World Languages

Week of February 3rd

This week in our classes!

Spanish Language and Culture (Mr. Fontalvo, Ms. Gonzalez)

Last week we started a new unit: "Mi familia y mis amigos". Students explored adjectives to describe people's personality, practiced subject pronouns, and learned adjective agreement. Next week students will learn adjectives to describe physical appearance, and the verbs "ser" and "tener".

Spanish I (Mr. Donaldson, Ms. Cuffee)

Students will begin the week with both a reading comprehension formative (3FormB1.LR) and a writing formative (3FormD1.LR) in the present tense on the same reading. They’ll also receive four new SpanishDict.com homework assignments focusing on household chores (3HW4.Chore), irregular present-tense verbs (3HW5.Irreg), and stem-changing verbs (3HW6.Stem1, 3HW7.Stem2). Throughout the week, they will learn household chore vocabulary, practice using it in context, watch a video about a family’s chores, and conclude with a reading passage and comprehension questions.

Spanish II (Ms. Wooten, Ms. Henderson)

This week in Spanish 2, we did a listening summative, testing students' ability to use the new vocabulary from the first 2 chapters of the book "Los Baker Van a Perú" as well as their knowledge of the main characters, setting, and plot of these first 2 chapters. Students had to show that they could understand the vocabulary in context as well as use it to describe a new context, as well as identify which character would have said certain phrases and support their answers with an explanation in Spanish. We also reflected on the 2nd advisory and celebrated our accomplishments. In the third advisory, we will be focusing on our speaking and listening skills, so expect more homework assignments that require students to record speaking, as well as more opportunities for speaking Spanish (for longer sustained periods) in class. Students will be reading the book "Los Baker Van a Perú" and also learning about the culture of Perú. Next week, students will be working on new vocabulary and reading the third chapter of the book, which deals with a game show. Students will have opportunities to participate in various games and describe in Spanish what they have to do, what the judge does, how to win, whether they are games of skill and luck, etc. Students will also get to invent their own game show and describe it to peers in Spanish, and decide which of their peers' games they would be best at, find easiest, most fun, etc. The goal of all class activities it to maintain Spanish while using the new vocabulary, but also having fun and finding engaging subject matter to discuss together in the target language. Please continue to check canvas and see your teachers in tutoring when absent!

Spanish Humanities, grade 6 (Ms. Balestra)

Last week we continued working on stem-changing verbs in order to master the concept. Students took a verb quiz on Friday to show that they understood how the verbs work.

We also read several chapters and are getting towards the end of the book, Cajas de Carton. Students are participating in class, showing that they are understanding what they are reading.

Spanish Humanities, grade 7 (Ms. Henderson)

I am excited to share that our 7th Grade Spanish Humanities class has begun a new unit centered around the book Los siete hábitos de los adolescentes altamente efectivos. Throughout this unit, students will engage in weekly journal entries to reflect on their behaviors, habits, and interactions with others.

This past week, we explored the paradigms we hold about ourselves and others, discussing how these perspectives influence our judgments and actions. We are also sharpening our grammar skills by focusing on the present tense, with special attention to reflexive verbs.

Looking ahead, next week we will delve into the second habit from the book, Comenzar con un fin en mente ("Begin with the End in Mind"). As part of this lesson, students will create vision boards to articulate their aspirations and dreams for the future.

Me emociona compartir que nuestra clase de Humanidades en Español de 7º grado ha comenzado una nueva unidad basada en el libro Los siete hábitos de los adolescentes altamente efectivos. Durante esta unidad, los estudiantes escribirán entradas semanales en un diario para reflexionar sobre sus comportamientos, hábitos e interacciones con los demás.

Esta semana, hemos explorado los paradigmas que tenemos sobre nosotros mismos y los demás, analizando cómo estas perspectivas influyen en nuestros juicios y acciones. También estamos perfeccionando nuestras habilidades gramaticales, centrándonos en el tiempo presente, con especial atención a los verbos reflexivos.

La próxima semana, nos enfocaremos en el segundo hábito del libro, Comenzar con un fin en mente. Como parte de esta lección, los estudiantes crearán tableros de visión para expresar sus aspiraciones y sueños para el futuro.

Spanish Humanities, grade 8 (Ms. Wooten)

In 8th grade humanities, students ended the 2nd advisory reading the vignette "No Speak English." We analyzed various statistics about 1st generation, 2nd generation, and third generation Latino immigrants: their language proficiency in speaking/ writing Spanish, their preferences for listening to music in Spanish v English, and their language use at home. Students illustrated the perspective of a character from this vignette and were able to make personal connections to the text as well as express their opinions about how they may want to use different languages in their future families and their opinions about how important it is that future generations of Latinos maintain the use of Spanish. We also ended the week with shout outs and reflections from the advisory. As we begin the 3rd advisory next week, students will read the next few vignettes of Casa en Mango Street, beginning analyzing the various women that Esperanza has for role models in her community and reflecting on influential women that they know in their own lives, in the Spanish-speaking world, and in society in general. As we finish the book in the 3rd advisory, students will have the opportunity to choose the own creative project to reflect on the book before we move onto our next unit.

French Language and Culture (Ms. Bullock, Mr. Almanza)

This week in introduction to French, we will continue with unit 3: ma famille et mes amis. Students will start the unit by learning how to describe themselves and others. We will also have our first speaking formative in which students will describe themselves en français bien sûr!! Looking for vocabulary to review? While students got notes in class, feel free to check our quizlet set!

French I (Ms. Balestra, Mr. Osei)

We are excited to begin Unit 3! Our vocabulary focus this unit will be daily activities and hobbies. Our grammar focus will be reflexive verbs and the passe compose (a way to express past actions).

Please remind your student to review vocabulary daily.

French II (Dr. Mbayu)

This week we started Unit 3: Le weekend, les loisirs, et les spectacles. We will complete a reading performance activity (criterion B): le metro et vive le jazz.

Next week we will delve into weekend activities in the city and the countryside from a comparative perspective.

Chinese (Ms. Liang)

Grade 6

Last week, we had a wonderful time celebrating Lunar New Year! Students participated in a calligraphy workshop, where they practiced traditional Chinese characters. We also explored the cultural background, customs, and traditions of Lunar New Year. As part of our celebration, students created Lunar New Year posters and enjoyed a festive class event. Next week, we will focus on reviewing key concepts in preparation for our upcoming assessments on Zodiacs. Students will complete both a summative written test and a summative oral test to demonstrate their learning. Looking forward to another great week ahead!

Grade 7

Last week, we had a wonderful time celebrating Lunar New Year! Students participated in a calligraphy workshop, where they practiced traditional Chinese characters. We also explored the cultural background, customs, and traditions of Lunar New Year. As part of our celebration, students created Lunar New Year posters and enjoyed a festive class event. Next week, we will focus on reviewing key concepts in preparation for our upcoming assessments on Shopping. Students will complete both a summative written test and a summative oral test to demonstrate their learning. Looking forward to another great week ahead!

Grade 8

Last week, we had a wonderful time celebrating Lunar New Year! Students participated in a calligraphy workshop, where they practiced traditional Chinese characters. We also explored the cultural background, customs, and traditions of Lunar New Year. As part of our celebration, students created Lunar New Year posters and enjoyed a festive class event. Next week, we will focus on reviewing key concepts in preparation for our upcoming formative assessments on Traveling on Friday. Looking forward to another great week ahead!