World Languages

Week of February 24th

This week in our classes!

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

Last week we focused on family structures, describing relationships, and identifying family members. Next week students will complete a formative reading assessment and review relationship descriptions for upcoming assessments.

Spanish I (Mr. Donaldson, Ms. Cuffee)

As students expand their grasp of the preterite, they will receive three new SpanishDict.com homework assignments on places (3HW15.Lug), modes of transportation (3HW16.Tra), and the preterite of ir (3HW17.IrPr). Each day reinforces new and previous skills, from additional practice with -car, -gar, -zar spelling changes to using regular and irregular preterite verbs together. They’ll also review the present tense of ir (to go), discuss travel vocabulary, and work on forming and answering questions about past outings. The week ends with a writing formative (3FormD2.QH), “¿Qué hiciste ayer?”

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)

Students took a Quiz on Friday to show what they knew about the natural stress in Spanish and how accent marks are used.

We have begun Unit 3 : heroes and monsters. We are currently discussing different elements of mythology.

Please check our Canvas page for assignments!

Thursday, February 27 is the last day to make up assignments from the first half of Term 3.

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)

Next week students will be showing off all they have learned with their first verb conjugation être! Go ahead and ask them what that means. We will also start learning vocabulary to talk about family. Please take a moment to check Aspen with your child. With all of our absences, many students have missing work that may be affecting their grade. It's better to get caught up now than racing to finish everything in a couple of weeks. Also, language is learned by reviewing a little every day. Encouraging five minutes of nightly review will help your student succeed!

French I (Ms. Balestra, Mr. Osei)

Students took a formative on Tuesday to show their understanding of reflexive verbs, both usage and formation. We also reviewed negation in French, focusing on ne...pas, ne...rien, ne...jamais, ne...personne, ne...ni...ni.

On Friday we refreshed our memory of question words.

This week: We will introduce more vocabulary with the verb JOUER and begin working on the past tense.

Students can use this Quizlet to review vocabulary.

Assignments and presentations used in class are on our Canvas page.

Thursday, February 27 is the last day to make up assignments from the first half of Term 3.

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)

G6 Chinese

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 summative 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

In Grade 7 Chinese, students have been developing their communication skills by learning how to make and receive phone calls, return missed calls, and differentiate between the Chinese verbs for "speak," "say," and "tell."

📞 Making & Answering Phone Calls – Students practiced real-life scenarios of calling, answering, and leaving messages in Chinese.
📢 Returning a Call – They learned polite ways to return missed calls and handle phone conversations.
🗣 Speak vs. Ask vs. Tell – We explored the nuanced differences between 说 (shuō), 告诉 (gàosù), and 问 (wèn) through guided exercises and practice conversations.

Students will have a formative assessment on next Thursday covering:
✅ Making and receiving phone calls in Chinese
✅ Using correct phrases for returning calls
✅ Differentiating and correctly using 说 (shuō), 告诉 (gàosù), and 问 (wèn)

G8 Chinese

Last 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