20.10.12
Spanish part 3
This year is my first teaching Spanish part 3 (we teach Spanish I in 3 trimesters over 6th, 7th, and 8th grade). I am trying a new technique: Real Language Right Away. It's a program that gets students speaking Spanish by memorizing "sound bites" in actual conversations. My students LOVE it, and so do I. I have found myself looking forward to Spanish 3 all morning. Yesterday we had our first Spanish only day, I was so impressed. Students were able to communicate what they were wearing, how they were feeling, what problems they might have, what others looked like, their personality, it was a truly magical moment (and I'm not being hokey). They spoke for nearly an hour WITHOUT ANY ENGLISH! One student even answered the phone and responded in Spanish. I realized that I am finding the magic formula which I knew all along. Be happy when students speak Spanish, quietly correct errors by repeating their phrase in the third person, reward students for their success, and make it fun. I am really going to miss these students, their enthusiasm and excitement are contagious.