It happened in 2016 / Speaking activity: Cultural diversity in the Olympics

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format. But this activity applies to all languages classes, remember that visual stimuli are great ice breakers to start conversations, debates, discussions, etc in your class.

Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection
Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

Questions:

- What's going on in this picture? 
¿Qué está pasando en esta imagen?
- What do you see that makes you say that? 
¿Qué ves que te hace pensar eso?

- Do you find any connection to your own culture? 
¿Ves alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.

Context information for the image:
Doaa Elghobashy of Egypt and Kira Walkenhorst of Germany compete in the preliminary beach volleyball event at the Rio Olympics.
Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Lucy Nicholson
Location: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Date: August 7, 2016.

Relájate y aprende

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 4/10/2017  No comment

ab Initio Unit: Educación

This unit is perfect for making connections to the rest of the themes in your ab Initio course.
For example, we can talk or connect education and sports, global issues, time, geography, physical descriptions, character, nationalities, etc.

Attention: The recorder for the IO just works on Mozilla Firefox.

We learn about education in Spanish through a Power Point. This is our main document with links to activities, questions, visuals, etc.
It is advisable to start introducing, at least, some vocabulary related to the unit, for that, you can use the flashcards below:

 

Presentations:

- La escuela [pdf]

- ¿Qué hora es? [interactive online]
- ¿A qué hora es? [interactive online]
- Individual Oral resources for Educación [web]

Activities:

• Internal Assessment on Education [web]
• Kahoot: 
• Cosas que hay en la escuela [web]
• Un día en la escuela [web]
• La escuela y el trabajo [web]
• Cosas que encuentras en la escuela [web]
• ¿Cómo es la escuela a la que vas? [pdf]
• ¿Cuántas nacionalidades hay en tu escuela? [conexiones: educación/relaciones/geografía] [pdf]
• Gerundios locos en la escuela [pdf]
• Actividad oral sobre las clases [pdf]
• Vocabulario + Mini-investigación [pdf]
• Hablar de horarios [CVC]
• Unidad didáctica interactiva "La escuela" [Junta de Andalucía]
• Cuaderno del alumno [pdf]

Individual Oral:

Choose one visual stimulus from below and spend 15 min preparing for your oral exam. Remember that you just can take with you 10 concepts=key words=phrases and that you are not allowed to read them during your exam.

Idea: you have the pictures here, why don't practicing a bit at home or in your free time?

Remember that for learning to happen we need attention, we need your attention. In order to boost up your attention you might want to connect any topic you are studying to personal experiences, beliefs, find practical applications, share it with your family, talk with your friends about what you are currently learning, find a buddy that can explain what you don't understand, etc.

Education is a journey not a race

Steiner

Lunaprofe 3/20/2017  1 comment

It happened in 2016 / Speaking activity: Castellers

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.
Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection
Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.


Context information for the image:
Castellers de Vilafranca form a human tower called "castell" during a biannual competition in Tarragona city, Spain.
Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Albert Gea
Location: Tarragona, Spain.
Date: October 2, 2016.

Relax and learn!

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 3/10/2017  No comment

It happened in 2016 / Speaking activity: A house built on bombs

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.
Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection
Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.

Context information for the image:
A boy stands in front of a house built on bombs dropped by the U.S. Air Force planes during the Vietnam War.
Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Jorge Silva
Location: Ban Napia in Xieng Khouang province, Laos.
Date: September 5, 2016.

Relax and learn!

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 2/27/2017  No comment

Speaking activities: Niños fumando

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.

Activity:

1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection

Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.

Enjoy!

Context information for the image:
You can see kids smoking, they are chatting out of St Louis Times, the newspaper they worked for, in 1910.

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 2/13/2017  No comment

It happened in 2016 / Speaking activity: Air Force One approaching to La Habana

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.
Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection
Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.

Context information for the image:
Air Force One carrying U.S. President Barack Obama and his family flies over a neighborhood of Havana as it approaches the runway to land at Havana's airport.
Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Alberto Reyes
Location: La Habana, Cuba.
Date: Monday, March 21, 2016. 

Relax and learn!

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 2/10/2017  No comment

It happened in 2016 / Speaking activity: Coexistence

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.
Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection
Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.
Context information for the image:
A Muslim woman wearing a Hijab stands in the waters in the Mediterranean Sea as an Israeli stands nearby on the beach in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Baz Ratner
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel.
Date: Tuesday, August 23, 2016.

Relax and learn!

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 1/30/2017  2 comments

It happened in 2016 / Speaking activities: Refugee children are still kids

This activity has been designed for my Spanish students, therefore most of the responses will be in Spanish and focused in the IB exam format.
Activity:
1.- Look at the image in this post and describe the scene [be as specific as you can, to the detail]
2.- Mention the topic this image is related to and justify it
3.- Give your personal point of view
4.- Develop your ideas and don't forget about supporting details 
5.- End with a personal reflection

Think about these three questions, they can help you develop your ideas:

• What's going on in this picture? / ¿Qué está pasando en esta foto?
• What do you see that makes you say that? / ¿En qué te apoyas para decir eso?
• Do you find any connection to your own culture? / ¿Encuentras alguna conexión con tu propia cultura?

Then, join the conversation by posting comments below and responding to the comments of others. Your teacher can give you personalized feedback replying to your comments below.

Context information for the image:
Refugee children play with a stuffed toy at a muddy makeshift camp at the Greek-Macedonian border, near the village of Idomeni, Greece.

Image's source: 
Website: Reuters
Photographer: Alexandros Avramidis
Location: Idomeni, Greece
Date: Tuesday, March 15, 2016.

Relax and learn!

Related links:

• Interactive oral activities for Spanish B SL
• Individual oral for Spanish B SL
• Resources for the Individual Oral

Idea based on: The Learning Network, New York Times.

Lunaprofe 1/23/2017  9 comments

Interactive oral activities

Some useful resources for your interactive oral in class. Rubric included in the activity.
If you want to know more about this assessment click here. 
If you just need a refreshment on the basics:
- based on the core
- 10% of the final score
- oral / interactive / group
- does not need to be recorded

communication & Media	Global issues	Social relationships
Alimentación e imagen personal	Ciencia y transporte	De tapas con los amigos
Enfermedades olvidadas	Uber vs Taxi	Ayude a un danés
El flamenco		Mi nombre es Khan

This work has not been develop and/or endorsed by the IBO.

Lunaprofe 9/27/2016  6 comments

Spanish B Unit: El facebook de mi abuela

Unit titles must be engaging to gather students attention and awake their curiosity. I asked my students to think of a title for this unit and they came up with this super engaging title "El Facebook de mi abuela" which summarize perfectly what this unit contains.
Although the IB states the possibility of just choosing two options by the teacher we always see all of them. To me it just makes sense, the more you offer your students the more opportunities they will have to do better in their exam. There is no need of doing a super long unit on each topic. When it comes to this you can do mini-units or "express units" comprising vocabulary, main concepts and ideas and give them a sense of what is that option about.


For a full understanding of how to teach this unit, please read the unit planner and if you still have any question/doubt don't hesitate to reach out. If you develop any other materials for this particular unit, please share them so we can add them to the list below.

All you need to teach/learn this unit:  Essential questions [pdf] Vocabulary [pdf] [Quizlet] Unit Planner [pdf] Visual stimuli [images] [Interactive Oral] Activation of prior knowledge [pdf] Activity to work the subjunctive [.doc] [Antonio Gallardo] Skill: compare [pdf] Writing [pdf] [Paper 2] Article: Inventions del nuevo milenio [pdf] [Paper 1] Interactive activity [Edpuzzle] Making predictions [pdf] Presentation to compare evolution of different items [pdf] [made by students] How am I going to be assessed? [pdf]

Interested in more units? Click here ;)

Feedback through Social networking

There are worse crimes than burning books.

One of them is not reading them.

Joseph Brodsky

Lunaprofe 8/19/2016  4 comments

Preguntas y respuestas para el examen oral

El examen oral es uno de los huesos para nuestros alumnos, así que cualquier tipo de ayuda que podamos brindar para esta destreza será bien recibida.

En este caso, la actividad es muy simple (y al mismo tiempo muy efectiva), ofrecemos preguntas difíciles a nuestros alumnos y les damos tiempo para que preparen sus respuestas [incluso se las podrían llevar a casa, ¿por qué no?]. Además les invitamos a que usen un lenguaje técnico, con conectores complejos, estructuras gramaticales complejas...

Después [nosotros] proyectamos cada pregunta y la analizamos entre toda la clase, vemos qué podemos mejorar, barajamos varias posibilidades de decir lo mismo con otras palabras...

De esta manera el alumno se familiariza [a su propio ritmo y con apoyo colectivo de la clase] con los temas y posibles preguntas en el examen oral y ve, escucha, analiza distintas respuestas posibles.

Preguntas y respuestas Español Nivel Medio:



Preguntas y respuestas Español ab Initio:



Esta actividad también funciona muy bien para la expresión escrita o prueba 2, después de la discusión se puede pedir al alumno/a que escriba un tipo de texto concreto: una entrada en su blog, una carta a alguna autoridad...

No quería terminar esta entrada sin agradecer a mis siete magníficos de este año su aportación y su duro trabajo. Gracias Valentina, Guillermo, Eduardo, Óscar, Santiago, Amelia y Anita. Y también, ¡mucha suerte!

Para ver el documento completo pincha aquí.

Entradas relacionadas:

• Español B [Página general]
• Recursos, ejemplos y prácticas para el examen oral [web]
• Preguntas y respuestas para el examen oral [pdf]
• Frases útiles en español [web]
• Ideas para elegir un buen tema [web]
• Rúbricas para Español B y algo más [web]

Human beings are curious by nature.

Aristotle

Lunaprofe 5/11/2016  1 comment

Text types: la presentación

A presentation is linked to oral communication and formal language. Another convention you must have on your presentation is a structure. The most typical one is introduction, development of your ideas and conclusion. The main purpose of this type of text is to inform an audience. Then, we can use an informative text features to elaborate a presentation.

Main features:

• includes some type of greeting at the beginning and salutation at the end
• Register will be basically formal although some informal register will be admitted too
• express a personal point of view on the topic
• support your ideas with examples

Tips on how to do a presentation [pdf]

Useful links:

• Text types [Antonio Luna]
• 10 important features of a presentation [Prezi]
• How to write an informative text  [About]

Knowledge is the food of the soul

Plato

Lunaprofe 2/14/2016  No comment