World Language

Students in the Level I Spanish will have the opportunity to develop language skills and learn about language through the conceptual understandings of communication, connections, creativity and culture. Students will “gain competence in a modern language other than their mother tongue, with the long-term goal of balanced bilingualism”. The course does not require any previous language acquisition. It is designed to introduce non-native Spanish-speaking students to basic functional proficiency in Spanish with an emphasis on vocabulary development. Students will be exposed to a variety of texts such as songs, images, videos, and informational and fictional readings that provoke communication, reflection, and understanding. The course objectives are for students to be able to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational through listening, reading, speaking, and writing in Spanish. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language to the novice-mid to the novice-high range. In this course, students will start on the path of becoming fluent and literate in Spanish and understanding and appreciating Spanish-speaking cultures. We will provide opportunities for learning through inquiry and the development of critical- and creative- thinking skills and encourage students to see that there are diverse ways of living, behaving and viewing the world related to introductions, student life, family, and pastimes. The course will be conducted 80% in Spanish. Students will need to approach this course with an open mind, a risk-taking mindset, and a willingness to learn.  

Grades:  9th, 10th
Pre-reqs in italics: N/A
Hours/Min per day: 10 minutes/day

Students in the MYP Level I Spanish will have the opportunity to develop language skills and learn about language through the conceptual understandings of communication, connections, creativity and culture. Students will “gain competence in a modern language other than their mother tongue, with the long-term goal of balanced bilingualism”. The honors course is an accelerated course in Spanish and it does not require any previous language acquisition. It is designed to introduce non-native Spanish-speaking students to basic functional proficiency in Spanish with an emphasis on vocabulary development. Students will be exposed to a variety of texts such as songs, images, videos, and informational and fictional readings that provoke communication, reflection, and understanding. The course objectives are for students to be able to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational through listening, reading, speaking, and writing in Spanish. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language to the novice-mid to the novice-high range. In this rigorous course, students will start on the path of becoming fluent and literate in Spanish and understanding and appreciating Spanish-speaking cultures. We will provide opportunities for learning through inquiry and the development of critical- and creative- thinking skills and encourage students to see that there are diverse ways of living, behaving and viewing the world related to introductions, student life, family, and pastimes. The course will be conducted 90% in Spanish. Students will need to approach this challenging course with an open mind, a risk-taking mindset, and a willingness to learn. 

Grades:  9th
Pre-reqs in italics: N/A
Hours/Min per day:  15

This course is a beginning class for students who have a basic understanding of the Spanish language, such as spoken Spanish, and are expanding their knowledge of the Spanish language. Students will work on basic grammar structures, vocabulary, writing and conversational skills. Students will develop and expand both reading and writing strategies. Students will explore the cultures of the Spanish-speaking world in an effort to gain a functional knowledge of the target language and culture/s. Students will be introduced to authentic texts such as short stories, novels, and news articles. The class is conducted entirely in Spanish.

Grades:  9th, 10th, 11th
Pre-reqs: Spanish speaking background with basic understanding of the Spanish language.  
Hours/Min per day: 1 hour

This course continues to enhance and further develop the four modes of communication: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students will be able to express themselves in the present tense, past tense, and simple future tense using regular verbs, plus some high frequency irregular verbs. Students will be able to interpret authentic texts and write guided paragraphs and various texts (pamphlets, emails, authentic speaking assessments, etc.). The course focuses on a communicative approach that emphasizes application of language skills to real-life situations. This course covers thematic units related to Travel, Clothing & Shopping, Daily Routines and Food & Celebrations. Cultural topics are embedded throughout the units of study. 

Grades:  10th, 11th, 12th
Pre-reqs: Successful completion of Spanish 1
Hours/Min per day: 10 minutes studying per night

This course continues to enhance and further develop the four modes of communication: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Students will be able to express themselves in the present tense, past tense, and simple future tense using regular verbs, plus some high-frequency irregular verbs. Students will be able to interpret authentic texts and write guided paragraphs and various texts (pamphlets, emails, authentic speaking assessments, etc.). The course focuses on a communicative approach that emphasizes the application of language skills to real-life situations. This course covers thematic units related to Travel, Clothing & Shopping, Daily Routines and Food & Celebrations. Cultural topics are embedded throughout the units of study. 

Grades:  10th, 11th
Pre-reqs in italics: Successful completion of Spanish 1 Honors or teacher recommendation
Hours/Min per day: 1 hour/day

This course is a class for students who have gained skills required in the previous course for Heritage Spanish Speakers.  Students will expand on their skills on vocabulary, grammar structures, reading and writing skills. Students will continue developing their speaking skills through discourse and debates on different topics.  Readings include articles, novels, and stories with the means of progressing from basic comprehension to advanced literary and non-literary analysis. The class is conducted entirely in Spanish. 

Grades:  11th, 12th
Pre-reqs: H MYP Spanish Heritage Speakers 1 or teacher recommendation
Hours/Min per day: 1 hour

In this course students are involved in a more in- depth knowledge of vocabulary and grammar. Complex structure of grammar and sentence structure. Students will engage in independent and guided assignments.  Students will be exposed to and engage in a variety of text such as  authentic articles, videos, short stories, novels, audios, etc.).   Other authentic materials will be used such as videos, films, music, and media. Students will explore diverse cultures from the Spanish Speaking world and communicate effectively using complex language structures. The class is conducted entirely in Spanish. 

Grades:  11th, 12th  
Pre-reqs in italics: Successful completion of H Spanish II or teacher recommendation
Hours/Min per day: 3 hours/week

The Abinitio Spanish II is the second year for Abinitio Spanish students. Through the study of the five IB themes, the course focuses on developing basic language acquisition skills for everyday situations and cultural understanding. Over the course of two years, students will explore the following themes required by the International Baccalaureate Organization: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization, and Sharing the Planet. The course prepares students for real-life interactions and an understanding of the Spanish and Hispanic cultures The class is conducted mostly in Spanish, and it is designed to prepare students for the Ab-Initio Level IB Language Acquisition examination. 

Grades:  12th
Pre-reqs: Abinitio Spanish I
Hours/Min per day: 30-60 min

This is a language acquisition course for non-heritage students with at least two years of prior language learning experience with a grade of B or above. Teacher recommendation is required. Through the study of the five IB themes, the development of the receptive, productive, and interactive skills, and intercultural understanding at Standard Level, students build the necessary skills to reach the assessment objectives of the language B course and ACTFL. Over the course of the next two years, students will explore the following themes required by the International Baccalaureate Organization: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization and Sharing the Planet. These five themes provide students the opportunity to communicate about matters of personal, local or global context and the ability to practice and to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. The class is conducted entirely in Spanish and it is designed to prepare students for the Standard Level IB Language Acquisition exam.  

Grades:  11th
Pre-reqs: At least two years of prior language learning experience with a grade of B or above. 
Hours/Min per day:  30-60 minutes

This course is the second year of a two year Language B (Higher Level) program that includes an in-depth study of selected Spanish literary works and world problems. Instruction will be delivered in Spanish so that students will be able to communicate accurately and effectively in speech and written work. Students will continue to explore the following themes required by the International Baccalaureate Organization: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization and Sharing the Planet. These five themes provide students the opportunity to communicate about matters of personal, local or global context and the ability to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. Students will conduct mini-research projects and will produce written and oral presentations of their findings. Students will learn to write a wide variety of texts including, but not limited to formal and informal letters, essays, movie reviews, emails, speech and blogs. Students will also read a literary text and analyze themes and describe a literary passage to prepare them for the Internal Assessment early in the second semester.  As a Higher Level IB course, students will be expected to actively participate in class in the target language and practice the language regularly outside of class. The rigorous curriculum will provide students the skills needed to take the International Baccalaureate Exam at the Higher Level. 

Oral participation is expected in class every day . It is essential that students practice the four modes of communication outside the classroom. 

Grades:  12th
Pre-reqs:  IB Standing + IB HL Spanish Language B I.  Teacher Recommendation Required.
Hours/Min per day:  30-45 min/day

The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) is a philosophy of teaching and an approach to instruction. As a wall to wall MYP school, all French students explore significant content related to language and culture, develop language acquisition and approaches to learning skills, and deepen conceptual understanding through their engagement with global contexts. Teachers will plan and assess using the MYP objectives and assessment criteria, and the ACTFL standards. This French course does not require any previous language acquisition. It is designed to introduce students to basic functional proficiency in French with an emphasis on vocabulary development.The course objectives are for students to be able to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language to the novice-mid to the novice-high range, based on ACTFL proficiency standards. 

Grades:  10th, 11th
Pre-reqs:
Hours/Min per day: 15 min/day

The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) is a philosophy of teaching and an approach to instruction. Students in the MYP explore significant content related to language and culture, develop language acquisition and approaches to learning skills, and deepen conceptual understanding through their engagement with global contexts. Teachers will plan and assess using the MYP objectives and assessment criteria, and the ACTFL standards. This course is an accelerated course in French and it does not require any previous language acquisition. It is designed to introduce students to basic functional proficiency in French with an emphasis on vocabulary development.The course objectives are for students to be able to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language to the novice-mid to the novice-high range, based on ACTFL proficiency standards.

Grades:  9th
Pre-reqs:
Hours/Min per day: 15 min/day

In this course, students will review and build on the vocabulary, themes, and language structures covered in French I, while learning new vocabulary and structures. Students will learn how to communicate in both present and past tense. Units are thematic in nature and incorporate authentic resources from the French-speaking world. Students will continue to work with listening, reading, writing, and speaking activities. The focus is on language acquisition and World Language proficiency targets. Students will learn to communicate in present tense and the passé composé. 

Grades:  10th, 11th, 12th
Pre-reqs: French I 
Hours/Min per day: 15 min/day

MYP French II The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) is a philosophy of teaching and an approach to instruction. Students in the MYP will explore significant content, develop skills, and deepen conceptual understanding through their engagement with global contexts and French-speaking cultures. Teachers plan using the MYP objectives and assess using the MYP criteria. Students will expand the skills demonstrated in the first year of study with mastery of more sophisticated conversation skills, grammar and vocabulary, as well as increased reading and writing practice. Students will communicate in both present tense and passé composé. 

Grades:  10th, 11th, 12th  
Pre-reqs: French I
Hours/Min per day: 15 min/day

 This is a language acquisition course for students with at least two years of prior language experiences with a B or better. This class is often taught combined with the IB SL French B1 Class, but uses ACTFL Intermediate Rubrics for assessments. Classes will be aligned to IB assessment criteria. In this third year course students will review and build on vocabulary and structures covered in French I and II. The emphasis is on oral reproduction, pronunciation and more complex grammatical structures. This course will focus on all language domains such as listening, speaking, writing and reading.  Students will explore the following themes: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization and Sharing the Planet. These five themes provide students the opportunity to communicate about matters of personal, local or global context and the ability to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational.

Grades:  11th, 12th
Pre-reqs: Techer Recommendation required and B or higher in French II
Hours/Min per day: 30 min/day 

This is a language acquisition course for students with at least two years of prior language learning experience with a grade of a B or above. Teacher recommendation is required. Through the study of the five IB themes, the development of the receptive, productive and interactive skills, and intercultural understanding at Standard Level, students build the necessary skills to reach the assessment objectives of the language B course and ACTFL. Over the course of the next two years, students will explore the following themes required by the International Baccalaureate Organization: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization and Sharing the Planet. These five themes provide students the opportunity to communicate about matters of personal, local or global context and the ability to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language at the intermediate-mid to intermediate high range. The class will be conducted mostly in the target language and students are expected to speak in French with the teacher and classmates.

Grades:  11th
Pre-reqs:  B or higher in French II, IB CP or DP  
Hours/Min per day: 30 min/day

This is a language acquisition course for students with at least three years of prior French language learning experience. Teacher recommendation is required. Through the study of the five IB themes, the development of the receptive, productive and interactive skills, and intercultural understanding at Standard Level, students build the necessary skills to reach the assessment objectives of the language B course and ACTFL. Students will continue to explore the following themes required by the International Baccalaureate Organization: Identities, Experiences, Human Ingenuity, Social Organization and Sharing the Planet. These five themes provide students the opportunity to communicate about matters of personal, local or global context and the ability to communicate in a variety of modes: interpersonal, interpretive and presentational. The projected outcome of this course is that students have acquired language at the intermediate-high to advanced-low range, based on ACTFL proficiency guidelines. The class will be conducted entirely in the target language and students are expected to speak in French with the teacher and classmates.

Grades: 12th
Pre-reqs: IB SL French B I or Honors French III
Hours/Min per day: 30 min/day