Español
II
Animas High School
2012-2013 – Programa de Estudios
Profesora: Becca
Katz
Correo eletrónico:
beccakatz.teacher@gmail.com
Sitio web for daily updates: http://spanish2ahs.blogspot.com/
Sitio web for homework, handouts, notes from class etc.: https://sites.google.com/site/ahsspanish20122013/espanol-2-files
Horario de consulta (office hours): martes (Tuesday) 3:15-4:15, jueves
(Thursday) 3:15-4:15 o pide una cita (ask for an appointment)
Goals for Español II at AHS
1.
For you to
be excited about learning Spanish.
2. For you to
develop your ability to communicate in Spanish.
3. For you to
explore other cultures thereby broadening your worldview.
4. For you to
become independent learners who are passionate about the pursuit of knowledge.
The most essential aspect of this course is
language study. We will explore grammar and vocabulary
through a variety of means to advance your language proficiency. More
importantly, we will practice the four major linguistic skills: reading,
writing, speaking, and listening. By the
end of Spanish II you will have:
- Furthered your knowledge of grammar and
vocabulary.
- Furthered your ability to speak, write, read, and listen in Spanish.
Explicit language goals stated – the beauty of language is that it is a
gateway to experiencing, understanding, and appreciating different
cultures.
AHS is a project-based learning
school. Our first project, "Todo Recall," has the goal of dusting off
your Spanish skills after a summer lying dormant in your brain. After that, our
next project will be "Corridos: Historia por Música" which delves
into Mexican-American history as told through a popular folk-song genre, the
"corrido." More projects will follow; all of them will have the
ultimate goal of developing your Spanish skills.
What does our class period look like?
Each week will include activities
designed to learn or practice project-related content (grammar, culture,
vocabulary) and to refine the four linguistic skills. You will also have time
to work on your projects after we have developed foundational content on which
those projects will be based.
As a rule, each class period will
be broken down into 2 sections: skills practice (generally employing/reviewing
recent grammar/vocabulary) & new concepts/project time. That said, skills
are often integrated so we will frequently do more than one skill in a single
class period.
Las Notas (Grades)
*Please see “grading policies” for more detailed information on
assessments, projects, homework, tests, and late work policies.
·
Vocabulary/Grammar Standards 45%
·
Linguistic Skills (reading, writing, listening,
speaking) 45%
·
Projects 10% (Projects
are actually worth more than 10%, but project grades will MOSTLY fall into the
linguistic skills/standards grades. This 10% is for aspects of projects that
don't exemplify specific Spanish skills/standards such as presentation quality,
refinement of an art piece, etc).
Grading
& Class Policies
Participation
There is
no explicit participation grade AND your positive participation IS required. My
expectation is that you participate in class everyday. I am aware that people
have "off" days and "on" days. If I notice you having more
"off" days than "on", I will likely talk to you and check
in to make sure everything is ok. If you have an "off" day once in
awhile, I will just let it go. Please also feel encouraged to approach me and
let me know if you think you're going to be having an off day for a specific
reason. It can help a lot to know.
*Occasionally there will be a participation grade associated
with a given activity in class -- it will most often be channeled into a
linguistic skills grade.
Grammar/Vocabulary
Standards (45%)
Your content knowledge of grammar and vocabulary will be
evaluated in short, quiz-like assessments on specific standards (sometimes
involving integrated skills) worth 10 points. During the course of the
semester, we will generally have an assessment each week. You can reassess up
to 3 times on a given standard. I will also regularly reassess you on
"old" standards. The scores on your assessments will be averaged and
will account for 45% of your final semester grade.
If you would like to reassess, you MUST follow this procedure. Email Becca with a polite
request by 9pm on the Tuesday prior to the Thursday on which you would like to
reassess. Your email should contain the following items:
1. Which
standard (name) you would like to reassess.
2. A reason
justifying WHY you think you will do better on the reassessment.
3. When you
plan to take the reassessment: during Spanish Help SIG on Thursday or during
office hours on Thursday.
My grade book will always reflect your most recent scores on
standards. ****PLEASE NOTE: I will
regularly reassess standards that we
have previously tested. If you score worse than you did previously, your score
will go down. In that way, I am testing both your mastery of a standard AND
your ability to retain that mastery.****
But remember, if you don't like your current score, you can always practice
that standard and then initiate a reassessment on it to demonstrate your
new/renewed understanding.
Linguistic
Skills (45%)
You will be graded on your ability understand and
communicate in Spanish. As such, you will be regularly evaluated (through
in-class activities, projects, and assessments designed to address specific
skills progress) on your ability to communicate in the four modes: reading,
writing, listening, and speaking. Sometimes
linguistic skills will be evaluated with assessments similar to the “grammar/vocabulary
standards.” When that happens, the assessment and reassessment procedure will
be the same.
Furthermore,
speaking is one of the four linguistic skills. The expectation for Spanish 2 is that you use Spanish unless otherwise indicated
by Becca. So, you should always *TRY* to say something in Spanish, but if
you would like to speak in English, you must always first ask, “¿Puedo hablar
en ingles, por favor?”. Each day you
will get a point for NOT SPEAKING IN ENGLISH. Once lost, you cannot get it back
for that day. These points will go toward your linguistic skills grade.
Projects
(10%)
Generally your project grades will be sorted into the
corresponding linguistic skill or grammar/vocabulary standard areas. There are
aspects of projects that don't "fit" those categories, such as the
refinement process on a piece of writing. Those exceptions will fall into this
"project" grade.
Homework -
Optional and Required
Optional Homework
As a rule, you will have short optional
homework (typically related to grammar & vocabulary). This homework is
highly encouraged, though not required*.
We will devote time in class to addressing any questions and clarifying areas
of confusion about the optional homework. You will know homework is optional
because I will tell you and indicate that it is optional with an "O"
on the homework board in my classroom.
*If it is determined that you are struggling with grammar and vocabulary
acquisition, optional homework may become required for you. Similarly, if you
think you would benefit from required homework, please see me and we can make
that arrangement. If homework becomes required for you, your grammar/vocabulary
standards grade will be worth 40% instead of 45% and homework completion (as a
%) will assume the other 5% of your standards grade.
Required Homework
Sometimes you will have required
homework to set you up for work in class or to move forward on projects. This
homework will typically involve short readings or written reflections. You will
know when homework is required because I will tell you and indicate that it is
required with an "R" on the homework board in my classroom.
Homework, even
required homework, is not generally graded. The idea is that you complete
homework to be successful in the course as a whole. I view the required
homework as the work you MUST do to be successful in meeting the course
objectives and the optional homework as work you might need to do to be successful in meeting the course objectives.
Late Work
If you turn in project work or required homework late, it
will generally lose 20% of its value for each day late until it is worth 0%.
Even if an assignment is worth 0% (i.e. it's 5 days late) you MUST turn it in
to get a grade for Spanish each semester. In other words, you CANNOT complete
Spanish class without turning in ALL of your required work.
Extensions
As long as you give me 20+ hours of advanced warning, I will
generally grant you an extension. Just talk to me. Asking for an extension with
fewer than 20 hours until the assignment is due (except in the cases of
emergencies) will be viewed as lack of preparedness/time management on your
part and thus you will trigger the late policy. Please note that sometimes I
cannot grant an extension because I need you to have something ready for an
in-class activity.
Absences
If you are absent, please go to my two DPs -- the Spanish 2
blogger site to check what happened that day in class, and the Spanish 2 google
site to get any handouts, notes, worksheets, etc. Please ask 3 classmates if
you are unclear about what happened when you are absent, then see me during
office hours. If you are absent here's what happens to work:
·
Project deadlines stay the same. These are
longer-term deadlines and you will know about them in your absence. If you
cannot meet one due to extenuating circumstances, please see me.
·
Required homework is due the day after you return to
school. If you cannot get it done by the next day, please see me.
·
When in doubt, please see me to maintain open
communication about expectations.
Materiales
necesarios (Required materials)
Please come to class EVERY day with the following items:
·
lap-top computer
·
writing utensils (blue/black pen, pencil)
·
A 3-ring
binder w/ loose-leaf paper & 5 dividers labeled: el vocabulario, la
gramática, las competencias, los trabajos, otro
·
A positive mental attitude
·
1 dry-erase marker (You can leave this in my
classroom with your name on it)
HERRAMIENTAS PARA LA
CLASE Y LA VIDA (TOOLS FOR CLASS AND LIFE) – THE HABITS OF THE HEART AND MIND
1. Perspective
– Have a point of view; respect and
understand the points of view of others.
Take a stand, but be willing to listen to other ideas than your own.
2. Advocacy – When you need help, or when you don’t understand, ask
questions. When you can’t connect
to a project, schedule a meeting with a teacher. Advocate for yourself, for your classmates, for your
community, for your planet.
3. Perseverance
– Don’t give up. Learn to work through difficulty.
4. Evidence – Use it to back up your perspective. Require it from others who make
claims. Make decisions based on
it.
5. Refinement – Take pride in everything you do in class and make
it beautiful, whether you are reading, writing, speaking, or creating.
Las reglas universales
(UNIVERSAL SCHOOL RULES)
The following are in place
to ensure a respectful and safe learning environment. Violation of these rules will result in your helping in
various school and classroom improvement activities.
1.
No swearing.
2.
No listening to
music anywhere in the building without instructor permission. Wearing headphones around your neck is
considered the same as listening to music.
3.
Follow the fashion
guide while at school.
4.
No chewing gum.
5.
No inappropriate
use of technology.
6.
Refrain from
behavior that could break one of the low hanging sprinkler heads in a classroom
(throwing objects, swinging swords around, etc.)
Las reglas de Becca (Becca's rules)
1.
Cell phone use
is forbidden at all times. If you are found using a cell phone, your phone will
be confiscated and you will pick it up at the end of the day. A subsequent
offense will result in your parents having to pick up your phone at my convenience.
2.
You may
eat/drink in class. Any drink must have a lid on it. No food or drink may be
within 3 feet of computers. Clean up after yourself! As soon as I find
crumbs on desks, garbage on the floor, or any other adverse evidence of your
food/beverage consumption, I will no longer allow you (or anyone else) to have
food/beverages in the classroom.
3.
The use of
babelfish, google translate, or any other translation device is PROHIBITED and
will be considered cheating. The only
program you should be using for looking up words online is wordreference.
If I suspect the use of a prohibited device, I will take the issue up immediately
with Jake and/or Michael.
4.
Please don't
wear headphones (even around your neck) in my classroom except during
independent work time. I will let you know when that is, or you can ask.
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