Nuestras clases de español
¡Hola! ¿Cómo están? We are having so much fun teaching your children Spanish! Two principles guide us in our approach to teaching and learning a second language:
First, students learn best when they receive knowledge through as many senses as possible. Therefore, we strive to teach Spanish by engaging in activities that will engage all their senses. We look at pictures, objects, and words/sentences on charts. We watch puppet shows and perform them. We listen to songs and then sing them together. We taste and eat different foods. We dance and move. We are particularly fortunate to have Señora Farfán who has extensive training in movement pedagogy and is helping us to incorporate these ideas into our lessons. This multi-sensory approach ensures that students, no matter what their learning styles, are engaged, motivated and joyful.
The second principle that guides our lessons is the notion of “comprehensible input.” We believe that all language learning is ultimately for the purpose of meaningful communication, and so we practice “communicating” using small “chunks” of language that are comprehensible to the user, but also communicate a meaningful message to someone else. Our children are first to exposed to the rhythms and patterns of the language through songs and stories. In much the same way that babies or toddlers acquire their primary languages through the songs and stories of their parents, so too we sing and read to your children in an effort to provide them with a richly literate experience in Spanish. Next, we utilize some of the words and simple phrases from this rich language context by having students practice talking to one another and giving each other simple messages, sometimes through partner dialogues or mini skits. In this way, your children move from simply memorizing phrases out of context, to using them to communicate meaningful messages. Below are two short videos and a few pictures of very engaged children practicing speaking Spanish. ¡Hasta luego!
Señora Díaz-Williamson y Señora Farfán
2nd Graders performing a skit
https://youtu.be/H0pzg-edrHg
3 year old children practicing their colors
https://youtu.be/DdU79iEX1XY
¡Hola! ¿Cómo están? We are having so much fun teaching your children Spanish! Two principles guide us in our approach to teaching and learning a second language:
First, students learn best when they receive knowledge through as many senses as possible. Therefore, we strive to teach Spanish by engaging in activities that will engage all their senses. We look at pictures, objects, and words/sentences on charts. We watch puppet shows and perform them. We listen to songs and then sing them together. We taste and eat different foods. We dance and move. We are particularly fortunate to have Señora Farfán who has extensive training in movement pedagogy and is helping us to incorporate these ideas into our lessons. This multi-sensory approach ensures that students, no matter what their learning styles, are engaged, motivated and joyful.
The second principle that guides our lessons is the notion of “comprehensible input.” We believe that all language learning is ultimately for the purpose of meaningful communication, and so we practice “communicating” using small “chunks” of language that are comprehensible to the user, but also communicate a meaningful message to someone else. Our children are first to exposed to the rhythms and patterns of the language through songs and stories. In much the same way that babies or toddlers acquire their primary languages through the songs and stories of their parents, so too we sing and read to your children in an effort to provide them with a richly literate experience in Spanish. Next, we utilize some of the words and simple phrases from this rich language context by having students practice talking to one another and giving each other simple messages, sometimes through partner dialogues or mini skits. In this way, your children move from simply memorizing phrases out of context, to using them to communicate meaningful messages. Below are two short videos and a few pictures of very engaged children practicing speaking Spanish. ¡Hasta luego!
Señora Díaz-Williamson y Señora Farfán
2nd Graders performing a skit
https://youtu.be/H0pzg-edrHg
3 year old children practicing their colors
https://youtu.be/DdU79iEX1XY