World Languages
Week of February 16, 2026
Spanish Language and Culture (Mr. Fontalvo, Ms. Gonzalez)
Last week, our students completed a formative reading assessment and a formative speaking assessment where they applied their knowledge of physical and personality descriptions in Spanish. I am very proud of the effort many students showed in demonstrating what they have learned!
Next week, we will begin a new content focused on family vocabulary. Students will learn how to identify and describe family members and continue building their confidence using Spanish in meaningful ways.
Spanish I (Mr. Donaldson, Ms. Cuffee)
Spanish II (Ms. Wooten, Ms. Henderson, Mr. Almanza)
This week students practicing annotating texts looking for implied and explicit emotions- review key vocab "se siente culpable/ tiene verguenza, se preocupa por" as well as other key emotion vocabulary. Then we reviewed verbs that have a conjugation structure like gusta (ask your students to use in a sentence: me gusta/ me interesa/ me encanta/ me duele/ me importa/ me molesta) and also practiced body part vocab (to use with DOLER- me duelen los ojos! Te duele la espalda? A ella le duele la cabeza!). We began to analyze chapter 5 of the text, in which the family goes to Lima Perú and someone in the family "hace una decisión sin pensar ni considerar las consecuencias." NExt week we will finish chapter 5 and do a variety of activities to ensure comprehension and practice vocabulary before starting our speaking summative. For the speaking summative- students will learn about various attractions in Lima Perú, and plan and describe a 2 day itinerary for a trip there.
DON'T FORGET- due Friday- speaking homework (on canvas) - describing emotions at school- a rose, thorn, and bud. Instructions and sentence starters are on canvas.
Spanish Humanities, grade 6 (Ms. Balestra)
This week students looked at characteristics of mythology and traits of heroes and monsters. Students took a Formative on Thursday to show their understanding of these characteristics and traits. Next week students will begin brainstorming on how they can create a mythological creature and the story behind it.
French Language & Culture (Ms. Bullock, Mr. Almanza)
Last week students showed off all that they have learned so far in unit 3 by completing a speaking and reading formative. This week students will continue to learn to describe themselves and others. We will be entering the fantastic world of grammar as students learn to "conjugate" their first verb (être=to be). We will then expand and learn how to talk about family!
What can we do at home?
Vocabulary is KEY to language learning. Students should be reviewing their vocabulary for at least 5 minutes every night. They are welcome to use this resource to support their learning. Students have been commenting about how much they've learned so far. It's great to see their confidence grow.
French I (Ms. Balestra, Mr. Osei)
French II (Dr. Mbayu & Mr. Osei)
🎯 Focus: vocabulary growth and speaking in complete sentences.
💡 Ask at home: What hobbies can you name in French?
Chinese (Ms. Liang)
Last week in our Grade 6 Chinese class, students continued their exciting journey of learning about countries, spoken and written language expressions, and conversational Chinese.
🌍 Countries & Nationalities – Students expanded their vocabulary by learning how to talk about different countries and nationalities in Chinese last week.
📝 Spoken vs. Written Expressions – We explored key differences between conversational and written Chinese, focusing on commonly used phrases.
🗣 Conversational Chinese Practice – Through interactive dialogues and role-playing activities, students practiced introducing themselves, talking about where they are from, and discussing languages they speak.
Next week Friday, students will take a formative written test on countries. The test will assess their ability to recognize country names, describe nationalities, and use related vocabulary correctly in sentences.
G7 Chinese
Last week, our Grade 7 students continued working on Lesson 6: Shopping. They practiced essential vocabulary and expressions to navigate shopping scenarios confidently. We also celebrated the Lunar New Year. After the break, students will take a formative test to assess their understanding of the material covered so far.
Next week, we will build on this topic by further enhancing students’ conversational and written skills. The unit will culminate in a summative oral and written assessment, which will take place the week after next. This assessment will allow students to demonstrate their mastery of the lesson.
G8 Chinese
This week in Grade 8 Chinese, students explored the topic of traveling and had a special Lunar New Year field trip to East Dumpling House, where they experienced authentic Chinese cuisine and cultural traditions.
✈️ Travel & Transportation – Students expanded their vocabulary related to travel, transportation, and planning trips in Chinese.
🎊 Lunar New Year Cultural Experience – Our visit to East Dumpling House allowed students to immerse themselves in Chinese culture, taste traditional foods, and practice conversational Chinese in a real-world setting.
Next Friday, students will have a formative assessment covering:
✅ Travel-related vocabulary and phrases
✅ Sentence structures for discussing trips