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Pam,

Getting those student responses does require that you
are committed to it. Students react with “oh oh oh”
to every statement. When you say a statement they
will respond. If they don’t, stop and say, “clase, es
interesante.” If they still don’t respond, go to
English and say, “Class, whenever I say something
interesting you will say “ohohohohoh>” Then have them
practice it. You can have them practice saying it in
a boring way and an enthusiastic way.

You have to stay on top of this or the students will
stop. It does take a commitment to it.

Blaine

Kelly,

You are wise to be concerned about the negativity. It
spreads and if
you allow it, you will certainly get more as the year
progresses.
Von and I have been reading the Fred Jones book. He
suggests that if
you do nothing about this, you are declaring open war
on the
teacher. The students now have a way to sabotage your
class.

So, the first thing is to not ignore it EVER. I am
sure others will
have other ideas on this. Different personalities can
get away with
different things.

1. I always was very open with my feelings. I liked,
“Class, one thing, I won’t allow you to be negative in
my class. I
don’t care if you think this is stupid, wonderful or
just another
day. But you have to know, I won’t allow anyone to
say anything
negative about this class. I think I just heard
someone say
something, so if you ever feel the urge to say
something negative, I
am going to help you. Just force yourself to smile
and say, “Me
gusta la clase de espanol.”
Now we are going to practice this. Everyone just say,
“Me gusta la
clase de espanol.”
Is that clear. Is there anyone who doesn’t
understand?

First violation.
I think I just heard someone say something negative
about the class.
Do you remember the rule? What do you say? Who
doesn’t remember
it. OK class, we need to practice again. When you
feel anything
negative about this class you just say, “me gusta la
clase de
espanol.” Ok, let’s practice.

Second violation
More of the same unless it is one kid. If you have
one negative kid,
you can then say,
“Gringo, I want to talk to you after class.”

After class,
“Gringo, that really hurt me when you said that about
my class. Do
you remember my rule? Can you follow it? Now,
tomorrow, when you
come to class I want you to say, “Me gusta la clase de
espanol.”
OK?

Get more and more firm but do not allow that one kid
to sabotage your
class.

I learned is Sunday School, “It is better that one man
perish than a
nation dwindle in unbelief.” Here is it better to
lose one student
than to lose the class.

Blaine

In my classes we have guiding ‘principles’ instead of rules.

1. Show respect. (This includes to yourself, and everyone
else including the teacher, and covers all those basic
courtesies)
2. Do your personal best. (At all times, under all
conditions, and participation counts…)
3. Be safe. (This one is the old ‘make safe choices for
yourself and everyone else’)
3. Come prepared. (The list: pencil, pen, ruler, notebook,
good attitude)

As a class opening activity I sometimes send around chart
paper and pens and get groups to write down what each
principal means (looks like, sounds like..), and then we
share the result together. This way, I am not making
‘rules’ and being a ‘police officer’ and they get to show me
how much they do know. It makes it a positive agreement,
instead of ‘you are on my turf and you will behave’.

Elizabeth Winfield

Somebody asked for this. the story is an old one, but the idea for doing it
at back-to-school night goes to DeLynn Scaringe, a list member and AWESOME
but humble Spanish teacher in Albany, NY. Anybody in that part of the
country ought to observe all of the Spanish teachers at her school!

Ciao,

Susie

Monday: Taught the kids “cat, runs, and mouse.” Homework is to go home and
teach these 3 words and the gestures to your parents.

Tuesday: Checked on homework (had every kid tell me how the parents
reacted.) VERRY INTERESTING!! Taught the kids “comes, looks at, and
screams.” Homework is to teach these three words to your parents. And review
yesterday’s 3 words!
Wednesday: Checked on homework. Reports were fascinating. Some parents were
resistant, some claimed they didn’t have time, some turned it into a joke.
Most were good, but the kids saw how annoying it is when your “students”
aren’t cooperative! Homework for tonight is to review the six words again
and make sure your parents know these words for Thursday night’s “Back to
School” night. Some parents are so nervous about this that they may not
come! Kids just have to make sure that their parents feel confident, so the
kids have to reassure the parents. Interesting responsibility for these
kids.

Thursday: Taught the story to the kids and told them NOT to give away the
punch line, but that they can give their parents the idea of the story. Told
them to MAKE their parents volunteer to act !!

Thursday night: Parents came in and I ran through the words to be sure they
knew the words. Got volunteers to act (this was hard) and then we did the
mini-story (IN FRENCH)

Three baby mice look at mama mouse. Mama mouse looks at the baby mice. Cat
comes. The baby mice scream “Mama, Mama! A cat a cat!” Mama mouse looks at
the cat. Mama mouse screams “BOW WOW!” Cat runs away.

And in English I ended by saying: “Just like you, this mama mouse is a model
of good parenting. She has just taught her children the value of speaking a
foreign language.”

HAHAHAHAHA! Lots of laughs!!!

Then I retold asking ridiculous questions and the parents had to answer with
“Oui” or “Non” With only a minute left I asked them if they had understood
the French in tonight’s mini-class. Then I said “I hope that your child is
enjoying learning a foreign language as much as I enjoy teaching it.”

Holy tamales did I get good feedback from this!

Words: there is a girl
wants
goes

There is a girl who wants a large elephant. She goes to ___(place)___ and there is no elephant. She really really wants an elephant so she goest to ____. There is an elephant there. Oh No! There is a problem. There is a mini-elephant there and she wants a HUGE elephant. Finally she goes to ____. Yippee! There is a huge elephant there named Bubba.

Kelly
Kelly Ferguson
“The only place you can find success before
work is in the dictionary.”

German Story
Reading Exercise

Es gibt ein Mädchen. Das Mädchen heißt Heidi. Heidi
möchte ein Zimmer. Sie geht nach Dripping Springs,
Texas. Es gibt ein Hotel. Das Hotel heißt ,,Die große
Kuh Inn.”

Es gibt ein Zimmer im Hotel. Heidi möchte ein Zimmer
im Hotel. Heidi geht in das Hotel. Sie geht in das
Zimmer. Es gibt ein Problem mit dem Zimmer. Es gibt
eine Kuh im Zimmer. Heidi möchte ein Zimmer mit einer
Kuh. Es gibt ein Problem mit der Kuh. Die Kuh
stinkt. Die Kuh heißt Ethyl. Ethyl stinkt. Ethyl
möchte Kuh Right Guard.

Heidi geht nach Charles City, Iowa. Heidi möchte Kuh
Right Guard. Sie geht zu Wal Mart. Sie geht in Wal
Mart. Sie hat Right Guard. Sie geht zum ,,Die große
Kuh Inn.” Sie geht in das Zimmer. Ethyl ist im
Zimmer. Ethyl stinkt. Ethyl hat Right Guard. Ethyl
stinkt nicht.

Heidi hat ein Zimmer. Heidi hat eine Kuh. Die Kuh
stinkt nicht. Es gibt kein Problem. Das Ende.

I never thought of writing a sequel to the cat story so I could have
something new for the parents! I always just blab at them for ten minutes
when they are second year parents. Here is the best sequel I came up with
so far.

It assumes the knowledge of the words cat, mouse, comes, looks at, shouts,
and runs from last year. (I will have the students review them with their
parents.) The new words are: dog, tree, and laughs.

The mama mouse and the three baby mice go to the park. The baby mice run.
The mama mouse looks at the three baby mice. The mama mouse looks at a
cat! The cat is in a tree! There is a dog. The dog shouts “BOW WOW, BOW
WOW!” The cat shouts, “MEOW, MEOW, MEOW!” The mama mouse and the baby
mice laugh and laugh and laugh. The cat looks at the mice. The cat
shouts, “SQUEAK, SQUEAK!” The mama mouse doesn’t laugh. The mama mouse
shouts, “BOW WOW!” The dog looks at the mama mouse. The cat runs!

The moral would be that knowing the same language unites people who might
otherwise be unfriendly to each other. It’s not quite as cool as the
original, but I think it could work. I would have the cat stand up on a
chair to represent the tree.

Let’s hear more possible sequels!

-Karen

Ashley,

All teachers tend to listen to the vocal minority. By
doing that we then listen to what the few say and give
them great creadence. It is hard not to.

If it turns out that the class is a “negative class”
there are some things you can do.

You can assign them a book to write.

10 chapters.
1. my birth
2. My pre school years
3. Grades 1-3
4. Grades 4-6
5 jr high
6 high school
7 What I like to do
8. My goals
9. My family
10. My friends

Have them write 300 to 500 words per chapter. This
will take about 3 weeks to do. At the end of the 3
weeks have them vote (secret ballot) if they would
rather have the class be a class where they work on
things or they learn stories.
Then you will see how all of them feel.

It is early in the year. I would not let them say
negative things.

We have one of the skills to practice called TPRS
positive. WE have some ideas on that handout to help
with keeping the class positive.

Blaine

One thing that has helped me stretch out the reading to a full period is to
use the QAR (Question-Answer Relationship) strategy for reading. With this
strategy there are 4 types of questions to ask about the story. If we were
doing the cat story, the 4 types of questions are:

1) Right there = the answer is right there. “Who has a cat?”
2) Think and search = the answer is in the text, but in multiple locations.
“How many characters are in the story? How many are girls? How many are
boys? Who has the cats?”
3) Author and me = the answer is NOT in the text, but you have to
understand the text to be able to answer it. “Does Karl like cats? Why does
Karl throw the cat on the floor? How long does Tanja cry when Karl throws
the cat on the floor?”
4) On my own = a question about something related to the text but it is
purely an opinion question. “Do you have a cat? Do you know anyone who acts
like Karl? Is it right to throw a cat on the floor? Have you ever thrown a
cat on the floor? Would your cat run away if you threw it on the floor?
Would a dog run away if you threw it on the floor?”

These questions are off the top of my head, but they give you an idea of
where to go with the story. If you do a google search for QAR or Question
Answer Relationships, you’ll find some more info.
http://curry.edschool.virginia.edu/go/readquest/strat/qar.html is a decent
site that explains it with a examples. I didn’t find anything specifically
for foreign languages but you can adapt what you find. As long as you ask
all 4 types of questions, you are doing OK.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Julie Baird
jjbaird@ligtel.com

I think with some practice you will find it easy to
get this discussion of reading to last for mucho
tiempo.

One way to do this is mastering the art of discussion
a la TPRS.

If the story is about a girl who wants cats, you then
turn the discussion about one of your students who
wants cats.

Gringa, do you want a cat.
She says, no.
You say, “yes, gringa, you do want a cat.”
She says, “Oh”
You say, Class, gringa wants a big cat.
Gringa what kind of cat do you want?
A big cat.
Class, does gringa want a big cat or a little cat?
Big cat.
Yes, Gringa wants a big cat.

From there you keep adding a detail at a time. You
are actually doing another PMS, but now you have no
actors and you are developing this all from your
reading. But now you are talking all about Gringa and
her world and her cat.

Try this. We can talk about this a lot more as the
year progresses.

Blaine