¡ Bienvenidos a la clase de español !
Español 3H con el Señor Reilly
Español 3H con el Señor Reilly
Before moving on to the course description below, please take a moment to read the guiding principles of the World Language Department of the BMCHSD.
Materials and Supplies
- binder/notebook (class - notes/hw and important papers)
- Pens/Pencils
- large folder to keep materials from completed units at home
- accès to internet outside of class (home, phone, tablet, etc..)
Class Procedures
Quarterly Grades: Point System - Fluctuates from 5 (HW) to 100 (cumulative assessments).
Homework
Assessments
All assessments are graded on a point system with varying point values based on the assessment. Most assessments are announced on the task board in advance. I will also have the occasional "pop" assessment which are usually used to gauge effort and preparation are not intended to be punitive. These assessment will reflect what we are currently studying but will also rely on concepts and vocabulary studied earlier in the year. Again, like an instrument, we cannot forget what we have already learned!
Examples of classwork may include:
Class Participation Grade
I walk around the class with a clipboard. I have a labeled seating chart of each class. Each week I print out a fresh copy and give (or not) a check per day for a meaningful interaction in the target language. Each check is 2 points and I enter the grade weekly (if a week is only four days, for example, it will be out of eight points). I constantly remind the students of opportunities to earn these daily points - informal conversation at the beginning of class, volunteer to responde to the DO NOW prompt, ask a question in the target language, etc...
The better prepared the student is for class the more confident she/he will be in speaking on a daily basis.
Extra Help - Room 218
Monday (AM) 7:00 – 7:20
Monday (PM) 2:15 – 2:35
Wednesday 2:15 – 2:40
Steps to a successful year:
- Make every effort to speak Spanish on a daily basis.
- Come to class on time and be ready to work when the bell rings.
- Be prepared for class everyday with notebook, textbook and pen.
- Keep up to date with all work.
- Take risks with the language.
- Ask questions.
- Reach out when you need help!!
- binder/notebook (class - notes/hw and important papers)
- Pens/Pencils
- large folder to keep materials from completed units at home
- accès to internet outside of class (home, phone, tablet, etc..)
Class Procedures
- Please be seated and ready to work when the bell rings.
- You must show a signed pass when arriving late to class.
- Upon entering class each day there will be a do-now written on the board that should be started immediately.
- At the end of the period, do not pack up or leave until you can finish the sentence "Ahora en español yo puedo…" with examples!
- Food and drink are permitted with permission - the presence of any allergies will help to shape this policy.
- Cell phones are permitted only when used for school work (as per the BMCHSD bring your own device policy). Parents please note that wifi is available in the room.
- Respect other students and the teacher at all times!!!
Quarterly Grades: Point System - Fluctuates from 5 (HW) to 100 (cumulative assessments).
Homework
- I have a HW board on this website for each class. However, I call it as "task board" because in my class we are constantly preparing for and completing tasks in the target language. I find this to be a dynamic and fun way to teach a and learn a language. I try to mimic real work tasks as much as possible. To complete these tasks, we need all four language skills to be firing at different times - reading, writing, listening and speaking.
- My HW board exists as support to help my student accomplish the different tasks. For example, if they are to write a reaction letter to a news report (audio), the news report might be posted to the website if I feel they need more time with the material. Or, conversely, I might post the audio ahead of time so that the students come prepared to work with a base knowledge of the material.
- Please consider my course to be more akin to an instrumental music lesson. We are exposed to new material, learn from the masters (authentic materials and fluent/native speakers and writers) and finally we create our own music (language).
- I assess the skills we practice in class. There are no tricks. Sometimes the assessment will be exactly what we did and other times it will be similar.
- Please use the HW board to help sharpen your skills. Practice at home like you would practice the piano.
Assessments
All assessments are graded on a point system with varying point values based on the assessment. Most assessments are announced on the task board in advance. I will also have the occasional "pop" assessment which are usually used to gauge effort and preparation are not intended to be punitive. These assessment will reflect what we are currently studying but will also rely on concepts and vocabulary studied earlier in the year. Again, like an instrument, we cannot forget what we have already learned!
Examples of classwork may include:
- individual and pair writing assignments
- projects
- recorded speaking tasks
- letter (original and "response" letters)
- oral presentations (usually recorded using digital recorders)
- mini-books
- reading and listening quizzes
Class Participation Grade
I walk around the class with a clipboard. I have a labeled seating chart of each class. Each week I print out a fresh copy and give (or not) a check per day for a meaningful interaction in the target language. Each check is 2 points and I enter the grade weekly (if a week is only four days, for example, it will be out of eight points). I constantly remind the students of opportunities to earn these daily points - informal conversation at the beginning of class, volunteer to responde to the DO NOW prompt, ask a question in the target language, etc...
The better prepared the student is for class the more confident she/he will be in speaking on a daily basis.
Extra Help - Room 218
Monday (AM) 7:00 – 7:20
Monday (PM) 2:15 – 2:35
Wednesday 2:15 – 2:40
Steps to a successful year:
- Make every effort to speak Spanish on a daily basis.
- Come to class on time and be ready to work when the bell rings.
- Be prepared for class everyday with notebook, textbook and pen.
- Keep up to date with all work.
- Take risks with the language.
- Ask questions.
- Reach out when you need help!!