Holt Junior High School

The School The school seems modern, clean and relatively new The architecture and design are basic and simple The school is all one level The walls are white and the carpets are dark, no extreme colors

Student Body 964 Students 97% average daily attendance District is % white 9% African American 6% Hispanic 3% multiracial 2% Asian Per pupil spending is $8,251 26% of district receives free or reduced lunch Holt public schools have a 75.95% graduation rate

Spanish Program School uses three trimester program Students can choose one elective each trimester Spanish as an elective requires students to enroll for the entire year This means it is the only elective they can take all year, unless they choose to participate in band after school Only requirement for participation in the Spanish program is that students must have at least a C in their English class They must also be in the 8 th grade Many students are forced to choose between Spanish and personal interests such as art or band

Classroom The climate in the classroom is friendly yet firm The class is well organized and the expectations are straight forward and clear The teacher, Mrs. Barish, isn’t afraid to joke with the students, even at her own expense The students know various behaviors that are expected of them such as: bringing their book to class every day not speaking during quiz time raising their hands when they have finished their quiz The students are seated in a semi-circle facing the front, right corner of the classroom There are many decorations in the classroom including: Maps of Hispanic countries Flags from all around the world The Spanish alphabet A hammock hanging from the ceiling A poncho and sombrero in the corner There is also a fair amount of technology in the classroom including an over head projector, a television and a computer

Mentor Teacher: Mrs. Barish Mrs. Barish told us that, to be honest, the reason she became a Spanish teacher is because she couldn’t make it as a veterinarian. She originally studied Vet Med at MSU, but discovered she couldn’t cut open animals, so she switched tracks and pursued her second interest which was Spanish Mrs. Barish never did a formal study abroad, however she back packed through Spain for 3 weeks and also took a one week trip to Merida, Mexico with some students She tries to teach in a way that is similar to the way she was taught, which was very interactive However, she does not use many of the techniques of her mentor teacher who was not very helpful to her Mrs. Barish says that she places the most emphasis on interaction in her teaching. She tries to engage the students in talking with her and their classmates Her style has not changed much over her 11 years of teaching except for the fact that she tries to bring Spanish into the classroom earlier to get the students listening and understanding And of course every year varies slightly depending on the students