Español 1B (8th grade)
con Señora Coates, Señora Griffin, Señora Harper y Señorita Villegas
Office Hours
Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from 7:25 a.m.-7:55 a.m. or by appointment.
Necessary Materials
- 1” binder (blue if from Wrap Pack) & 5 dividers (organized with the dividers mentioned below)
- 1 package of dry erase markers (from Wrap Pack)
- a Spanish-English dictionary is optional; however, we strongly encourage students with smartphones to download the free SpanishDict &/or WordReference apps
Binder Organization
Please label your 5 dividers as such:
- Apuntes (Notes) ← This will be for all colored notes sheets (vocabulario y gramática) for the unit we are currently studying.
- Práctica y Tarea (Practice & Homework)
- Pasaporte (Passport & Culture)
- Exámenes (Assessments)
- Para Guardar (To Keep) ← Please keep these papers in numbered order.
Google Classroom
We will use Google Classroom this year for in-class and out-of-class activities and assignments. This will also be a place (in addition to our Google Calendar) that will serve as a document “locker” with selected critical files stored for you to access should you lose yours or need an additional copy for practice.
To sign-up, go to and log in using your HPISD login.
Then, click the “+” to join a class, and enter your class period’s enrollment code ------>
Spanish 1B Google Calendar
We have a joint Google Calendar for all 8th grade Spanish 1B students and teachers. Please refer to this calendar for our in-class daily agendas, notes, activities, and homework, as well as upcoming assessments and due dates. Students may also find extra copies of documents provided in class on our Google Calendar. You may access the Spanish 1B Google Calendar on our HPMS teacher webpages or you may subscribe to our Spanish 1B Google Calendar to sync it to your own calendar. Be sure to use the student’s HPISD login to access our Spanish 1B Google Calendar.
Quizlet
Quizlet is a great resource to study vocabulary and grammar. There is a free app (requires a username/account) or you can use the web version (no login required). The Quizlet link is available on our teacher webpages.
Grading Procedures
As per the HPMS Grading Policy, grades will be based on mastery of content.Students must have a 70 or above average and no Incomplete assignments to “pass”, to earn HS credit, and to be eligible for extracurricular activities.
Major Summative Assessments (70%) / Minor Summative Assessments (30%) / Practice Category (0%)Interpersonal Writing & Speaking Assessments
Presentational Writing & Speaking Assessments
Interpretive Reading & Listening Assessments
Vocabulary/Grammar Checkpoints
Major Projects / Pasaporte Assignments & Activities
Some Homework Assignments
In-Class Recordings (Pronunciation)
TPRS Reader Checks
Skyward Quizzes
Some In-Class Activities
Minor Projects / HW Checks
-- “tarea”
-0 = no attempt / minimal attempt
-50 = poor quality / incomplete
-100 = complete, quality, & on-time
-- “accuracy”
¿Estás Listo?
Exit Tickets / Bell Ringers
Late Work Policy
Tardiness in homework assignments will be reflected in a student’s practice category (0%) but not in the major/minor assessment grade categories.Per the HPMS grading policy, “For minor and major assessments, if the work is completed after the due date, the student will receive a maximum grade of 85.” In order to earn full credit on late assessments/projects, students may be required to complete an additional component.
Failure to complete a major or minor summative assessment by the end of a grading period will result in an “Incomplete” for that grading period until the assessment is completed and turned in.As a reminder, any “Incomplete” at the end of a grading period makes a student ineligible for extracurricular activities. Students are responsible for checking Skyward to keep up with their grades and any missing assignments/assessments.
Retake Policy
Retakes will be offered for Vocabulary/Grammar Checkpoints, Presentational Writing Assessments, Interpretive Reading & Listening Assessments, and Pasaporte assignments/assessments. Retakes will not be offered for Interpersonal Speaking & Writing assessments, Presentational Speaking assessments, and projects per HPMS Grading Policy (oral presentations, projects).
For all retake opportunities, the teachers will offer two or three scheduled time options for students to retake the assessment. For tests and checkpoints, students may be able to retake the entire assessment or only particular sections (as directed by their teacher).Students may earn a maximum grade of 85% on a retake. The student must meet all his/her teacher’s retake requirements in order to be eligible for a retake. We would like to empower students to take full responsibility for their own retakes and communication with the teacher.
Academic Honesty in LOTE
The HPMS Code of Conduct that you signed applies to all classes, including our Spanish class. Please refer to that document (also available online) if you have any further questions regarding the school-wide attendance and tardy policies, academic honesty, prohibited conduct, or consequences for misbehavior.
As a LOTE department, we recognize today’s accessibility to helpful Spanish-English information and translating resources.As we develop self-sufficient language learners, we aim to teach our students appropriate and inappropriate use of resources including tutors, more advanced students, online translators, and online dictionaries. In all instances, we expect our students and their work to reflect their own knowledge and understanding of the material by remaining on-level in vocabulary, verb tenses, sentence structures, and topics.Concerning online resources, the language teachers at HPMS recommend the use of resources and apps like SpanishDict and WordReference to look up single words or word phrases instead of whole text translators like Google Translate.
Inappropriate use of online resources or tutors will be addressed as academic dishonesty and may result in disciplinary consequences.
Cell Phone Policy
As per HPMS policy, students should not have their cell phones in Spanish class. Phones in class will be taken up and sent to the office.
We look forward to the year ahead!
Please feel free to contact us at any time. E-mail is the best way to reach us.
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Meghan Coates Alexa GriffinJulianne Harper Ashley Villegas
Room C124 Room C235 Room C246 Room C244