¡Bienvenidos! Welcome! 7/8 Spanish 2 Nicole Toth

My Contact Information Email: ntoth@birmingham.k12.mi.us* *The best way to contact me is through EMAIL School phone: (248) 203-4444 ext. 50630 Room #: 503 Class Website: www.bcstoth.wordpress.com

About Me 14th year teaching, all at BCS Bachelor’s in Spanish and Master’s in Curriculum and Teaching, both from MSU Married 12 years to my husband, Chad Live in Lake Orion with our 4 kids; Tyler, 8, and Keegan, 6, and Mia, 4, and Taelyn, 2

Spanish at BCS Why Did BCS Choose Spanish as its focal language? Spanish will be very useful in the upcoming U.S. society, not to mention globally 16.5% of our current US population are native or bilingual Spanish speakers and we are now the 2nd largest Spanish-speaking country in the world – only Mexico has more! As of the year 2050, we are expected to become the largest Spanish-speaking country, as 31.5% of our population is are expected to be Spanish-speaking. Good article to read: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/30/opinion/30kristof.html

Students Who Take this Course General Progression to High School 7/8 Pacing Schedule Spanish 1b+ Spanish 2a/b Students Who Take this Course 7th graders who passed Spanish 1a in 6th grade 8th graders who repeated the Spanish 1a class in 7th grade 8th graders who passed Spanish 1b in 7th grade General Progression to High School (8th graders only) HS Spanish 2A 8th graders that perform at a high level – HS Spanish 3A 8th graders that perform at a passing/below passing level – HS Spanish 2A or B

State Credit The MI State Board of Education expects all students to complete two credits of a world language other than English prior to graduation, or demonstrate a two-year equivalent proficiency. Birmingham has determined that one of these credits MUST be earned at the high school level, leaving one that can be earned at the middle school level.

State Credit Con. In order to earn this credit, students must pass the Spanish 2a Midterm (created and mandated by the high school) with an 78% or higher. The content on the Midterm includes material mainly from the first semester, Spanish 2a, and prior. They must also move on to Spanish 3 at the high school (if they choose to repeat Spanish 2, however, their credit is voided and they must take 2 consecutive years of a language in high school) For more information, visit: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/mde/WL_Guidelines_FI NAL_206823_7.pdf

SPANISH 2 Curriculum The Spanish 2 curriculum follows the State GLCE’s (Grade Level Concept Expectations) and the BPS World Language Philosophy. It is based on the Descubre 1 and 2 program by Vista Higher Learning. We have a classroom set of textbooks for use in class, and each student will have access to the online textbook (Vtext) and Supersite, a website full of study tools, activities, and much more.

SPANISH 2 Our curriculum is based on the National Standards for Foreign Language, which encompasses the 5 C’s of Modern Language Education: Communications – Understanding and producing the language Cultures – Practices, products and perspectives of Hispanic countries Comparisons – comparing Spanish language and Hispanic cultures to English/US Connections – integrating with other curriculum areas Communities – using Spanish beyond school setting

Pacing SPANISH 2 Español 2a: Descubre 1 1st semester REVIEW Lessons 2/3, 4-6 (All verbs in the present tense, object pronouns, starting to speak in the past/preterite tense) Lección 7 La rutina diaria Daily routine Lección 8 La comida Food Lección 9 Las fiestas Parties/festivals MIDTERM Large, cumulative test mandated from the high school; Listening, Reading, Writing, Speaking, Grammar and Vocabulary parts Español 2b: Descubre 2 2nd semester Lección 1 En el consultorio In the doctor’s office Lección 2 La tecnología Technology Lección 3 La vivienda Housing FINAL Smaller than the Midterm, still high-school mandated, but only Grammar and Vocabulary section.

SPANISH 2 Grading ALL BASED ON POINTS Test questions are usually worth double points

SPANISH 2 Work/Late Work If a student has an overall low grade in Spanish, it is sometimes due to missing/late work Most work will consist of studying for vocabulary and grammar quizzes and unit tests I accept late homework, but it goes down by 25% each week it is late.

SPANISH 2 PEP (Preparation/Effort/Participation) Students will receive multiple PEP grades per quarter and one larger rubric-based grade at the end of each quarter PEP Rubric includes these categories: Preparation and Effort Participation Class Presence Individual Participation Academic Preparedness Partner/Group Participation Accepting Constructive Criticism Spanish-speaking Participation Respect Towards Others Openness to Learn

Class Resources www.bcstoth.wordpress.com My Website: Located here: Digital Copy of Tonight’s Information (Course Outline/PEP Rubric, This Power Point) Weekly Class Schedule and Information Class Documents, Student Homework and Handouts Helpful Links My Contact Information (also see handout)

Class Resources Our Online Descubre Textbook and Supersite: www.vhlcentral.com LOTS of practice activities of all types (vocabulary, listening, grammar, reading, speaking, etc.) Online PDF version of textbook Duolingo (website/ app) – encourage students to use this app weekly, great for review Quizlet (website/app) – online flashcards and study lists

Here’s to An Exciting Year for your Students! Thank you for coming!