Massachsetts Foreign Language State Standards
The Massachusetts Foreign Language State Standards include four proficiency levels depending on when students start a language program in their district. Harwich Public Schools implemented a K-12 Spanish language program in 2008. Current language students in the 8-12 sequence will reach at least stage two on the proficiency scale by graduation if they continue to study the same language every academic year. The following standards meet the proficiency stage levels according to the Harwich curriculum program as of 2010. Once the K-12 language program is fully integrated, more stage levels will be introduced on this page.
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Students: Create links below directly on the State Standard showing proof of your mastery of the Standard for our curriculum.
Communication
PreK-12 STANDARD 1: Interpersonal Communication
Students of modern languages will converse in a language other than English to provide and obtain information, express feelings and emotions, and exchange opinions. Students of classical languages will engage in simple oral exchanges and will develop reading skills with discussions of texts conducted in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error, students will:
1.1 Greet and respond to greetings
1.2 Introduce and respond to introductions
1.3 Ask and answer questions
1.4 Make and respond to requests
1.5 Exchange information and knowledge
1.6 Express likes and dislikes
1.7 Express needs and emotions
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, students will:
1.9 Ask and respond to questions to clarify information
1.10 Exchange opinions about people, activities, or events
1.11 Discuss class reading
PreK-12 STANDARD 2: Interpretive Communication
Students will understand and interpret ideas and information written or spoken in a language other than English. In classical language study, discussion will be conducted in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error, students will:
2.1 Follow directions
2.2 Understand some ideas and familiar details
2.3 Obtain information and knowledge
2.4 Read or listen to and interpret signs, simple stories, poems, and informational texts
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, students will:
2.6 Follow directions which may include one or more of the following: for a recipe, a word maze, or a logic problem
2.7 Read authentic and adapted materials, which may include one or more of the following: short stories, narratives,
advertisements, and brochures
2.8 Understand important ideas and details in highly contextualized authentic and adapted texts
2.9 Understand learned expressions, sentences, questions, and polite commands in messages
2.10 Identify themes in fictional and nonfictional works and relate them to personal experiences
PreK–12 STANDARD 3: Presentational Communication
Students of modern languages will write and speak in a language other than English to present information, concepts, and ideas on a variety of topics. Presentations in classical language classes will usually take the form of speaking or writing in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error in the target language, and using English when necessary, students will:
3.1 Express opinions and ideas
3.2 Express needs and emotions
3.3 Express agreement and disagreement
3.4 Describe people, places, and things
3.5 Write lists and short notes
3.6 Present information in a brief report
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, students will:
3.8 Write simple paragraphs
3.9 Write greeting cards, notes, letters, and e-mails
3.10 Describe elements of stories which may include one or more of the following: characters, events, and settings
3.11 Give presentations on planned activities or on cultural topics
Cultures
PreK-12 STANDARD 4: Cultures
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the traditions, perspectives, practices, and perspectives of the culture studied, including human commonalities as reflected in history, literature, and the visual and performing arts. In classical language study, discussion and writing will be in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error in the target language, and using English when necessary, students will:
4.1 Use appropriate words, phrases, expressions, and gestures in interactions which may include one or more of the
following: greetings, farewells, school routines, and other daily activities
4.2 Interact appropriately in group cultural activities which may include one or more of the following: games,
storytelling, celebrations, and dramatizations.
4.3 Identify distinctive cultural aspects of the target culture presented in stories, dramas, films, and photographs
4.4 Identify distinctive cultural products from the target culture which may include one or more of the following:
toys, clothes, foods, currencies, games, traditional crafts, and musical instruments
4.5 Identify distinctive contributions made by people in the target culture
4.6 Demonstrate knowledge of artistic expression in the target culture by identifying, learning, and performing one or
more of the following: songs, dances, or memorizing poems; by identifying and making examples of crafts or
visual arts using traditional techniques which may include one or more of the following: brush painting, paper
folding, or mosaics
4.7 Demonstrate knowledge of the target culture’s geography by naming features which may include one or more of
the following: rivers, mountains, cities, and climate on maps
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, and using English when necessary, students will:
4.8 Identify patterns of social behavior that are typical of the target culture
4.9 Interact appropriately in social and cultural activities, which may include one or more of the following: for modern
languages: exchanges in a restaurant, at a bus stop, in a store, or in a classroom for classical languages: in
triumphal marches, weddings, or funerals
4.10 Identify distinctive aspects of the target culture presented in print literature, visual arts, films, and videos, and
relate these to the cultural perspectives of the target culture
4.11 Identify historical and/or cultural figures from the target culture and describe their contributions
4.12 Identify, place in chronological order, and describe the significance of important historical events in the target
culture
4.13 Identify, on maps and globes, the location(s) and major geographic features of countries where the target
language is or was used
Comparisons
Learning STANDARD 5: Linguistic Comparisons
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the nature of language through comparison of the language studied with their own. In classical language study, discussion and writing will be in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error in the target language, and using English when necessary, students will:
5.1 Ask and answer questions regarding similar/different phonetic/writing systems used in the target language
5.2 Give examples of ways in which the target language differs from/ is similar to English
5.3 Give of borrowed and loan words
5.4 Identify linguistic characteristics of the target language and compare and contrast them with English linguistic
characteristics
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions in the target language with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, and using English when necessary, students will:
5.5 Compare, contrast, and exchange views on an aspect of the target language
5.6 Identify words in the target language that are used frequently in English
5.7 Analyze how idiomatic expressions work in both languages
5.8 Compare and contrast similarities/differences of sounds in rhythm and rhyme in poetry
5.9 Recognize grammatical categories which may include one or more of the following: tense, gender, and agreement
in the target language and English
5.10 Give examples of words or word parts from the target language that have been adopted into the English
language
5.11 Analyze differences and similarities between the writing systems of both languages
PreK-12 STANDARD 6: Cultural Comparisons
Students will demonstrate an understanding of the concept of culture through comparison of the target culture with their own. In classical language study, discussion and writing will be in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error in the target language, and using English when necessary, students will:
6.1 Ask and answer questions regarding different forms of communication in the target culture and their own which
may include one or more of the following: signs, symbols, displays, and inscriptions
6.2 Describe patterns of behavior of the target culture, which may include one or more of the following: celebrations,
and compare/contrast them with those of their own culture
6.3 Describe some cultural beliefs and perspectives relating to family, school, and play in both target culture and
their own
6.4 Identify and discuss cultural characteristics of the target culture and compare and contrast them to cultural
characteristics of their own culture
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, and using English when necessary, students will:
6.5 Compare, contrast, and exchange views on an aspect of the target culture
6.6 Discuss basic needs of people for food, clothing, and shelter and compare how they have been met in various
cultures
6.7 Compare and contrast examples of one or more of the following: music, visual arts, dance, and theatre from the
target culture with examples from their own culture
6.8 Compare, contrast, and report on cultural traditions and celebrations
6.9 Compare folktales from the target culture and the students’own culture
Connections
Learning STANDARD 7: Connections
Students of modern and classical languages will use the target language to reinforce and expand their knowledge of other disciplines and to acquire new information and knowledge. In classical language study, discussion and presentations will be in English.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error, students will:
7.1 Obtain information and knowledge related to other disciplines from sources in the target language
Examples of this include one or more of the following:
obtaining geographical information from printed maps and travel guides or Internet resources in the target language and using this information to achieve the learning standards from the Geography Strand of the History and Social Science Framework
reading age-appropriate authentic fiction and nonfiction from the target culture and analyzing it using the learning standards from the Literature Strand of the English Language Arts Framework collecting data and graphing results in the target language in order to achieve the learning standards of the Patterns, Functions, and Relations Strand of the Mathematics Framework.
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions, with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, students will:
7.2 Obtain information and knowledge related to other disciplines from sources in the target language
Examples of this may include one or more of the following:
obtaining political and economic information from newspapers, other print sources, and interactive CD ROMs in the target language and using this information to achieve the learning standards of the Civics and Government and Economics Strands of the History and Social Science Framework;
gathering demographic information from the target culture and applying the learning standards from the Statistics and Probability Strand of the Mathematics Framework to its analysis;
learning song lyrics written in the target language and applying the learning standards for singing the Arts Framework and the Language Strand of the English Language Arts Framework when discussing the meaning of the lyrics.
Communities
Pre K–12 STANDARD 8: Communities
Students will use languages other than English within and beyond the school setting. Students of classical languages will recognize elements of classical languages and ancient cultures in the world around them, and they will share insights derived from their study of classical languages with others within and beyond the classroom setting.
Using selected words, phrases, and expressions with no major repeated patterns of error, students will:
8.1 Apply knowledge of the target language and culture beyond the classroom setting
Examples of this may include one or more of the following:
conversing with speakers of the target language
reading and writing e-mail or letter
making and exchanging drawings or photographs, and discussing them orally or in letters and e-mail with students in another community in Massachusetts, the United States, or another country.
Using sentences, strings of sentences, and recombinations of learned words, phrases, and expressions with frequency of errors proportionate to the complexity of the communicative task, students will:
8.2 Apply knowledge of the target language and culture beyond the classroom setting
Examples of this may include one or more of the following:
conversing with speakers of the target language
reading and writing e-mail or letters
making and exchanging drawings or photographs, and discussing them orally or in letters and e-mail with students in another community in Massachusetts, the United States, or another country.