tutorial Archives • The Engaged Spanish Classroom

How to Incorporate Hexagon Grouping in Spanish Class

Erin Coleman — Mon, 06 Mar 2023 02:26:31 +0000

My sister Patti teaches science, and called me recently to give me this idea of a flexible grouping activity. She was begging me to make this for Spanish students, because she tried it in her science classes and her students LOVED it! Her exact words were “Please trust me, please try this. The kids will LOVE IT.”

I dragged my feet a bit, but a few weeks after talking to her this idea was stuck in my head. I designed Hexágonos to practice Hexagon Grouping in Spanish class. Hexagons work well for this activity because they fit well together to create groups of any size.

(Shown in images throughout this post – Hexágonos – Mis Vacaciones.)

SETUP

(Keep reading for a detailed walkthrough – this is the setup before the activity, when you open the document and get going with your students!)

Open your PDF download of Hexágonos. Inside, you will find a teacher page, visual examples, and a student support page to project while students are working.

You will also find a list of 33 vocabulary words. These are the key to this activity.

If your students will be completing the activity by hand, print and cut out one set of 33 hexagons per group. Students don’t need ANYTHING other than the hexagons! (Well, a flat workspace is a good idea.)

If your students are working digitally, share the PDF with them and instruct them to click the link that says “click here to make your own editable copy.” Students only need one copy per pair or small group.

To complete digitally, students use the digital workspace included in their editable copy. There is space provided for them to create 4 Hexagon groups, and they can easily copy and paste additional pages as needed. To create their groups, students are able to simply CUT/COPY and PASTE the digital hexagons from the starting place to the group they organize.

Differentiation: if using the digital version, you can allow students to repeat hexagons! Simply copy and paste the same vocabulary word in various groups, if it applies 🙂 Don’t like this option? Use the print and play option, OR play digitally and tell your students that each hexagon can only be used once.

Grouping: This can be done in pairs or small groups. I recommend 2-3 students per group.

Timing: I recommend giving students 10 minutes to organize their groups. From there, you have a few options. You can have a class discussion where students explain their groupings: OR — before a class discussion, challenge your students to take 5 additional minutes to try to completely mix up their groups! Then, during class discussion, they can describe their original grouping plan and explain their adjustments during round 2.

HOW IT WORKS

Each hexagon has one vocabulary term or phrase written on it. Students look at the 33 hexagons in front of them (whether digital or on paper) and think creatively to organize the vocabulary into groups.

There are no right answers, and there are no wrong answers! All student groups may come up with different combinations! Your students will surprise you with their thinking process.

Motivate students to discuss with their partners and try to think of groups that allow for the use of the most hexagons possible out of the 33.

I suggest giving students 10 minutes to separate their hexagons into groups, using as many of the hexagons as they can. They may separate them into 2 groups, 3 groups, or more! As students gain more confidence with this activity, they will routinely challenge themselves to think of 3+ groups instead of just A/B groupings. With that being said, it’s not a bad thing if students just use two groups! That’s still GREAT 🙂

After the ten minutes, ask students to describe their groups to the class. In classes that are hesitant to speak, students are usually VERY excited to share their thought process in this activity! This is a great way to help bring your quieter classes out of their shells. On the other hand, it’s a great way to organize your rowdier classes and get them focused and engaged in a collaborative activity.

Another small challenge I mentioned above as a differentiation option: after your students have their groups set, and before the class has any discussion, challenge your students to speak about alternative groups they could have made.

I can’t wait to hear how it goes! See all of my available (AND EDITABLE) sets below!!!

EXAMPLE

Let’s say two students (or pairs of students) were given the same list of words below.

Can you see how they chose to group them differently? Can you see how there are no right/wrong answers?

Can you think of other possible groupings? I’m sure you can!!!

This is a wonderful opportunity to motivate students to think critically!

AVAILABLE ACTIVITY SETS

Check out the first sets that are ready for you! Keep in mind, each set is EDITABLE so you can adjust to meet your class needs 🙂

Looking for free resources to try?

Thanks for reading!

I hope you found something new to try! Be sure to join my newsletter by signing up above – and as always, REPLY to any of my emails to let me know how you’re doing or to request a specific resource! Happy to help support you and your students! Reach me on Instagram @theengagedspanishclassroom, or email me erin@theengagedspanishclassroom.com

The post How to Incorporate Hexagon Grouping in Spanish Class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

Wordle for Spanish Class: Word Puzzle fun for any level!

Erin Coleman — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 00:37:20 +0000

How does it work?

Wordle is a daily digital word puzzle game that took the world by storm a little over a year ago, and is now hosted by the New York Times.

Here’s how it works: The NYT chooses a 5 letter word each day, and you have 6 guesses to discover the correct word. You do this by making guesses of COMPLETE words; not letter by letter, like some other word guessing games.

If you guess a word that has a correct letter in the correct place, that letter will appear as GREEN in your guess.

If you have a correct letter in an incorrect space, it will appear as YELLOW.

You then make your next guess, again of a complete word, using the knowledge you’ve gleaned and the letters you have remaining.

Letters you’ve already guessed appear as grayed out on your keyboard.

You have a total of 6 chances to get the correct word.

How can I play Wordle with my Spanish Class?

There are ways to play this game virtually in your language classes (even setting your own words!) below, and I really enjoyed using these digital options.

If you’d like to play the daily SPANISH Wordle, share this link with your students!

Just like the English version, there is a new word every day and you have 6 guesses to get it right. Only actual Spanish words are accepted as guesses.

Alternatively, if you’d like to design your OWN digital Wordle to use with your students (in any length, not just 5 letters) try this platform! You can even set the language at the top of your screen if you’re making one in Spanish or another language other than English. Setting the language is important as the platform only accepts guesses that are real words in the designated language.

Play Spanish Wordle In Person, too!

While my students and I had fun with the various digital options, my students were much more engaged with an in person version I decided to try with them.

To set up, I drew 6 rows of 5 boxes on the board. You could absolutely create puzzles with 4 or 6 boxes, however many letters you’d like!

I called my students to discuss aloud as a class, and make official guesses together with me running the game at the front. If you have a rambunctious class, you can designate one person to submit the official guesses for the class, but my students typically did a great job communicating and working together as a team on this!

I would use my differently colored whiteboard markers to provide hints about correct letters and placement.

In this example, I used the color green to show my students they had a correct letter and correct placement.

I used pink to tell them they had a correct letter, but incorrect placement.

They solved this puzzle in five guesses! The correct word was PERRO. My students were always so proud when they solved the puzzle!

This worked really well at the very start or very end of class for me. It also worked as a brain break or as a “reset” in between activities during the day. Often, students would ask for it when they realized we were transitioning between activities for the day. Students also often offered to be the one running the game! “Profe, can I do a quick Wordle for the class?”

During one of my final observations last year, a student did just that! He raised his hand as I was prepping for our next activity which was going to take place in small groups, so I had some instructions to pass out before setting up. He offered to run a Wordle, and the entire class participated with him while I made my way around setting up. My department head, who was observing me, loved it! She was so proud of him, and so I was I 🙂

I love this because it makes our students THINK and REFLECT on the Spanish words they already know! I loved changing the puzzles to be 4 letter words one day, and six letters the next. This really challenged my students.

I noticed engagement in ALL levels of Spanish that I taught, from Spanish 1 CP to Spanish 3 Honors! Don’t rule out your Spanish 1 students 🙂 They’ve got this!! Keep reading for WORD IDEAS by level!

Spanish Wordle Ideas by Level

Here are a few ideas for 5 letter puzzles for various levels of Spanish learners. I’m sure you can think of a zillion more, but wanted to give you a few suggestions to get started!

Remember, it doesn’t always have to be 5 letters! You make the rules, Profe. Just make sure you set up your whiteboard boxes accordingly if you choose to do a 4 or 6 letter word, etc.

Spanish 1:

COLOR

FELIZ

ANTES

LIBRO

CLASE

LAPIZ

RUBIO

AMIGO

MADRE

VERDE

Spanish 2:

GATOS

GORRA

LECHE

AGUAS

PERRO

PRIMO

LINDO

CARRO

NUBES

NOCHE

Spanish 3:

CELOS

RATON

LUCES

BRAZO

NARIZ

LLENO

CASCO

PRISA

HABIA

VECES

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Have fun, Profe! I hope you’re leaving with some new ideas to try! Thanks for reading 🙂

The post Wordle for Spanish Class: Word Puzzle fun for any level! appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

4 Templates to Support Proficiency Based Assessments in Spanish Class

Erin Coleman — Thu, 21 Apr 2022 18:56:11 +0000

Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class

Over the past few years I have worked really hard to shift my mindset from traditional teaching and assessing to a more proficiency based approach. I even offered a PD session this past summer through the World Language Teacher Summit on the topic – and this reinvigorated me to dive even deeper this year!

I truly feel that my lesson planning and teaching practices have improved greatly with this shift in approach to teaching the Spanish language. This year, it was time for me to focus on my assessments specifically. No more 4 page quizzes with verb conjugations, charts, and disjointed sections trying to hit all of the things.

Instead, I have broken down my assessments to match my grading categories. My grades are 30% interpretive, 30% interpersonal, and 30% presentational. The final 10% is self-graded by my students. You can see more about this approach in this blog post.

So, what do assessments look like now? Read on to see some examples, and my first editable set available on TPT!

You can see my first ready-to-go pack of proficiency based assessments right here!

This pack is focused on La Vida Escolar for a Spanish 1 class.

I have had a few teachers tell me they grabbed this resource even though they don’t teach Spanish 1- they plan to use the resource as a template for their own classes (and one department chair for her whole department,) thank you for sharing that excitement with me! I’m glad you’re finding lots of ways to use my resources, even if we teach different content! 🙂

Read below about each assessment and what I have included!

How are these assessments designed?

There are four pieces to this assessment, evaluating the three modes of communication.

Assessment #1 Interpretive Reading

Assessment #2 Interpersonal Writing (can be easily adjusted to be used for speaking instead)

Assessment #3 Interpretive Listening

Assessment #4 Presentational Writing

INTERPRETIVE READING AND LISTENING

There are two assessments for the interpretive mode included in this resource. The first is a reading passage followed by true/false questions and short response questions in English. Then, to get creative, there is a short drawing section. You can keep the drawing section simple (like I have) or you can challenge your students to draw a scene from the reading.

The interpretive listening assessment provides a script for the teacher followed by ten true/false questions in English. I personally record myself first, but it’s up to you! I have included a recording of myself if you’d like to use it with your students!

INTERPERSONAL WRITING

This is a new style of assessment I started giving this year. Students are directed to choose 5 out of 8 interpersonal questions.

This IS interpersonal because students are required to interpret the Spanish questions, then provide their answers (also in the target language.) If there is interpretation happening on both sides → it’s interpersonal!

Again, since everything is editable, you can make any adjustments you’d like! This can be completed ALOUD as well, for interpersonal speaking.

PRESENTATIONAL WRITING

This writing prompt offers student supports / helpful phrases to help them write as much as possible.

I didn’t used to give a lot of support during writing assignments, and expected my students to remember everything perfectly. This year, I’ve start offering support pages or just support phrases like I did here. What I’ve seen is a LARGE INCREASE in their output!

There is a simple grading rubric provided at the end as well, but you can always use your school’s performance rubric if you prefer. Just edit the document and make any change you’d like!

And the best part? It’s all EDITABLE!

Make any adjustments you need, and use it from unit to unit. I’ve already heard from one teacher (thank you!) that purchased my first set even though she doesn’t teach the school unit. She wanted to use my setup moving forward, and grabbed this as an example to get her started.

I will work on other units in the future, but wanted to share this layout and setup so that you know what to expect if you see any other proficiency assessment packs from me. Since having baby #2, I’ve been focusing on my own family and my own students, but hope to work on lots of resources to share with you this summer.

Before you go…

I want to support you making the leap to proficiency based planning and assessing!

I designed this editable checklist/assessment tracker to help you keep track of your planning and to help you assess the various modes equitably. This tracker will help you visually track your planning and your students’ progress in the interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational modes. Watch the walkthrough video below to take a closer look!

Want more proficiency based resources from me, including free resources in your inbox? Sign up below!

The post 4 Templates to Support Proficiency Based Assessments in Spanish Class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

Professional Development Opportunities and Resources for World Language Teachers

Erin Coleman — Sun, 17 Oct 2021 18:37:03 +0000

Upcoming PD for World Language Teachers: World Language Teacher Summit 2021

I am so excited to present at the 2021 World Language Teacher Summit! This is an exciting virtual conference that will be coming to you for FREE from October 18th-22nd!

You will have access this week to 32 sessions from 35 World Language experts – how could it get better than that!?

I am grateful to have recorded my session on Purposeful Grading prior to the conference, as I am currently home with my three week old son 🙂 and I can’t wait to relax and soak in all of the great info from the sessions this week!

I know you will love what we have in store for you during this FREE professional development!

WLTS 2021: Sessions I am most excited about

My session on Purposeful Grading, which dives into my transition from a traditional grading style to a more proficiency based grading approach, will be available for FREE for 48 hours – October 21st and October 22nd!

If you liked this blog post, you won’t want to miss my session!

I am also VERY excited about these sessions, all by world language teachers that I admire!

Using Stories to Aid Language Acquisition by Carolina Gómez and Valentina Correa – Oct 18+19
Mix It Up With Music by Allison Wienhold – Oct 20 + 21
Teaching CI With a Textbook by Ashley Mikkelsen – Oct. 21 + 22
Valuing Every Student’s Participation by Diego Ojeda – Oct. 22 + 23

These are the MUST-sees for me, but there are so many more that I want to catch as well! Sign up for these free sessions today!

Resources:

Do you want access to the resources for my presentation TODAY?

Download your free playbook for the 2021 WLTS here, or get my presentation and resources in your inbox and from my member library by joining my newsletter below.

NOTE:

The WLTS links provided in this blog post are my affiliate links. If you later choose to make a purchase associated with this free conference, I will receive a portion of your purchase. I truly appreciate your support!

Have fun, Profe!

I hope you love these sessions – get in touch with me to tell me about your favorites!! You can find me on Instagram or Facebook @theengagedspanishclassroom, and on Twitter @engagedspanish !

The post Professional Development Opportunities and Resources for World Language Teachers appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

15+ Resources to Support Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class

Erin Coleman — Wed, 28 Jul 2021 20:38:24 +0000

Two years ago, a few of my colleagues made the leap from traditional grading to a more proficiency-focused path in our Spanish and other world language classes. It was intimidating to make the change (and I know not all teachers have control over their grading policies) but it was an update that was WELL worth our efforts.

After reading this post you’ll know exactly how we break down our new grading categories, and the many ways this change benefits our students. You’ll also see how this new approach has led to more purposeful and effective planning for my own classes. You will leave with many new ideas and a variety of free resources to try with your students.

Ready to dive deeper?

Be sure to enroll in my Proficiency in Practice course for access to resources, assessments, rubrics, demo videos, infographics, and more!

ENROLL NOW

Traditional Grading In Spanish Classes

Example of a traditional grading breakdown for Spanish class:

40% Quizzes
40% Tests
10% Homework
10% Participation/Classwork

This is the type of grade breakdown I followed for my first seven years of teaching. I was hesitant to change because I thought, “This is how it has always been done!”

As I watched my colleagues make the change to more proficiency based grading, I began to notice the glaring drawbacks of the traditional breakdown I was using.

Drawbacks:

Feedback: My grades did not provide valuable feedback to my students. “You have a low quiz average.” What does this mean? What valuable guidance does this provide?
Planning: My class grades were not supportive of a reflective planning practice. “Wow, a class average of 70% on that quiz.” A quiz that likely had 3 pages assessing varying skills. So, what did we need to review? How did this help me be a reflective teacher?
Assessment: I noticed that I was assessing arbitrary skills on quizzes and tests. I had conjugation sections, fill-ins… typical grammar-focused assessments that don’t focus on communicative skills.
Meaning: Did my student’s grades accurately reflect their skills? I realized that many of my graded assessments were focused on output, which was not appropriate especially for my novice learners.

As hesitant as I was to make a change (especially as I was pregnant with my first son and I knew I would be out on maternity leave for a portion of the year) I knew it was the right thing to do. And I am SO GRATEFUL that my colleagues motivated me to do so. My students were happy, too!

Purposeful Grading in Spanish Classes: A Proficiency Based Approach

I followed the lead of my colleagues and implemented a more proficiency focused grading breakdown. To be honest, I changed my syllabus just a few days before school started. I wanted to commit to the change and now allow myself the chance to back out! (Want to see exactly what it looks like? You can grab an editable copy of my Spanish class syllabus!)

The new grade breakdown focuses on the modes of communication:

30% Interpretive
30% Interpersonal
30% Presentational
10% Study Habits

Right away, I noticed that the drawbacks of my previous grading practice had been turned into benefits that would support not only my students, but myself and my teaching practice.

Benefits:

Feedback: I can now say to a student, “You’re doing amazing with your interpretive skills, now let’s add some extra interpersonal practice!” This is directly connected to their language skills vs. the vague “You did well on that quiz.”
Planning: It is very easy for me to see the areas each class needs to work on! Low interpersonal grades? Let’s add in some Citas Cortas conversational activities this week.
Assessment: My assessments actually have a FOCUS and MEANING. Instead of conjugation quizzes, my assessments consist of more real-world communicative examples.
Meaning: When my students look at their grade, they can immediately invoke the meaning and value in their skills. Instead of arbitrary categories, they know the exact value and reason behind their grades and can more accurately monitor their own progress. These rubrics developed by my colleagues, the entire MHS world language department (adapted over years from various supports such as ACTFL) have truly helped guide us in this process. Please see the special notes at the bottom of this post for more info about these!

Now that you have seen the new grading breakdown and heard a little bit about the immediate benefits, I want to offer you some extra support, FREE RESOURCES, and ideas for each mode!

The Breakdown

So, now that we have our grading scale. What do we do with it? How do we plan to practice and assess each of the four categories?

1. Interpretive Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

Comprehension and appropriate cultural interpretation of written and spoken communication*

EXAMPLES:

Interpretation of texts, audio advertisements, infographics, music, movies, and more

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

Taco Tuesday — tutorial + free resource for Present Tense AR Spanish Verbs
Leerrores — All digital and editable! Available interpretive reading resources
Sonidos Secretos — tutorial + free sample for Present Tense AR Spanish Verbs
Reading Passages — free resource for the present tense, free resource for the conditional tense, free resource for the future tense + more ideas from me
Conversation Strips — available resources
Interpretive Assessment Examples — check these out to see how I format my assessments!
Listening/Reading Template (for practice or assessment) — Keep reading to get access to this set of editable templates and more additional free proficiency based resources from me!

Taco Tuesday is one of my favorite resources to use with my students to practice the interpretive mode of communication: I love how adaptable it is for any unit, and that it is ready for in person and digital game play! You can see all of my Taco Tuesday games as well as editable templates with five game board sizes!

Sonidos Secretos brings SO MUCH FUN into my class each time we play! And my students don’t even realize how much practice they’re actually getting with the target language! I have editable templates available for this activity as well.

Leerrores is a great confidence builder that offers a LOT of comprehensible input, as well as extention activities for students. Every set is digital and editable, with student and teacher copies included.

Conversation strips are a great way to practice interpretive skills even during a quick warm-up.

2. Interpersonal Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

Active negotiation of meaning, often including adjustments or clarification*

EXAMPLES:

Non-scripted conversations, open-ended class discussions

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

Citas Cortas speaking activity — tutorial + free resource for Spanish Introductions
Text Conversation template, and
Chispas speaking activity — Get access to these additional free proficiency based resources from me!

Want your own editable copies of these interpretive and interpersonal resources?

3. Presentational Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

Creation of message that stimulates interpretation without opportunity for negotiation of meaning*

EXAMPLES:

Written reports and presentations, rehearsed spoken presentations

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

Presentational Projects for Spanish Class
Structured Speaking Activities — Free Cacto Conversación for Spanish AR Verbs, Free Llama Mía Game for Preterite of Spanish AR Verbs
Open-Ended Writing — Free restaurant writing prompt
The Chispas speaking activity above can absolutely be adapted to work as a presentational speaking assessment, if students are able to prep their speeches/contributions ahead of time!

These Spanish class projects are my go-to assessments each year for the various levels of high school Spanish that I teach.

I have made sure that each resources is completely editable as well as digital-friendly, so that you can truly adjust to meet your unique class needs.

I hope you find some inspiration for your next presentational assessment!

I also have Spanish project templates available if you’d like to design your own, with all of the elements that I like to include (student drafting space, teacher example, student checklist, etc.)

4. Study Habits: 10%

This final category is where many teachers include homework, classwork, and participation. I honestly stopped giving homework last year and I don’t plan to begin again. I also do not grade much classwork; it is very rare that something would fall into this category rather than one of the 30% categories related to the communicative modes.

So for my students, this final 10% is based on their participation in class.

You may already know that my students assess themselves on their Spanish class participation. I was tired of trying to find an objective way to grade participation without feeling like the “good kids” always got the better grades automatically.

This (completely editable) student self assessment participation reflection / rubric has been my solution for the past 5 years or so, and I’ve never looked back!

Yes, this means that 10% of my students’ grades are in their hands. I have the final say in the grade, but I have found that my interference is very rarely needed.

We complete this reflection at the halfway point and end point of each quarter, which means we complete it 8x per year.

My students get used to this routine quickly, and I especially love that their reflections help me to consider adjustments to my own teaching practice. This is their opportunity to let me know what is working for them, and what isn’t!

I tell my students that if I agree with their self-given score within 5 points, I award them their grade. If I disagree with their score, we meet one on one to discuss our misunderstanding. I have only ever had to meet with TWO students about this.

Many students are harder on themselves than I would be! When this happens, we talk about self-advocacy and asking for what they deserve. “You gave yourself an 80, but I honestly would have given you closer to a 90. Next time, please consider giving yourself more credit for your hard work!”

I have had a lot of success with this practice, and I hope it inspires you to approach participation grades in a new way!

Why make the change to Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class?

PLANNING: My planning is more clear and purposeful
BUY-IN: There’s no more “why are we doin’g this activity?” from students! They KNOW why, because they are aware of the exact skills we are working on!
GROWTH: Students can observe their growth more clearly; and so can I!
AUTONOMY: Since there are no questions about students’ areas of strength and weakness, they are more able to take their learning and review into their own hands.
LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: I have noticed that increased buy-in from my students and better planning by ME has led to more engaged classes, and more long term benefits!

Special noteS

The focus of each mode that I describe above is interpreted from wording in ACTFL’s communication packet. I found this packet very helpful during my transition to a proficiency based approach!

When it comes to grading, my department worked year after year to develop a set of rubrics for our World Language classes to help guide us and our students throughout each year of their language learning. A few summers ago, I was asked to help format and streamline the scale on these rubrics for my department. I settled on a rubric for start of year, mid year, and end of year for each level, with a scale that adjusts as the year progresses. I received permission from my DH to share them with you, in case you’re wondering how we started! These rubrics are not my own, but from my wonderful department after years of collaboration and hard work.

Thank you for reading!

I hope you are leaving with new resources and ideas to support you in your proficiency-focused classroom this year. My planning is much more purposeful since leaving traditional grading categories behind, and I motivate you to take the leap! It’s worth it!

If you’re ready to diver deeper into ASSESSING for proficiency, be sure to check out this post before you go!

Do you have any ideas to share? Please comment below!

The post 15+ Resources to Support Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

Creative Writing plus Student Choice: How to incorporate Gallery Walks in Spanish Class

Erin Coleman — Wed, 12 May 2021 17:39:31 +0000

I have always loved utilizing Gallery Walks in my world language classroom. I love them because they’re flexible, can be adapted for any unit, promote creativity, help my students build confidence in their writing…. and so much more.

Whether you’re here because you’ve never tried a Gallery Walk before or you’re looking for new strategies, keep reading! In this post you’ll find:

A detailed activity tutorial, including differentiation strategies and digital adaptations
A few reasons I love Gallery Walks, and how they help me reflect on my teaching practice
Available no-prep Gallery Walks — these have all recently been updated to be digital friendly AND editable!

Brand new Gallery Walks are coming soon as well, so make sure you follow me on TPT! Check your email settings and make sure TPT knows you want to be alerted when brand new resources and updates are ready 🙂

GALLERY WALK TUTORIAL

SETUP

The traditional setup for this activity is *very* easy. You simply print a set of images (or prompts) that matches your current unit, and hang them around your room. I suggest 10 images total but this is flexible.

I usually hang them at eye level, and I try to be mindful about where I want my students gathering. Is there a corner that’s hard for you to see from the other side of the room? I don’t hang any there 🙂 Do you have a group of desks where it may be convenient for students to sit for a moment during the activity? I sometimes tape a few images directly to desk surfaces as well as the walls, windows, and whiteboards. Many teachers also use the hallways for this activity.

You decide what students will do at each prompt, and whether you print the images alone or with space for students to write ON the page on the wall. More about those options later.

I usually try to do Gallery Walks in all of my classes on the same day, and I use painter’s tape on the walls so that in between classes or during the warmup I simply walk around and exchange the images! I always keep my images from year to year to save on printing and time (in my very sophisticated plastic baggie system organized by unit).

MATERIALS

Students will either need a notebook to record their answers, or a tablet/other device. Alternatively, they will only need one pen per group and nothing else if you decide to have them contribute answers directly on the hanging printed page, and they would only need one device per group if you choose the digital option and allow them to collaborate as a group. It’s all up to you! More about these options below.

DIFFERENTIATION

First, decide what your students will be doing at each prompt. Do you have PHOTOS hanging alone, and they are to brainstorm based on a basic prompt you will give them for all photos? Or, alternatively, did you add sentence starters at each photo? Maybe there are multiple choice questions projected on the board that apply to all photos? Or a short reading perhaps? Are they matching short descriptions TO the photos? The possibilities here are endless; one of the many reasons I love this activity!

Next, decide whether your students will add their responses to the paper directly on the wall, or in their own notebooks (or maybe both!) By adding their work to the page on the wall, and calling for a “no repeating” rule… you are immediately adding a challenging aspect to this otherwise open-ended activity. Students now have to get more creative, more collaborative, and more focused. This is only appropriate for some units, of course, but I try to incorporate it when I can. I LOVE seeing how this added layer pushes them to seemingly be more engaged – they want to succeed!

You can also decide if the students will be working alone, with a partner, or in small groups. I personally always give the option of ALL groupings. Students can choose to work on their own, or with up to 3 classmates. My students always seem to prefer working in groups of 2-4, though sometimes a few students will choose to work alone. I always check in with these students just as I check in with the groups 🙂 Sometimes, a student may just want some quiet time with headphones as they work. That’s always ok with me, as long as they are OK and they are participating in the lesson.

Finally, establish how many prompts your students will be required to answer, and how much writing they must do per prompt. For example, I typically ask for 7-8 out of the 10 prompts (and I literally say to them “Please choose 7 or 8″… you’ll be surprised how many students do 8 or more!).

If you want to add specific challenges, this is the perfect activity to do so! I’ll sometimes write 4-5 random new words on the board. Maybe they are words we have seen before, or maybe they are totally new! I challenge my students to find ways to use these words *somewhere* in their responses. They love challenges like this! 🙂

I love these options because many of them provide for student choice. My students appreciate the freedom to have some control over their hour with me, and I appreciate the feedback they unwittingly give me with their choices.

Above, I mentioned that I often try to do Gallery Walks in various levels on the same day. That way, I simply exchange the images out under the painter’s tape during our warm-up in each class. Something else I sometimes try is utilizing the same gallery walk in different ways. So, I may have the same set of prompts hanging for the full week. Each day, as our warm-up, I provide a different set of instructions and ask students to complete just 2-3 photos instead of the typical 7-8. Again, the possibilities here really are endless!

DIGITAL OPTIONS

The first digital adaptation is still hanging the physical images/prompts around the room, but having your students complete their written work on their tablets or computers. You could have your class contribute to a dynamic Google Slides ™ document, and host a class discussion at the end where each group shares out their answer to a specific prompt.

Another digital option is creating a digital version of your Gallery Walk (see my examples here) where students can type directly into the document.

You can insist they each complete it individually, or allow them to collaborate on their group copy. To do this, I suggest sharing a force copy link with ONE group member, and then instructing that group member to open sharing settings for their copy, provide editing privileges, and share with their group-mates (and back with you so you can monitor progress!)

You can absolutely combine the digital option above with the traditional setup. There’s no reason students can’t move about the room, but type into their group digital copy 🙂 The best of both worlds, movement + ease of a digital layer.

Instructions

Once you have chosen your parameters, it’s time to instruct your students! Be sure to explain:

Whether they working alone or in small groups
Where they will find the prompts (Paper vs. Digital Gallery)
How and where they are to record their answers
How many prompts they must choose
The amount you expect per prompt
Any other special challenges you might want to add!
How much time they have
What resources they can use for support
How your class will review after the activity

REASONS TO LOVE GALLERY WALKS

Movement

I love using Gallery Walks to get my students UP and moving. My high schoolers often moan and groan about “aw, do we have to get up?” but I notice that once they are actually up, they are usually more engaged! They seem happier, more confident, and I find I get more buy-in with my lessons. This is why you’ll notice a lot of my activities involve at least an option for movement. When they’re sitting all day every day… in one room and then the next… a little movement can be a great tool.

Collaboration

I also love giving my students the opportunity to collaborate in small groups. My students always sit in small groups as it is, but Gallery Walks allow them to work with different students and mix it up. I always tell my students that they can complete this activity on their own, in pairs, or in a group of 3 or 4 if they’d like. Sometimes a student may choose to put in headphones and complete the activity alone, and that’s just fine with me. (We all have times we need some quiet from the outside world.) But most often, they choose to work in small groups and I love hearing the collaboration and everyone contributing in the target language.

Creativity

There is very rarely just one right way to answer any of the photo / written prompts. The student creativity I witness during this activity makes me proud, makes me smile, and often even makes me laugh! Our students are so creative, and are often grateful for the opportunity to showcase that!

Student Choice

I never require that my students answer every single prompt they find. If I hang 10 prompts around the room, I typically ask them to choose 7-8. I love that this offers them some choice, but I mostly love that those choices are ALSO valuable to my lesson planning. I take note of the prompts my students skip. “Why did everyone skip 7?” I might ask myself, and I take time to reflect over whether we need more practice on a certain concept. My students don’t realize it, but their choices actually tell me a lot about where we are in our learning.

Confidence

I find my students are reluctant if I mention “creative writing”… but they never seem to hesitate when that creative writing is set up in a supportive and structured way, like a Gallery Walk! This style of activity gives them confidence in their writing abilities. Whenever possible, I try to actually use our Gallery Walk responses and BUILD upon them into another activity or discussion. If we had started from scratch, our results would not be as wonderful as when we start from a structured and confidence-building activity like this 🙂 And when I show my students what we’ve created from THEIR work… they are always so impressed with their own work.

Flexibility

There are so many ways to customize these activities for your own classes, and many more positives you may find that I haven’t mentioned here. You decide how much structure you offer. Are you just offering photos, or are you also providing sentence starters or a short reading? You decide what you ask of your students. Is this something quick that will take ten minutes, or have you turned it into something that can last an entire class period or more? AND, you can even adapt the activity into something else entirely and use it multiple ways! For example, my Buen Provecho resource has an answer key that would work great for a match-the-convo-to-the-photo reading activity. Just delete the numbers from my answer key, and scramble! You could do this before completing the traditional Gallery Walk, or after! The possibilities. Are. Endless.

Available Pre-made Sets

If you’d like to download editable and digital Gallery Walks (with instructions and sample answer keys included,) look no further! I have various options for all levels of Spanish class. I am sure there is something that will work for your students, and I am working on more as we speak!

All of these resources were just updated AND made editable, so be sure to take a look! You can click each image to learn more. (All text is editable, graphics are fixed.)

If you have a request for me to make a specific Gallery Walk set, feel free to contact me. You can find me on IG, click contact at the top of this page, or write to me at erin@theengagedspanishclassroom.com !

"Great way to get kids moving around in class!"

"Thank you! I needed a fun activity for a formal observation and this is perfect!"

"These are great activities to engage the kids this time of year especially! Thanks for all of the hard work involved in creating them!"

"A fun way to incorporate culture, writing and cooperation."

Ready to go!

Have fun, Profe! You’ve got this 🙂 I hope these resources and differentiation strategies have given you a few new ideas to try, even if you’re a seasoned Gallery Walk user!

Make sure to check your “My Purchases” tab on TPT to get access to the recent (free) digital updates to these activities.

If you decide to play with your students, feel free to share with me on social media by tagging @theengagedspanishclassroom on IG or FB, or @engagedspanish on Twitter! I’d love to see how you adapt this activity for your own classes.

Talk to you soon!

The post Creative Writing plus Student Choice: How to incorporate Gallery Walks in Spanish Class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

Fierce Spanish Class Competition: How to engage and assess with La Silla Caliente

Erin Coleman — Sat, 20 Mar 2021 00:27:28 +0000

I always say that Taco Tuesday is my favorite game to play with my students. And then we play La Silla Caliente and my heart is torn. I see how competitive my students get, I remember the benefit of being able to informally assess ALL students at once, and I remember how much it absolutely lights up our classroom. For a moment each time we play, Taco Tuesday falters as my number 1.

La Silla Caliente is without a doubt the most competitive game I play with my students. Taco Tuesday will always be my go-to for quick and engaging review… but if Taco Tuesday is a regular-season baseball game, La Silla Caliente is the playoffs. Keep reading to find:

A detailed game tutorial
The benefits of playing La Silla Caliente, including differentiation strategies
An overview of the Digital Score Tracker I designed for this activity
All available pre-made games – I have recently updated ALL of these game sets to be EDITABLE with new varied question categories; be sure to check them out!
Access to a free version of La Silla Caliente to try with your students!

Available Game Sets

If you’d like to download pre-made versions of La Silla Caliente that are ready to go (with instructions included,) look no further!

I have various options for all levels of Spanish class. I am sure there is something that will work for your students!

All of these games were just updated AND made editable, so be sure to take a closer look! You can click the button below to see ALL available options.

If you have any requests for me to make a specific game set feel free to contact me! You can find me on IG, click contact at the top of this page, or write to me at erin@theengagedspanishclassroom.com !

How to play La Silla Caliente

Setup

Create a slideshow of 30+ questions to project (or read aloud) for your class, with answers immediately following each question slide. You can see my available game sets here. They will all be editable in Google Drive within the next week or so 🙂

Example:

Slide 1 – question 1

Slide 2 – answer 1

Slide 3 – question 2

Slide 4 – answer 2

I like to group the questions into different categories / formats. For example, I will start with 5 simple true false questions, followed by 5 translation questions, 5 “find the error” questions, 5 fill-ins, 5 conjugation or simple sentences, and finally 5 challenging short answer open-ended questions. This allows my students to get warmed up as we move from concrete to the abstract in our language use. If you ever want to move through your game quickly, you could choose 3 random questions from each section, or just create a shorter game. I find that 30 questions allows us to play for half of our class period or more, which my students LOVE. They always ask to play the full 30 questions, and this is why La Silla Caliente is a game that’s reserved for when we have a good amount of time to play.

TEAMS

I separate students into teams of 5. If your class ends up with a few teams of 4, that is great too, but I wouldn’t recommend teams of 6 unless you change the scoring rules as this will render one student on that team feeling left “out” per round. Since one of the main benefits of this game is that every student matters during every question, I try to avoid teams of 6 unless absolutely necessary (due to space or something).

Once my class is separated into teams of 5, I instruct them to line their desks up in a row from front to back. They do not organize themselves in a group, but instead line up in a straight line behind their team members, as if it were a relay.

GAMEPLAY

Students are now sitting in a straight line with their team members. Depending on the class (or time constraints), I either assign a team name or I give them 1 minute to work with their group to establish an appropriate team name.

Now for the game rules: I explain to students that the person currently sitting in the FRONT seat for their team has the chance to earn 5 points for their team. The person sitting in the second seat has the change to earn 4 points. The person in the third seat back has the chance to earn 3 points. The team member in the fourth seat has the chance to earn 2 points, and the person in the final seat has the chance to earn 1 point. As I project each question on the board, I will allow time to answer (usually 20 seconds or so, sometimes faster for the first groups of questions as those are easier.) I will then count down from 5, and say ¡Muéstrame! when I am ready for every student to put their marker down and hold up their answer toward the front of the room.

I check the first person in each team. If that person has the correct answer, I award 5 points to that team on the board. If the first person on a team has it wrong, but the second person has it right, their team earns 4 points, and so on. Each team only gets one score per round (I don’t add up 5 plus 4 plus 3 if they all got it right, I just go to the first person that has it correct.) I am very picky with answers during this game. Everything has to be exactly right, because small errors let me involve the students sitting slightly farther back and make the game more exciting 🙂 Typically this is not my grading style at all, but during La Silla Caliente it feels appropriate.

One of the main reasons I love this game is that by having ALL students show their answers, I am able to glance around the whole room to assess student responses and any patterns we need to discuss. Even if the first person on the team has the correct answer, I still glance at each student and give little nods if they have it correct. This helps them feel validated for participating in each and every round.

After visually checking the answers, I typically read the correct answer aloud or call on a student to do so. Asking for a choral response is also great. I then always show the correct answer on the screen, so that students can both hear and see the correct response. We discuss any mistake patterns or common errors, and students can ask any questions they may have at this point.

The most important step of this game comes here; after each question is complete and the scores have been tallied on the board, the student in the front seat rotates to the back and every other student moves up one seat. This means that everyone has the chance to be worth 5 points, and so on.

MATERIALS

The only remaining part of the game set-up is that every individual student needs a writing space. I typically offer my students small whiteboards and dry erase markers. My students also have iPads, so they often choose to use the “Notability” app to use their iPad like a small whiteboard. Each individual student will need to show their answer for each question, so any device that allows them to do that is perfect.

My students *love* the opportunity to use our small whiteboards since we don’t use them every day. If you don’t have small white boards, you can usually visit a Lowe’s or Home Depot and request that they cut up “shower board” for you 🙂 I paid for the very inexpensive shower board, and they did the cutting for me for free. If you mention you’re a teacher and find a kind employee, I have heard it has worked well for many others too.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE

Teams work together to contribute to their team score, but teams do not work together during each question. There is no talking or communicating between team members at all during response times. I always warn students that if I see their row communicating in any way, they will receive 0 points that round. This is usually enough of a “threat” that they focus on their own answers.

I also always suggest students keep their white boards or iPads flat on their desks while answering; I remind them that they don’t want to accidentally be showing their answers to OTHER teams 😉

Why I love La Silla Caliente

GAME LENGTH

While Taco Tuesday is great for a 10-15 minute review before a quiz, I love that my class can be fully engaged for up to an entire class period with La Silla Caliente. We don’t play this game often, and it’s primarily because I do like to dedicate so much time to the gameplay. I usually try to set aside at least 30 minutes for La Silla Caliente – and yes, my students are engaged the ENTIRE time. We can rarely stop this game before the end of class, as they beg to keep playing right up until the bell! My classes always know what happened if they come in and our desks are left in rows because the last class played up until the bell. I always hear, “Aw man, that class got to play hot seat!? Are we playing!?”

WHOLE GROUP PLAY

So many activities need to be done in pairs or small groups. This is one of the rare ones I’ve found that truly works, and works well, for whole group play. In my experience, whole class games often leave students out for specific turns, students find ways to “hide”, or student engagement fizzles out after just a few minutes. I haven’t had any of these issues with La Silla Caliente.

ASSESS ALL STUDENTS

I love that I get to quickly assess ALL students at the same time during this activity. As I mentioned above in the gameplay tutorial, every student answers every question. The game is set up in a way that their individual answer always has a chance to contribute to their team. The way that the activity is designed, I am able to make a quick assessment of who is struggling and who is doing really well. Meanwhile, it is done in a way that this is only obvious to ME. It would be very difficult for another student to notice the specific progress or struggles of someone else, which is another reason I love it. With many popular online games, student scores are displayed on the screen for all to see. That isn’t the case here. This activity is a great way to “take the temperature” in my classroom; to see where we are at, without calling attention to the students who may be showing me that we need some extra review time.

** To be sure I am getting an accurate glimpse into how my students are doing, I motivate my students to keep their white boards and iPads FLAT on the desk while they are answering. I am always walking around as students are writing their answers, and they know there is no reason to navigate away from Notability if they’re using their iPads to show their answers. This isn’t a concern with white boards, of course, but with iPad use I always want to do my best to mitigate students getting online “help” 😉

MOVEMENT

I love that this activity uses movement. In my high school classroom, I try to use movement as much as possible. With activities like four corners, gallery walks, or stations, I sometimes get complaints about “I don’t want to move!” But with La Silla Caliente, they seem to forget they are moving at all.

If you don’t want your students to move due to whatever reason, there is a very easy solution. Hand a special “key item” (could be a pen, a ball, anything) to the first person in each row at the start of the game. After each question, instruct the students to pass that item to the person behind them. Whoever holds the key item is the one with the potential to earn 5 points that round, and the values count back from there as normal. The person behind the student with the key item has the potential to contribute 4 points, behind them 3 points, etc.

I have honestly also done this method without actually passing any item; my students do a GREAT job of remembering which person is worth 5 points. For this to be done without an item, though, perfectly even teams would be essential. Otherwise I believe it would be too hard to keep track.

True Social Distancing Option: If you want to avoid movement and the passing of an item, but you’re worried of keeping track in your head, there’s something else you can try! Have each student have a pen or pencil out on their desk. All pens should be flat on the desk, horizontally. The student that is worth 5 points should point their pen toward the front of the room, having the pen lie vertically on their desk instead of horizontally. Students simply turn the pen | or — as needed. Again, even team numbers make this adaptation much easier, but I know that isn’t always possible.

While we are on the topic of social distancing, maybe you’d like to try this with remote students. I will say I haven’t done this yet myself, but typing answers privately into the chat may be an option. It would be hard to monitor closely, however, so I am a little hesitant to motivate this before trying it myself. If you try it, please let me know how it goes! I’d be happy to add your experience here.

Community Building

Depending on my class, I may allow students to choose their teams or I may decide them randomly. The same goes for team names. In either format, I really find that this game helps build community within the classroom.

Students that sit on opposite sides of the room, or students that have never spoken to one another, have the chance to be part of the same team. Even though team members do not collaborate during the questions, there is still an immediate sense of “team” and support of one another throughout the game. My students get *so* excited when a quieter student earns 4 or 5 points. There are often whoops and cheers, and big proud smiles from my most-shy participants.

They also get very excited to decide their team names, and inside jokes that carry on to future classes often start here. It’s great to see, and I love that even my quietest students quickly get embedded into the team atmosphere.

DIFFERENTIATION

Last but not least, there are SO many ways to customize this game to meet the needs of my classes and my individual students.

I can vary how much time I give per question – I like to offer about 20 seconds typically, and I dramatically count down from 5 when it’s time to shout “¡MUESTRA!” But I can easily offer more time. If I’m really strategic, when I set my teams and student seats, I arrange students of similar strengths in the same row. Not on the same team, but next to one another so they all make it to the front seat at the same time. This way, I can offer this group an extra 10 seconds or so for their answers, without the rest of the class even noticing.
I sometimes offer 3 “lifelines” per game for each team. A lifeline could be where the front person gets to ask ONE other person in the group for help/backup on that one question. This is a good addition if you have VERY shy students that you’re worried about feeling put on the spot when they are in La Silla Caliente, the seat worth 5 points for their team. You can keep track of used lifelines in the same place you’re keeping score on the board. And, you can offer bonus points at the end if any lifelines remain unused. (Offering just ONE point per remaining lifeline can actually change the overall winner!)
If I have a student that isn’t feeling well, is feeling anxious, really doesn’t want to play, or I can just tell that something else is going on…. “I need scorekeeper today so I can focus on student answers!” Suddenly, that student feels special and appreciates the opportunity for a different role. They will still be checking answers with me, so that practice will still be a little review for them, too. But they get to “help” me that day, and that is valuable for different reasons 🙂

Digital Score tracker

Each of my Silla Caliente game sets has been updated to include your own copy of the Digital Score Tracker I designed!

The tracker will automatically tally each team’s score as you enter their score for each question.

Watch the demo video below to take a closer look!

I used to to stand at the front of the room rushing to add scores on the whiteboard for 5-6 teams… no more! 🙂 Now I will just type the team’s score, and the digital tracker will do the rest of the work for me!

As you scroll, the TEAM and SCORE rows will be locked at the top of your screen, so that your students can see their team’s score as you move through the 30 prompts of each Silla Caliente game.

I included one tracker with 30 questions, but added a second tracker with space for up to 50 questions in case you need more room. I hope these help you and your students. Every time you click the tracker link, a new copy will be opened for you so you can use this tracker again and again! Have fun!

Try it today!

A special FREE download is available for you exclusively right here!

This version is great for Spanish 1 or review in the upper levels.

The game will be delivered to your inbox within minutes, with follow up tips for gameplay from me!

No prep needed, 30 prompts with answer key included – have fun!

Know someone else who would be interested in trying this game for free? Share this post with them below!

Time to play!

Thank you for reading! I hope you find this tutorial helpful, I hope you enjoy the free download, and I hope your students love this game as much as mine do! Have fun!! 🙂

The post Fierce Spanish Class Competition: How to engage and assess with La Silla Caliente appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

Try Digital Stickers in Spanish Class to Offer Feedback and Foster Stronger Connections

Erin Coleman — Sun, 20 Dec 2020 23:51:10 +0000

Student relationships are the most important part of my classroom every year. I greet my students at the door, I look them in the eye and speak their names every day with a smile on my face, and I let them know that they are important to me. Building better student relationships has been a game-changer for me when it comes to classroom management. Each year I feel I feel I have fewer classroom issues because I develop stronger and stronger student relationships. I remember veteran teachers telling me this when I started; and they were right! (Who knew!?) Read on to see how I utilized digital stickers to make connections with students during remote and hybrid learning, and how I’ll continue to do so as we return to a more “normal” classroom environment.

In this blog post:

Why I started using digital stickers
How to use digital stickers within Google Keep and Google Drive
Inserting and resizing digital stickers
Pre-made sticker options
EDITABLE Digital sticker options
Video tutorial for designing your OWN digital stickers

How do we foster connection when feedback is digital?

2020 threw a wrench into my “making daily connections” plan. That spring I found myself yearning to connect with my students in any sort of way that resembled our face to face interactions. My students didn’t want to turn on their cameras, and many didn’t come to class. I didn’t blame them one bit. This spring was scary, and we were in a world that was new to all of us. None of us asked for it; especially the children.

In all of the chaos, I was fighting to make some sort of connections with my students whether they were coming to my live classes or simply submitting work from behind a silent screen. One small action that helped me? Out of nowhere, digital stickers. My students were suddenly replying to my emails and my Google Classroom comments! Instead of three comments by me, talking to the void…. I was getting responses! “That llama was so cute I showed it to my mom!” and “Oh my gosh I know what that sticker said!!”

Digital is here to stay

As we start to return back to “normal,” I know that I will keep some of the digital updates that 2020 brought. I won’t lie – this past year forced me to learn new skills, try new things, and change my perspective. It wasn’t ALL bad.

There are many new digital tools that have made my life easier, and helped me with organization.

With an increase in digital work comes an increase in digital feedback, and I’m glad I found a way to continue to make connections in that process. These stickers are sure to keep putting smiles on my students’ faces 🙂

Small victories are still victories!

The small action of designing digital stickers helped me not only because they made my students smile, but because I found that I LOVED creating them. As 2020 was increasing in horrible speed and scale, I needed to hold onto anything that was bringing happiness. I realized that digital stickers were doing that for me and my students at the same time, and I was IN! So, I spent a lot of time over the summer designing more and more. My student had complimented my llama sticker? Ok, let me make 10 more. Another student loved rainbows. Ok, I’ll make enough for the year for her. One teacher even sent me a message requesting stickers with flags for Spanish-speaking countries – amazing idea! I hunted for the perfect clipart, and finally found some.

I had so much fun designing the digital stickers that I have so far, and I know I’m not done 🙂 Because they felt like a small victory for me and my students earlier this year, and small victories are STILL victories.

Want free stickers?

Join below and get instant access to a set of free stickers in my members library!

How to use stickers with Google Keep

I wanted to share this quick tutorial video to show you an easy way to store and use your stickers. The video also shows how to move, resize, etc. I have included tips below the video as well. I hope this helps!

Inserting and Resizing Digital Stickers

In the video above, you see me click and drag a few digital stickers from Google Keep into my student’s document. I want to remind you that you can do this from any desktop folder as well! Wherever you choose to store your digital stickers, you can click and drag or paste them into any document within Google Drive.

Please note:

*Google Docs will limit your formatting ability — it might break up text or push items onto another page

*Google Slides is much more flexible, and that is what you see in my video. (I prefer Google Slides, always!)

Want to resize, but worried about losing the shape/quality of the image? Make sure you hold SHIFT as you are resizing, and always resize from a corner! I should have mentioned that aloud in my video, but you can hear a loud *click* each time I am resizing an image. That is the sound of me hammering the shift key so that I don’t risk losing the proportions of my image 🙂 Try this next time you’re resizing any shape in Google Drive!

Want to see more?

You can see ALL of my pre-made Spanish digital stickers right here for a discount! There are already over 200 included in that bundle. Or, click below to see my favorite digital sticker sets. I hope you and your students love them.

Super cute Spanish Coffee Cup Stickers
My favorite Spanish Llama Stickers
Sweet Spanish Pineapple Stickers
Bright and cute Spanish Watermelon Stickers
My most POPULAR set Spanish Cute Stickers
Perhaps the most useful (and made by special request) Proficiency Stickers

I have stickers in Spanish, French, and English!

easily personalize stickers for your students

I wanted to design options where you can add student names, fun phrases, or inside jokes that you have with your classes! I decided to make these editable digital stickers so you can do just that.

The message on each sticker is completely editable! You can change the text, change the font, and change the text color and size!

The graphics and the background colors are the only pieces of these stickers that are static and cannot be changed. I hope you have fun, and that your students love them!

Or… learn to design your own!

I created all of my stickers in Google Drawings. Google Drawings is a GAME CHANGER because it saves your shape with a transparent background, which is key for creating digital stickers. I have seen many teachers suggest you use a website to remove the background from your image… but that step is NOT needed when working in Google Drawings 😉 I recorded this short walkthrough below to show you how I design digital stickers, from start to finish. Have fun!!

Having trouble viewing the video above? Click here to watch it in Google Drive.

Thank you for reading!

I hope you’re leaving here inspired to try something new. You’ve got this, profe.

The post Try Digital Stickers in Spanish Class to Offer Feedback and Foster Stronger Connections appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

How to Play Digital Taco Tuesday: Take your favorite Spanish Class Game into the Virtual World

Erin Coleman — Thu, 15 Oct 2020 18:22:36 +0000

Inside: Free downloads, video walkthroughs, and support resources for playing the digital game version of Taco Tuesday with your Spanish students (and a special version for French class, too!)

Digital Taco Tuesday is finally here!

Read on to learn how to use my newly updated DIGITAL Taco Tuesday templates, and to grab your free version!

In this post you will find:

a quick intro to Taco Tuesday
overview for using Taco Tuesday templates to make your own games (print or virtual) again and again
access to a free pre-made digital game for Spanish cognates, exclusive for you (not available on TPT!)
a surprise for your French teacher friends!

The resources above also include VIDEO SUPPORTS, which can also be found as you make your way through this post! If you’d prefer to watch them later, have no fear. Many of the videos are provided in the resources themselves, too.

The Evolution of Taco Tuesday

When we were thrown into virtual learning in the spring, I tried to make Taco Tuesday work in a few different ways. I made at-home versions, and I also recorded myself giving clues. After playing around with different options, I have decided that THIS is absolutely the best one! This is the only way my students are able to compete against one another synchronously, as if we were together in class. I have added this virtual update to ALL of my existing Taco Tuesday games as well as to the editable templates, so please re-download your copies for your free exciting updates!

If you’re like me, you already know and LOVE playing Taco Tuesday with your students. But if you’ve never played, you can learn more about traditional (paper) gameplay and differentiation ideas right here.

If you’re like most of the teachers in the world right now, you need more options for remote / hybrid learning, or even socially-distanced learning when in person. I know that planning synchronous lessons has been one of the most difficult aspects of remote and hybrid learning. That’s where this update comes in! I hope you love it!

How it works:

Below you will find a step by step VIDEO tutorial, as well as a simple written tutorial if you prefer that!

VIDEO TUTORIAL

https://theengagedspanishclassroom.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/DIGITAL-Taco-Tuesday-Video-Walkthrough.mp4

Want to make your own Taco Tuesday games, over and over?

Suggestions for using the templates:

There are 5 game board sizes included in the Taco Tuesday Templates. First, choose which game board is right for your current vocab/class/unit.
Next, create a COPY of that one game board slide in a new Google Slides document.
Complete your game board! Type in each of the Tacos — this can be vocab words, phrases, or events from a class story.
Now, duplicate that game slide to make enough room for your entire class to play. Do you have 30 students? Make 15 identical game slides, on for each pair right there in the same document!
Share the game board pack with your class. All students should have access (and editing privileges) to your one document
Assign each pair of students to one game board. For example, “Tim and Andrea you are playing on slide 5!”
Tell students to choose their colored markers – purple, green, yellow, or pink.
Let’s PLAY! Give your clues to your students, and motivate them to use their markers to mark their answer! The FIRST student to claim each taco gets to leave their marker there. As students use the colored markers, there are more markers ready and waiting underneath them.

Preview

https://theengagedspanishclassroom.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Virtual-Taco-Pin.mp4

*Special note* If you are concerned about your students’ ability to change your game board once you give them editing privileges, there is just ONE extra step you can take. After you make the game board, but before you duplicate it onto 15 slides, file > download > download as png or jpeg. Delete the contents of your slide (leave the colored markers on the side!) and set that new downloaded image as the background of your slide. Now, duplicate your slide. This way, students will be able to move their markers but they won’t be able to change your Tacos 😉

*I recommend always saving an ORIGINAL copy somewhere just in case you notice an error! Never completely erase your progress 🙂

If you ALREADY love creating your own versions of Taco Tuesday with my templates, be sure to download your free digital update! Don’t have the templates yet? Grab them here!! With the templates you can easily design your own games for years to come! Remember, the templates come with 5 game board sizes, digital options, and print and go options.

In addition to the templates, I have also updated ALL of my pre-made games.

FREE DIGITAL VERSION!

If you’d like to try the game first, I made this special Cognate game *just* for you! This game is not available on TPT; it’s just for YOU, and it is now ready for DIGITAL gameplay! I have a support video included within the download, and that video will take you all the way from the download to sharing with your students and monitoring gameplay all on one screen. Have fun!

Sign up to receive a members-only version of this virtual-ready game, and gain access to other exclusive resources! You will receive additional special videos in your inbox that are just for you, for extra support like changing your game piece colors and more! 🙂

Interested in a second free game, this time for the present tense of AR verbs? Grab it here!

Last but not least, I didn’t forget about you, French teacher friends!

I hope this virtual update is helpful for you, and FUN for your students! I have created the same update in my French version of this game, Macaron Mardi. You can grab that update right here!

Preview

https://theengagedspanishclassroom.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Macaron-Mardi-Virtual-video.mp4

Thanks for reading, and watching!

I hope your students love these games as much as mine do every year. Have fun, profe!

The post How to Play Digital Taco Tuesday: Take your favorite Spanish Class Game into the Virtual World appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

How to use beautiful digital notebooks and class hubs in Spanish Class

The Engaged Spanish Classroom — Wed, 02 Sep 2020 20:46:00 +0000

Digital Notebooks and Class Hubs have improved my teaching life for so many reasons!

I am more organized (and planning AHEAD instead of at the last minute)
My students know where to look to find their work, and also know exactly where to submit!
Student work isn’t getting lost! (or forgotten..)
Parents have a quick place to check-in!
Digital stickers make my students smile – which makes ME smile.

When I first started designing and using class hubs and digital notebooks, I was super intimidated. It honestly took longer than I’d care to admit. SO, I wanted to take all of the design work out of the process for you!

All you have to do? Customize the text of your hub / notebook to match your unique class needs for each unit. Easy peasy!

I have added a few photos and videos throughout this post, so please feel free to bookmark and come back later for reference!

Using Digital notebooks in Spanish Class

A BIG victory – giving students one spot to organize all of their work!

These notebooks have the potential to become a digital portfolio. Students can personalize their notebooks with different clipart and fonts, and take ownership of their work.

You can have them share with you at the end of the week when they have finished their work, or you can prompt them to share with you from the start so you can observe and interact with them as they progress. No more opening 5-10 attachments per student… just one document that holds their work via text box, screenshot, video or audio file, or a link to work completed elsewhere in Google Drive.

I should note, these can be used independently of the Class Hubs. There is space within these documents to offer student instructions/resources; as I mentioned, I like to provide a LOT of options, and that is why I like using the Class Hubs for my end of things. You will learn more about class hubs later in this post!

Video Walkthrough

Click below to see a tour of my favorite digital (and editable!) notebook

Why do I use them?

I was tired of opening 5+ attachments per student per week, especially when some were simply a screenshot of an online score (Quizlet, etc.) It felt like I was spending a lot of extra time on my computer, when I was trying to limit screen time as much as possible.
Students are able to take accountability for organizing their own work
Students can visually see their progress throughout the week
I review student work within Google Drive instead of only through Classroom or another LMS (which sometimes can be glitchy or slow.)
I can organize student work easily in Google Drive folders, easier to navigate than some LMS

With the different sections it is easy for me to focus on my students’ proficiency levels
Can potentially be used independently from a Class Hub, meaning student needs just this singular document for the week/unit! (I am too wordy to use just one, but maybe you can be succinct enough to make it work!)
Can be used as a digital portfolio and saved throughout the year(s)
I can easily add digital stickers to show my students I care about them even when I’m not seeing them face to face every day
I can easily provide feedback within the document
Students are familiar with Google Drive and are easily able to work within this document rather than frequently changing LMS and expectations

How do I use them?

Digital Interactive Notebooks, also created and edited within Google Slides, offer yet another accessible way for me to communicate with my students. While I use the Class Hubs to provide student work and options, I plan to use these Digital Interactive Notebooks to help students organize their work for me.

Students will be instructed to insert their work into their digital notebook each week. They can do this by adding screenshots (Quizlet etc.), by typing directly into the document, or by linking to an outside document within Google Drive. They can even insert video and audio files easily! All of their work, of different files and formats, can be organized together in one place.

I can’t wait to motivate students to decorate their notebooks! They can add clipart/images to the front cover. They could also easily change the fonts on the cover or within each page, to truly make it their own.

Each inner page of the notebook has space for teacher resources/instructions, student work, and teacher feedback. I love that I can provide feedback for my students directly within this document. Throughout the week, I can view their progress and also easily add digital stickers to brighten their day.

Again, each of my templates provides detailed teacher instructions for editing and sharing with students, as well as a walkthrough video. Detailed student instructions are also included here, since students will be editing this document within their own Google Drive and sharing back with the teacher.

*Student instructions provide reminders for sharing with teacher. Once students share with me, the notebooks are found in the “shared with me” folder and I can organize from there by class and unit. I plan to make my life easier by giving an easy title before pushing out to students: for example, FIRSTLASTNAMEunit1week1. Then, students will just change the name and share with me each Monday.

Take a closer look by watching the video below:

I love seeing all the ways teachers have customized these notebooks for their classes! Feel free to tag me on social media (I’m most frequently on IG) @theengagedspanishclassroom so I can admire your creations!

My notebooks are available in different colors, bundles (with stickers,) and more.

I have Digital Notebooks currently available in English, Spanish, and French.

I have various themes available in Spanish, such as Rainbow, Blue, Pink, and Papel Picado.

Interested in free digital stickers to try with these resources? Access these and additional free resources today!

Using Digital Class Hubs In Spanish Class

I have been using Class Hubs sporadically over the past few years, but distance learning led me to use them each week and with a redefined purpose. You can download a free Spanish version here. (Free French version here.)

Video Walkthrough

Click below to see a tour of one of my editable Digital Class Hubs, and see how it differs from the digital notebooks above!

Why do I use them?

Everything my students need is in one place
I can provide instructions, student choice, and resources
No more scrolling to find specific posts within our LMS (“Wait, what day did you post that one?”)
Students can save a copy directly to their drive (or device) for easy access
The consistent format lets students know what to expect each week. I can change the categories and the contents, but students don’t blink. They understand where to look and what to look for.
The consistent format helps ME plan, and helps me see visually that I am in fact doing “enough” (this is something I struggle with.)
The easy to edit templates make it very easy for me to create and share each new hub with my students
Google Slides is a platform where I already work confidently; I can edit and update with just a few clicks and there is no need to learn something new like Google Sites
These versatile documents can be used for everything. I have used them for parent night, distance learning, my teacher portfolio, and more.
Class Hubs are interactive like a website, which makes me feel tech-savvy and awesome 🙂 if I’m being honest!
Again a moment of honesty, I love things that are visually appealing! These fit the bill for me.

Students quickly became used to this format during distance learning, and I am confident I will continue to use these even in a fully in person setting. The consistency helped keep both myself and my students organized!

My students told me they liked that they knew what to expect each week – they knew where to look, and they knew what type of options they would find. They also told me they liked that they could see their work ahead of time, so that they could budget their time throughout the week. I understand this final part might not be appropriate as we move toward our more traditional schedule, but it is an added benefit that students can pace themselves. Utilizing these has reminded me how much students enjoy having CHOICE.

How do I use them?

The most important thing to know is that all text is editable, so you can customize this document to your heart’s content.

Class hubs are a way to provide all of my materials to my students for the week or even for the unit. Personally, I like to use them one week at a time. This allows me plenty of space to provide for student choice, which is especially important during distance/hybrid learning. In the spring, I had far more work completion from students when there was student choice involved.

On the main page of the Class Hub, there are categories for the week or unit. On any given week, I might have the following; Openers, Homework, Unit Goals, Extra help.

During remote learning, my Class Hub was set up more like an interactive choice board: Instead of categories like openers and homework, I had categories and asked students to choose two activities from each. Examples of categories I had: Online Practice, Vocab Review, Writing, Listening, Culture, etc.

Regardless of the categories you choose (limitless possibilities since all text is editable!) – each button leads to a separate page within the document. On these inner pages, it is easy to host your information and resources for students. I often provide links to videos, Quizlet review games, Boom Card sets, or interactive online activities. All text on these inner templates is editable as well, so you can truly make it your own.

There are detailed teacher instructions included with each template. These instructions will help you choose between various sharing options. (Do you need your students to see changes you make in real time? Do you plan ahead and want to provide the finished document only?) The instructions also guide you with making any changes you might need to make.

I have various templates available, as well as tutorial to help you build your own interactive Class Hub. Overall, the templates are easy to customize to ensure you’re adapting for your unique class needs. It takes just seconds to edit the category buttons, remove a button (though on my templates, the clipart is fixed), or add your own buttons.

If you feel inspired to build your own Class Hub from scratch, my tutorial is perfect for you. You work with one of my templates first, but I show you how I set it up step by step as you follow along in your editable workbook.

I have Class Hubs currently available in English, Spanish, and French.

I have various themes available in Spanish, such as Coffee, Llamas, Succulents, and Papel Picado.

And Finally, Digital Stickers!

Digital stickers are available in three languages, too! I have had so much fun designing these. Please watch the video below to see how easy it is to use them within Google Keep and Google Drive. You can then see a few examples of ones I have created. Try some digital stickers for free here, and be sure to access an ADDITIONAL free set linked earlier this blog post!

My students love seeing these stickers on their assignments! I love designing them, and I love providing feedback that makes my students smile.

There are versions available in Spanish, French, and English in my store, and there are editable versions as well if you’d like to personalize the stickers with your students’ names or other special messages!

Have fun!

Thank you for reading!

I hope you have found something to help you this year! If you know you’d like to use a Class Hub, Digital Notebook, AND Digital Stickers, you might want to check out my bundle packs here (again, available in English, Spanish, and French) as they offer these materials together, at a discount!

Have fun, Profe!

The post How to use beautiful digital notebooks and class hubs in Spanish Class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

3 Free Digital Resources to Help you Streamline and Organize in any class

The Engaged Spanish Classroom — Tue, 07 Apr 2020 21:34:00 +0000

I want to help you streamline your Organizational tasks.

Staying organized while teaching various levels of a world language is no easy task. If you are like me, you often feel overwhelmed by all the ideas, resources, and new things to try. I hope this post will help bring you back to center, and help you feel more calm and collected as you track your tasks, parent communication, etc. I use these resources with my various levels of Spanish classes, and they help me save time (and stress.) I developed these resources during distance learning but know they will continue to serve me well in the future.

These are the resources that have been the easiest for me to implement and have made the biggest difference for me personally.

Keep reading to gain access to free copies of the following:

Editable Digital Class Hub
Student Check-in Form
Class Communication Checklist

Google Drive is my Best friend

I hope that instead of overwhelming you, you’ll find that I have done most of the legwork for you by providing templates that will immediately create their own copies in your Google Drive. This way, you enter your own information and move forward seamlessly. You can learn more about these apps if you’d like to, but you also don’t *need* to right now. You can simply use what I have set up for you, and learn more about them later instead. (or.. never! I won’t tell.)

ALL of the resources in this post are free to my newsletter members! When you access them in my resource library you will have immediate access to your own copies for editing in Google Drive. Alternatively, the Editable Digital Class Hub is a free download via my TPT store.

If you have a moment and you decide to use my Class Hub, I’d greatly appreciate your feedback on TPT! Your positive feedback keeps me motivated to keep creating and designing new material to share.

Resource #1) Editable Digital Class Hub

The purpose of this class hub is to share ONE document with my students each week – yet it contains all of our activities and resources, as well as my contact information and expectations. This hub is created and edited in Google Drive. You then share with your students (I recommend sharing as a PDF) and they then use the document as an interactive website, so to speak. They click through the options or assignments for each day, and can access everything you have prepared for them from one document.

Your students will quickly get used to the interactive format, and you will be able to communicate with your students providing your plans and expectations in one single document each week.

I have various designs and more extensive template options for you on TPT! I created this specific one to support world language teachers during distance learning due to COVID-19.

Click the image to download your free copy!

Please feel free to share this French version with your colleagues.

Over 4,100 teachers are already enjoying this FREE resource. I hope it helps you, too! And since all text is editable, please feel free to share the link with teachers of all subjects. There are a few math teachers at my school who are using this exact hub! With multiple teachers using the same format, our shared students know exactly where to look and what to expect.

*Note* Since I share it as a PDF, I need to make sure the weekly hub is my FINAL draft before I share with my students. If you think you’ll make edits during the week, sharing the Google Slides file as “view only” with them works just as well; however, they will need to click “present mode” each time to use it as it’s meant to be used rather than just as a packet (which again, is fine!)

If you like the organization of the digital class hub, you should definitely check out the editable and digital notebooks I have designed as well. While the Class Hubs are meant for you to communicate expectations with your students, the notebooks help collect all student work in one place. Check them out by clicking the button below!

Resources #2) Weekly Student Check-In

I created this resource during distance learning because I wanted to make sure my students were OK each week.

As we return to in-person learning, I still want to be mindful about checking in with my students. I want them to know that I care about their health and safety more than my content.

This survey helps me check in with my students each week (or month, up to you). I also prompt them to fill out the survey as needed; outside of “assigned” times, I adjust the settings to receive an email alert when a student submits the survey.

The resource will immediately prompt you to make your own copy- you can edit, add, or remove questions as you please. You can then organize your students’ answers in one spreadsheet in Google Drive.

Personally, I like to create a new copy of the survey each time I give it, so that my student responses are collected on a new spreadsheet each time, which I label by date. I hope this helps!

Access this check-in survey and MORE through my Member Resource Library!

Resource #3) COMMUNICATION Checklist

I was originally motivated to create this during distance learning because I needed a way to track work completion as well as my communication with students and families in a way that wasn’t overwhelming to manage. Again, I know this will be useful for years to come even as we return to full time in person learning.

I created this spreadsheet to keep track of all my information for the week on ONE page per class. I have space to track when I hear from students, when I reach out myself, and space to track work completion. I can also track whether I have provided feedback on their work, and whether I have made attempts or had success communicating with families. I have made one sheet for you for each of your five classes; just change the block name and add your student names in the first column.

As we return to in person learning, I imagine I will use this spreadsheet monthly rather than weekly, or simply as needed.

Interested in more free digital resources?

Thank you for reading!

I hope you can find something here to take some of the weight off of your shoulders! Remember to visit my resource library to access your copies of these resources.

Since all of these resources are editable, I invite you to share this post with the teachers in your life whether they be Spanish teachers, math teachers, history teachers…. I hope these documents can help teachers in all content areas!

Talk to you soon, Profe!

The post 3 Free Digital Resources to Help you Streamline and Organize in any class appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

How to play Sonidos Secretos: trust me, your students will thank you!

The Engaged Spanish Classroom — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 22:00:00 +0000

The origin of Sonidos Secretos

Sonidos Secretos is one of my favorite speaking activities. Believe it or not, it is an activity I designed based on a request from a student. She had seen a funny clip on a TV show and asked if I could make a similar game for our class. We played right there and then in class, an impromptu round with two students in the front of the room and I used a small whiteboard standing behind the pair of students. It was so fun and silly that I went home that night and created the template and instructions, so that all students could participate the next time we played!

I love that it is a low pressure activity that gets students “speaking,” thinking, and guessing all in the target language! Our room FILLS with laughter every single time we play.

Keep reading for a full game tutorial, link to a free version, and various resources for use with your students!

Teachers and Students Love Sonidos Secretos

Since those first few sets were posted online, LOTS of teachers have shared videos of their students using this activity on social media! I have loved all of the silly videos – keep them coming!

Feel free to tag me on Instagram @theengagedspanishclassroom and search #sonidossecretos to see videos from teachers all over the world!

I originally designed this activity as a fun brain break, but quickly realized how *sneaky helpful* it is. Whenever I give my participation reflections at midterms and report cards, my students consistently request this activity.

I often ask “Which class activity helps you to feel more confident in your speaking skills?” and the answers are overwhelmingly Citas Cortas, Sonidos Secretos, and Llama Mía (in that order.)

When I ask students WHY this activity is helpful, these are the types of answers I hear most often:

“It really makes me pay attention to my pronunciation”
“I don’t feel pressured at all so I’m not nervous”
“The slow repetition helps me so much”
“When it’s my turn to guess, I actually think in Spanish and I like that part!”

I always ask the students to reflect after we do this activity. “What helped you? Do you think you spoke more Spanish today than on a typical day? How do you feel about your pronunciation?”

Once, I used this activity during an observation by my department head. In my observation report, my department head noted that a student near her quietly said to herself “Wow, I’m just now realizing how much that activity actually helps me” during our post – Sonidos debrief. If I ever needed a reason to make time for this “fun” activity… that whispered realization was enough for me!

How to Play Sonidos Secretos

Overview

This activity provides a low-pressure repetitive speaking opportunity for students.

Students sit in pairs (groups of 3 are possible if needed, but not ideal)

The pairs of students will work together to decipher the Sonidos Secretos written on their game cards. There is usually a lot of giggles, and a lot of (ridiculous) *SPANISH* guesses!

The activity also includes an optional written extension activity. You could easily differentiate and build upon the written or spoken pieces as well!

Prep

::Medium prep required, cutting cards::

It does take a bit of time to cut the cards for this activity. I save my cards in a ziploc baggie (glamourous, I know) from year to year so that I don’t have to re-prepare the game cards the following year. The only piece that you’d need to prepare again would be the response sheet, which is just 1 page per student/pair.

To get ready your first time, print enough copies of the game for half of your class. For example, a class of 28 would need 14 game sets. Each game set from my TPT is fairly large, though, so you *could* print fewer copies and split up the decks, as long as students remember to combine them correctly after the activity for storage.

I print a response sheet for each student, so that I can collect them afterwards. You could have each pair work on one response sheet if desired, and ask them to initial their personal answers. This would be a fast way to save paper (and check their work quicker too!)

I should mention that the response sheets are completely optional; YOU decide whether or not you’d like your students to participate in the written portion. Sometimes I make this decision based on time, or based on whether I have response sheets printed. I keep a stack of about 50 response sheets printed at all times; no matter the unit, I know I have the game cards ready in my drawer and I know I can pull response sheets from this pile and BAM #SonidosSecretos is always ready 😉 !!

When you are ready, distribute the game cards and response sheets to your pairs, and instruct them to NOT look at the game cards. They must keep them in a stack, face-down on the desk.

Instructions

::Game can be played for any amount of time, whether you have 5 minutes or 20::

Seat students in pairs. Groups of 3 are OK if needed but not ideal.

Each pair of students needs at least one pair of headphones, and one device that can play music (phone, iPad, etc.) My students usually prefer if they each have their own headphones and device, but sometimes sharing is caring!

To explain, I will refer to the two students as Student A and Student B.

1. Student A puts in his/her headphones, and listens to music at a *somewhat* loud level. No hearing damage needed, but they should not be able to hear if their partner were to whisper to them. (I usually require my students to show me that they have chosen a Spanish artist/station!)

2. Student B chooses a card from the top of the stack. The card will have a familiar (or unfamiliar, heh) sentence printed on it. Student B does not show the card to Student A. Student B must instead SLOWLY and CLEARLY speak the sentence aloud. They must take care to enunciate and be dramatic. Their goal is to get Student A to guess the complete phrase, even though their music is playing and they cannot actually hear their partner. (You decide if they can move one word at a time, etc.)

3. When Student B confirms that Student A has correctly deciphered the phrase, student A can write the phrase on their response sheet. If you like, you can check their answers as they go along. You can also remove the writing portion if you don’t have time for it.

4. Student A removes their headphones, and Student B puts them on and plays music. They switch roles back and forth at their own speed, or with your cues!

I love that throughout each round, ALL of the guesses are IN SPANISH! This gets our students thinking and communicating completely in the target language. It is amazing to see my Spanish 3 students dig into their memory for any word that ends in “pa” or “ma” if they are confident that they need that syllable.

It makes my day to walk around and hear their guesses. They end up laughing at themselves, and the whole mood of the class is lifted 🙂

Why Sonidos Secretos?

If you need more reasons to try, here are mine!

This activity can be adapted for ANY vocabulary or grammar topic
I can easily differentiate by requiring additional writing or speaking (for example instead of sentences, maybe the cards are filled with questions. After discovering the question, students must also provide their personal answer)
Who doesn’t love laughter?
Who doesn’t love seeing their students excited about the target language?
Did I mention that my students end up THINKING in the target language without realizing it!? And without feeling like they are under pressure!? *Claps in Spanish*
Each semester I learn new ways that my students find this activity helps them
My students *ask* for this speaking activity. That doesn’t happen often with speaking activities!
I could keep going, but I’m going to stop so that you print this free version and try it yourself! Or grab the editable templates to make your own, forever and ever!

Time to try it!

You can find all of my pre-made Sonidos Secretos sets here. I love using this activity in all levels of Spanish class to build confidence with my more apprehensive learners. I also love using it in my classes that need a little bit of a morale boost, or if it gets too quiet! In all levels, it is great for a brain break or to motivate additional speaking. This activity can be modified to support students of all proficiency levels. Building confidence is a huge stepping stone to achieving proficiency 🙂 and enjoying class is important too, for students AND teachers!!!!!

Thank you to the teachers who have shared their experiences with me!

See videos from other teachers here!

VIDEO 1 VIDEO 2

or visit my IG and click on my story highlight “In the wild” to see even more!!

All classroom photos from this post were shared on IG by @senorakinneer and used here with her permission. Follow her to see more! As always, thank you for sharing, Señora 🙂

Interested in more free resources?

Thank you for reading!

I hope your students love this activity as much as mine do. Make sure you download the free version from this post, and comment below to let me know how it goes!

Feel free to tag me @theengagedspanishclassroom on social media to show me how you’re using my activities! I love to see! 🙂

Talk to you soon profe,

The post How to play Sonidos Secretos: trust me, your students will thank you! appeared first on The Engaged Spanish Classroom.

tutorial Archives • The Engaged Spanish Classroom

How to Incorporate Hexagon Grouping in Spanish Class

SETUP

HOW IT WORKS

EXAMPLE

AVAILABLE ACTIVITY SETS

Looking for free resources to try?

Thanks for reading!

Wordle for Spanish Class: Word Puzzle fun for any level!

How does it work?

How can I play Wordle with my Spanish Class?

Play Spanish Wordle In Person, too!

Spanish Wordle Ideas by Level

Spanish 1:

Spanish 2:

Spanish 3:

Want to hear more from me?

4 Templates to Support Proficiency Based Assessments in Spanish Class

Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class

How are these assessments designed?

INTERPRETIVE READING AND LISTENING

INTERPERSONAL WRITING

PRESENTATIONAL WRITING

And the best part? It’s all EDITABLE!

Before you go…

Want more proficiency based resources from me, including free resources in your inbox? Sign up below!

Professional Development Opportunities and Resources for World Language Teachers

Upcoming PD for World Language Teachers: World Language Teacher Summit 2021

WLTS 2021: Sessions I am most excited about

Resources:

NOTE:

Have fun, Profe!

15+ Resources to Support Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class

Ready to dive deeper?

Traditional Grading In Spanish Classes

Drawbacks:

Purposeful Grading in Spanish Classes: A Proficiency Based Approach

Benefits:

The Breakdown

1. Interpretive Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

EXAMPLES:

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

2. Interpersonal Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

EXAMPLES:

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

Want your own editable copies of these interpretive and interpersonal resources?

3. Presentational Mode: 30%

FOCUS:

EXAMPLES:

RESOURCES/ACTIVITIES TO TRY:

4. Study Habits: 10%

Why make the change to Proficiency Based Grading in Spanish Class?

*Special noteS*

Thank you for reading!

Creative Writing plus Student Choice: How to incorporate Gallery Walks in Spanish Class

GALLERY WALK TUTORIAL

SETUP

MATERIALS

DIFFERENTIATION

DIGITAL OPTIONS

Instructions

REASONS TO LOVE GALLERY WALKS

Movement

Collaboration

Creativity

Student Choice

Confidence

Flexibility

Available Pre-made Sets

Ready to go!

Fierce Spanish Class Competition: How to engage and assess with La Silla Caliente

Available Game Sets

How to play La Silla Caliente

Setup

TEAMS

GAMEPLAY

MATERIALS

IMPORTANT TO NOTE

Special noteS