Tag Archives: world language classroom podcast

206: Revisit Authentic Texts and Products, Practices & Perspectives


This is episode 2 in my 2025 summer headspace series. This is a chance to revisit episodes from the previous school year during the summer months when you may have a little extra time. Beginning August 26th, you will see new episodes with exciting new topics every Monday.  For today we take a look back at 2 more of the high leverage teaching practices. Episode 167 about guiding learners to interpret and discuss authentic texts and episode 171 about focusing on cultural products, practices and perspectives.

Episodes:

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

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Quick Win PD For Language Teachers: Design Fun and Communicative Activities

You’ve planned a high-energy activity. Your students are laughing, moving, maybe even competing. But at the end… you wonder: Did they actually communicate in the target language?

It’s easy to fall into the trap of using activities that feel fun but don’t lead to meaningful language use. As language teachers, we want our students to enjoy class and build proficiency, but not all engaging activities are truly communicative.

Quick Win PD For Language Teachers: Design Fun and Communicative Activities; French, Spanish

This 30-minute mini-course, for the small price of $10, will help you confidently evaluate and design activities that go beyond surface-level engagement. You’ll learn how to:

  • Spot the difference between fun and truly communicative tasks
  • Adapt your go-to games and routines to maximize language use
  • Design new activities that support real-world communication
  • Use a simple checklist to keep proficiency at the center

You’ll hear directly from me, Joshua Cabral, host of the World Language Classroom Podcast, as I guide you through this practical, encouraging audio course designed to support your teaching and not add more to your plate.

By the end of this course, you’ll feel empowered to make intentional choices that transform classroom fun into purposeful communication. Your students will not only enjoy your class, but they’ll grow in confidence and skill as real-world language users.

What’s Included in This Quick Win, 30-Minute Course for $10?

  • Audio to Listen to All Material – perfect for on-the-go listening
  • Detailed Note Sheet to follow along and refer back to
  • Reflection Activity to deepen your understanding
  • Examples at the novice, intermediate, and advanced levels
  • Planning Template to design your own communicative tasks
  • Additional Resources to go further with the topic
  • Personalized Certificate of course completion

Whether you’re just getting started with proficiency-based teaching or you’re looking to fine-tune your approach, this mini-course is a supportive and practical tool to help you design activities that are not just fun, but truly communicative.

Click Here to Get Started

Quick Win PD for Language Teachers: From Vocabulary Lists to Communicative Tasks

You’ve got a list of vocabulary you have to teach. You introduce the words, quiz them, maybe throw in a game or two. But something’s missing…your students aren’t using the words to communicate.

Many language teachers are required to follow a curriculum that leans heavily on vocabulary lists. The problem? These lists often focus more on memorization than communication and leave students stuck at word recall rather than real-world expression.

Quick Win PD for Language Teachers: From Vocabulary Lists to Communicative Tasks; French, Spanish

This 30-minute PD course, for the small price of $10, will help you transform vocabulary lists into purposeful, communicative tasks that promote real language use.

You’ll learn how to:

  • Spot the difference between vocabulary-based vs. communication-based activities
  • Design tasks that get students using words to share ideas, opinions, and experiences
  • Build communicative tasks that align with ACTFL proficiency levels
  • Use a simple planning template to turn any vocabulary list into a meaningful learning opportunity

This is a supportive, no-fluff course led by me, Joshua Cabral, host of the World Language Classroom Podcast, and it’s designed to give you strategies you can use tomorrow without overhauling your entire curriculum.

By the end of this course, you’ll feel equipped and empowered to bring vocabulary to life in your classroom. Your students will move from memorizing words to using them to express themselves, interact with others, and grow in proficiency.

What’s Included in This Quick Win, 30-Minute Course for $10?

  • Audio to Listen to All Material – perfect for on-the-go listening
  • Detailed Note Sheet to follow along and refer back to
  • Reflection Activity to deepen your understanding
  • Examples at the novice, intermediate, and advanced levels
  • Planning Template to design your own communicative tasks
  • Additional Resources to go further with the topic
  •  Personalized Certificate of course completion

If you’re looking for a clear, supportive way to teach toward proficiency, even when you’re tied to a required list of vocabulary, this course is for you.

205: Revisit Confidence in Speaking and Making Language Comprehensible


This is episode 1 in my 2025 summer headspace series. This is a chance to revisit episodes from the previous school year during the summer months when you may have a little extra time. Beginning August 26th, you will see new episodes with exciting new topics every Monday. For today we take a look back at 2 of the high leverage teaching practices. Episode 160 about creating a classroom where students use the target language confidently and 162 about making language comprehensible.

Episodes:

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

204: Get into Your 2025 Summer Headspace


Now that the school year is over hopefully you have a little less on your mind and have a little extra time. This is the perfect time to get into your summer headspace.  What do I mean by that?  You’ll soon understand.  

  • What do I mean by “Summer Headspace?”
    • Time to reflect without other pressing priorities and issues.
    • Clear head.
    • Opportunity to revisit themes and episodes with a fresh lens.  
    • Maybe something has come up since you first listened?
    • You catch something new.
    • Finish an episode that you started.
    • Listen to an episode for the first time.
    • Group episodes by theme so that you can listen to them together.
  • How will the episodes work?
    • 5 minute recap and revisit, pull the themes together
    • links to episodes will be in the show notes
  • 6 Summer Headspace Episodes.  New episode on August 25, 2025. 
  • The first SHS episode will be out next Monday, July 14th.

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

203: Black History & Hispanic Heritage in Language Curriculum with Jenniffer Whyte


What do we mean when we talk about representation in the classroom? More specifically representation in our language classrooms?  How can we make sure that our students understand the variety of cultures and experiences that are part of the target language culture?  In this episode, Jenniffer Whyte joins me to talk about bringing the Afro-Latinx and Black heritage into our classroom curriculum. You will walk away with concrete ways to go about this and might even be ready to put together an all-school event or assembly at no cost.  Jenniffer tells us all about how she does it.

Topics in this Episode:

  •  resources or materials that teachers can use to ensure Black and Afro-Latinx voices are authentically included in their curriculum
  • how teachers can introduce these topics in ways that foster curiosity and meaningful discussions
  • effective strategies for introducing Black history and culture to younger students in an engaging and age-appropriate way
  • details about Jenniffer’s whole-school Black History and Hispanic Heritage programs with no budget, including creative ways teachers can do the same in their own schools
  • moving beyond only celebrating Black History and Hispanic Heritage during designated month with concrete ways teachers can weave these histories and contributions into their world language curriculum year-round

Connect with Jenniffer Whyte:

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

202: Planning and Teaching for Proficiency


I want to make sure that you start your new school in the fall with a clear framework for planning and teaching for proficiency. I created a free reflection and planning tool that will guide you as you create a classroom that prioritizes what students can do with language. In this episode I will tell you all about it and point you to where you can get yours today.

Planning & Teaching for Proficiency: A Guide for Language Teachers

Topics in this Episode:

  • By focusing on performance, proficiency, communication, and authentic language use, you can support students on this journey to using the target language authentically and communicatively. 
  • I created a guide to support your planning and teaching that focuses on performance in the classroom and eventually increased target language proficiency when they are using the language in authentic, real-world situations.
  • Each section highlights essential components that support confidence and proficiency growth. You’ll also see actionable steps that you can take right away:
    • Purposeful Planning
    • Comprehensible Input & Student Output
    •  Meaningful Tasks & Relevant Practice
    • Assessment & Feedback
    • Professional Reflection & Collaboration
    • Common Challenges in Proficiency-Focused Classrooms
    • Next Steps and Your Action Plan

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

201: Ideas to Get Students Speaking More with Sherry Sebesta


Do you have some go-to activities to motivate your students to speak and engage with the target language in your classroom?  Are you always on the lookout for activities and routines to add to your list of possibilities? In this episode, I speak with Sherry Sebesta, a French and Spanish teacher in New York. Sherry shares suggestions for getting your students speaking the target language more regularly and confidently. You’ll go away with several new things to try out right away.

Topics in this Episode:

  •  Sherry’s goals for language students and how speaking activities work into this
  • how teachers can create a classroom environment that reduces students’ fear of making mistakes and promotes more speaking
  • activities to encourage students to speak more in the target language
  • examples where Sherry’s strategies have increased student speaking confidence and participation in class
  • practical steps to implement Sherry’s speaking activities and ideas in the classroom

Connect with Sherry Sebesta

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

200: Tips for Common Challenges in Proficiency-Based Classrooms


How do you feel about the CI strategies, proficiency-based procedures or communicative language teaching that you do in your classroom?  You hear a lot about it, either on this podcast, from colleagues or on social media.  Lots of good stuff. But, do you sometimes feel like it seems like it’s always smooth sailing with no challenges in other classrooms while you definitely have them in your own classroom?  Well, me too.  We all have them.  In this episode I will address some of these common challenges with practical solutions to help navigate them.

Topics in this Episode:

  • Implementing comprehensible input (CI) strategies in a proficiency-based language classroom comes with its challenges at times.  
  • With proactive planning we can create an engaging and effective learning environment for all students.
  • Common obstacles and practical solutions to help you navigate them.
    • Different Proficiency Levels
    • Large Class Sizes
    • Student Resistance
    • Time Constraints
    • Assessment and Accountability
    • Classroom Management
  • Blog post on Common Challenges in Proficiency-Based Classrooms

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.

199: Celebrating Identity and Dialects in Heritage Classes with Courtney Nygaard


How can celebrating identity and dialects transform the experience of language learners? In this episode I’m joined by Courtney Nygaard, a teacher of heritage Spanish speakers in Minnesota.  Courtney shares how she honors and values her students’ identities as a way to build confidence, connection, and community in the classroom. We talk about practical strategies for embracing dialectal differences, navigating varied proficiency levels, and fostering a space where all students feel seen and valued. Whether you teach a heritage class or not, this conversation will inspire you to make your classroom a place where every student and experience is valued.

Topics in this Episode:

  •  importance of celebrating identity and dialects in language classes
  • strategies or activities you can use to acknowledge and honor the diverse identities and dialects of your students
  • challenges that might arise when students speak different dialects or have varying levels of proficiency in the heritage language
  • Courtney’s success stories and examples where celebrating identity and dialects positively impacted her students’ learning and engagement?
  • for teachers who don’t have heritage classes, how you can create an inclusive and supportive environment that respects and celebrates the linguistic diversity of your students
  • Episode 96: Teaching Heritage Language Learners with Courtney Nygaard

Connect with Courtney Nygaard:

Work with Joshua either in person or remotely.

Teachers want to hear from you and what you are proud of in your classroom.
Join me as a guest on the podcast.

Follow wherever you listen to podcasts.