~1~

CCHS WORLD LANGUAGES

2020NEWSLETTER

Wiegeht’s?|¿Comoestás?|Quoideneuf?

Bonjour!

Whatafantasticyearsofar!IntheFall,studentsvisitedaFrenchgoatcheese

facilityinBloomsdaleMissouriwheretheylearnedaboutthecheesemakingprocessandgottotastedifferentcheeses.Inclass,weelaboratedontheFrench

cheeseculturewithdifferentrelatedactivities.Frenchstudentsgottoalsovisitthe

FrenchcolonialhomesinSt.Genevieve.ThisworkedgreatasacontinuationoftheHomeunitfortheFrench2andan

elaborationonthestudyofFrench

settlementsinNorthAmerica,fortheFrench4.HonorsFrench4readanovelof

theirchoiceandwegottodiscussitevery

Mondayaspartof’’lundilecture’’.Attheendofthesemester,eachstudentmadea

presentationabouttheirnovels.The

studentsenjoyedthisprojectwhich,contributedtoconsiderablegrowthintheirconversationskills.FrenchClubparticipatedintheFBLAFallFestivalwherethey

madesavoryandsweetcrepes.

InNovember,FrenchCluborganizedtheir3rdannualFrenchTrivianightwhere

theymadeandservedauthenticFrenchOnionsoup.Thestudents’effortswere

rewardedbyasuccessfulandfunevent.ThisyearwealsostartedapenpalprogramwithahighschoolinTulle,France,

whereoneofourownCCHSalumniisteaching.Thestudentsarelovingthis

programandhavebeenlookingforwardtocorrespondingwiththeirnewfriends.DuringNationalFrenchWeek,studentshadfunparticipatingintheannualdaily

TriviaQuestioncontestsopentothewholeschoolaswellas,participatinginthe

NationalFrenchKahootandNationalFrenchVideocompetition,bothput

togetherbytheAmericanAssociationof

FrenchTeachers(AATF).ThisSpring,French1andFrench2are

enjoying’’lundilecture’’;everyMonday

wehavebeenreadingachapterof”PauvreAnne’'.Allclassesarealso

enjoying’’mardimusique’’(ourown

World Languages Faculty

Ms.MeriamLahlou

French

1‐2

Ms.AlexandriaBassett

German

2‐3

Ms.LinayaGermann

Spanish

4‐5

Ms.JaneRendon

Spanish

6

Ms.MelisaLopez

Spanish

6

Mr.ArnoldTaylor

Chair,Spanish,ESL,

BilingualEd

7

Overview:

FrenchNews

German

Adventures

SpanishthroughSOMOS

OnthePathto

Pro iciency

~2~

MarchMadness)wheretheyhavebeenlisteninganddiscussing2contemporaryFrenchsongs,everyTuesday;each

studentvotesontheirfavoritesongeveryweek,andwritesthewinningsonginabracketchart.HonorsFrench4studentsalreadypickedasongtheywanttoperformatSIUC’sWorldLanguageDayinApril.

WearealsoveryexcitedthisyeartoattendaFrenchImmersionweekendatConcordiaLanguageVillagesinMN.Studentsorganizedseveralfundraisersto

helpwiththeirtravelcostsandHonorsFrench4enteredthetravelaward

essaycontestputbySHF‐SocieteHonorairedeFrançais(NationalFrenchHonorsSociety).WearedelightedtoannounceMaysaCrooksasanational

winner‐AllhertravelcostswillbepaidforbySHF.Amongotheractivitieswe

arelookingforwardthisSpring,isourparticipationintheCCHSannualmulticulturalFestival‐FrenchClubhasbeenbusybuildinganEiffelTowerto

displayattheirbooth.WearealsoplanningonparticipatingintheCCHS

Poetryslam,celebratingMardi‐Graswithfrancophoneculturalactivities,participatinginNationalWorldLanguageWeek,competingintheNational

Frenchcontest,takingatriptheAllianceFrançaiseinSaintLouis,aswellas

teachingFrenchtogradeschoolstudentsaspartofour3rdannualcommunityservice.Towrapuptheyear,studentswillbesubmittingscholarshipapplicationsforsummerlanguagecampsatConcordiaLanguageVillages,

inanattempttokeepupwiththosevaluablelanguageskills,weworkharddeveloping,duringtheschoolyear.

~MadameLahlou,CCHSFrenchTeacher

Guten Tag!

GermanAdventuresInearlyNovember,StudentsinGerman2throughGerman4HtraveledbybustoSt.Louistoseeatheatricaldanceproductiontitled“WallStories”attheUniversityofSt.LouisMissouri(UMSL).Thisshowcelebrated30yearssincetheBerlinWallcomingdownin1989.Whilethisproductionwasveryabstract,thestudentsseemedtoconnecttothePinkFloydSoundtrackandtheacrobaticdancemoves.Followingtheperformance,thedancerssatonthestageandengagedwiththestudentsanddiscussedmainthemes,emotions,andhistoryreflectedintheshow.

Then,thisDecemberwastheChicagoGermanClubTrip!Twenty‐threestudentsandsevenchaperonescamealongfortheride.Werodethe3AMAmtraktoChicago,grabbedbreakfastatStarbucks,andwewereoffonthe‘L’TraintotheDankHausChristkindlmarkt.StudentstriedGermanPretzels,KäseSpätzle,andGulaschsuppe!

~3~

Laterintheday,studentstraveledtoDaleyPlazafortheChristkindlmarkt.Studentsdispersedintothecrowdsofpeopletovisitthenumerousboothsand tents filledwithgifts, ornaments,handmadegoods, chocolate, cuckooclocks, nutcrackers, hot chocolate, and bratwursts! There were so manywonderfulthingstosee!

Asthetripwascomingtoaclose,theweathergrewcolderandwemadeourwaytoUnionStation.Onthetrainridehome,studentsdidn’tsleep,despitebeingexhausted. Instead theyplayednumerous roundsofUNOandothergamesonthetrain.AllinallitwasalongdayoftravelandGermanCulture,anditwasdefinitelyworthit!

Summer2021GermanicCulturesTripAbroad

There is a fantastic opportunity for your student to travelthroughGermanyandAustriaduringthesummerof2021!Thistripisachanceforstudentswhoarecurioustoseetheworldforthemselves. It isa tripthatwillbe leadandorganizedbyWorldStrides,andIwillbeoneoftheseveralchaperonesonthisadventure.

Ifyourstudentinterestedinthistrip,pleasefeelfreetoemailmeorourWorldStridesTeamLead,PaulArcangeli.

~FrauBassett,CCHSGermanTeacher

WorldStridesTeamLead:parcangeli@worldstrides.org

GermanicCulturesTripWebsite

TripID:Bassett-2021June7,2021‐June16,2021

https://www.educationaltravel.com/register

~4~

~5~

Buenos Dias!

WorldLanguageArticleSpanishteacherswithinourCCHSWorldLanguageDepartmenthavewelcomedanewapproachwithcurricularchangeswhichbeganlastFallwiththetransitionfromtraditionaltextbookForeignLanguageteachingtoaninnovative,thematicbasedcurriculumwhichstresseslanguageacquisitionvs.languagelearning.Studentresponse,includingverbalfeedbackintheclassroom,paper/pencilsurvey,andoverallstudentgrowthindicatesthatournewapproachwillultimatelybemoreeffectiveandwillleadstudentsdownaveritablepathtoproficiency.Traditionally,textbookteachinghascumbersomelistsofvocabularywordsandisolated,scaffoldedgrammarstructuresfollowedwithboutsofroteexerciseswhichoftentimescanbemeaninglessandlackpurposefulnessforeverydaylifeandcommunication.Uponcompletionofaseriesofexercisesandactivities,studentsaretestedinvariousformatstoassignagradeofjusthowwellhe/shecanregurgitatethechaptercontent.Beyondthatpoint,studentsfreelyadmitthatmuchislostifitisnot“drilledandkilled”forthepurposeofmoretesting.AllofthisleadsuptotheunfortunateconversationyearsdowntheroadwhenWorldLanguageteachersmeettheseyoungadultsandtheirresponsewhengreetedwith,“I’maSpanishteacher”is,“ItookallfouryearsofSpanishinhighschoolandIcan’tspeakaword!”

Ournewcurriculum,Somos(WeAre),presentsasmallamountofcorevocabularyandreadilyuseablegrammarstructures,manyofwhicharealreadyconjugatedinavarietyoftenses,whichmimicwhateverydayusewouldsoundlike.Severalseriesofshortsentences,repetition,andparaphrasingarekeyinhelpingstudentstocomprehendmaterialandtobeabletothinkinandeventuallyrespondintargetlanguage.StudentsarefocusedmoreonwhattheyDOknow,notonwhattheylack.Inthismanner,languageacquisitionisseenastheresultofhavingmeaningfullycommunicatedaboutcontentmatter,notmemorizing

speechcomponents.Traditionalfillintheblanktestingisreplacedwithtask‐orientedassessments,inwhichstudentssetgoalsforthemselvesindividuallyandaregradedbyrubrics,notonnumberofcorrectresponses.Unitsarecenteredaroundaparticulartheme,andactivitiesareprovidedforstudentstopracticeallmodalities:reading,writing,listening,andspeaking.Overtime,thegoalofthisapproachisforstudentstoproduceanaturalflowoflanguagevs.theirproductionofaseriesofmechanicallyproducedstructuresthatarenotconsistentwithnaturallanguageflow.Correctionoferrorsisnotthefocus,butrathercomprehensibility—inotherwords,students’goalistobeunderstood,notnative‐like,whichisunattainableforanoldersecondlanguagelearner.Formepersonally,duetohavingseveralnewcoursestoteach,theFall2019semesterwasbeguninourtraditionalSpanishtextbook,whichenabledmetobegintheyearwithmaterialsalreadyinplace.IthenadaptedtheSomoscurriculumafterfirstquarter,inOctober.Thismeansthatforthefinalexam,Ihadtoteststudentsinatraditionalformatonemoretime(100questionsmultiplechoice)toensurefairnessandvalidityintestingoverBOTHcurriculums.(Futuretesting/assessmentswillberubricbased.)Acomputererror,however,necessitatedthatthescansheetsforthefinalbehandgradedatthelastminuteinordertoturninfinalexamgradesforfirstsemester.Fortunatelyourwholedepartmentwaspresentatthetimeandweworkedtogethertomarkerrorsonthesefinals.Theexcitingpartwaswhenitbecameobvioustoallofusthatthenumberoferrorsinthefirsttwocolumns,questionsfromthetextbookunits,faroutnumberedtheerrorsintherighttwocolumns(2nd50questions)whichweretakenfromtheSOMOScurriculum,usingthecomprehensibleinputtechnique.

~6~

Granted,thequestionsfromthe2ndquarterwhichappearintherightcolumnweremorerecentlystudied,butALLcomponentsofthecurriculumwerethoroughlyreviewedfortwodaysbeforetesting.Studentswereactuallydrilledmoreonconceptsfromthefirstquarter,sinceithadbeenseveralweekssincethoseunitswerecovered.Belowarejustafewsamplesofstudents’Fallfinalexams,whichwereseenastypicalresultsforthewholegroupof56students.Theexamspicturedarenotnecessarilyfromthestrongerstudents,butarerandom,aswastheoutcomeofthegrade.

Overall,basicstatisticsfromthisbatchoffinalexamsareasfollows,fortheaveragesofALL56studentstested.Totalquestionsmissed1‐50

(textbookquest): 10.2Totalquestionsmissed51‐100

(Somos): 5.6Thebeginningconclusionthatweallhavecometo,whichiswithoutanextremelyin‐depthdataanalysis,isthatthe“languageacquisition”processwhichisnowreplacing“languagelearning”iseffective.Studentswhoseldomorreluctantlyparticipatedpreviouslyarenowmoreengaged,feelasenseofsuccessonadailybasis,andareabletoperformwellonrubricbasedtasksthattheyfindinterestingandrelatabletolife.Theyareexcitedtobeinclass,willingtoengageinactivities,andaskingmanymorequestionsaboutcontentinordertoincreasetheirownworkingproficiency.Studentswhowerealreadystronglanguagelearnersareabletoreadilyacquirespeakingskills.OurgoalisforallCCHSworldlanguagestudentstofeelsuccessfulandtobepreparedtocontinuetheirstudyoflanguagebeyondourdoors,whetherinanacademicsettingorthroughtravelexperiences.~LinayaGermann,CCHSSpanishTeacher

     

~7~

UNA NOTA DEL SEÑOR TAYLOR…

IamverypleasedtoreportadvancementsandupdatesatCCHSintheWorldLanguagesDepartmentforthis

schoolyear(2019‐2020).

Beginningatthestartofthisschoolyear,wehavetwonewfacultymembersonboard.Ms.AlexandriaBassettisthe

newGermanteacherandMs.MelisaLopezisthenewSpanishTeacher.Theirimpressivebackgroundbringsanew

perspectivetoourprogram.Ms.RendonalsomovedfromparttimetoafulltimeSpanishTeacherposition.After

someclassroomshuf ling,theWorldLanguageshallwaynowhasFrench,GermanandallbutoneSpanish

classroomtogether.Thishelpsfacilitatecollaboration.

Aftersharingresearcharticlesandexperiencesthroughoutlastyear,weallagreedthatusingthetargetlanguagein

theclassroomtocommunicate(wheneverpossible)wasthemosteffectivewaytoteach.Thispragmaticapproach

includesusingthebestaspectsofallmethods.Latelastsummertheupdated“WorldReadinessStandardsfor

LearningLanguages”wereadoptedinIllinois.Thiscon irmedthatwewerealreadyontherightpath.Weare

alwaysstrivingtocontinuouslyinnovate,collaborate,andimprovetoreachallstudents.

ThreeofourSpanishlanguagestudentsearnedtheSealofBiliteracyupongraduation.Wehadatotalof13students

applyandtakethechallenge.Thisyear,wewilloffertheCommendationsealaswellforthosewho“almost”reach

thebar.ThetestthatisusedistheAAPPL(ACTFLAssessmentofPerformancetowardPro iciencyinLanguages)

testanditisaveryrigoroustest‐‐‐thebarissethigh.TheACTFL(AmericanCouncilontheTeachingofForeign

Languages)playsanimportantroleinthecreationofWorldLanguagestandards.

OurESLclassroomconsistsofseveralstudentsfromcountriesincludingGuatemala,Honduras,Brazil,andthe

Philippines.Studentsbeginatdifferentlevelsandstartatdifferenttimesthroughouttheyear.Teacherscontinueto

collaborateandreachouttoprovidethenecessarysupporttoaccommodatetheirchallenges.Wearecontinuingto

makefurtherimprovementsusingbothESLandBilingualEducationalstrategiesinorderforthemtosucceednot

onlyinEnglish,butinalloftheirclasses.

LastlyaspecialthankstoMs.Bassettwhograciouslyvolunteeredtoproducethisnewsletterforourdepartment.

Weappreciateherexpertiseinthisarea.Pleaseletmeknowifyouhaveanyquestionsorcommentsaboutthe

WorldLanguagesDepartmentatCCHS.¡VivaLosTerriers!

~ArnoldTaylor

WorldLanguagesDepartmentChair

Spanish,ESL,andBilingualEdTeacher