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COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Honors
Spanish II continues to present to students the vocabulary, grammar
and phonetic structure of the Spanish language, as well as some aspects of
the various Hispanic cultures of the world.
All of these aspects will be presented in context through
storytelling, reading, directed Q&A and
conversation.
Spanish will be used in the classroom as much as possible, but,
although
students will be discouraged from becoming excessively dependent on
English, we will not sacrifice valuable class time when meaning can be
established with a word or two in English.
GOALS:
By the end of the academic year,
students should be able to:
UNDERSTAND at a basic level spoken Spanish in conversation, on TV,
tapes, etc.;
SPEAK Spanish at a basic level in the present and
past tenses
WRITE in Spanish at a basic level about a
variety of topics;
READ/UNDERSTAND written Spanish on the
same level.
OBJECTIVES:
Students will achieve course goals by:
LISTENING carefully to all Spanish presented in the
classroom;
ACTIVELY PARTICIPATING in all class activities;
READING in Spanish for comprehension;
PRACTICING in class and at home what they
are learning, both orally and in writing.
Comprehensible input (presentation of material that the students understand),
interesting content and repetition are the keys to meeting these
objectives. If students are exposed to material that they understand
and
that is interesting to them, and if they are engaged in activities that allow
them to explore this material through repetition and variation, they will
acquire enough vocabulary and structure through context to engage in
real communication, both in the classroom and beyond.
CLASS ORGANIZATION: (a few important details)
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Textbook
¡Exprésate! Spanish Level 2 Holt Rinehart & Winston.
We will begin the year with a quick review of verb tenses and
vocabulary covered in Spanish I. Students will each have a
hard copy of the textbook and, in addition, will be able to access
the on-line version. There will be some online assignments,
either from the text or from other online sites that can be reached
through the Links on my homepage. For
those without Internet access, some class time will be spent in the
computer lab to work on these assignments or alternate assignments will be
offered to those students only.
However, it is the student's responsibility to inform me of the
problem and request an alternate assignment. |
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Class Agenda Posted
weekly online (by Sunday evening; follow the
calendar link on this page). This agenda will include general assignments,
upcoming tests and other events and a general description of what I
hope to accomplish over the following week.
Students who are unable
to access the Class Agenda web page for any reason must request a hard copy of assignments
on Monday of the week in question. |
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Expectations of students
To succeed in Spanish II students must:
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Be
engaged. Pay attention to what I'm doing/ saying and respond to it.
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| If
you don't understand, LET ME KNOW!
I will provide students with
various strategies to slow me down. |
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When I ask a question in Spanish, answer in Spanish.
DON’T WORRY ABOUT MISTAKES!
I will try never to
put a student in a situation in which s/he cannot respond
appropriately. I will also do my best to make class a
comfortable place in
which learning Spanish is a pleasurable experience. I
believe all students can succeed as long as they invest their full
attention in the class and the instructor constantly monitors their
comprehension and makes sure no one is left behind.
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| Complete
all homework assignments on time.
Homework assignments will be listed on the Class Agendas. All homework will be due
at the beginning of class on the
date stipulated |
| Have a
1" binder and a folder. Students should keep all
vocab handouts, grammar handouts, cultural information handouts and
notes. I also recommend that students save all old tests,
as these are valuable study aids. |
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| Code of Conduct I have abandoned the idea
of a set of Class Rules in favor of a general code of conduct, which I
consider to be more fair and more flexible. This code is based on
the core values of CHS that are posted in my classroom. It will apply
to my own behavior as well as to that of students and any other visitors
to the classroom. The students and I will discuss this code during
the first week, and as often as necessary thereafter.
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Dignity Our actions will
show our respect for ourselves, for others, and for the environment. |
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Integrity Our actions will
reflect our commitment to honoring our responsibilities and to making
principled choices. |
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Justice Our actions will
demonstrate our determination to work for the greater good.
If students have difficulty conducting themselves according to this code
there will be consequences:
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| 1st
violation:
Warning
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| 2nd
violation:
After-school detention
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| 3rd
violation:
Notify parent/guardian
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| 4th
violation:
Discipline referral to Assistant Principal.
I reserve the right to skip any of these steps if I deem it necessary.
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| Academic
dishonesty: I advise all students and parents to
familiarize themselves with the section in the Student Handbook
dealing with Academic Dishonesty. I also wish to make
clear that using an electronic translator (either hand-held or
on-line) is a form of plagiarism. Another form is having
someone else (a native speaker or simply a more advanced Spanish
learner) tell you how to express yourself. I am evaluating your
proficiency with the language, so if you don't have any idea
how to say something, even with the help of your textbook
and a dictionary, then you need to think of something else to
say. Also, a word to the wise: It is really easy
for me to tell when someone has used an electronic translator.
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