Learn Spanish with movies: El hijo de la novia

Why movies?

1. Movies are something our students like. At least, they like the format. They are familiarized with them. They probably go to the movies on the weekends with their friends. 
2. The movies are primary sources for the language. The language our students are exposed through the movies is a native language, produced for/to native speakers.
3. The language in the movies is real. We will find a lot of authentic registers [poor people talking slang, rich people using a very sophisticated speech...] to work with.
4. With the right activities (pre-comprehension, ...) movies are not a passive activity but a really "active" activity in our class.
5. Movies are visual. It is a visual format we (pretty much all) are familiarized with it.
6. Movies are a huge "exposition" of the target culture. It depends on the movie but lots of them can help us bring up to the table interesting debates/discussions about cultural topics.
7. Movies stimulate creativity.
8. Movies develop our students capacity of analysis from different points of view.

A possible sequence to consider for planning purpose:

- Before the movie:

• Glossary
• Pre-comprehension activities [Anticipation]

-During the movie:

• notes
• comments
• answers
• quotes
• words lists

- After the movie:

• level-targeted tasks

Sequence based on Martha Florez

In this case, I propose a movie about rethinking our paths through life. The movie also expose us to a good dose of reality. Read the full review in IMDB or in BBC Reviews

It is interesting how many different types of text we can work with our students through movies. We can practice producing a review, a summary, descriptions of characters, dialogues/conversations, informal letter, email, interview, article... 

Ficha técnica de la película:

Título: El hijo de la novia

Dirección: Juan José Campanella

País: Argentina

Año: 2001

Fecha de estreno: 23/11/2001

Duración: 123 minutos

Género: Drama, Comedia.

Reparto: Ricardo Darín, Héctor Alterio, Norma Aleandro, Eduardo Blanco, Natalia Verbeke, Gimena Nóbile, David Masajnik, Claudia Fontán, Atilio Pozzobon, Salo Pasik

Productora: Patagonik Film Group, Tornasol Films, JEMPSA, Pol-Ka Producciones

Possible activities are listed below with worksheets and print outs. Enjoy!

Sources and resources:

• El cine, un recurso didáctico. El hijo de la novia. [Celia Carracedo Manzanera]
• El cine en la clase de ELE: El hijo de la novia [Josefa Álvarez Valadés & María Luisa Gómez Sacristán]
• Estrategias para desarrollar diferentes tipos de textos a través de las películas [Martha Flórez]

“Accordingly, globalization is not only something that will

concern and threaten us in the future, but something

that is taking place in the present and to which we must

first open our eyes.”

Ulrich Beck (German Sociologist; b. 1944)

Lunaprofe 10/27/2014  No comment

Specific vocabulary: Internet

Hello all again!
Today I want to share a couple of images containing specific basic vocabulary to use on a daily basis: Internet. 
I know it sounds too easy but I have found out that sometimes this is that obvious that it doesn't get covered in any Spanish class. 
When can this specific vocabulary comes in handy?
The first time I realized the importance of it we were going through a web quest for my Spanish class. One of the requirements for my students were to cite their sources and they all turn to me when they reached that point of the task. 

Yes, our students usually have to cite their sources for their projects/essays... and nowadays almost every single source is on line, so that is what they use it. Therefore if we want our students to be ready for that we need to teach them this essential vocabulary.
I hope these two visuals come in handy to use them for your classes and also feel free to take the brief quiz below to check if you already mastered this specific vocabulary.

Check your answers here ;)

“Five years from now on the Web for free you’ll be able to find the best lectures in the world. 

It will be better than any single university.”

– Bill Gates, chairman of Microsoft (2010)

Want to expand your knowledge?

• Vocabulary list in English and Spanish
• Computer and Internet words
• A comprehensive list with audio

Lunaprofe 10/21/2014  No comment

Learning through Apps: Hello Talk

Apps, apps and more apps. That's the way this tiny world works! Thanks to my wonderful student Valentina for introducing me to this app! 
But this app, although they should keep developing it to improve on a few things, is bringing up a great idea to the table: personalized language exchanges through our phones. 
Basically, you sign up, you fill out which your native language is and which languages you are interested in and start your learning experience.
Immersion is a very effective way of learning languages. Today is way easier to travel to the target country and give yourself a first-hand experience to push your language learning ability, but at the same time we live in an over-connected world, thanks to Internet, so we should consider to get into virtual immersion. Advantages: cheaper, convenient, it builds your social sense of exchange things with others...
Hello Talk is a great opportunity to have a native speaker on the other side of the phone. 
The app will count the exchange time automatically, so you do not have to worry about fairness and accountability ;)
The app allows you to write a 500 characters text.

Keep it simple: 5 minutes in your native language, 5 minutes in the language you are learning and vary your friends to have a wider picture of the variety of the language you are studying.
As every on-line tool it also has disadvantages. This one is a kind of social network, so always be careful with the type of information you give to your co-learner. 
A good advice for this would be: think like you'd be in the real world. Don't give anybody any information you wouldn't give to anybody in your real life.

Get Hello Talk here!

Sources:

• http://www.hellotalk.com/

I never teach my pupils.

I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn.

Albert Einstein

Lunaprofe 9/29/2014  2 comments

Useful Spanish phrases

It's always hard to start a conversation, to reply to a question... That's why we all should work on this prompts with our students in Spanish. 
They are basically chunks of language, but very transportable chunks, very movable. 
They can fit in a lot of contexts and there it is where resides their power.
Many of my students told me they just go blank at the beginning of a conversation. Once they have started everything goes smoother but sometimes it's really hard to get the ball rolling. This might be a great tool to use in this type of situations.
   

Siempre me han interesado los asuntos que tengan que ver con____ Este tema empezó a interesarme después de que lo estudiáramos en clase___ Tal vez / quizás___ La primera vez que me enteré de esto fue cuando____ Me sorprendió mucho que fuera un problema tan grave en _(país)__ Nunca hubiera imaginado que fuera así____ El gobierno debería hacer algo____ Es imprescindible que el gobierno haga algo___ Hay que concienciar/concientizar a los jóvenes de los riesgos___ Lleva mucho tiempo así / Es así desde hace mucho tiempo___ Durante la dictadura de Franco / durante el franquismo___ Hoy en día___ He estado siguiendo esta historia en las noticias___ En la actualidad___ Estoy harta de ver y escuchar esta historia todos los días____ Creo que los medios están generando pánico___ Lo que no entiendo es____ Estoy convencid@ de que____ Creo que / pienso que___ Sin lugar a dudas___ En mi opinión___ Me parece que____ Considero que ____ Estoy seguro de que___ Me da la impresión de que____ Lo que más me interesa de esta película es la manera en que retrata___ Para mi___ Desde mi punto de vista____ Siempre me han interesado los asuntos relacionados con ____ Parece ser que _____

If you know more useful Spanish phrases, please, leave a comment and let us know! We'll include it on this list. Two heads think better than one ;)

I am not a teacher, but an awakener.

Robert Frost

Lunaprofe 9/22/2014  5 comments

Oral communication: thoughts before choosing a topic for a presentation

Hi folks! 

We are here today to share some thoughts about what to do and what not to do when choosing a topic for an oral presentation:

This is a collaborative document! If you have any ideas/suggestions to incorporate to it, please, leave a comment! Thanks a million!

To have this type of conversations and/or analysis with our students is really important. They really want to be an active part of their education and they want to know what to do and what not to and why.

Definitely, to get our students involved in these conversations help them engage in the class. They kind of change their perspective on your class becoming ours/theirs.

Do:

Don't:

ü  Consider a topic that really interests you (yes, YOU!) and goes well with your personality/identity This is a crucial point, we are all different and we all have different interests, so something that works for your best friend doesn't have to work for you. ü  Think of a theme that enables you to learn about an aspect of the target language or culture (our case, Spanish) For example: not all topics will enable you to learn a lot about every language or culture. It will depend on the target language/culture.  ü  Choose an open-ended topic that encourages you to express lots of opinions This will let you raise additional questions and info. ü  Take into consideration a topic that offers the potential for complex thoughts Higher-order thinking is a high value. ü  When making your choice consider a topic you'll be able to research quite easily So you can focus on important transferable ideas & language skills. ü  Begin with a stimulus (a song, a picture, a painting...) as this helps you stay on track ü  Place the stimulus within a social/cultural/historical/political/artistic context It will help you understand (and others) the topic deeply. ü  Brainstorm your first ideas and limit the range of your research ü  Set down some questions about your presentation and try to answer them  This will help you to anticipate some questions you might have during your Q/A session. ü  Practice with your friends, family, neighbors… (better if you can practice with a native)  But PRACTICE don't bombard them 24 hours a day ;) ü  Choose a topic is easy for you to break it down in different pieces. Make an outline of each one and practice separately. Finally, put all your pieces together.

Ø  Be too ambitious (if you choose something you know nothing about, you may end up wasting a lot of time). You want to be challenged but not over challenged Ø  Pick something too difficult, we don't want anxiety and/or stress! Again, give yourself a break, we are working on developing your language skills. Ø  Select clichés or stereotypical topics like bull fighting or flamenco, unless you have something quite original to say. It might be quite uninteresting for your audience Ø  Choose something so unknown you can't find any information about it You want something you don’t have to make a huge effort to find information about. Ø  Relate/Narrate someone's biography It sounds like rehearsed and it's definitely boring. If you want to score highly you might want to take your audience into consideration Ø  Do all your research in a different language (English?) and then just translate it all (it won't sound authentic) It won't sound natural. Remember the importance of thinking in sentences and ideas. Ø  Use Google Translator  It won't sound authentic and you will get lucky if your presentation makes sense. Give yourself a chance, you might know more than Google! Ø  Leave it to the last minute!!! Unless your goal is to have a zero to show yourself you can also handle really low scores ;) Source: IB Spanish B SL/HL  OSC IB Revision Guide

Lunaprofe 9/08/2014  2 comments

Minicuentos en español: El reciclaje.

Through these mini stories we work vocabulary, strands, reading comprehension, content and time-management.

The unit topic is recycling, which is very popular in all programs. You can find it under Global issues most of the times.

Resources:

• Minicuentos en español. El reciclaje. Fase 1 [pdf]
• Minicuentos en español. El reciclaje. Fase 5 [pdf]

Lunaprofe 9/06/2014  No comment

IB Learner Profile: potential activities

Two heads are better than one.
This is a link to a live and collaborative document where you can find tons of activities to develop the IB Learner Profile in your classes.
If you are an IB teacher this is your opportunity to contribute with the IB community and/or find interesting activities to introduce your students/parents/staff to these key concepts.

If you have any ideas you think might help us feel free to leave a comment with your activity or click on the link to make your contribution directly through Google Drive (a Google account is required)

A big thank & hug to everyone participating in this collaborative project.

IB Learner Profile activites: a collaborative document

Some useful links:

• What is IB? [whatisib.com]
• The IB Profile in action [IBO]
• The IB Learner Profile [IBO]
• IBLP Posters  [Antonio Luna]

This work has been developed independently from and is not endorsed by the International Baccalaureate (IB)

Lunaprofe 9/04/2014  No comment

Stop and Think: Risk-takers

Asumir el riesgo, ser valiente, tener coraje, ser audaz...all these expressions have the same meaning in Spanish: to be a risk-taker. 

Want to know more?

• The IB Learner Profile [IBO]
• Perfil del alumno internacional [IBO]
• Como convertirse en una persona audaz [Gestiopolis]
• El arte de ser audaz [El Vigía]

Lunaprofe 9/01/2014  No comment

20 potential questions you can get in a Reading Comprehension task

Practice makes perfect!

You need to have solid language skills (of course!) but at the same time you need to make sure you understand and practice the type of questions you will have to answer in a Reading Comprehension test if you want to score highly.
This is a summary of some of the more typical questions you can find in a Reading Comprehension test.
When taking this type of assessment you also need to know what it is expected from you: in this case we are testing your ability to comprehend/understand what you are reading and not your writing skills. This justify that some teachers don't pay much attention to your grammar, sentence structures... when grading this type of papers. But remember: don't relax and try your best!

	Español	Inglés
1	Basándose en el sentido general del texto, elija la opción correcta	Basing your answers on the general meaning of the text, choose the most appropriate option
2	Busque  la palabra del texto que significa (sinónimos, antónimos y/o definiciones)	Find the Word which means (synonyms, antonyms and/or definitions)
3	Clasifique las respuestas según se refieran a X o Y	Classify the answers according to whether they refer to X or Y
4	Complete el cuadro	Complete the table
5	CUIDADO: Hay más frases de las necesarias	WATCH OUT: you won’t need all the sentences
6	Debe dar  tres palabras/razones para obtener un punto	You need to provide three words/reasons to gain one mark
7	Conteste a las preguntas siguientes, indicando si son Verdaderas o Falsas, incluyendo la justificación	Answer the following questions indicating whether they are True or False, with justification
8	Escriba las palabras que justifican su respuesta	Write the words which justify your answer
9	Faltan algunas palabras	There are some words missing
10	Resuma uno o varios párrafos en oraciones	Summary sentences with different paragraphs of the text
11	Relacione las dos mitades de una oración	Match up two halves of a sentence
12	Indique en cada grupo cuál es la palabra con un significado distinto al de las otras	Indicate which word from each group has a different meaning
13	Indique las frases que mejor corresponden a lo que ocurre al final de la historia	Indicate the sentences which best describe what happens at the end of the story
14	Ser consciente de los elementos cohesivos/conectores que dan coherencia a un texto	Be aware of the cohesive devices that give a coherence to a text
15	Escriba la letra correspondiente en las Casillas	Enter the appropriate letter into the boxes
16	Relacione los espacios numerados con una de las palabras de la siguiente lista	Match up the numbered spaces with one of the words from the following list
17	Relacione a una persona con una afirmación	Match up a person with a  statement
18	Seleccione las frases apropiadas de entre las que vienen a continuación	Select the appropriate sentences from the ones below
19	Preguntas de respuesta corta	Short-answer questions
20	Relacione ideas o secuencias con imágenes	Match up ideas or sequences with pictures

Champions keep playing until they get it right.

Billie Jean King

Lunaprofe 8/29/2014  6 comments

Expressions in Spanish: Ser más lento que una tortuga

To learn expressions in the target language is essential because native speakers do use them all the time. 
Expressions are used in formal and informal speech. 
A language learner that is using expressions transmits certain information about him/her that is implied. Students communicating effectively with expressions show a deeper understanding of the language and also of the target culture.
This expression is just a comparison. A turtle is slow, doesn't go fast.
Sometimes expressions make sense in your native language others don't. It could be similar to phrasal verbs in English (just to some extent). So sometimes you will have to use just your memory to internalize them (you can use multiple techniques to do it, like acronyms, connect the expression to an image...)
What can we use expressions for?
For showing our proficiency in a language. Once you have mastered a certain number of expressions and include them in your interactions you are ready to go beyond the language borders.

Did you like the article? Share it! It's free ;)

“We may have different religions, different languages, different colored skin, but we all belong to one human race."

Kofi Annan (UN Secretary-General, 2001 Nobel Peace Prize Winner)

Lunaprofe 8/25/2014  No comment

Stop and Think: Miguel de Unamuno

Nurture your students minds through crucial people that show and demonstrate the IB Learner Profile.
Inspiring our students is a core task for a teacher and a challenge every year.

Want to know more?

• Miguel de Unamuno [Wikipedia]
• Artículos sobre Miguel de Unamuno [Universidad de Navarra]
• Documental sobre Miguel de Unamuno [Documentos UNED]

Lunaprofe 8/18/2014  No comment

Tongue Twisters: a funny resource to learn a language

A tongue twister is really useful for acquiring a second language. 
But what a tongue twister is?
We can define it as a sequence of words difficult to pronounce fast and correctly. So we can benefit from it to help our students improve on their pronunciation and fluency. From a more informal point of view, we could say Tongue Twisters are the perfect tool to exercise our students tongues, and we can also use them to enrich our students vocabulary.
On one hand tongue twisters are linguistic tools but in the other hand are also cultural representations of the target country/language. 
They can be considered generally as a tool to improve on pronunciation and fluency and specifically a tool to improve on pronunciation of particular sounds isolated.

We can also use a particular tongue twister to work on specific tough sounds for our students. This is the case of the Spanish "R" pronounced as "RR" in certain cases. Using this little tongue twister [you can use any other one you find or make up for this purpose] we will help our students to improve their pronunciation on this difficult sound setting the stress bar low.

Por desenredar el enredo que ayer enredé, 

hoy enredo el desenredo que desenredé ayer.

Hay una rara palmera paramera en el páramo.

(Trabalenguas para practicar la R y con vocabulario específico de Venezuela)

Glosario: 

• Paramera
• Páramo

Tongue twisters to practice the "R" sound:

• Pequeocio
• Celebérrima

Sites with tonge twisters in Spanish:

• elhuevodechocolate
• International Collection of Tongue Twisters 
• Trabalenguas ERESMAS
• Literatura oral

Lunaprofe 8/11/2014  No comment

Visual orthography: la coma

This visual can be used for teaching just the ortography or we can also show our students a couple of things about the multicultural world we are living in.
My students always love how different is the perspective of using the comma with numbers in Spanish and Engish. 

After reviewing this graphic, challenge yourself doing this on-line activity [Google form] where you have to rewrite some paragraphs using commas:

Learn when to write a "coma" 

Remember: Smiling has a lot of benefits.

  A study of the European Journal of Social Psychology found that smiling actually makes you more attractive to those you smile at, you are more personable, easy going and empathetic when you smile.

Source for online-activity: 

• Orlando Cáceres Ramírez [Perfil en About.com]
• www.about.com

Lunaprofe 6/09/2014  No comment