Spanish IClass Syllabus, 2011-2012

¡Bienvenidos y bienvenidas al mundo del Español!

Course Description:Learning a foreign language is an opportunity to discover a whole new world, filled with feelings, perceptions, history and expressions that can enrich our lives and deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world in which we live. Spanish I provides students with the opportunity to begin to discover the richness of the language, culture and contributions of Latin Americans within their own contexts and to the whole world.

¡OJO! Language learning is a highly participatory process, in which students fundamentally “learn by doing”. From the first day on, class will be conducted overwhelmingly in SPANISH! Not surprisingly, students will sometimes feel like they have no idea what is going on, that they don’t understand anything, and that they will NEVER, EVER LEARN. No es problema. That’s what learning a language effectively and efficiently feels like – just ask any infant or toddler who is barely learning to talk. And remember, they already have been studying for quite a while, and you are only beginning. Sólo requiere paciencia y esfuerzo, ¿sale? Nobody needs to feel nervioso ni estresado – everyone is in the same boat and if we all can stand to act and look a little bit foolish on occasion, we will have lots of fun and learn a good bit of español, as well!

Objectives: This introductory course in Spanish language and culture will enable the student to:1

Engage in simple conversations in Spanish, expressing feelings, sharing information and exchanging opinions.

Demonstrate a general familiarity with Latin American geography and culture as well as of similarities, differences and connections between students’ home community and Latin American peoples/cultures.

Demonstrate a deepened understanding of how language works, developing a deeper understanding of both English and Spanish grammar and syntax.

Interact in a mature and respectful manner with people of diverse backgrounds, and in particular of Latin American descent.

Evaluation:People only learn to speak languages by hearing and practicing them. To facilitate maximum usage and thus mastery of spoken Spanish, class will be conducted almost entirely in Spanish, beginning the very first day! Specifically, class time will be divided between “English time” and “Spanish time”, with “Spanish time” constituting approximately 90% of all class time. “English time” will be minimal, and will be used exclusively to clarify grammatical points and meaning of the occasional difficult to understand word, whereas “Spanish time” will be used to present, practice and perform class content.

To encourage students to engage in Spanish language use, 30% of their classroom grade will be based on participation, divided as follows: 15% exclusive use of Spanish in “Spanish time” and 15% general attitude and engagement.   The Spanish language usage grade will be based on a maximum score of 4 points per day.   Students will earn full credit for the day by resisting the temptation to speak in English during “Spanish time”.  Those students who choose to speak in English will earn partial credit based on the number of times they speak in English.  The general attitude and engagement grade will be based on students’ active and constructive

1 These objectives reflect the national standards for Foreign Language Learning.

engagement in class at all times, and in particular on their willingness to speak appropriate Spanish during the “Spanish time”. 

Students will also learn to read and write elementary Spanish through daily written/reading practice, both in class and in the form of homework. Written assignments will not be collected, although there will be time to work on them in class as well as a time for questions and answers at the start of the following day. There will be a daily homework check, however, in the form of four or five questions that students will answer and then turn in to be graded. The average score earned on the daily homework checks will constitute 20% of the semester grade.

Student learning will also be evaluated through chapter exams (approximately 100 points each), other performance-based exercises, and a cumulative exam at the end of each semester. Written exams and other major performance assessments, such as short essays, verbal presentations, oral exams will constitute 50% of the student’s overall grade.

In summary, grades will be assigned based on the following weighting system:15% attitude, effort and engagement15% exclusive and effective use of Spanish during “Spanish time”20% homework checks/quizzes50% written and oral exams and other major performance assessments

Classroom expectations: Learning a language is unlike the process of learning anything students have ever done before except, of course, learn the language they already speak. Inevitably, everyone in the Spanish class will have the opportunity to look silly, feel dumb, say the right and the wrong things, laugh at and with each other (including the teacher), feel overwhelmed, and taste the extraordinary satisfaction of success in the face of challenge.

In order to make the classroom experience of all students as effective and enjoyable as possible, it is critical that each of us in the room reflect all of the following expectations in our behavior all of the time:

Be kind, courteous and respectful -- learning a language is hard and we will all sound silly sometime, so let’s just play nice from the get go.

Be responsible – your word is your honor now and always, so if you don’t get something done when you should or you do something that you shouldn’t, just takes responsibility for it and move on.

Come ready – that means with pencil, paper, books and a ready and willing attitude. A lack of preparedness in any form will affect your classroom participation grade, and a willingness to jump in and risk looking and sounding like an idiot from time to time (always for a legitimate, educational purpose, of course) makes learning a language SOOOOOOO much easier. I promise.

When you are feeling lost and overwhelmed (which will happen to the best of us, I know): 1. Remember that you already learned one language, without ever even thinking about it. That doesn’t

mean without working at it – it just means without stressing out and fighting with the language. Babies and young children work VERY HARD at learning their first language, and invariably that effort pays off. The harder you work and the less you stress, the faster you will learn!

2. Come and see me and we can talk about it. There is no way to make learning a language easy – it is a challenging task for absolutely every person who walks the earth. But I am always happy to work with you to try and find the best tricks and tools to help you along your way.

3. Trust me. I have worked hard to develop very effective (though sometimes uncomfortable and scary) techniques for helping you master Spanish in written and oral form. If you stick with me and do your part, you will learn a useful skill that will come in handy in all kinds of ways, from testing out of college language requirements to strengthening your job résumé.

Desarrollo lingüístico, Español I 2010-2011Lección 1: ¡Bienvenidos y bienvenidas a la clase de español!

Introduction to general languageFirst questions words Basic personal introduction vocabularyBasic classroom object vocabularyDays of the week and months of the yearNumbers to 29

Lección 2: ¿Cómo eres tú?Noun/adjective agreement Singular subject pronounsIntroduction to “gustar”, “ser”, “tener” and “llamarse” (three basic types of verbs)Basic personality descriptor vocabularyBasic activity vocabulary

Lección 3: ¿Qué clases tienes?Introduction to “ar” verbsIntroduction to stem-changing verbsTime tellingNumbers through 101Ordinal numbersSingular (review) and plural subject pronouns

Lección 4: ¿Qué te gusta hacer en tu tiempo libre?Simple future with “ir a”Numbers through 199El + day of week to say “on Mondays”, etc. Planning time phrasesEstar and how you’re doing wordsColorsHace phrases to describe the weatherActivity and destination vocabularyContractions “al” and “del”Short possessive pronouns and possessive “de”

Lección 5: ¿Qué prefieres comer?Comprehensive practice of “gustar” verbs with all subjectsComparing and contrasting of “ser” and “estar”Noun/adjective agreementHelping verbs: deber, tener que, creer queFood vocabulary

Lección 6: ¿Cómo es tu familia?Name formationPluralization of subjects and consequent agreementSupplemental personality and physical descriptorsFamily relation termsGeneral end of semester grammar review

Lección 7: ¿Qué llevas hoy?Preterite tense, “ar” verbsDemonstrative pronounsClothing and clothes shopping vocabularyHace + time phrases for past tenseRelative location prepositions

Numbers up to a thousandReview indefinite articles

Lección 8: ¡Vamos de vacaciones!Spanish-speaking countries and capitalsCardinal directionsVacation activitiesMeans of transportationDirect object pronounsTomar/llevar

Lección 9: ¿Cómo es tu casa?Regular “er” and “ir” preterite tense verb endingsIrregular preterite tense verbs (tener, ir, poner)House, furniture and chore vocabularyReview, direct and indirect object pronouns

Lección 10: El Cuerpo y La SaludHace phrase to describe how long something has been happeningReview, all hace phrasesBody partsOlder/younger, better/worst and general comparative reviewSuperlative formsHealth and illness termsExpansion of reflexive pronounsReview of direct object pronounsReview, preterite tenseIntroduction, stem-chaning “ir” verbs in preterite tenseCursory introduction of double object pronouns

Lección 11: ¡Vamos a Wichita!Table setting vocabularyRestaurant vocabularyPresent progressiveIntroduction to informal commandsGreetings practiceExpanded personality descriptorsSaber/conocerReview, stem-changing “ir” verbs in preterite tenseReview, food vocabularyReview, shopping vocabulary

While this list does not cover absolutely everything, it at least gives you a general idea. Please feel free to ask me any time you have any questions!