Spanish
The Spanish program at St. Michael’s strives to meet the National Standards for Foreign Language Education, established by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreigh Languages (ACTFL). The National Standards emphasize students’ ability to communicate in three ‘modes’: interpretive (reading and listening comprehension), interpersonal (conversational), and presentational (public speaking).
From the fourth grade on, St. Michael’s students approach Spanish with these goals in mind. Fourth, fifth and sixth graders meet once a week and learn basic vocabulary and phrases that allow them to begin communicating from day one. Starting in seventh grade, the program becomes more rigorous, with students studying Spanish three times a week. Eighth graders study Spanish every day. By the end of their Spanish studies at St. Michael’s, most students are ready to begin high school Spanish 2, many of them at the honors level. More importantly, they have learned to express themselves in Spanish.
In addition to communication, the National Standards emphasize cultural awareness. Each year, St. Michael’s Spanish students learn in-depth about the geography and culture of a Hispanic region or country. Areas we study include Central America, the Southern Cone (Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay), Spain, Mexico, and the Andean-Amazon countries (Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia). Class parties and cultural activities focus on these countries for an entire year, giving the students a brief immersion into each area. Quarterly projects allow students to explore an aspect of these countries/regions in greater depth and to gain experience speaking Spanish to their classmates as they present their projects.