationships among the characters. 21st Century Capacities: Product Creation |
Unit 3Cuando era niño (When I was a kid) |
What were you like when you were a kid? What did you used to play with? Where did you go? What were you like? In this unit grade 8 students will reflect on their own childhoods. In Spanish, the imperfect is the tense used to reflect on these past events. Students will be exposed to this new grammatical concept through the lense of childhood. Students will further examine and discuss a popular book from their youth, El arbol generoso by Shel Silverstein which is written predominantly in the imperfect tense. Throughout the unit students will also explore children's books in their own classroom libraries and focus on what techniques or patterns good storytellers use. For the PBA, students will engage in a design process to synthesize their imperfect and storytelling knowledge to create their own children's book to be shared with Madison's own K-4 Spanish students. 21st Century Capacities:Design, Product Creation |
Unit 4La corrida de toros (Bullfight) |
Ole! Students will explore the culture of bullfighting through various activities. They will engage in activities that familiarize them with the pros and cons of bullfighting. Throughout the unit, students will apply the preterite AR verbs when referring to the past. In addition students will read articles about bullfighting as well as a chapter from a novel about a famous "torero" and his family. The unit will conclude with a debate about whether or not bullfighting should be permitted in Spain. 21st Century Capacities: Synthesizing, Collective Intelligence |