Quebradillas, Puerto Rico
Quebradillas, Puerto Rico
AP® Spanish Language And Culture
COURSE OVERVIEW
The AP® Spanish Language and Culture course is intended for students who have demonstrated excellence in Spanish, who are intrigued by the Latin American and Hispanic cultures and who wish to take the AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam. The course offers glimpses into the inner workings of said cultures that are available through this intense study of Spanish. As defined by the College Board, students taking this course should “demonstrate an understanding of the culture(s), incorporate interdisciplinary topics (Connections), make comparisons between the native language and the target language and between cultures (Comparisons), and use the target language in real-life settings (Communities).” Spanish is the official language of the course and will be spoken exclusively. The students are encouraged to practice Spanish throughout the year with their teacher(s) and peers. In the AP® Spanish Language and Culture course, students will use Spanish to:
Express themselves orally in a variety of settings on a variety of themes
Read and understand selected materials from a variety of authentic sources including, but not limited to, short stories, periodicals, essays and poetry
Initiate, maintain and close a conversation on a familiar topic
Hear and understand conversations from a variety of sources in a variety of settings
Express themselves formally and informally in writing on class-work, homework, e-mails, essays, journal entries, quizzes and tests using open-ended questions
Correctly use word derivation strategies such as circumlocution and cognates to broaden their use of the language
RESOURCES
The AP® Spanish Language and Culture course will be taught using a multitude of resources to cover all aspects of the Spanish language. The primary text is Temas: AP® Spanish Language and Culture. The authors of this text have the following to say about their creation:
“Temas incorporates the requirements of the AP® Spanish Language and Culture Curriculum and Exam, focusing on six overarching themes that are the heart of real-world communication. [It ]lets [the students] experience authentic language and culture through engaging texts and multimedia materials from all over the Spanish-speaking world. Activities are designed to help [the students] understand challenging language and concepts and to communicate using a rich, varied vocabulary.”
The textbook Temas is accompanied by an online Temas supersite. With daily practice using the digital activities, the students will improve their writing, listening and speaking skills.
MAIN TEXTS
Draggett, P., Bianco, J., Conlin, C., Ehrsam, M. and Millán, E. (2014) Temas: AP Spanish Language and Culture. Boston, MA: Vista Higher Learning.
Frisancho, Jorge. (2020) AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam Preparation. Boston, MA: Vista Higher Learning.
WEBSITES
Audiria
BBC Mundo
CNN en español
Más voces www.masvoces.org
El Mundo http://www.elmundo.es
La Nación www.nacion.com
Notes in Spanish
El Nuevo Herald
Prensa Escrita
Radio Naciones Unidas http://www.news.un.org/es
Radioteca www.radioteca.net
Unesco
Univision
WEBSITES FOR GRAMMAR PRACTICE
Bowdoin
http://www.bowdoin.edu/~eyepes/newgr/index.html
Colby
www.colby.edu/~bknelson/SLC/index.php
Study Spanish
Ver taal
SUPPLEMENTAL TEXTS
Blanco, J.A., Tocaimaza-Hatch, C. C. & García, P. N. (2011). Imagina: Español sin
barreras (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Vista Higher Learning.
Cabat, L. & Cabat, R. (1999). Momentos Hispanos (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Amsco
School Publications, Inc.
De la Vega, Sara L., Salazar, Carmen. (2007). Avanzando: Gramática española y
lectura (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Jiménez, F. (2000). Cajas de cartón. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company.
Kanter, A. (2011). Encuentros Maravillosos: Gramática a través de la literatura
(2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Lavoie, D. (2010). 5 Steps To A 5: AP Spanish Language 2010-2011. New York,
NY: McGraw Hill.
Leech, M. (2010). The Princeton Review Cracking the AP® Spanish Exam With Audio
CD (2011 ed.). New York, NY: Random House, Inc.
Renjilian-Burgy, Joy, Valette, Rebecca M. (2005). Album (3rd ed.). Boston, MA:
Houghton Mifflin Company.
Walqui Van-Lier, A., Barraza, R.A., Dellinger, M.A. (2005). Sendas literarias 1:
Español completo para hispanohablantes. Needham, MA: Pearson Prentice
Hall.
Wasserman, C. & Wasserman, M. (1997). Prosa moderna del mundo
hispánico (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Amsco School Publications, Inc.
Units by theme & essencial questions
1st Trimester
Unidad 1
Las identidades personales y públicas
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Cómo se expresan los distintos aspectos de la identidad en diversas situaciones?
¿Cómo influyen la lengua y la cultura en la identidad de una persona?
¿Cómo se desarrolla la identidad de una persona a lo largo del tiempo?
Unidad 2
Los desafíos mundiales
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Cuáles son los desafíos sociales, políticos y del medio ambiente que enfrentan las sociedades del mundo?
¿Cuáles son los orígenes de esos desafíos?
¿Cuáles son algunas posibles soluciones a esos desafíos?
Unidad 3
La familia y las comunidades
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Cuáles son las diferencias en los papeles que asumen las comunidades y las familias en las diferentes sociedades del mundo?
¿Cómo se define la familia en distintas sociedades?
¿Cómo contribuyen los individuos al bienestar de las comunidades?
Unidad 4
La belleza y la estética
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Cómo se establecen las percepciones de la belleza y la creatividad?
¿Cómo influyen los ideales de la belleza y de la estética en la vida cotidiana?
¿Cómo las artes desafían y reflejan las perspectivas culturales?
Unidad 5
La ciencia y la tecnología
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Qué impacto tiene el desarrollo científico y tecnológico en nuestras vidas?
¿Qué factores han impulsado el desarrollo y la innovación en la ciencia y la tecnología?
¿Qué papel cumple la ética en los avances científicos?
Unidad 6
La vida contemporánea
Preguntas esenciales:
¿Cómo influyen los productos culturales, las prácticas y las perspectivas de la gente en la vida?
¿Cómo definen los individuos y las sociedades su propia calidad de vida?
¿Cuáles son los desafíos de la vida contemporánea?
UNIT COMPONENTS Each of the six units will include work on the following skills and strategies:
Grammar
This course requires students to update and broaden their awareness of Spanish grammatical structures. There is a strong focus on the appropriate use of verb tenses and moods, as well as in-depth review of grammatical topics covered in previous years of Spanish study. Students are encouraged to correct themselves and each other to increase their understanding of grammar, in English as well as Spanish.
Reading
Each unit includes multiple reading selections. Many reading assignments are taken directly from our texts. Others come from a variety of authentic resources, current events and articles in newspapers and magazines, both in print and online. Students are encouraged to read each selection on their own, and respond to prepared written or spoken questions. They will learn to use context clues and other techniques to garner meaning without the use of a language dictionary. To increase vocabulary acquisition, students will maintain a self-created dictionary to which they will add new words or expressions as they encounter them.
Writing
Students will write in a variety of formats in order to demonstrate proficiency with grammar, vocabulary and facts, and to articulate their opinions. Writing exercises are completed in class and each unit contains several graded writing samples. Written assignments will often be discussed in class, and used for peer-editing exercises. Students will regularly write interpersonal entries such as e-mails, journals, blogs, letters and postcards. They will also write formal compositions and essays, based on the material covered in each unit to serve as practice for the presentational writing portion of the AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam. Students will be able to track their progress and growth in said writing activities by the accompaniment of the same rubrics used on the exam.
Listening
The teacher will conduct almost all instruction, explanation, and exercises in Spanish. Students will become accustomed to listening to a variety of Spanish accents and dialects as they listen to each other, other teachers at the school and any guest speakers. They will listen to a variety of rapidly spoken, authentic Spanish and learn techniques to grasp important information. They will be tested on listening comprehension using multiple-choice and open-ended question formats. To further hone their auditory skills, the teacher will give weekly dictations or “dictados”.
Speaking
Spanish is the official language of the course; students are expected to speak Spanish exclusively while in class and to practice Spanish consistently with the teacher, as well as with other adults and peers outside the classroom if presented the opportunity. Students will practice regularly on a variety of topics, and will learn techniques such as circumlocution to successfully express themselves. Students will often be asked to orally summarize writing assignments and listening samples in order to improve vocabulary retention and practice, and will practice speaking out loud simultaneously in preparation for the oral component of the AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam. Students will be encouraged to use a wide range of vocabulary and sentence structures in order to be creative and more expressive.
Culture
Understanding the cultural differences between the target language of study and one’s native tongue is a vital component of language acquisition. The students will gain a deeper understanding of cultural and historical experiences that are a part of everyday life to those in the Spanish-speaking world. Based on the calendar year, there will be a variety of cultural activities for the students to immerse themselves in, including but not limited to: movie nights, modismos and refranes, “Tomatinas,” and Parrandas and tertulias.
Assessments
The six unit exams will mostly follow the AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam model in a condensed format, including listening and reading multiple-choice components, as well as free response written and spoken components. Full attendance is expected on the days of these exams.
Midterm Exam
The time allotted for the midterm exams is similar to that of the actual AP® Spanish Language and Culture Exam. We will therefore take our first full practice AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam during our given midterm day, with slight modifications.
Final Project
In the weeks that follow AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam, students will have the opportunity to further examine cultural and historical topics, literary genres, and film discussed throughout the year. With the teacher’s guidance, they will complete a performance research project, using Spanish sources, which will include a written component and a formal presentation consisting of a presentation of the material researched followed by Q & A/discussion session with the teacher and classmates.
AP Specific training
The last two weeks of April are dedicated to rigorous practice for the AP® Spanish Language and Culture exam. This includes analyzing previous years’ sample student work, practice tests, speaking simultaneously, timed writing and speaking.
FORMAL AP EXAM = Thursday, May 14, 2026 @ 8 AM