Lower School Spanish Classes celebrate the Day of the Dead!

Dear Lower School Spanish Families,

All of the Lower School Spanish classes worked together to create a beautiful ofrenda for our Day of the Dead celebration.  The first graders and Kindergartners made tissue paper flowers (flores). The second graders made paper plate skull masks.  The third and fourth graders made papel picados banners.  The fifth graders made and decorated sugar skulls.  When we put the whole ofrenda together with a few candles, loaves of pan de muertos (Day of the Dead bread from a local Mexican groceria) and food offerings, it was a beautiful site!

Before taking a break to make our ofrenda, students have been working hard throughout the month of octubre!

Kindergartners: They learned how to count to five and identify colors in Spanish.  Ask them to sing their number and color songs for you!  I also videoed them as they answered questions about their favorite numbers and colors.  Take a look at their mini-libros and QR code videos on the hall bulletin board!

First Graders:  They learned how to count to 20 (by rote), but we really focused on the meanings of the words up to 10. They also learned more colors.  They are busy creating pages for their diccionarios.

Second Graders:  They have started their books based on the video First Fun with Spanish.  The first chapter introduces vocabulary for family members.  They went on to create their own family trees with photos and drawings of brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents.

Third and Fourth Graders:  They have been working together in cooperative groups of three to learn about the different regions in Spain.  They have created beautiful posters about each region.  The last step is to teach the other class members about the geography and sites of their regions.

Fifth Graders:  After wrapping up a study of shapes and colors, they have also spent the month learning about Spain.  With the help of interactive online resources and videos, they have learned about the daily life of students living in Spain.  They are now working on their own brochures for a 7-day trip to Spain.

It's been a busy month!

Adios
Sra. Swift

Off to a Great Start in Spanish Class!

Dear LS Families,

The Spanish students have gotten off to a great start to the year!

Mrs. Patel's EC Classes:
We have finally brought Spanish to the EC students this year!  I met with small groups of 10 students at a time to teach them a few basic words - Hola, Adíos, and two answers to ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?) along with a few songs.  The students were very attentive and especially liked their new friend Fizzy, a small stuffed bear, who came along to help teach them.

Miss Sever's Kindergarten Class:
The Kindergartners have learned the welcome and good-bye songs along with the daily calendar routines.  They have already learned how to answer ¿Cómo te llamas? (What's your name?) and ¿Cómo estás? (How are you?).  They "experience" the words in many different ways - singing, playing games, cutting & coloring a mini-book of words and playing with puppets. Just ask them about their new friend named Fuzzy! Next they will move on to counting to 5 and colors.

Mrs. Ertsgaard's First Grade Class:
The first graders have only met four times, but they already have a good sense of the arrival song and greetings and calendar and weather routines. They have been learning the new saludos (Greetings) and cortesía (Courtesy) vocabulary through songs, games, and starting their own diccionario. They are already to move on to counting to 10.

Mrs. Ever's Second Grade Class;
With the recent change in the World Language program, the second graders will now be working with me in the Spanish classroom for the rest of the semester.  We will begin with the saludos and cortesía vobaulary while at the same time learning the welcome and calendar routines.

Grade 3/4 Classes:
The class of combined third and fourth graders began the year with the saludos and cortesía vocabulary, but added on several more terms in order to create a conversation.  They used the terms to create a simple comic strip with 8 frames.  They also learned the Spanish alphabet with the help of a catchy Youtube song. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUcu9PUh9_A.  They will have their first test of the vocabulary learned over the past three weeks on Tuesday, 9/12.

Grade 5 Class:
The fifth graders completed similar tasks as the third and fourth graders, but additional terms were added to their diccionario.  They also learned about the formal and informal forms of "you" as well as the formal "está" vs. "estás" forms of the verb "estar" (to be). The fifth graders will also have their first vocabulary test on Tuesday, 9/12.

Coming up.... we'll take a short break from vocabulary to learn about Mexico's Independence Day on September 16th next week!

Hasta luego
Sra. Swift





 

Dear MVS Lower School Families,

WELCOME / BIENVENIDOS to the Lower School Spanish blog. I look forward to teaching new Spanish words and phrases as well as the rich and diverse history, geography and cultures of the 21 countries where Spanish is spoken.   I have many new and exciting ideas for teaching Spanish to your children this year - learning through music, games, hands-on activities and crafts, Hispanic children's literature, online activities, theater presentations and short skits, preparing and eating new foods, holiday celebrations, cooperative group projects as well as independent projects.

Stay tuned for monthly updates and photos for each of the classes.  In the meantime, I look forward to sharing my love of languages and teaching with your students!

Hasta luego!
Senora Swift