Category Archives: Writing

Preparing for AP Success Beginning at the Novice Level

Do you have AP language classes in your program? When do you begin focusing on the linguistic and cultural competence skills that students will need to succeed at this level? A Pre-AP focus can be quite beneficial in the language learning process, fostering critical skills and mindsets early on. Whether students pursue a language at the AP level or not, these skills not only enhance and support academic success, but they also cultivate confidence and competence.

Let’s look at the benefits of integrating Pre-AP strategies and curriculum into language program curriculum and objectives. These provide students with a strong foundation for their language learning pursuit. They will be well-equipped to succeed in an AP class, or, if they don’t follow that route, they will still have the skills needed to communicate effectively and with confidence.

Building Strong Language Foundations

To pave the path for success, emphasizing core language skills—Interpersonal Speaking Interpretive Listening and Reading, Presentational Speaking and Writing—is pivotal in lower-level classes. These skills are the foundation of language proficiency and serve as the building blocks for advanced language studies. Incorporating authentic resources, such as news articles, videos, and podcasts, enriches language learning experiences. Students greatly benefit from exposure to real-world materials, providing a glimpse into how language operates in authentic contexts.

Cultivating Critical Thinking

Even at lower proficiency levels, cultivating critical thinking skills is attainable. In lower-level classes, introduce basic analysis and synthesis abilities. For instance, encourage students to analyze short texts or compare different viewpoints on straightforward topics. Questioning techniques play a pivotal role in promoting critical thinking. Pose thought-provoking questions that urge students to delve deeper into a text’s meaning, nurturing thoughtful discussions and enhancing overall comprehension.

Integrating AP Themes in Lower-Level Classes

Delaying the exploration of AP themes until AP classes is not necessary.

Beauty and Aesthetics

At lower proficiency levels, you can introduce discussions on topics like art, music, and cultural expressions. Challenge students to describe a famous painting using simple vocabulary and then compare their interpretations.

Science and Technology

Basic science and technology-related vocabulary can be introduced . Have students read simplified news articles about technological advancements and discuss their implications in the target language.

Personal and Public Identities

Exploring personal interests and identities is relevant at any proficiency level. In a straightforward “About Me” presentation activity, students can introduce themselves and share their hobbies.

Families and Communities

Family structures and communities are universal topics that can be discussed even with basic language skills. Encourage students to create posters representing a community event or a family gathering.

Global Challenges

Basic global challenges, like environmental issues, can be introduced in lower-level classes. For instance, students can engage in dialogues discussing simple ways to contribute to solving these challenges.

Contemporary Life

Everyday life topics are relatable for all learners. Consider a role-play activity where students simulate common situations like ordering food at a restaurant using basic conversational phrases.

Differentiation and Inclusion

Acknowledge the diverse learning needs in your classes. Implement strategies that cater to various learning styles and skill levels. Tiered assignments serve as an excellent approach to adapting tasks to different proficiency levels, challenging advanced learners while providing extra support for those who require it.

Your Turn…

The advantages of focusing on these “AP skills” extends beyond advanced content; it lays a solid foundation for language learners. By integrating these strategies and curriculum into lower-level classes, educators equip students with the tools and mindset required for success in advanced language courses. Try out these suggestions and tailor them to your unique classroom contexts as you empower students to grow in proficiency and reach higher levels of cultural competence.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Cultural Exploration, Listening, Reading, Speaking, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, AP Exam, AP French, AP German, AP Italian, AP Spanish, College Board, french, french teacher, language, language acquisition, language learning, language teacher, Second Language Acquisition, spanish, spanish teacher, strategy, teacher

Strategies for Effective Error Correction in the Language Classroom

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In the communicative language classroom, nurturing effective communication and language proficiency takes precedence. While linguistic accuracy plays a role, the primary objective is conveying meaning and facilitating genuine interactions. Let’s look at some strategies for providing constructive error correction, focusing on meaningful communication. We’ll address different proficiency levels, from novice to intermediate, and provide examples.

Selective Correction

Prioritize corrections that hinder comprehension or effective communication.

Novice Level (French):

Student: “Je aller à l’école hier.”
Feedback: “C’est bien que tu parles du passé, mais il faut dire ‘Je suis allé(e) à l’école hier.’ Bon travail!”

Intermediate Level (Spanish):

Student: “Yo vio una película anoche.”
Feedback: “Es genial que estés usando el pasado, pero recuerda decir ‘Yo vi una película anoche.’ Sigue así.”

Recasting

Rephrase errors without explicitly pointing them out, allowing students to self-correct.

Novice Level (French):

Student: “Je mangé pizza hier.”
Recasting (French): “Ah, tu as mangé de la pizza hier?”
Student’s Self-correction: “Oui, j’ai mangé de la pizza hier.”

Intermediate Level (Spanish):

Student: “Nosotros ir a la playa el fin de semana pasado.”
Recasting (Spanish): “¿Ustedes fueron a la playa el fin de semana pasado?”
Student’s Self-correction: “Sí, nosotros fuimos a la playa el fin de semana pasado.”

Error Logs

Encourage students to maintain error logs, promoting self-awareness and self-correction.

Novice Level (French):

Student: Repeatedly forgets to use articles (e.g., “J’aime manger pizza.”)
Error Log Entry: “Oublié les articles. Je dois dire ‘J’aime manger de la pizza.'”

Intermediate Level (Spanish):

Student: Confuses verb tenses (e.g., “Hoy yo comió pescado.”)
Error Log Entry: “Confundí los tiempos verbales. Debo decir ‘Hoy yo comí pescado.'”

Delayed Correction

Provide feedback after speaking activities, allowing students to focus on communication during the task.

Novice Level (French):

Activity: Role-play at a restaurant where students take on the roles of server and customer.
Feedback (after activity): “Bravo! Vous avez bien communiqué vos commandes. Maintenant, faisons une petite correction. ‘Je voudrais une salade’ est la phrase correcte.”

Intermediate Level (Spanish):

Activity: Group discussion about vacation plans.
Feedback (after activity): “Excelente discusión. Han utilizado bien el pretérito perfecto compuesto. Ahora, algunas correcciones: ‘Voy a visitar a mi familia’ es la frase correcta.”

Effective error correction in the communicative language classroom revolves around balancing meaningful communication and linguistic accuracy. By applying these strategies tailored to students’ proficiency levels, teachers can empower their students to communicate confidently while continually improving their language skills.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Speaking, Teaching Methodology and Research, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, error, error correction, feedback, french, french teacher, language, language acquisition, language learning, language teacher, Second Language Acquisition, spanish, spanish teacher, strategies, teacher

81: Do Nows and Exit Tickets in the Language Classroom

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What’s the first thing students do when they enter your classroom and the last thing they do before they leave? In this episode we look at Do Nows and Exit Tickets and how they can be very effective ways of setting up the class for the day and providing quick formative assessments and recaps of the class objectives. Yes, you’ll hear some reasons that support both, but you’ll also get some quick, and in many cases no-prep, ideas to add to your teacher toolbox.

Topics in this Episode:

what Do Nows and Exit Tickets are and why they are useful and effective in the language classroom
examples of Do Nows and Exit Tickets at various proficiency levels
logistics: where to write the prompts; where and how students record response; what we do with the responses

Blog post with all details and suggestions for using Do Nows and Exit Tickers in the language classroom.

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

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Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
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Posted in Activities and Games, Classroom Procedures, Podcast Episodes, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, Do Nows, Exit Tickets, french, french teacher, language, language acquisition, language learning, language teacher, Second Language Acquisition, spanish, spanish teacher, teacher

Do Nows and Exit Tickets in the World Language Classroom

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Are you using Do Nows and/or Exit Tickets in your classroom? They sometimes have different names, but essentially Do Nows are quick assessments that students complete at the beginning of class to get their brains warmed up and ready to learn. Exit Tickets are assessments at the end of class that provide teachers with valuable information about what their students have learned and where they may need more practice. Do Nows and Exit Tickets are effective tools for language teachers that help to track student progress, inform lesson planning moving forward, and provide opportunities for immediate feedback to students.

Let’s look at Do Nows first.

Why are Do Nows useful and what are some ways of using them?

Quick Assessment of Previous Class: Do Nows provide teachers with an immediate snapshot of their students’ understanding of a topic. This quick assessment helps teachers tailor instruction to meet the needs of their students right away in that class. Maybe there needs to be a little more review before moving on to a new topic or perhaps that planned additional review won’t be necessary.
Immediate Engagement that Builds Confidence: Do Nows are short, focused activities that engage students and encourage them to be active learners. By starting class with a Do Now, teachers can create a positive and productive learning environment. Students feel successful because the material is not new, but rather reviewing or building on previous content.
Practice: Do Nows provide students with the opportunity to practice their language skills in a low-stakes situation. This regular practice helps students build confidence and develop proficiency in the language. Also an opportunity to recycle or review previous topics and content to keep it fresh.
Prep for Class Activity: Do Nows can be used as prewriting or to access prior knowledge on a topic. Maybe a new topic will be covered in class, but the Do Now focuses on prior knowledge and builds schemata. They can also be used to spark discussion or as a pre-reading activity.
Differentiation: By creating multiple versions of a Do Now, teachers can differentiate the activity to meet the needs of their diverse students. This makes it possible to provide students with a meaningful and challenging learning experience, regardless of their level of proficiency in the language.

Where is the prompt and where/how do students respond?

The prompt can be on the board and students record their response on a sheet of paper. Students can also do this in a notebook that they keep, either with them or in the classroom.
Instead of writing a prompt on the board, the teachers can hand out individual prompts, such task cards, slips of paper with vocabulary words, pictures, or a a quote. This will make the Do Now more individualized. There can also be a prompt on the board instructing students what to do with the information on their card or slip of paper.
Do Nows don’t always have to be written responses. Students can read a short text or even engage in a short speaking activity using similar prompts.

resources for Do NOws:

Now Let’s look at Exit Tickets.

Why are Exit Tickets useful and what are some ways of using them?

Formative Assessment: Exit Tickets provide teachers with an effective and efficient way to assess their students’ understanding of a topic that was covered in class that day. This regular assessment helps teachers identify areas where students need additional support and can adjust instruction accordingly. Not unlike a Do Now, but an Exit Ticket is focused on new content from class. A Do Now is typically more focused on previous material.
Reflection: Exit Tickets encourage students to reflect on their learning and think critically about what they’ve learned in class. This reflective practice helps students make connections between new concepts and prior knowledge, deepening their understanding of the language.
Practice: By completing Exit Tickets, students have the opportunity to practice their language skills and demonstrate their understanding. This helps students build confidence and develop proficiency. Build in previous content and material into the prompt so that students continue to build on their skills and proficiency levels with new and prior topics.
Feedback: Exit Tickets provide teachers with valuable feedback on the effectiveness of their instruction. Teachers can use this feedback to make changes to teaching strategies and improve their students’ learning outcomes the next day.
Planning: Exit Tickets can also help teachers plan for future lessons. By analyzing students’ responses, teachers can identify areas where students need individualized additional support and plan lessons that address these needs. This proactive approach to planning can help ensure that all students make meaningful progress.

Where is the prompt and where/how do students respond?

The prompt can be on the board and students record their response on a sheet of paper or a notebook, just as they might so with Do Nows. However, these papers or notebooks should remain in the classroom so the teacher can look at them after the class or as students are leaving.
Hand out individual prompts, task cards, vocabulary words, pictures, or a quote with a prompt on the card or on the board. Just like a Do Now, but an Exit Ticket is focused on new content from class. A Do Now is more focused on previous material.
Students can hand these Exit Tickets to the teacher as they leave.
Exit Tickets don’t always have to be written responses. Students can speak to the teacher at the door as they leave, providing a spoken response. If there are large numbers of students, mix it up with some doing verbal and others doing written responses.

resources for Exit Tickets:

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Posted in Activities and Games, Classroom Procedures, Grammar and Structures, Speaking, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, do now, exit ticket, french, french teacher, language, language acquisition, language learning, language teacher, Second Language Acquisition, spanish, spanish teacher, teacher

Practice or Review Activity for Any Language Topic

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I came across an activity on theteachertoolkit.com called Nothing Ventured. The wheels started turning right away as I thought of the ways that it could be used in a language classroom. There are lot of useful ideas on the Teacher Toolkit website, but they are not specific to language teaching. No fear. I got you covered.

I got to work creating a template to use with my students in the target language. I also put together templates in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German and Italian. You can download them all here and it also includes the directions for the doing the activity in your classroom.

I chose the title The Die Decides for my take on this activity. I’m always looking for ways to incorporate different materials and that little die can be used for so much. I’m happy to have yet another way to put it to use.

The Die Decides is an interactive activity that can be used for almost any topic in your language class, such as:

practicing vocabulary themes
practicing language structures
assessing understanding after reading or listening
reviewing before an assessment

The teacher creates the questions based on the topic being covered.

How the activity works

Individual students, pairs or small groups each need a six-sided die and a “The Die Decides” sheet.
Players (individual, pair or group) roll the die before each question is presented either verbally or in writing. They record the number rolled in the “Die” column of their sheet.
The teacher says or shows a question (perhaps projected). Students discuss, if in pairs or groups, and write their answer in the “Answer” column of their sheet.
The teacher says or shows the correct answer to the question. It can also be part of the projection slides or simply written on the board. Students check their answer and determine whether they were correct or incorrect. The teacher should be vigilant to make sure answer are not altered.
If the answer is correct, players get the points that they rolled prior to the question being asked. If they are incorrect, they lose those points.
Students then update their total as they continue on with each question.
The player (individual, pair or group) with the most points after all the questions have been asked wins the game.

Students enjoy this activity and use so much language as they discuss possible answers, listen to and read questions and react to their points changing as they progress through the game. Remember that you can download templates in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German and Italian.

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Posted in Activities and Games, Classroom Procedures, Grammar and Structures, Listening, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, french, french teacher, german, italian, language, language acquisition, language learning, language teacher, portuguese, Second Language Acquisition, spanish, spanish teacher, teacher

French & Spanish Verb Form and Sentence Writing Activity

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Let’s see if this rings a bell. Students know the meaning of verbs and often also know the forms. But, they can’t always take that verb and write a detailed sentence.

This is an activity that gets them there. In the end they will be writing full sentences in French or Spanish that have accurate verb forms and additional details that show that they clearly know the meaning of the verb.

There are three parts to this activity. When done in order they scaffold the writing process and ensure that students know the meanings of the verbs and their accurate forms.

Page 1: Students cut out the Spanish and English infinitives, mix them and then match them up.

Page 2: Students cut out the subject/infinitives and verb forms, mix them and then match them up.

Pages 3-5: Students cut out the subjects and verb forms, match them up, and then write a full sentence with the subject and verb. They can also glue the subject and verb forms onto the page.

Photocopy the pages and hand them out to students. They take care of the rest. And, when they finish they will have lots of complete, detailed, accurate sentences in French or French.

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Posted in Activities and Games, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, french, french teacher, language, language teacher, presentational mode, spanish, spanish teacher, target language, Writing

Grading for Proficiency and Competency

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There is momentum in the move toward competency-based or proficiency-based grading and assessment. The foundation of these assessments is to provide feedback about what students are able to do with the target language. There will certainly be formative assessments of vocabulary of or perhaps some language structures, but ultimately we want students to be able to communicate with the vocabulary and structures.

If we are assessing the language that students can interpret and produce then the majority of students’ grades should rightfully reflect that. With the understanding that there are other factors that come into play, here is the grading percentage breakdown that I use.

Let’s break down one of the categories to see what a competency/proficiency-based grade looks like. For this example I will use my Presentational Writing assessment process.

I begin with the ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Presentational Writing:

©ACTFL http://www.actfl.org

The main takeaway for me is the Text Type, as this the language that students are producing and there are clear indicators of what student output should be at each proficiency level.

©ACTFL http://www.actfl.org

I began with the idea of a single-point rubric from Jennifer Golzales at the Cult of Pedagogy and combined it with John Hattie’s notion of Medals and Missions.

I modified the idea of the single-point rubric and developed a 4-point rubric with a “3” being the goal/objective, which is a B+. This allows for feedback below or approaching the objective and output that goes above. Here are examples of Novice High, Intermediate Low and Intermediate Low/Mid rubrics. You will notice the text-types and language control are aligned with the ACTFL Performance Descriptors.

I then took that 4-point scale and aligned it with letter grades, which is how grades are reported in my school. When it comes time to average out the grades, I take the average grade of each mode (on the 4-point scale) and average them together with the formative grade using this scale.

Here is an example of how a term or semester grade would be determined using this process of assessment for competency and proficiency in the target language.

As we move in the direction of assessing what students can do with the target language, and not just what they know about it, we will need to find ways to bridge traditional grading with competency assessment. The above process is working well for me and my students, but I will continue to modify and reassess how I’m doing it, and look forward to feedback from others as I continue to work out the details and efficacy.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Teaching Methodology and Research, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, communication modes, french, language teacher, language teaching, presentational, presentational mode, spanish, spanish teacher, teacher, Writing

Scaffold Student Writing from Novice to Intermediate

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I wrote a post on conjunctions and transition words that students can use to add details to their writing and level up. Now I’m going to show you how I scaffold the writing practice so that students can clearly see what their writing looks like at various proficiency levels from Novice Low to Intermediate Low/Mid.

The ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Presentational Writing are specific regarding the language students produce at each proficiency level.

Scaffold Student Writing from Novice to Intermediate (French, Spanish)

There are a lot of details in the grid, but all we need to be concerned with right now is the text type that students produce.

This is the exercise that my students do so that they clearly see how they are working toward leveling up their writing.

Novice Low/Mid/High

French Example:

English Example

Novice Low/mid/high, Intermediate Low

French Example:

English Example

Students will soon understand the expectations at each proficiency level. When you indicate to them what the writing expectation is they will know what the text type should be. Gone are the days of asking if they need to write in complete sentences. Once they ask for clarification of the proficiency level that they should aim for, you’ll know they have arrived.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, french, french teacher, language, language teacher, presentational mode, spanish, spanish teacher, Writing

Level Up Students’ Writing (& Speaking)

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The 3 communication modes are becoming more commonplace in our language classrooms.

Presentational communication is one-way speaking or writing that does not allow for real time clarification of meaning.
Interpretive communication is one-way listening or reading that also does not allow for real time clarification of meaning.
Interpersonal communication is two-way speaking that allows for clarification of the message in real time.

Let’s look specifically at Presentational Writing. There are some characteristics that differ from the other modes. In particular, there are opportunities to focus more on accuracy since the communication is not done in real time. More specifically, Presentational Writing is …

practiced, rehearsed, polished and edited
organized
improved with dictionary and spell-check tools

The ACTFL Performance Descriptors for Presentational Writing are specific regarding the language produced at each proficiency level.

You can see the full Performance Descriptors Here.

The challenge for me has often been the jump from Novice High to Intermediate Low/Mid. Students are typically able to begin forming their own sentences with memorized phrases and then creating on their own. The struggle comes in constructing sentences that move beyond single clauses, and certainly connecting multiple sentences.

To support students in this process, I put together a reference grid.

The first column is the base words that students can use to add details to their single clause sentences. The second column, with the gradually rising arrow, contains conjunctions and connecting words that students can use to create sentences with two clauses. The third column, with the arrow going straight up, has additional conjunctions and connecting words that students can use to connect sentences and ideas. There are also words under the grid that students can use to write about events chronologically. All of these words scaffold the process of leveling up language from Novice to Intermediate.

I put together a template of this for teachers to use with their students.

It is a Word Doc on Google Drive. Download it as a Word Doc or make a copy right in your Google Drive and edit from there. Just add in the words in the target language that you teach.

You will soon see your students leveling up their writing, and they will transfer this skill to their speaking.

Take look at this blog post as well. It focuses on an activity that I do with students that helps them to see concretely what their language looks like at different proficiency levels.

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Posted in Classroom Procedures, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, ACTFL Core Practices, communication modes, french, french teacher, language, language learning, language teacher, presentational, presentational mode, spanish, spanish teacher, target language, teacher, Writing

No Prep Group Speaking or Writing Activity

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Do you have a deck of regular playing cards? Yes? Well, you’re all done and the activity is ready to go.

This is a no prep activity that you can pull out at any time, on any topic, for any language at any proficiency level.

I call this activity Special Card (La Carte Spéciale, La Tarjeta Especial).

Here’s how it works:

Choose one card from the deck before beginning and write it down on a piece of paper. Don’t show it to students. Keep the card in the deck
Put students into groups of 3 or 4.
Groups will need a piece of paper or small white board if you are focusing on writing. No need if focusing on speaking.
Tell students that they will get a question and will either respond orally or in writing. If responses are spoken each group will need individual questions each round. If it is in writing all groups can get the same question for the round.
I make up the prompt on the spot based on the topic. You can do this in advance, but I like to keep it “no prep.” It can be novice level questions with single words answers all the way to higher levels with questions about a reading or video.
If the response is correct, hand the group a playing card. Their points for the round are the value of the card.

Ace is 1 point, number cards (2-10) are their face value, a Jack is 13, a Queen is 11 and a king is 12. [The Jack, Queen & King values are arbitrary. You can make them what you would like.]
Once all cards are earned, and the deck is depleted, groups add up their points. The final move is to reveal the Special Card, which is worth 25 or 30 additional points. The group with that card earns the additional points.
The group with the highest points wins the round.
Collect cards back. If there is time to play another round groups can continue with their points from the previous game or start fresh.
If you’re playing additional games, be sure to choose new special cards each time.

The topics and proficiency levels are open depending on what you are doing in your class. Here are some prompt ideas

Novice Low-Mid:

What are three colors, animals, days, months, seasons, articles of clothing, activities, etc.
Questions about concrete vocabulary themes that require a 1-2 word spoken or written response.

Novice High:

Where do you …?
When do you …?
What are your opinions about…?
Questions about concrete vocabulary themes that require a sentence of chunked spoken or written language as a response.

Intermediate Low:

Describe….
Sentence level questions about details in a story
Questions about personal or story details that require a complete spoken or written sentence response created by the group.

Intermediate Mid:

Explain…
Tell me about…
Why…
What is…
When did
When will…
Questions on themes covered in the current unit that require 2-3 spoken or written sentences that are connected by transition words.

Intermediate High:

After groups read a passage together on their own…

Specific or general questions to demonstrate understanding
Questions on themes covered in the reading that require 3-4 spoken or written sentences that are connected by transition words and may require speaking or writing in various time-frames.

I also talk about this activity on episode 25 of the World Language Classroom Podcast.

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Posted in Activities and Games, Speaking, Writing

Tagged ACTFL, activity, french, french teacher, game, language learning, language teacher, spanish, spanish teacher, Speaking, Writing

Category Archives: Writing

Preparing for AP Success Beginning at the Novice Level

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Strategies for Effective Error Correction in the Language Classroom

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