That's how I roll - Fast Finshers

It's the beginning of November and I'm still pulling pieces of my room together. Recently I added a Fast Finisher menu to my book nook area. Students who are done writing in their dictionaries or with the activity for the day can wander over, see what their options are, and get to work.


I've tried to create options that allow them to use what we've been studying and other options that push them out of their comfort zone and into some new vocabulary. If there is a particular activity that I don't want as an option, say for example I don't always want them getting on the computer, then I simply turn it around. (The two not showing in the picture are Play a Spanish game on the computer and Complete and Activity Pack.) Sometimes I don't want kids getting out their folders so I turn around the different "worksheet" options. As we finish games and different activities in class I will add extras to the fast finisher folders so students can repeat activities that they liked or need more practice on.
 
So far it's working great and the students enjoy getting out of their seats and sitting in the book nook. When I was on the cart I didn't have to worry about the menu so much but I ALWAYS kept a file folder of fast finisher activities like word searches, color by numbers, and other activities that kids could do quietly. Having fast finisher activities is essential to my classroom management. It saves my sanity by not having to answer the question "now what?" over and over again.

What are your students' favorite fast finisher activities? I'm always looking for ideas so share in the comments below!

That's how I roll - Games to practice conversations

I don't like to make mistakes. And neither do my kids. Getting students to take the risk and speak in Spanish can be a challenge, especially as they get older. One way to lower that affective filter is to make speaking fun. Here are 3 games I use in class to get my students talking.

Matching Game - Students use the same cards from Manos Rápidos but this time they get 1-4 cards each. Walking around the room they either have to find the other person who has their matching card OR they have to trade cards to get 3 of a kind. To get their matches first they have to say Hola, then they play jankenpón (or your TL's version of rock, paper, scissors.) The student who wins asks for a card while the loser has to hand over the card if they have it. Almost any conversation you are practicing in class can be used for example:

Losing Student : Where are you from?
Winning Student: I'm from (name of country card he wants.)

LS: How's the weather?
WS: Its (weather of the card he wants.)

LS: How are you?
WS: I'm (emotion card he wants.)

And so on and so forth. They sit down when they have their matches so I can see who is still working. Or sometimes they come up to me and I give them new cards so they can keep playing.


Roll the dice - This is fun with regular dice but is SUPER fun if you happen to have some over-sized or fluffy dice. I have two big fluffy dice I use when we play as a whole group and over-sized dice from the dollar store for games in pairs. To play this game, students roll the dice. Whatever number they roll corresponds to a question their partner then asks them in the TL. Then they switch. You can change up the questions for any vocabulary you are studying. I also like to include a few review questions in there as well.

Dance Party! - My kids perk up whenever they see dance party on my whiteboard schedule. This is a simple game to motivate them to practice the conversation we are studying. I play some music and students dance around the room. When the music stops they have to freeze, then find a friend. They give them a high five and then practice their conversation in Spanish. Make it more interesting by giving them a card with different information that they have to exchange.


Pass the ball - This is another super simple game and is a good one to pull out if you have a few extra minutes at the end of class. The students sit in a circle and pass a ball back and forth. They have to ask and answer a question in the TL before passing. For example - My name is Jennifer. What's your name? If you want students to have more turns split them up into smaller groups, with each group having their own ball.



What are some of the games you play to get your students talking in the TL? Share in the comments below! I love new ideas (in fact the pass the ball game came from a comment here on another post!)

That's How I Roll - Funny Voices

I recently read a post from blogger LoveTeach about how to spice up your teaching with zero effort. Her suggestion to teach with a fake British accent reminded me just how often I use funny voices in my classes. You just can't underestimate the power of the funny voices.

My funny voices started in Japan. I wanted my students to practice questions and answers in English. Since I spoke little to no Japanese I had to act out what I wanted them to do. They also happened to sit boy/girl/boy/girl there so when I acted out the students having the conversation with the person next to them one naturally had a very deep voice and the other a very high voice. One day I acted it out without the voices and I got a very upset little 3rd grader who said, "sensei, sensei blah blah blah" which I translated as "Teacher, where are the silly voices?"

I use the same strategy in my Spanish classes when I want the kids to practice questions and answers during our Enseña period. And since we´ve started doing descriptions in 4th and 5th grade they have become invaluable when learning that gender agreement in our ajectives - Yo soy delgada said in a high pitched voice versus Yo soy delgado said in a deep voice. Do the students think I´m crazy? Yes. Are they having fun? Yes. Are they learning the difference between femenine and masculine adjectives? Yes.

Funny voices are also great for anything that require repetition. So when I'm introducing new vocabulary we say it quiet, loud, high-pitched, low-pitched, angry, sad, like robots etc. Let the students give you ideas. This past week in my after school enrichment program we sang Cabeza, Brazos, Piernas, Pies (or Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes) many many different ways, my favorite being as old men with canes and Tyrannosaurus Rexes, both student suggestions. As dinosaurs we roared after each verse and as old men we groaned when we couldn't reach our toes. I was almost in tears from laughing by the end.

 

Do you use funny voices in your classes? How and when? Share in the comments below!

That's How I Roll - Storytelling

I've been trying to incorporate more storytelling and books in my classes this year. I've used an A to Z Reading book in my School Supplies unit, read Sombrero Rojo, Sombrero Verde to my kindergartners and I've tried my hand at my own interactive stories with the after school enrichment class and now with my 4th & 5th graders. The students have responded really well, but the trick is finding something relevant to what I'm teaching and is comprehensible enough to hold the kids' attention.

Here is what I am doing with descriptions...

I start by teaching the vocab using my Whole Brain Teaching techniques with gestures, pictures and having students teach other. Right now we are focused on the verb tener with eye color, hair type and other descriptions like bigote, barba, pecas and gafas. We very briefly go over how to conjugate tener, emphasizing the difference between Yo tengo and Él tiene/Ella tiene.

Students then write the words into their dictionaries. Our dictionaries are booklets we made at the beginning of the year where they write any new vocabulary I give them plus if they have free time after finishing a project they can look up words in my picture dictionaries and add them to their own.

Finally we read together a story I wrote about how someone has stolen their teacher's favorite pencils with special erasers (this circles back to our school supply unit.) As we go along I ask yes/no questions and then for words/full sentence answers to make sure they are understanding the story. Words that are familiar and/or I'm trying to emphasize are in a different color so students read those with me. Since it is a mystery whenever I shake my hands at the class they respond with a "dun, dun, dunnnn!" (That's their favorite part!)

Within the story are descriptions of the suspected thief. After we read each description, I change the screen to what looks like a Guess Who game board. Students work in pairs to decide which person was described. After we finish the story we write our own description together as a group on the board and then they split into pairs to write their own. Once they finish, they read them aloud for their classmates to guess.

For reference, this whole process takes about 2 rotations or 4 classes to get done although with some classes more time is needed. I've also done stories where students help "tell" the story by filling in the blanks. Then they illustrated the story we told together.

I've not been trained in TPRS so I'm not sure if what I'm doing qualifies. I do know that I don't have translations of the key words in English on the board to refer to. Students can refer to their dictionaries if they need help.  I'm not really "teaching" them the vocabulary using this method but taking the vocabulary we've learned, practicing it and solidifying it in their brains by seeing it in context.  Both ways, I use the TPRS style circling (as I understand it from videos and blogs I've found,) which I think works very well and helps me to make sure students are understanding.

Do you tell stories in other ways in your classrooms? Share your strategies in the comments below! I would love advice!

#mycart - Show off how you roll results

At the beginning of November I put out a call on Twitter for FLES teachers on the go to show off how they roll under the tag #mycart. I must say I was really impressed with the creativity and ingenuity of these teachers. It's not too late to post your own pictures of your cart/bag/room. Post in the comments or on twitter with the tag #mycart.

Finally got a bike bell for #mycart! Mirrycle Incredibell Jellibell, rings nicely when turned. @sra_kennedy pic.twitter.com/dDGFHnRyX2
— Rachel Will (@ProfeRWill) December 3, 2013

#mycart is my indispensable teaching assistant! @_NNELL_ @Sra_Kennedy #langchat (photo 1/2) pic.twitter.com/C5gtYLlsXP
— Rachel Will (@ProfeRWill) November 15, 2013

#mycart #_NNELL_ Never had a cart, but had a bag for every grade level. I don't travel anymore.I miss the trips. http://t.co/ASO58fQFKn
— Carolina (@SpanishTogether) November 16, 2013

The whiteboard side of Sra. Speedy. #mycart #langchat #FLES pic.twitter.com/1zO7JfijYs
— Jen Ken (@Sra_Kennedy) November 15, 2013

Last pic-Sra. Speedy's face and my bins on the side. #mycart #langchat #FLES pic.twitter.com/d1EnJpTTkd
— Jen Ken (@Sra_Kennedy) November 15, 2013

Technology on the go! Here's a NNELL member's tech cart. #mycart cc: @Sra_Kennedy @BeWhatTmrwNeeds @ProfeRWill pic.twitter.com/GI8ddxlkSE
— NNELL (@_NNELL_) November 15, 2013

That's How I roll - Emergency Sub Plans

We're moving into flu and cold season and since I'm only a second year teacher my immune system of steel hasn't fully matured yet. Which reminds me, I really need to stop high fiving kindergarterners. Or start bathing in hand sanitizer if I don't want to get sick this winter.

No one likes to be out sick, especially teachers, the one profession where it takes more work to be out than to just come in feeling awful. I'm OCD about planning ahead so I always have my emergency sub plans done before the first day of school so that I can stay home without guilt when I need to. The problem of course is that while there are lots of subs out there willing to teach elementary school and there are some subs out there willing to teach Spanish, the pool grows much smaller when you try looking for someone who is willing to sub for elementary Spanish. And infinitesimally smaller when the elementary Spanish is also on a cart. Basically no one wants to be my sub. 

 

Okay that's not exactly true they do sometimes (rarely) give me their cards and ask that I add them to my preferred list but I don't always trust their "I can even speak some Spanish!"  So what's a sickly Spanish teacher to do?

Plans in English!

Yup, I'm sure that sounds like heresy but give me a chance. This year my students will be watching Brainpop videos on Pablo Picasso and Frida Kahlo, then they will discuss and write three facts that they learned about these artists, and then they draw a self-portrait in the styles of Picasso and Kahlo.  These plans work for me for the following reasons:

1. Students are learning about famous people in the target culture in an in-depth manner I can't accomplish during our regular class time because I can't go that deep in 90% target language and due to other curriculum constrictions.
2. The students like videos and they like to draw. When they are doing something they like they are less likely to behave badly for the sub.
3. My art teacher loves me. I was out last month and a week later a student went up to her in class and asked if one of her posters was a Picasso. Then they listed his different periods, including the blue period, rose period and cubist period. She was blown away. 
4. I can count this as both collaboration between Spanish and Art as well as towards our Arts and Humanities Program Review (you know what I'm talking about KY teachers!)
5. I don't have to worry about Sally Substitute trying to teach the Spanish she learned in three semesters in college.

It's a win-win as far as I'm concerned. I have extra activities such as Picasso coloring sheets and a Create Your Own Cubist Portrait website but so far the subs haven't needed them (which is awesome because that can be the next sub plan if I have to miss another Day 3 in our rotation.)

So those are my emergency sub plans. What do you do when you have to be out unexpectedly?

That's How I Roll - back up plans

So technology is wonderful and most of the time helps my classes run smoothly. But then there are days there is no technology to be had. I ask that my teachers email me if they can remember to let me know if something isn't working so I can be prepared. Want to know how many actually do that?

One. Thank you Mrs. Casebolt!

The last two weeks I've walked into a third grade room only to be told the light on the projector is out so nothing computer related can be done. And then on top of that the speakers weren't working when I tried to plug in my iphone. And there's another teacher who likes to take her laptop home so when she's out I don't have anything connected to the SMART board (in this case I usually frantically unplug another teacher's laptop and plug it in but then I get to spend precious minutes of my lunch returning it and plugging it back in.)

So what to do when technology fails you? A reboot just leads to the same blank screen? The SMART board projector has gone dark? Take a few deep breaths, give the kids a quick task to practice their conversation in Spanish, and quickly devise a new plan.

One of the few good things about being on a cart (and there are only a few) is that if the problem is isolated to one computer or SMART board you only have to deal with it for 30 minutes and then you're onto the next room. But it's still always a good idea to have a back up plan just in case.

• Teach new vocabulary with picture cards, gestures or your awesome art skills on the whiteboard. Have students brainstorm with you the best gesture for a new word.Or take a screen shot of your prezi or print out your power point slides and keep extra copies just in case you need to pass them out.

• Keep a stock of vocabulary cards to be used in impromptu games - manos rápidos, Go Fish, I have/I need, Spoons, Four Corners, Concentration. No cards? Students can race to play Pictionary on the board. Board races that work like Scattergories where students race to fill in words based on a category are a favorite with my students. Or play I Spy With My Little Eye. 

• Have students line up or stand in a circle. They practice their conversation with the person standing across from them. After a certain time one line or circle moves and they speak with a new person. 

• Fast Finisher Folder stocked with worksheets, word searches and word scrambles. 

•  I keep a CD and DVD of my songs on the cart if I can't pull them up on youtube. I also have songs loaded on my phone so all I have to do is plug into speakers.

These of course are all options during your regular class time as well. But it's good to keep them in mind when you realize that awesome youtube video you were planning on using that day isn't available. Or you're starting a new unit and you have a lot of new vocab to teach and no pictures to teach them with. Sometimes I feel that teaching is very similar to doing improv. You got to take the scenario you're given and roll with it. You can always circle back to your original plan later when the technology is working.



What are some of your go-to activities when your technology isn't working?

That's How I Roll - Technology

I'm not super tech savvy but I'm neither am I a dunce. What I do know is that when you're on a cart you want to use the technology you have available as much as possible. I'm super lucky that every classroom in our building has a SMART board.  If there is something I can pull up on the SMART board then that is one less thing I have to pack on my cart.

My routine when I come into a room looks something like this - I roll in, students are either quiet and waiting (thank you awesome classroom teachers!) or still in the middle of math or some other activity and are frantically trying to transition to Spanish. I walk over to the teacher's laptop, hope it's turned on and they are logged on, pull up my account on prezi.com, youtube, or game site we will be using that day. Turn on the SMART board, give my quiet signal and get started.

The power of technology!

There are a million sites out there that can you can use in your class but here are a few that I find helpful. Most of them I would use even if I wasn't on a cart but I find myself relying on them even more since I do travel.

• Prezi - this is a fantastic site that offers free use for teachers. Think of it as powerpoint on steroids. I build a prezi presentation for every new unit. I use pictures to teach vocabulary. I include the Unit Objectives so every time I log on students can see their I can statements. I embed youtube videos for listening practice. I include instructions and rubrics for activities that we will complete. For my School Supplies Unit I even had authentic resources (school supply lists from Mexico) in the Prezi that we read together. Students came to the front and circled with the SMART board markers the items that we also used in our school. During other activities like games and partner work the pictures on the SMART board function as a word wall.

•  Youtube -  I created my own youtube channel specifically for my students and then created video playlists arranged by topic.  Students can review the videos we've watched in class at home or in their free computer time at school or preview videos we will watch later.  If we are doing independent work I will often turn on the video playlist related to our unit so Students have background music to  listen to. More than once they have been working and singing along to a song in Spanish.

• Victoria Languages Online  - This Australian site has free resources for multiple languages, including worksheets, posters and interactive games that are great for a SMART board.

•  SMART exchange - I don't use this one in class per say but I do pull games off here to use in class. In this case I save it to my school's network drive so I can pull it up on any computer. Or if I save it to a thumb drive I appoint a student to make sure I don't forget it when I leave the room.

What are some of the sites that are invaluable to you?

That's How I Roll - Organization

I envy those of you out there with a classroom. You have walls to hang up lots of comprehensible input. You can arrange the desks and chairs the way you want them (and move problem students away from each other.)  You can sit down in the few minutes between classes. And most importantly, you have a space to call your own.

Then there are the nomads, like me. We're in a different room from hour to hour, scurrying to and fro in the five minutes between classes. Teaching on a cart is a special challenge in any subject but in world language where the idea is to immerse students in the target language and culture for the short time you have them it is especially difficult. But there are a few things you can do to make your life easier and to give your instruction more impact.

Organization is KEY! 

There's nothing worse than getting to class and realizing that the activity you were going to do that day is back in your office. Or worse yet in another class (and you better hope you can remember which one!)

• Bins, bags and folders are all great ways to keep your things organized. I personally use a lot of the same things from grade level to grade level and class to class so I like to pack my cart with bins. But I've heard of people who use bags with everything they need - picture cards, puppets, game pieces etc. - for a certain grade. They just grab that bag and go. 

• Manila folders organized by grade level and by day (we are on a 6 day rotation) stored on top in a upright folder holder helps me keep student work organized. I only keep the folders for that day's classes on the cart. The rest stay in my office. 

• Make the most of your cart with magnets and velcro. Space is a premium so don't let any go unused. I used to have a metal book cart from the library. With magnets I could roll around with posters, our monthly calendar, and a binder ring that held my rules attached to the side of my cart. I velcroed a whiteboard/large post-it note combo on the back where I wrote my daily objectives. As soon as I rolled in, students could see what we would be working on that day.  Now that I'm on a larger cart I have my objectives in a pocket chart - I pull them out and magnet them to my whiteboard based on what grade I'm teaching.

• Get creative! Silly even! My cart even has eyes, a mouth and a speech bubble introducing herself as Sra. Speedy. Sometimes my kindergarteners greet the cart in the hall before they greet me.

• Check and double check you have everything you need because once you're on the go it's hard to look back. I like to pack my cart at the end of the day for the next one and then check it again in the morning. I still occasionally have to send my students out of the room to retrieve things for me but not very often.