What are you doing in the first week of your Spanish class? The lingering summer question that haunts all teachers…
One of the best things about teaching is that you get a fresh start every year. Want to try something new? Want to set up your room in a completely different way? Go for it! A new school year brings endless possibilities to your Spanish class. Keep reading for 5 ideas to try in the first week of Spanish class and have your best year yet!
All of the options can seem overwhelming sometimes. Social media doesn’t help because we are flooded with every amazing idea and feel pressure to try it out.
Don’t worry- I’m sharing my 5 tricks for starting the year off with a 💥
1-Ditch the syllabus talk on day 1
What was your favorite first day activity as a student? Having trouble thinking of one? Probably because we usually hear about course expectations and the syllabus. Every period. Every year.
What a boring way to come back after the summer!
My advice- scrap the syllabus (for today) and do something FUN!
It’s your students first day back- why not activate their “Spanish brains” and get them speaking, thinking, hearing Spanish right away?!
It’s important to find an activity that provides input while also giving students an opportunity to practice. Low stakes is best as students can feel uncomfortable engaging with each other right away.
What am I doing on day one? This or that. It’s the best way to expose my students to Spanish while also easing them back in.
The best part? I can level this up or down as much as I need to. Seriously- I used this exact activity in my 7th grade class and in my 12th grade class last year. It was a hit!
To make your life even easier, you can grab a copy of that activity here.
2-Set the tone- Proficiency over Perfection
Many of our biggest struggles in class come from our students’ fear. Lack of participation, relying on English, unengaged students- all come from the fear of taking a risk and being wrong.
Teenagers do not want to be made fun of or make a mistake in front of the whole class. When it comes to Spanish many of them lack confidence. They don’t remember a word so they don’t participate at all. They stress over being perfect.
It’s our job to break that barrier and constantly remind them that proficiency is more important than perfection. Saying it once doesn’t stick. Believe it or not teenagers don’t hang on every word we say 😂
Solution- tell a story of a time you forgot a word or made a silly mistake. Start by being vulnerable and showing that you aren’t perfect bc no one is!
Then, hang this sign. Because again- they aren’t always listening 😉
3-Prioritize connections over curriculum
If the pandemic has taught us anything it’s that relationships with our students are way more important than the actual content that we are teaching. If your students feel safe, respected, and cared for- they will do any activity that you ask of them.
Additionally, students will not look back on our classes in 20 years and remember the vocabulary that we taught them but they will absolutely remember the conversations that we had and the stories that we shared.
Getting to know your students will completely change your classroom. I am not talking about surface stuff, I mean likes, dislikes, family arrangements, extracurriculars, other classes, etc. We have the advantage in our classes that we can actually talk about these things (in Spanish of course!)
My favorite way to do this… Weekend Chats. (If you’re not sure what this is or want to learn more- click here!)
I begin every Monday with a Weekend Chat and it has quickly become one of my favorite routine activities in all of my classes (my students love it, too!) If you want to grab a copy of my year long Weekend Chat slide show, click here!
4- Think Big When It Comes To Lesson Planning
I know lesson planning is something that people either love or hate. Writing lesson plans is not the most fun thing to do but having an outline of your year, unit, or week can be SUPER helpful.
Where to begin? Think big- what is your end goal? Are you preparing your students for a big exam? Will your students take a midterm or final exam? Once you have the end goal in mind you can work backward to fill in what you want to teach throughout the year.
I like to think quarterly, weekly, and daily. By the end of the quarter, we will cover (insert topics). To cover these students will need to (insert activities).
I like to brainstorm certain activities that I can recreate within each unit. This gives my students plenty of practice with the activity and the skills associated with that activity while applying new vocabulary or ideas.
For example, in my IB class I know that my students will have to complete an Individual Oral Assessment. Many students need to talk about a picture. Now that I have the end goal, and the activity I can easily incorporate this practice into every unit of study. It’s super easy to switch out the picture, just practice the skills!
I plan all of my IB units this way as repeating the activities and giving plenty of opportunities to practice new vocabulary has proven really advantageous for students. Take a look at how I plan my IB units here
Planning backward will not only help you prepare your students really well, it will save your sanity when things get crazy during the school year!
5- Create a Supportive Classroom
As I mentioned earlier, students lack confidence when it comes to producing Spanish. So, how can we boost their confidence? Be supportive.
This goes beyond saying “You got this!” Students need tangible support in your classroom. This can come in the form of word walls, anchor charts, reference sheets, and chat mats. Choose the format that best works with your teaching situation. For me, I am constantly sharing classrooms and moving so word walls are not in the cards for me. I stick with Chat Mats because they are portable, easy to make, and easy to adapt to any class.
Decide which format works for you and create some supports that are level appropriate. Think about the expressions your students constantly need. Why are they using Google Translate- what words are they looking for?
It’s also helpful to use common verbs and level appropriate tenses for your students.
By starting the year with support you will have confident students who take risks and want to participate in your class!
Now that you’ve got your gameplan for a great school year, take some time to relax and recharge. It can get chaotic but with a few small tweeks your classes will run smoothly and you will have a great year!
