Spanish I Honors
Central Magnet School
2017-2018
Educator: Zaira Kime
¡Bienvenidos a la clase de español honores 1! Welcome to Spanish 1 Honors! My name is Sra. Kime, and I am very excited to be your teacher. I am looking forward to sharing my native language and culture with you, and assist you while you acquire this new skill.
Spanish I is designed to provide students with the foundation of the Spanish language as well as deepening your understanding of diverse Hispanic cultures. Students are expected to develop all four basic language skills – listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Classes will be taught primarily in Spanish. However, in Spanish 1 English will be used to clarify if other methods (visuals, descriptions, gestures) have not worked. Students generally react very well to this immersion. There could be an initial shock, but the ability to understand more and more each day, gives them a boost of confidence. I use a combination of teaching styles (TPRS and traditional) to maximize growth and fluency in the Spanish language.
Learning a second language is challenging and you never stop learning. Students need to be consistent and show drive, perseverance, and daily effort in order to meet their goal of biliteracy. They will be presented with new vocabulary daily and, more often than not, classroom time is not sufficient to ensure long-term retention. Language learning is a cumulative process. In other words, even though each lesson presents a different topic, the material always builds up on previous knowledge. Practicing learned skills together with new ones is imperative. I will provide your child with resources so that they can work on their Spanish on the go. If they can do quizlet, and check their logs whenever they find some unoccupied time at home throughout the week, that will add up.
The goal of our Spanish I classroom is to foster a dynamic environment that facilitates the process of learning a second language. I am very protective of your children’s experience, and any behavior that affects learning or creates obstacles will not be tolerated. Our time immersed in Spanish is limited and I will foster a safe and dynamic environment that is conductive of learning so that we can maximize it.
Examples of unacceptable behavior in the classroom include, but are not limited to, the following:
Repeated tardiness, demeaning cultural or racial comments, distractive out of topic talking in English, employing insulting and violent language, working on another subject’s assignment during class, using cell phones when not instructed by teacher to do so for academic purposes.
Students who display any of the behaviors mentioned above or other, will receive a verbal warning and will schedule a private conference with me so that we can talk about the incident and assure that guidelines and expectations are reviewed and internalized by student. I am sure that the situation won’t be repeated, but in the rare event that it does happen again, I will then contact the parents. I hope that we never reach the referral to administration tier, but I will have to if those first interventions did not help.
Note: In the rare event of a major offense this order might be altered and parents and administrators will be contacted at once.
Kime’s Classroom Golden Rule: RESPECT
Expectations:
I expect each and every one of my students to follow the golden rule. Respect each other, Mrs. Kime, and most importantly themselves. Respect other cultures that are different from our own. Be kind. I know that you will align to the classroom’s procedures. I know that you will always complete class work, homework, projects, etc. because they will be meaningful and key in order for you to gain a deeper knowledge of Spanish language and Hispanic culture. You will be prepared for quizzes, and exams because you will be excited to show mastery of the content to Mrs. Kime and your parents, but most importantly to yourself. You will seek help when you need it because you will feel safe to do so. You will always know that Mrs. Kime values perseverance, grit, and determination over perfection. We are all a crew sailing the same ocean and with a common destination so just enjoy the ride and do your PART!
Participate in all activities Ask questions Respect Try hard
Procedures:
These are a few (others will be discussed the first week of school) of my classroom procedures. We will elaborate and give more details on these. We will also model them so you can better understand them.
-Entering Classroom: Upon entering the classroom, sit down in your assigned seat, retrieve bell work sheet from binder (I will elaborate on that sheet) and begin warm-up activity which will be displayed on projector. When welcoming music stops, you must turn your eyes and ears to Sra. Kime. Class has started.
-Restroom Breaks: Students are expected to take their restroom breaks between classes. In the event of an emergency, they must use bathroom sign that we will talk about in class.
-Dismissal: Students are expected to remain in their seats until the bell rings for dismissal. We need all the time we can get to master this skill, so being productive bell to bell is a must.
-Absences: It is the student’s responsibility to obtain missing work when returning from an absence. Check the Missing Work binder to see what notes, activities, worksheets, etc. were assigned while you were out. Worksheets and handouts will be located with the binder. All notes in learning log will need to be completed upon return to school.
-Passing papers: Students must always follow the same order when passing papers and turning in work. We will practice in class.
-Pair work and Group work: Pair and Group work is a very important part of our growth in this subject and in order for it to be successful, all group members must follow group formation procedure as well as specific group roles. We will work on creating a productive and effective system during the first days of school so that we can implement successfully throughout the year.
Policies:
-Late Work: Every time you fail to complete an assignment you must fill out my yellow missed assignment form (found at the back of the classroom) and turn it in providing information explaining why you did not do it. Missing or late work can be turned in up to 5 calendar days after the due date. If the absence is unexcused, 10 points will be deducted for each day it is late. If absence is excused you still need to turn work in but points won’t be deducted. Work will not be accepted after 5 days. *I understand that extenuating circumstances may apply at times. In these cases please speak to me privately.
-Grade Recovery: Quizzes and tests may be re-taken ONE time in order to improve your grade. Retakes will be offered before and after school or during 5th period. Quizzes and tests must be retaken within 1 week from the date that the original test is returned. The final grade will be an average of both grades.
-Electronic Devices: No electronic devices should be seen or heard, including earphones, ear buds, and/or charging devices. Cell phones are totally forbidden at all times. However, there will be times where we will use cellphones for instructional purposes and in that event I will go over specific guidelines regarding usage.
Evaluations: Below I will go over some of the major and minor assessments that students will take throughout the year. There will be additional grades for daily activities and minor projects that are not described below since they may vary.
Tests and quizzes:
Each unit in our book has 2 lessons. Students will have one vocabulary quiz and one grammar quiz for each lesson. Vocabulary quizzes will be give on the second or third day of class after introducing the lesson. Grammar quizzes will be given at the end of the lesson. Once both lessons are completed, we will have a unit review and an exam. Keep in mind that the first chapter of our textbook, Leccion Preliminar, has a slight different format and will not follow this guideline. In a nutshell:
Vocabulary Quiz_ One quiz at the beginning of each lesson (approx.. 12 per year)
Grammar Quiz_ One quiz at the end of each lesson (approx. 12 per year)
Unit Exam_ One exam at the end of each unit (6 per year)
Compositions:
One formal composition will be given during the Spring semester. The composition must be written in class and follow the guidelines given by the teacher. If the student misses class the day of the composition, he/she must schedule an appointment with the instructor to write the composition. Compositions will not be accepted unless written in the presence of the teacher.
Verbal Assessments:
We will have two formal interviews during the year. The oral interview will take place towards the end of each semester. During the interview students will be graded on the ability to improvise and be understood by a native speaker educator who knows their level, can relate, and will assess accordingly in a fair manner.
Short film Response:
Students will watch short films in the Spanish language and either answer a questionnaire or write an essay format response.
Homework:
Keeping up with the material, and reviewing the learning log and quizlet is a habit that I hope my students will develop, and I would not label as homework, but as practice (just like you have to practice when learning to play an instrument). As for handouts, activities, etc. I will eventually assign relevant, meaningful and brief homework to reinforce a skill covered in class.
Learning Log:
Students will create and cultivate a learning log where all the information that they have mastered will be organized. It is mandatory that they bring their composition books to class every day and they adjust to the guidelines to maximize its effectiveness. Students’ logs will be checked randomly and a grade will be allotted for content and clarity. Specific guidelines will be explained to students.
Gradebook Categories:
Assessment A: Tests, Major Verbal Assessments, and Major Projects and compositions_35%
Assessment B: Quizzes, Minor Verbal Assessments, Minor Projects and small compositions_25%
Daily Written and Verbal Practice, group work, homework, learning log, bell work…_40%
Textbook:
‘Avancemos 1’ Textbook: Each student will be assigned an Avancemos 1 textbook that will stay home for the whole school year. It is your responsibility to take good care of it, and return to school at the end of the school year. Students will keep their textbook home since I will have a class set for them to use in class.
Spanish I Honors Course Outline:
First Nine Weeks:Preliminary (25)
-Spanish Speaking Countries and Capitals☐
-Phonics☐
- Alphabet ☐
-Greetings/Introductions ☐
-Weather☐
- Numbers 0-100 ☐
- Dates (Days of the Week and Months) ☐
U1L1 Daily activities (51)
- Subject Pronouns (37) ☐
- The verb Ser (37)☐
-The verb gustar(42) ☐
U1L2 Describing yourself and others (75) ☐
-Definite and indefinite articles (61) ☐
-Noun-Adjective Agreement (66) ☐ / Third Nine Weeks:
U4L1 Downtown (213) ☐
-Stem-changing verbs: e-ie (199) ☐
-Direct Object Pronouns (204) ☐
U4L2 Leisure time (237) ☐
-Stem-changing verbs o-ue (223) ☐
-Stem-changing verbs e-I (228) ☐
U5 L1 Our house (267) ☐
-Ser or estar (253) ☐
-Ordinal Numbers (258) ☐
U5L2 Birthday Party (291) ☐
-More irregular verbs (277) ☐
-Affirmative tú commands (282) ☐
Second Nine Weeks:
U2L1 Let’s go to school (105) ☐
-The verb ‘tener’ (91) ☐
-Present tense of –ar verbs (96) ☐
U2L2 School and feelings (129) ☐
-The verb ‘estar’ (115) ☐
-The verb ‘ir’ (120) ☐
U3L1 Eating with the family (159) ☐
-Gustar with nouns (145) ☐
-Present tense of –er and ir verbs (150) ☐
U3 L2 Family (183) ☐
-Possessive Adjectives (169) ☐
-Comparatives (174) / Fourth Nine Weeks:
U6L1 Sports (321) ☐
-The verb ‘jugar’ (307) ☐
-The verbs ‘saber’ and ‘conocer’ (312) ☐
U6L2 Health (345) ☐
-Preterite of regular –ar verbs (321) ☐
-Preterite of –car-gar-zar verbs (336) ☐
U7L1 Technology (375) ☐
-Preterite of regular –er-ir verbs (361) ☐
-Affirmative and negative words (366) ☐
After reading this syllabus together (parents and students), keep it in your Spanish binder for reference. Please return this form by Monday, August 14th. Should you misplace this syllabus or need an extra copy for your records, you may find it at my website under Hon Spanish I.
I have read and understand that I am accountable for the information within this syllabus. I will always do my best. I will persevere and will always remember that I must be intentional and diligent so that I can learn this valuable skill. I will celebrate my accomplishments and those of my peers in our class. I will keep my eyes on the goal of becoming a productive, world changing biliterate global citizen.
Student name:______Period:______
______
Student Signature Date
I have read and understand Mrs. Kime’s rule, expectations, procedures, policies, and assessment. I know that I can contact Mrs. Kime at anytime if I have any questions or concerns. I will support and empower my child in this exciting and challenging journey of becoming biliterate.
______
Parent/Guardian Printed Name and Signature Date
Dear Parents and Guardians,
I consider my job as an educator to be a gift and a privilege. I am thankful and humbled that you have entrusted your child’s foreign language education to me. It is an honor to be your child’s Spanish teacher. Please know that I will be her/his advocate and supporter not only this school year but for the remaining of their lives. Once in Mrs. Kime’s class, always in Mrs. Kime’s heart.