Brillante Viernes: July 21, 2017

Happy Friday!  I am back in Virginia Beach this week, and it is wonderful to be at home!  Plus I get more time to be with family, be at the beach and read.  I feel like I have finally had enough time to relax and spend some time with professional development to start to plan for my upcoming year.  Also, I am so proud that my father-in-law contributed to the history on the Navy SEALs Memorial here at the beach.  It has been a wonderful trip so far with family and friends.  There have been a lot of great posts to get us back into the swing of things as well:

• Madame Shepard has an amazing series on her blog right now on how to design a thematic unit!  Here is her first post, and be sure to check out all of the others as well.
• This post is full of tips for MovieTalk magic!
• I was so excited to see Sharon’s take on Goosechase.  I plan on using some of her ideas when I teach Blanca Nieves this year!
• I haven’t used Poll Everywhere yet, but this post to use Poll Everywhere AND Choose your own adventure stories looks amazing.

Here are some more posts from back in the day:

• Last summer, I wrote a series on how to start teaching proficiency.  Here is my interpretive post, my interpersonal post and my presentational post.
• An infographic on how to make learning stick
• Some tips for attending conferences as well as some ideas that I got from NTPRS.  (I still love the soy yo activity!)
• An interpersonal writing activity with Google Forms
• Now that I have my own classroom again, I need to bring back my basketball game!

Brillante Viernes: July 14, 2017

Whew!  I completely forgot that it was Friday until I was driving home tonight.  I really enjoyed meeting so many teachers in the workshop!  I also have a lot more reading to do this summer as I want to continually wrap my head around everything that I have learned.  With that- here are some of my favorite posts from this week:

• I made a Spotify playlist then realized that students could only find it if I paid for a subscription.  But this is an awesome way of how to learn language via Spotify!
• I love Laura’s post about the value of novels written for language learners.
• I use Google Forms frequently- and these updates to Google Forms are great!
• Check out this new blog: Puentes to CI- in particular- this post about novels.

Flashback Friday to my old posts:

• How I find authentic resources
• An interpretive listening activity

Brillante Viernes: July 7, 2017

It’s Friday!  Actually, this morning, I forgot what day it was!  #teachersummerwin Then, I realized that I had to blog for today!  Hope all of you are forgetting what day it is as well.  First, I wanted to share a few PD opportunities if you are local in these areas:

• On July 22 in Indianapolis, there is a free conference for Comprehensible Input!  Check it out here!
• On July 24-25, Martina is offering a workshop in upstate New York for comprehensible input.  It is only $50!!!  That is a steal!
• Next week, I will be at the Summer CI Roadshow with Ben Slavic and Tina Hargaden in Maryland.  Check it out here!

If you have another local workshop that I haven’t shared, let me know, and I will add it to subsequent posts.  Onto some of my favorite posts from this week:

• I am basing much of my curriculum next year on novels.  This post on why to use novels was so timely and is important for everyone to read.
• Madame Shepard’s posts are always full of ideas for everyone– not just French teachers!
• Looking for a new Pandora station for the summer or next school year?  Here is a list of 20 Pandora stations!
• Don’t replace, add is a great mantra to remind yourself for next year.

Here are some of my old posts from previous years:

• Summer is the perfect time to play around with new technology!  Last year, I found Adobe Spark!
• A superhero reading activity!
• Here is a warm-up that I used for the book Piratas y los agentes secretos
• Although I have modified my practice, here is how I modeled my study guides before tests and quizzes
• If you use the show telenovela Isa TKM, I have used this song before.

Brillante Viernes: June 30, 2017

It is time for our weekly Friday round-up together!  I am back from a wonderful time in South Carolina and Virginia.  As much as I love being by the beach, it also feels so nice to be home in Maryland as well.  Many teachers seem knee deep in traveling or conferences, but there are some great posts to read this week:

• This post is thoughtful as foreign language teachers continue to define what exactly being “intermediate” looks like.
• I really appreciate the honesty in Señor Fernie’s post about his reflection of his last year and how to recalibrate.
• Google Forms now allows you to grade question by question to make it easier.  I am enjoying using Google Forms for a lot of feedback recently, and I am impressed with the updates.
• Also- I really identify with Keith Toda’s post about language camps.  As someone who uses comprehensible input but also uses IPAs, I often feel in between two camps.

Flashback time!

• Here is my reflection from last year’s World Language EdCamp in Maryland.
• Speaking warm-up or exit ticket ideas
• This is the journal reflection that I use with my students.

Brillante Viernes: June 23, 2017

Happy Friday!  It is our last day here at Fripp Island, SC.  When we head back, I will be putting on EdCampCIVa on June 27 in Chesapeake, Va.  I am so excited to join many foreign language educators and continue to spread EdCamps.  I believe that this will be the way to spread professional development throughout the country.  (And- if you are in the area- we still have spots available!)  I thought that the blogosphere may take a little break- but there were some great posts this past week!

• Check out this new blog about CI in the Richmond, Va area!  I really like their post about storylistening and the Invisibles.  I am looking forward to learning more about Ben Slavic’s seminar.
• This post about a recipe card is an interesting way to start an activity.
• This year, I know I am going to focus on feedback even more.  This post will definitely help me.
• A huge EdPuzzle fan myself- I like how this activity was modified using EdPuzzle.

A flashback to previous years:

• Reflection from one of my first conferences about IPAs (and day two)
• Airport simulation
• I love this game- Crayon War!

Brillante Viernes: June 16, 2017

Happy Friday!  I hope everyone is officially on summer break now (or will be by the end of the day!)  I am down in Virginia Beach, and we are headed to South Carolina next week for our annual family trip!  I am pretty excited because I have this book packed away to read.  Also, when I come back to Virginia Beach, I will be working on putting on this edcamp here on June 27!  It’s not too late to join us!  In the meantime, you can catch up on your blog reading:

• Martina hits the nail on the head about finding your place in the world (and being content there!)
• As I continue to work on my IPAs, I really appreciated this post by John about interpersonal in the intermediate mode.
• I recently listened to the Google Teacher Tribe podcast about Google Docs, and this post goes along really well with it!
• Love these awesome brain breaks in Spanish!

And even more blog posts from me if you missed them the first time around 🙂

• Here is a reflection on how it went when we replaced the final exam last year with IPAs (hint- we liked it so much, we expanded it even faster this year!)
• My activities for the song Uno en un millón
• A reflexive story to include in that unit
• Casino game– a no prep required game that could cover any topic!

Brillante Viernes: June 9, 2017

Whew!  All of our students are done today!  We have two more days of meetings, but I finished grades and am almost done packing up.  These past two weekends, I haven’t done any work, and I think it has motivated me more during the week!  I will have my own room next year, and I will only have to move for one class.  How about you?  How is the end of your year shaping up?  Hopefully as you are relaxing, you can check out these posts from last week:

• Laura is so honest with this post.  I appreciate how she adds how she will modify her videos for next year, but it is a reminder that no teacher is perfect even for us bloggers!
• Elizabeth has a great idea for a reading cube that will be helpful for me next year as I use a lot of novels.
• I love these ideas for incorporating art into your classes.  And I am jealous of class field trips to the Getty!  Although, I shouldn’t complain because we do have the NGA.
• This post is everything!  I really want to work not only on the feedback that I give students, but also what they do with it next year!
• Speaking of novels, I am excited to use Blanca Nieves next year, and Allison’s post makes me even more excited and gives me a lot of ideas!

Here’s what I have been posting in the beginning of June for the past few years:

• Here is the end of the year evaluation that I gave to my students two years ago.
• This is still my list for a successful summer!
• Reflections after a project: I had my students fill these out after seeing others’ magazines

Brillante Viernes: June 2, 2017

It’s Friday!  For many, it is the first Friday of summer (do those teachers even know what day it is?!)  This was my last day teaching US classes.  I have one more MS class next Monday.  My students have already finished exams, and they are completing feedback today.  I am SO impressed with how many of them did on the IPA.  I can’t wait to finish grading them and analyze the results.  Here are some of my favorite recent posts:

• I love how Wendy did her reflections!  (Hint! You may be seeing something similar from me this week.)
• Rebecca posted in Path2Proficiency!  She gave some excellent tips for unit planning.
• I keep nodding a lot about everything on the Language Gym’s recent posts.  It has me thinking about how I will plan my classes next year.
• I love these ideas for how to grow as an educator this summer!

Here are some older posts from this week on my blog:

• It is so easy to create extra Quizizz practices for my students to review for the exam.
• Reflection from 2015… mostly to say I finally accomplished goal #3!
• Although I have changed my final exam to an IPA, here was how I differentiated my old exam.
• I still haven’t found my video, but if you have Cinco Amigas, this is the handout that I used.

Brillante Viernes: May 26, 2017

 

Whew!  Memorial Day weekend- and many people are done with school!  We are finishing up our IPAs.  However, some people continue all through most of June!  We have exams the last week which helps.  Above is an acrostic poem from my blended students.  I love the end of the year reflection.  I should frame this because it makes me smile every time!  Enjoy the long weekend- and check out some of these posts:

• Check out the last installment of Musicuentos Black Box podcast about aptitude.  It is just as great as all of the others and so valuable to teachers.
• This looks like a fun game to play and a great video to watch!
• How to stay productive at the end of the year and some ideas of what to start for next year
• Finally- when the end of the year is long and everyone is frustrated: read this by Laura and remember why teaching is worth it!

Finally- a flashback to previous years in May:

• Many of these confessions are still true… except organizing my desk.  I rarely do that… probably because I move around so much this year that it is all in my bag!
• More telenovela tips if you want to use one at the end of the year.
• Tic-tac-toe reading activity for longer readings/novels
• Past tense story
• Grammar final exam study guide that we used to use for level 2
• My favorite song: Corazon sin cara

Brillante Viernes: May 19, 2017

Happy Friday!  It is mid-May and next week is Memorial Day weekend!  I can’t believe it, but with weather in the 90s almost all week, it feels like summer.  While I am looking forward to the long break, I will miss my students from this year.  Next year, I am going to teach levels 1 and 5.  I will have a lot of my students from a few years ago that I am excited about, but it is always bittersweet to lose a class and the community that only that class can make.  It is the perfect weekend to go outside, but when you find a little time inside, check out these:

• So many teachers love BINGO– and here is to make it more comprehensible!
• If you haven’t tried FVR yet- even more reasons why you should!
• As I continue to develop interpretive activities, I love Kara’s innovative take on them.  Also- check out the amazing authentic resource that she shared!
• I keep reading about the game Mafia, and I just haven’t wrapped my head around it.  Annabelle’s post has made it much easier for me to understand.
• Also a bonus if you are as excited as I am for summer reading!

Flashback Friday for many of my previous posts in May:

• My revised summer proficiency pack for students
• I didn’t have a chance to do the full telenovela unit that I did last year, but here is what I did last year that you can use this year even though the De que te quiero te quiero is not on Netflix.
• I love this sentence-picture warm-up, and it is perfect for the end of the year!
• Cali y el Dandee- Yo te esperaré and how I changed it up this year.
• Do you subscribe to Intercom?  If not, you should!
• Videos that I used for Agentes Secretos- I am excited to teach level 1 again to use this book next year.