Spanish

Spanish is taught from pre-kindergarten through to sixth grade (this will be extended to the seventh and eighth grade, as an elective in the fall of 2010). A multisensory language approach which includes songs, movement, art, literature, and role- playing makes learning Spanish fun and engaging for students in every grade.

In pre-kindergarten and kindergarten, the Spanish language is introduced through story-telling, songs and movement. Flashcards and additional stimulus are used to ensure students start to build a basic vocabulary. Topics introduced include animals, clothing, food, and family.

The first grade curriculum ensures students know the Spanish alphabet and are comfortable with greetings, courtesy phrases, numbers (up to 20), colors, and classroom items. We also review topics covered in the earlier years.

In the second grade we build on the language already known, and introduce numbers up to 40, formal and informal use of the pronoun “you”, and the calendar. We also start to use a bilingual dictionary.

As students move into the third grade, we build numbers up to 60, and introduce the verb “to be”. Holidays and cultural information about Spanish speaking countries are also introduced more fully.

In the fourth grade our new focus areas include punctuation marks, gender, and sentence construction using the verb “to be” in both present and past tenses. Our students are now comfortable enough with the Spanish language to also tackle simple math problems, and commands (verbs in the imperative).

Through the fifth and sixth grade, we continue to focus on oral-aural interaction, but written work forms an even larger part of the curriculum. Articles (definite and indefinite), possessive adjectives, and math symbols and operations are all introduced. Spanish countries and culture continue to form a basis for the discussion of many topics including clothing, sports, and holidays.

Through the seventh and eighth grade (starting September 2010) we will continue to build on the strong Spanish language base that our students already have. Using various texts, written assignments, dialogues and visual stimulus, we will create students who are comfortable using the Spanish language, both in spoken and written format.