NEWARK CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL SPANISH IV COURSE DESCRIPTION

ACADEMIC YEAR:2006-2007

TEACHER: MRS.  SCHUMAKER.  Room 108. B.A. SPANISH, THIEL COLLEGE. M.A. SPANISH, ST. LOUIS UNIVERSITY CAMPUS in MADRID,SPAIN. CERTIFICATE OF STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF MADRID, SPAIN. EDUCATIONAL STUDIES, DENISON UNIVERSITY. STATE OF OHIO LICENSE TO TEACH SPANISH.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES: Using the text, CLASSIC SPANISH STORIES AND PLAYS, students will read abridged versions of some of the greatest works of Spanish literature. The goals are to increase student awareness of culture, increase student ability to communicate in Spanish, improve reading comprehension, improve ability to answer questions and discuss plot, genre, characters, tone,author, and structure of a particular work and discuss the importance of the work in literature. Increasing the students’ vocabulary through reading and practice through written and oral exercises will be a direct result of the concentration on reading the classic works. An increasing awareness of culture in a Catholic context, and all that it encompasses, will also be part of the reading and classroom experience. All verb tenses in the indicative, subjunctive and imperative moods will be studied. Works to be studied may include:MIO CID; LOS CUENTOS DEL CONDE LUCANOR;LA CELESTINA; DON QUIJOTE. These texts will be in abridged form. Other short stories and poetry will be used from Latin America.Various workbooks, teacher designed practice sheets, and internet activities will be used to practice grammatical structures which will teach students to speak and write correct Spanish.

GRADING POLICY: Each quiz, test, special assignment or project is worth a specific nunber of points, and the quarterly grade is computed on the number of points that a student has earned divided by the total number possible. The resulting percentage is converted to a letter grade following the scale in the student handbook. NO points are awarded for homework or participation because these are expected behaviors which lead to becoming more proficient in the subject matter.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS: Because of the amount and difficulty of the work, students are expected to read every night and answer the assigned comprehension questions. The reading assignments are short enough to allow for the student to read it twice or as many times as necessary to comprehend the action. Worksheets designed to help the student keep track of characters or other important places, events, ideas must be kept up-to-date. Students must take part in the classroom activities on a daily basis. This includes reading in Spanish, answering in Spanish, discussing in Spanish. All other school rules as per the student handbook apply. 

A SUCCESSFUL LEARNER: A successful foreign language learner will:

LISTEN CAREFULLY

PRACTICE EVERY DAY

DO HOMEWORK

MAKE FLASHCARDS AND USE THEM

FIND AND MAKE OPPORTUNITIES TO USE SPANISH OUTSIDE OF CLASS

PARTICIPATE IN CLASS

REPEAT AND PRACTICE IN AND OUT OF CLASS

BE INTERESTED IN PEOPLE AND CULTURE

READ TO EXPAND YOUR WORLD

APPRECIATE AND CELEBRATE DIFFERENCES IN CULTURE(language, art, architecture,customs)

BE CURIOUS, ASK

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE(IT’S WORTH THE EFFORT)

REQUIRED MATERIALS: a three ring binder with ample notebook paper; a comprehensive Spanish-English dictionary.