New Names + New Nationalities
27When a student comes to their language class they should notice a difference. They should be HEARING a new language (from you, the music, YouTube videos). They should also be SEEING new words (from books, magazines, bulletin boards, and labeled objects in the classroom). We are not just teaching a class, we are offering the student a brand new experience.
Why not make their language class a mini-vacation for them? If you (the teacher) can create an environment where students need to use language then they might just do that! Here are a few ideas to help create a more authentic language environment.
First, allow students to choose a new Hispanic name. I know a lot of teachers already do this but here is why I like it.
1.) It helps with pronunciation.
2.) It gives them a connection with the culture. Later, when we talk about artists or celebrities or popular athletes, my students remember their names (and can actually say them) because they have heard them before right in their own class.
3.) They already know each other’s real names. Using new Hispanic names will test their memory and give them a reason to use the question… ¿Cómo te llamas?
4.) When we have a minute or two left in class I’ll sometimes tell a story about an encounter I had with a person with one of their names. “There was an ‘Enrique’ that I met at the beach in Malaga…” My travel stories usually inspire them to want to t
ake a trip.
Here’s a list of the top 20 baby names in 2011 from Latina magazine…
http://www.latina.com/lifestyle/parenting/top-20-latino-baby-names-2011
Second, give each student a Hispanic country (and it’s capital). This is like the lottery! This is now where they are from during my class. They may have walked through the door American, but they are Espanol or Chileno or Costarricense during class. They won’t know what they will get and they have to stick with what they draw first. Here are the reasons this is great to do in class…
1.) Students learn names of countries and their capitals without even realizing it.
2.) They start to ask questions about different countries. (Are there black people in Argentina? Are people from Panama rich? What kind of money is used there? What do the girls look like in Colombia?)
3.) They begin to become interested in specific stories about “their” country. When I play a song and mention “Hay tres personas en este grupo. Ellos se llaman “Choc Quib Town. Son de Cartagena, Colombia” … I hear students say… “Wait! That’s where I’m from. Soy de Colombia!” One of my students was from San Jose, Costa Rica in class and now he is signed up to go to Costa Rica with our school’s EF tour trip. The day he signed up he told me “I’ve been wanting to go every since I drew that card out of the bucket two years ago.”
4.) They actually have a reason to use the question ¿De dónde eres? – otherwise it’s gets really old to hear “Soy de Kentucky” 31 times each class. I have a sub-plan with a map of Central and South America where they have to label the countries and write where their classmates are from. It’s interactive and they start to get an idea where countries are located.
5.) You can use where they are from to group them. All students from Central America come to this side of the room. Students from Spain come up front, and students from South America will start with the iPads.
6.) I sometimes take a second to tell kids about a word or phrase that is popular in “their” country. I’ll teach the one kid in each class to say he’s from ”BARTHALONA” or “CADITH”, Espana. I teach “que padre” to the students from Mexico, “que chiva” to the ticos, and they really get excited to learn about the different cultures.
If you can get students excited about travel and culture they will be much more motivated to learn the language. Start with hispanic names and countries if you don’t do it already. What else can you do to hook your students on the language?
Megan
rachel573
Kara
I love this! This will be my first year teaching Spanish next year and I can’t tell you how much of a god-send your blog is!!!
Mil gracias!
By the way- where are you from?
Hola Terremoto! Glad you can get some new ideas before starting your first year! I found out I was teaching 3 days before school started and had zero teaching experience. It was a shock
4 years later and I’m still picking up new ideas to spice up my classes! It’s a fun job!!
This will be my first year teaching Spanish 1 and I am very excited to try this! Last year was my first year teaching. I didn’t let them pick Spanish names because I was nervous about remembering 150 Spanish names AND 150 real names. But I completely agree with it now. I don’t want to hear Soy de Georgia 30+ times a class either.
I have been teaching for 10 years, and your blog is amazing!!!! I am loving all of the new ideas. Thanks so much for sharing. I have done the name thing before, but adding the country is genius!!!!
There should be a special title for teachers that make it to 10 years.
We deserve it! Glad to have you sharing with us!
I am going into my first year of teaching Spanish this fall! Your blog is absolutely amazing! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thanks Amanda! Good luck with your first year! It’s going to be a fun one!
I am getting ready to start my 13th year teaching Spanish, and I’m ALWAYS looking for new ideas for my classes. I will be teaching a 1B and a 1 class this year, and I haven’t taught either of them for more than 5 years; I have been teaching lots of 2′s! I have always used Spanish names, and I LOVE the idea of adding the nationalities to the students. Thanks for the great idea.
Hi! Like many others above, this is my first year teaching Spanish. I learned Spanish at a language institute over 12 years ago and have been working as a translator for many years, but teaching Spanish is a whole new experience for me. I am so excited about using so many of your ideas on here. Thanks for sharing!!
By the way.. I’m currently in Alabama!
Hi Lori- I am in Alabama teaching Spanish as well. Where do you teach?
I am about to start my 19th year of teaching (gee whiz, where did the time go?) and I have always let the students use Spanish names. Honestly, in the past year or two, I’ve thought about dropping it, but my Spanish I kids always want to choose names. (by the way, I’m the only foreign language teacher in my district in Arkansas). I LOVE the idea of putting nationalities with it. Fantastic idea! Thanks for sharing. Do you have everyone in a different city/country? Or just in countries? Can we see a list?
I give them each a country and then give them time to pick what city they want to be from. This gets them a little excited about their new place.
I’ve been teaching for 25 years, and still love finding creative ways for students to learn. I am so appreciative of teachers like you two, who are willing to share your ideas with the world. Thank you so much!
I have many Hispanic students. My question is to let them keep their real name or make them pick a new one. Any input?
Let them decide! Most of mine want to but I don’t make them if they don’t want it. Maybe they are proud of their heritage and this is a way to share who they are.
I love this idea! I will be using this with my French classes this year. Awesome blog – thanks for helping me get more creative in the classroom!
This is my 32nd year teaching….man I’m old. I love blogs like this because it does teach the old dog new tricks!! I love learning from you young pups!!!
Did you read that Megan?? Susan called me young too! Thanks Susan! You made my day.
Woof
This post cracks me up because Kara and I both have dogs and we like to show off their tricks when they are together! Ha! You know us too well Susan!
Here’s an idea that I am incorporating in to my class (I may have seen it on this blog or another or blended it in my own mind).
For every unit/topic we do, I am going to have each student research information about the topic from their assigned country.
Por ejemplo, is there a special greeting that people in their country use? A special food? What is the weather like?
By the end of the year, they will have a “Travel Brochure” based on what they have learned.
For their Spring project, I am switching from creating a Travel Brochure to choose a cultural topic (again, related to their assigned country) and present it t the class.
Thank you so much for this blog!
Sounds like a great project for me to give the kids that aren’t pulled out of class for ACT prep or senior activities… I like it!
Could you help me visualize how you have time to do the mini assessments on the proficiency stamp circles? ( I can ask how are you/I can say my name is…) I can ask as an entrance/exit ticket, but then I do not have the stamp sheet out. Also, How do you re-visit the kids who were absent or don’t really know the skill? I want to sit down with each kiddo and chat, but what does the rest of the class do? I feel like the “Stamping Queen” today.
Also, these skill sheets are assessments, so how do you use them in your grading system?
You mentioned that the other teachers in your school are using a traditional textbook system. Do you still give traditional paper tests/quizzes as well as proficiency assessments?
I love the real world homework–captures kids hearts and imaginations. But some are not so good at putting feet under their ideas. How does this impact their grade? I would love to hear your grading plan! Do daily question sheets count towards grades? Some students want a daily grade every day for every thing they do…If I tried to grade everything I would not have time to read your awesome blog or look for cool videos. I am looking for dice to use to let the dados decide–where did you find yours?
Thank you so much for sharing.
I need to know this Info. too.
Teachers Discovery has Cool Cubes
http://www.teachersdiscovery.com/ItemList–Cool-Cubes–m-999
No textbooks and no traditional tests or quizzes. When I came to my last school, they gave me a classroom set. I rarely used them (mainly just for sub plans).
Definitely don’t grade all of that!! This generation has been trained that they do it for the grade. Not in my class. They do it to learn! Once you change that mindset, the learning will begin.
I have a post called “how many grades”. See if that answers the grading questions.
You don’t have to stamp everyday. You can do stations and have a stamp station. Or get other students to help you. Or my friend Rachel calls 5 students a day. There is a bucket that has all of the unit “I can” goals. Each student draws 3, answers them, gets those stamps. She keeps track of how many possible stamps (since they are only answering 3, not all of them). If they can’t do it, they will have to come after school. Absent students can just be called on another day. Remember that their grade should really be all about the unit/end of course assessments. These sheets are more for students to track their progress than for you to take a grade. Honestly, if a student never gets it stamped, but can do the assessment, then everything is fine. Homework I hold them more responsible. This is a real life skill to meet deadlines.
This is an awesome idea. I want to share something that i do with my Spanish 1B. I have my students go to CNN en español and write about 2 to 3 sentences about something that has happened in a Spanish country. I tell them to focus on cognate words, this will help them get an idea as to what the report is about. They love this assignment. Recently there was an earth quake in Costa Rica and they were so happy to come in and share what had occurred. However, i never thought of giving them a new nationality. I am thinking of having them continue doing the current event but now it will be about their own country. By the way, would you kindly share the sub-plan with a map of Central and South America where they have to label the countries and write where their classmates are from to my email ncarrion108@aol.com. Or can it be found on teacherspayteachers? Once again, mil gracias for sharing all of your great ideas!
I love this idea. I teach French and was planning on having my students choose a French speaking country which they would study more in depth. Now, it will be their ” home” country. Thank you so much!