Thursdays at Thatcher: Los Jueves en Thatcher (Part 2)

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I was eager to complete my time in Spanish with ELA-8 friends, and had the opportunity to return to Middle School last week for the final leg of my Spanish integration blog series, two Thursdays in the making. 

Because students sometimes enter Darlington in different grades in Middle School with different world language proficiencies under their belt, there are several classes within each grade from which to choose. I had the opportunity to sample a variety of classes in grades 6-8 to see firsthand the differentiated instruction in action. 

As each student takes on more rigorous and copious amounts of classwork and homework in Darlington's middle grades, the need for more individualized attention and smaller classes arises, and that is exactly what I saw. These smaller classes afford our Middle School Spanish teachers a better idea of where each student is in their comprehension of the curriculum material. Beyond the superficial of knowing a student's "Spanish name" and real name, our instructors get to know their pupils inside and out.

In sixth-grade Spanish 1A, Mrs. Robinson's class combined a timeless board game with verb conjugation. The students played Batalla Naval (what we know as Battleship) using the intersection of pronouns and correctly conjugated verbs as coordinates to sink ships. In play, students responded with agua (literally "water," or in this case, "miss"), tocado (hit) or the dreaded hundido (sink).

The students conversed back and forth with each other in Spanish, continually processing vocabulary words while choosing the correct verb form. It was nice to see the students so engaged and enjoying fun games in class. You might say that playing Batalla Naval in Spanish class helps their vocabulary sink in better!

In seventh-grade Spanish 1B, we began class by singing Feliz Cumpleaños to birthday girl Olivia. When we opened the lesson, Mrs. Barfield helped us to review the differences between the verbs for "to be," ser and estar. Using the SMART Board, students were called on to conjugate the appropriate verbs based on the context of the provided phrases.

This form of hands-on learning is essential for grasping the fundamentals of some of the most important and commonly-used verbs in the Spanish language. We also got to tackle some present progressive verb forms and review the differences in verbs ending with -ar and -er!

Students were acting out a script that they had written based on a story from their textbooks in seventh-grade Spanish 1. I had heard of the famed bioluminescent bays in Puerto Rico, but these students were bringing it there to Thatcher Hall. The student cast [in groups of four] took the audience with them to Bahía Mosquito (literally translated as Mosquito Bay), where the players attempted to make sense of a strange light below their boat. 

Were the bright flashes the result of un tiburón (a shark)? Was it una sirena (a mermaid)? Una fantasma (a ghost)? 

It turns out that the beautiful luces (lights) were the byproduct of the movement of microscopic creatures called dinoflagellates! After some funny and creative student performances and corresponding audience commentary, we watched a video about these bioluminescent protists, as our profesora incorporated science and geography with the lesson. 

In eighth-grade Spanish 2, I was just about blown away at the level of fluency of our students. As soon as the bell rang and the door closed, I re-entered Spanish culture with my classmates. Very little of my native English was spoken at that point, and I was thankful I still had some of the Spanish language floating around in my head so that I was not completely lost in class. 

Mrs. Barfield showed a photograph on the SMART Board of two toddlers playing with toilet paper in the bathroom, and it was up to the class to take the story presented in that moment and run with it. The sub-freshmen were required to use the household vocabulary they were learning to describe what happened next in the story, and then choose a classmate to whom to pass next as the tale continued.

What was particularly interesting about this exercise was that the students wanted to keep their attention on the story and the words that were used so they could follow along. They were being entertained and educated at the same time.

Our profesora brought in to class some wonderful art history, sharing the story of Diego Velazquez's "Las Meninas," the famous 1656 "self-portrait" that provided an inside look into the life of Spanish royalty. I always get excited when history and interdisciplinary topics of any kind are pulled into the mix to offer some additional insight into the subject matter! 

These teachers desire for their estudiantes to be able to say why they chose their answers and not others, demonstrating a real grasp beyond the typical rote memorization often exhibited by students that take world language classes in other schools. Across the board, Darlington students learn to be confident articulators of what they do know and what they do not yet know but are learning.

Our students in ELA-8 are learning a world language in fun and engaging ways in smaller classes that stick with them, where they can draw on experiences and fun challenges. This way, they are able to remember that one seldom-used vocabulary word, or maybe the little song they sing to remind them about subject-verb placement within a sentence. 

As the students move on to their studies in the Upper School, this acquired basis of world language will help propel them towards a variety of options. They may choose to take part in Darlington's Global Studies Program, learn a different language altogether, and either way, will broaden their horizons with cultural sensitivity and awareness. 

These Tigers are acquiring life skills in the classroom that are essential for survival in today's workplace. Knowing a second language is no longer the cherry on top to one's résumé; it is quickly becoming one of the main ingredients of the dessert. 

Beyond having the bragging rights that come with being bilingual is an opportunity for our students to truly embrace the world around them. While the ability to speak and use the English language eloquently is an important skill that opens doors, the foundation for world language that Darlington gives to its students opens their eyes to a new world, where language is no longer a barrier—but an opportunity.