Part 1: Preterite vs. Imperfect
RAll of our Spanish 3 students that have come up through our Spanish program have been exposed already to both the preterite and imperfect verb tenses (past-tenses); however, they have not yet learned how to differentiate between the two and when each one should be used.
I decided to use the following activities in a type of flipped-classroom scenario to help them develop an understanding for the difference between them and when each one is used.
1. Google Slides Presentation: This is not earth-shattering but Google Slides is still a good way to convey a lot of information in an efficient manner. In this activity students have been asked to take notes on the two different tenses. They also have been provided with various examples as to how they are used. Replacing passive learning with active learning leads to superior learning (Morgan and Olivares, 2012).
2. EdPuzzle Video: Because we do not all learn in the same way I thought that I should include a video that conveys similar information comparing the preterite and imperfect tenses for my visual and auditory learners. I also have students creating a diagram to compare and contrast the two tenses that we will talk about when we meet in class because students need to see materials in a variety of ways. Some benefit from graphic organizers. EdPuzzle also offers a formative assessment piece that assess the background knowledge that students will have obtained from their Google Slides presentation. This assessment will give me a clear indication of who understands what is easily one of the most complicated grammar pieces that will be covered in this class during this school year. If students are engaging with text rather than just memorizing facts they are more likely to comprehend what they are reading, make meaningful connections, and reduce cognitive load (Morgan and Olivares, 2012).
I decided to use the following activities in a type of flipped-classroom scenario to help them develop an understanding for the difference between them and when each one is used.
1. Google Slides Presentation: This is not earth-shattering but Google Slides is still a good way to convey a lot of information in an efficient manner. In this activity students have been asked to take notes on the two different tenses. They also have been provided with various examples as to how they are used. Replacing passive learning with active learning leads to superior learning (Morgan and Olivares, 2012).
2. EdPuzzle Video: Because we do not all learn in the same way I thought that I should include a video that conveys similar information comparing the preterite and imperfect tenses for my visual and auditory learners. I also have students creating a diagram to compare and contrast the two tenses that we will talk about when we meet in class because students need to see materials in a variety of ways. Some benefit from graphic organizers. EdPuzzle also offers a formative assessment piece that assess the background knowledge that students will have obtained from their Google Slides presentation. This assessment will give me a clear indication of who understands what is easily one of the most complicated grammar pieces that will be covered in this class during this school year. If students are engaging with text rather than just memorizing facts they are more likely to comprehend what they are reading, make meaningful connections, and reduce cognitive load (Morgan and Olivares, 2012).
Part 2: Myths and Legends
Our primary focus here is using the information that we learned about the preterite and the imperfect tenses to narrate in the past. I have used new media to design a variety of activities for my students to give them the chance to write, read, and speak in the target language.
Activity 1: Movie Analysis
Students have been asked to watch a short movie clip on the Little Mermaid and then to complete an analysis grid in Google Docs identifying the following elements of the movie: The setting, main characters, plot/moral, climax, and the ending. Students are being asked to go into detail describing these elements in the past-tense. I chose The Little Mermaid because most of my students have seen it. Those who have not can make up the information. It does not really matter as long as they are using the target language in an appropriate manner.
For this activity I decided to use Google Docs because it can easily be accessed anywhere and shared back with me. I originally considered using Popplet, which is better for simple brainstorming and not complete sentences or paragraphs of text. Google Docs offered everything needed for students to express themselves in writing and share it back to me easily, and for me to set up a document that was well organized and easy to read.
Activity 2: Spanish Myth Analysis
Students have been asked to read and analyze a myth from Mexico called "Beatriz la quemada" (Beatriz the burned) and to annotate it using Diigo. I selected this particular legend because while it is a challenging read for my students, it is still largely comprehensible.
I have decided to read and have them annotate it using Diigo, which will allow them to pose questions to a group that they have all already joined and been shown how to use. Students can then provide responses and feedback to their classmates with the hope that they can work together in an online environment to gain a better understanding of the text. I want them to be able to pose questions about the text that they are working with and to be able to help their classmates grasp a deeper understanding of the text through being able to collaborate together and discuss difficult portions as a class.
From there, I have asked them to participate in a class discussion forum on our Google Classroom page identifying what they think to be the moral of the story. I want them to identify the moral because with this particular text there are a few different morals that can be taken away. I would like for my students to discuss what they took away from the text and why, as well as communicate their thoughts with other members in the class. By using Google Classroom I can easily monitor their online discussion as well as be an active participant myself. Responding to other students about what they have read allows for deeper engagement which will cultivate deeper discussion (Stanaityte, 2013).
Activity 3: Movie Analysis
For this activity students have been asked to identify the following elements from their favorite movie: Setting, main characters, plot/moral, climax, and ending and record a screencast of them speaking about these elements in the target language.
For this activity I have chosen to have them use screencast-o-matic.com. Screencast-o-matic is a powerful tool that one can use to create screencasts. For free you can record for up to 15 minutes. There are other tools out there that will do this such as Jing, but I like screencast-o-matic for its relative ease of use as well as its multiple functionalities. You can screenshare and record what is on your screen. There are also functions that allow you to record just audio of yourself similar to a podcast (although if a podcast is what you are looking for I would recommend a different application), as well as audio and video of yourself as I have asked students to do in this assignment. It is also simple to download the video file to your computer or upload it straight to your YouTube channel from within the application.
Culminating Activity: Create your own legend/fairy tale
Here, I am asking students to use the grammar and vocabulary that we have been learning to illustrate and create their own story. They will begin by using www.popplet.com to brainstorm their setting and characters. Popplet is an online application that can be used to create concept maps and organize ideas.
From there students will create a rough draft in Google Docs. I have selected Google Docs because I am placing them in teams for peer editing before I look over their drafts. Google Docs makes your document easily shareable with others so that they can leave comments or edit it. When we work in teams to edit drafts peers often pick up mistakes that we are not aware that we are making, or can ask questions about writing if something is not clear.
Activity 1: Movie Analysis
Students have been asked to watch a short movie clip on the Little Mermaid and then to complete an analysis grid in Google Docs identifying the following elements of the movie: The setting, main characters, plot/moral, climax, and the ending. Students are being asked to go into detail describing these elements in the past-tense. I chose The Little Mermaid because most of my students have seen it. Those who have not can make up the information. It does not really matter as long as they are using the target language in an appropriate manner.
For this activity I decided to use Google Docs because it can easily be accessed anywhere and shared back with me. I originally considered using Popplet, which is better for simple brainstorming and not complete sentences or paragraphs of text. Google Docs offered everything needed for students to express themselves in writing and share it back to me easily, and for me to set up a document that was well organized and easy to read.
Activity 2: Spanish Myth Analysis
Students have been asked to read and analyze a myth from Mexico called "Beatriz la quemada" (Beatriz the burned) and to annotate it using Diigo. I selected this particular legend because while it is a challenging read for my students, it is still largely comprehensible.
I have decided to read and have them annotate it using Diigo, which will allow them to pose questions to a group that they have all already joined and been shown how to use. Students can then provide responses and feedback to their classmates with the hope that they can work together in an online environment to gain a better understanding of the text. I want them to be able to pose questions about the text that they are working with and to be able to help their classmates grasp a deeper understanding of the text through being able to collaborate together and discuss difficult portions as a class.
From there, I have asked them to participate in a class discussion forum on our Google Classroom page identifying what they think to be the moral of the story. I want them to identify the moral because with this particular text there are a few different morals that can be taken away. I would like for my students to discuss what they took away from the text and why, as well as communicate their thoughts with other members in the class. By using Google Classroom I can easily monitor their online discussion as well as be an active participant myself. Responding to other students about what they have read allows for deeper engagement which will cultivate deeper discussion (Stanaityte, 2013).
Activity 3: Movie Analysis
For this activity students have been asked to identify the following elements from their favorite movie: Setting, main characters, plot/moral, climax, and ending and record a screencast of them speaking about these elements in the target language.
For this activity I have chosen to have them use screencast-o-matic.com. Screencast-o-matic is a powerful tool that one can use to create screencasts. For free you can record for up to 15 minutes. There are other tools out there that will do this such as Jing, but I like screencast-o-matic for its relative ease of use as well as its multiple functionalities. You can screenshare and record what is on your screen. There are also functions that allow you to record just audio of yourself similar to a podcast (although if a podcast is what you are looking for I would recommend a different application), as well as audio and video of yourself as I have asked students to do in this assignment. It is also simple to download the video file to your computer or upload it straight to your YouTube channel from within the application.
Culminating Activity: Create your own legend/fairy tale
Here, I am asking students to use the grammar and vocabulary that we have been learning to illustrate and create their own story. They will begin by using www.popplet.com to brainstorm their setting and characters. Popplet is an online application that can be used to create concept maps and organize ideas.
From there students will create a rough draft in Google Docs. I have selected Google Docs because I am placing them in teams for peer editing before I look over their drafts. Google Docs makes your document easily shareable with others so that they can leave comments or edit it. When we work in teams to edit drafts peers often pick up mistakes that we are not aware that we are making, or can ask questions about writing if something is not clear.