Family Tree Spanish

Posted on October 24, 2011 by spanishplans

I think we can all agree that the textbooks’ family trees are as engaging as an 8 a.m. lecture in a lecture hall of thousands. After a few years of using my own personal family to teach the family vocabulary words, I’ve instead started to use families that the students are somewhat familiar with (although I refuse to do the Kardashian family).

The Simpsons is one of those shows that includes a nuclear and extended family with enough people to fill out all the vocabulary words. Take a look at the following picture (blank and filled in).

LosSimpsonFamilia

Click to view/download

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LaFamiliaSimpsons

Click to view

After the jump, check out our Modern Family Family Tree based on the hit ABC sitcom Modern Family and other family related projects and lessons….

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Free Spanish Worksheets

Posted on October 23, 2011 by spanishplans

Among our hundred of products, are also many free items. In addition to these completely free worksheets and materials, a majority of our priced items include a free preview for you to get a sense of the product to see if it would be beneficial for your class. All you need is a free login to be able to download hundreds of materials for your Spanish class.

Our Free Products:
*Telling Time : Notes and Quiz – Short 2 pages document. 1 page describing how to state the time in Spanish and another page a brief quiz.
*Teaching Location in Spanish with Magnets – Explains how to use a magnet board to teach prepositions of location. To learn more about this activity and how to use it, read our explanation.
*Chores Vocabulary student oral activity – 20 questions for students to ask each other regarding chores and what they have to do around the house. Students ask the question orally and write down the names of their classmates according to their responses.
*Preterite of AR Verbs Guided Notes Packet -4 pages explaining the use of preterite and the forms for -AR verbs, including the forms for -Car, -Gar, -Zar verbs. Answer sheet also included. Preterito ARMakes understanding the preterite so much easier for the students. One you download these, you will definitely want to check out our -ER/IR packet for the preterite for only $4.00. Not convinced, just download the free preview (‘Download Preview’ button for free sample is always below the price on the product’s page).

While you are at it, I highly recommend checking out the free previews on our top sellers to see if the product is worth your money. The time it will save you in planning alone will be worth every penny. And because our products are classroom-tested and teacher-created, we’ve cut out the middle-man of big publishing companies and bring the worksheets and lessons right to you at a very affordable price!

*Preterite Pack: El preterito
*15 Spanish 1 Projects
*Subject Pronoun Unit
*Conversation Cards Levels 1 & 2 -Oral Speaking Activity

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Hanging up Flags in Classroom

Posted on October 14, 2011 by spanishplans

Over the last several years, I have been purchasing large 3’x5′ flags of Spanish Speaking countries, for display in my classroom. You can find them for pretty decent prices on ebay. The only problem was the lack of wall space, or more frustratingly, a way to keep them up. I used to tuck them into the ceiling tiles and let them hang against the back of the wall. I also have metal frames around my windows, so I buy Magnetic Clips and hang them over the windows.

But I have one area of the room, with a lot of empty space and I was unable to do either of those. That’s when the following three items came in handy:
How to hang up a flag in your classroom3M Command Hanging Clips, a tension rod, binder clips

For less than $10 you can get all of these and use them to hang your flags. The Clips are about $5 dollars for a pack of 6. And they will stick to anything. I have used them against cement brick wall, actual brick walls, and drywall and it stays put, but you can take it off without leaving marks. It really works! Go to the curtain or shower rod aisle of your favorite department store and pick up a tension rod for $5-10 depending on the size. And what teacher doesn’t have binder clips laying in some desk drawer. Attach the Hanging Clips to the wall, clip the flag to the tension rod, and wham!, you have yourself a flag that isn’t going to fall down.

Easy solution to Hang flags in school How to easily hang up flags in your classroom
Easy way to decorate your classroom for cheap! For other decoration ideas for your classroom, check out our Bulletin Board posts.

Posted in Bulletin Boards | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Columbus Day

Posted on October 9, 2011 by spanishplans

Most schools around the country have Monday off in recognition of Columbus Day. In Latin America, most countries also recognize this day as “Día de La Raza“, although in Costa Rica it is called “Día de la Culturas” but in Venezuela it is referred to as “Día de la Resistencia Indígena” to reference the plight of the indigenous population who inhabited Columbus Day Genocide Daythe lands before Columbus’s arrival.

Many of our students learn in school that Christopher Columbus, or Cristóbal Colón, “discovered America”. We know that this claim is not true and I believe it is important not to dumb down the facts for our young learners. So where did Columbus land?

Colón made 4 voyages to the Americas between 1492 and 1504.

  • He first voyage included landing on the islands of the Bahamas (which he called San Salvador), Cuba, and the Domincan Republic, which the whole island at the time was called “La Española”. This island now includes Haíti.
  • His second voyage a year later included stops in Antillas Menores, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Santo Domingo and Jamaica.
  • In 1498, on his third voyage, he landed upon Sur de Trinidad, la Península de Paria, and Santo Domingo.
  • Between 1502 and 1504 he set foot on Cuba, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panamá and Jamaica.

    ColumbusDayMap

    Click to enlarge

Columbus was an Italian, who set sail on behalf of the Spanish Crown, in search sailing to India. Because he thought he landed in India, he called the people he encountered “indios”, where is why we refer to indigenous people as “Indians”. The European contact with the “Tainos” would ultimately lead to their near extinction.To his death in 1506, Columbus believed he had landed in the Indies,  and was unaware of having discovered a new continent unknown to Europeans.

Hispanic Holidays : Download this list to see what Columbus Day is called and when it is celebrated in the rest of América.

Dia de la Raza

Update:
Check out these article talking about why it is time abolish Columbus Day and that honoring a greedy, ruthless, genocidal, slave-trader with a federal holiday seems a bit Dia de la resistencia indigenastrange.

Many cities are now celebrating “Indigenous Peoples’ Day” on October 12 instead of Columbus Day. Good Move.

Posted in Culture, History | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Jesse y Joy Corre

Posted on October 5, 2011 by spanishplans

¡Corre! por Jesse y Joy

Letras de la canción “Corre” de Jesse & Joy, which was released October 5th. Their new

Compra este póster de J y J

album, ¿Con quién se queda el perro? will be released October 25th December 6th. Their third album follows the debut album “Esta es mi vida” and their hit album “Electricidad”. You can purchase the first single “Me Voy” and the latest single “¡Corre!” in the iTunes Music Store. For more information see their official website at www.jesseyjoy.com

Letras de ¡Corre!

Me miras diferente,
me abrazas y no siento tu calor.
Te digo lo que siento
me interrumpes y termias la oración,
siempre tienes la razón.

Tú, libreto de siempre tan predecible
ya, ya me lo sé

así que corre, corre, corre, corazón
de los dos tú siempre fuiste el más veloz
toma todo lo que quieras pero vete ya
que mis lágrimas jamás te voy a dar

así que, corre como siempre, no mires atrás
lo has hecho ya y la verdad me da igual

ya viví esta escena
y con mucha pena te digo no. Conmigo no.
Di lo que podía, pero a media puerta se quedó mi corazón

Tú, libreto de siempre tan repetido
Ya no, no te queda bien

Así que corre, corre, corre corazón
De los dos tú siempre fuiste el más veloz
Toma todo lo que quieras pero vete ya
Que mis lágrimas jamás te voy a dar

Así que, corre como siempre, no mires atrás
Lo has hecho ya,
y la verdad me da igual

Tú el perro de siempre los mismo trucos
Ya, ya me lo sé

Así que corre, corre, corre corazón
De los dos tú siempre fuiste el más veloz
Toma todo lo que quieras pero vete ya
Que mis lagrimas jamás te voy a dar

Han sido tantas despedidas que en verdad
Dedicarte un verso más está de más

Así que corre como siempre,
Que no iré detrás
Lo has hecho ya, y la verdad me igual
Lo has hecho ya, y la verdad me da igual
Lo has hecho ya, pero al final me da igual


To view a video, with lyrics, visit their YouTube page. This song is a great song to use in your Spanish classroom to have students listen to to fill in lyrics. Create a cloze activity by taking out selected words and having students listen to the song to fill in the blanks. The song is nice and slow, and easy for beginning students to follow and the lyrics are easy enough to follow along! Great lesson for Spanish 1 music lesson.

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2 de Octubre No se Olvida

Posted on October 2, 2011 by spanishplans

While reading the trending topics in Mexico on Twitter, I noticed one Called “no se olvida” and “2deOctubreNoSeOlvida“. Upon reading some tweets, I recalled the monument I saw in Mexico City in the Plaza de Tres Culturas. Known as the “Tlatelolco massacre” the government opened fire on students and civilians who were protesting the 1968 Summer Olympics that were set to begin in Mexico. The monument lists the names and ages of those who were known to have been killed, although many more are unlisted as it is unknown exactly how many were killed. It is believed hundreds were killed during this protest. This was Mexico’s Kent State, soldiers unprovoked firing on civilians during a protest. For this, we must Never Forget. 2 de Octubre 1968 Mexico For more information, you can read about the event here and here.

Infografía del Dos de Octubre.

Otro infografia

Posted in Culture, History | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Saber

Posted on September 23, 2011 by spanishplans

After introducing the verb saber, I post the following comic on the board as students enter the room. After they have read about “sabelotodo“, “know-it-all”, I ask them to create their own comic with the verb saber.

Students use this Condorito comic strip to write in the questions and the final response.
Click on each picture for a larger version, which you can download and use in your own classroom.

Posted in Chistes | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Pictures for your Spanish classroom

Posted on September 20, 2011 by spanishplans

Interested in having a creative way to showcase Spanish to your students by making connections to their interests? We currently offer the following postcards print with a high gloss coating that would make an excellent addition to your Spanish bulletin board, a great student incentive, or something just for your desk or office. All postcards measure 5.47″ x 4.21″.

Pajaros EnojadosWho doesn’t love the game Angry Birds? Get your students pumped up with this “Pájaros Enojados” spanish edition.

Why so serious? in SpanishArtist and fellow Spanish teacher, MartinMRochaArt, drew this Spanish version of the “Dark Knight” titled “El Caballero Nocturno” featuring the Joker asking “¿Por qué tan serio?” instead of the popular line “Why so serious?”

elpapalapapaThis postcard is a parody of “Star Wars” called “La Guerra de las Galaxias: Lucas Andacielo y el ataque de la gramática” and deals with the differences between “papá” “la papa” y “el Papa”. Great way to reinforce grammar with this comic!

Want more? Check out our new store at Spanishplans.org/store

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Laminas sobre la Independencia de Mexico

Posted on September 15, 2011 by spanishplans

Estas laminas son de México sobre la Independencia. There are 4 pictures, and the back contains the information describing the pictures or events depicted on the front.

Pictures are quite large. To download, right click and choose “Save As”. You can open them up and zoom in or out as needed.

https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico1.jpeg
https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico1back.jpeg

https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico2.jpeg
https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico2back.jpeg

https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico3.jpeg
https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico3back.jpeg

https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico4.jpeg
https://spanishplans.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/mexico4back.jpeg

Fore more information and resources on the Independence of México, read our Mexican Independence Day post.

Posted in Culture, History, Resources | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mexican Independence Day

Posted on September 14, 2011 by spanishplans

¿Estás listo? Casi es El día de Independencia de México. Although more Americans can pronounce “Cinco de Mayo”, el dieciséis de septiembre is actually a national Mexican holiday. And not just ANY holiday; THE biggest national holiday in Mexico. So big that is gets two days of celebration.

Most Mexicans will be celebrating El Grito de Independencia on the 15th, and Día de Independencia on September 16th. September 15th is actually Independence Day for Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua. It also kicks starts the month long Hispanic Heritage month in the United States which runs until October 15th.

This is “El Grito” that the President of Mexico will make from El Palacio Nacional:
To see a live shot of El Zócalo in Mexico City, as well as a look at the past 24 hours, check out these live webcam shots.
El Zocolo Grito webcam

You may want to check out FluencyProf’s Comic with accompanying audio describing the historic events or their cloze activity.

If you are looking for some thoughts about these days events, you can find authentic language on twitter. I like to change my “Trending Topics” location to see what are the hot topics from Mexico.

On the right column, select “Change” next to the “Trends”
Choose your Trending Location
For Mexico, you can either select the trends from all of Mexico or the cities of Mexico City or Monterrey.
Trending in Mexico Sept 14 at 7:00pm ET

Where you can read:
-⌚ 14 de septiembre de 1813 – José María Morelos y Pavón proclama en Chilpancingo el documento “Sentimientos de la Nación”
-SabiasQue 14/09/1813: en México, José María Morelos y Pavón escribe el documento Sentimientos de la Nación.
-“No estoy llorando, son los Sentimientos de la Nación” Eso hubiera tuitteado Morelos si hubiese existido Twitter en esos tiempos.
–#gritosmexicanos Mamaaaaa, no hay papeeeeeeeel…..!!!!
–#gritosmexicanos. -Mamá, va a llover… -¡LA ROPAAAAAAAA!
-Nunca creí que el #martes13 fuera día de mala suerte y hoy mucho menos,la vida es demasiado importante como para dejarla a “la suerte” …

Simbolos Patrios: From revista “Muy Interesante Junior”

Anyway, if you are looking for some resources to use with your class for Mexican Independence, for less than a few dollars you can purchase: Mexican Independence Resource Pack:

Celebrate Mexico’s biggest holiday: September 16 with this Independence Day resource pack. 6 pages include the History of the Independence, How it is celebrated in Mexico (El Grito and los Desfiles) Information about the Flag and Coat of Seals, and Facts about Mexico. Also includes links of videos to show in class and how to show youtube videos even if you school has it blocked!

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Or this free download, 10 Common Misconceptions about the Spanish language and the People who Speak it:

Poder de SaberThis 12 slide powerpoint features 10 statements which ask students to decide if they are true or false. Click ahead, and it will tell you the answer and also give an explanation.These are 10 things that a lot of students don’t know, but they definitely should. Features common misconceptions about the Spanish language worldwide and in the US as well as about the people who speak Spanish.This powerpoint should last a 50 minute class period. Some slides also include additional links in the “notes” section for more information.

¡Viva México!

Posted in Culture, History, Lesson Plans | 11 Comments