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I LOVE games. But if I'm going to give 15 or 20 precious minutes of class time to a game, I want language happening. A lot of it.

In this episode, AnneMarie Chase and Andrea Caulfield, authors of Proficiency Through Play, join me to talk about how we can play AND keep supporting language acquisition. Because fun and rigor are not opposites. And they didn't introduce themselves. They made me play a game instead! 😂

In this episode:

• This, That, Both, or Neither, the guessing game AnneMarie used to introduce herself and Andrea
• Google Detective (5 minutes), shared by Andrea
• Art Memory (15–20 minutes), shared by AnneMarie
• Sentence Stealer Rock Paper Scissors (15–20 minutes), shared by Andrea
• Details, Details, Details (30–35 minutes), shared by AnneMarie
• Why we should never let students know who is winning too early
• How to narrate the game itself so students get even more input
• What to do when a game goes off the rails (because it will!)

Pick one game, try it this week, and tell me which one your students loved.

🎲 Get Proficiency Through Play: https://teachersdiscovery.com/products/proficiency-through-play
📖 Read the blog post
📱 Connect with AnneMarie: https://senorachase.com/

📱 Connect with Andrea: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-caulfield-577196b3/?isSelfProfile=false

🎧 More low-prep games: https://growingwithproficiency.com/4-easy-end-of-year-games-to-boost-joy-and-comprehension/
🏫 Join the Spanish Teacher Academy: https://growingwithproficiency.com/academy

Profe de español,

Grab this free resource and bring into your classroom 5 fascinating and comprehensible leyendas Latinoamericanas.

Go to growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas to grab your free copy.

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¿Tienes estudiantes de herencia en tu clase y sientes que necesitas algo diferente, pero no sabes exactamente qué?

En este episodio en español converso con la Dra. Nancy Domínguez-Fret, hija de inmigrantes mexicanos, hablante de herencia, exmaestra de high school y directora del programa de formación docente en Northern Illinois University. Nancy nos cuenta cómo nació Voces que cruzan fronteras: nuestra comunidad y la identidad multilingüe, un libro de texto completamente gratis que creó con la Dra. Megan Marshall para clases de español para hablantes de herencia.

En este episodio hablamos de:

• Qué hace diferente una clase de herencia: por qué se parece más a una clase de Spanish Language Arts que a una clase de español como segunda lengua.
• Cómo dejar atrás la perspectiva de déficit: empezar por lo que nuestros estudiantes ya traen al salón.
• Diseño inverso en cada unidad: preguntas esenciales, proyecto final desde el principio e input que sirve de modelo.
• La gramática al final, y a propósito: cómo descubrir si tus estudiantes realmente necesitan una estructura antes de enseñarla.
• Cómo llevar el español fuera del salón: entrevistas a la familia, debates sobre el Spanglish y conexiones con la comunidad.
• Ideas para Español 1, 2 y 3: cómo usar este recurso cuando no tienes una clase de herencia, pero sí estudiantes de herencia.

Y lo más importante: cómo ayudar a nuestros estudiantes a sentir orgullo por su lengua, sus raíces y su comunidad.

Recursos mencionados:

• Voces que cruzan fronteras, Volumen I y II: https://spanishdeherencia.com/
• Blog del episodio

Episodios relacionados:

• Episodio 206: Lo que las familias nos enseñan sobre cómo apoyar a estudiantes de herencia, con la Dra. Bertha Delgadillo
• Episodios 79 y 81: Cómo apoyar la competencia escrita de los estudiantes de herencia, con la Dra. Alberta Gatti

Más enlaces:

• Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy: http://growingwithproficiency.com/academy
• Museo de la Herencia Hispana
• Comunidad gratis en Facebook, Growing With CI: https://www.facebook.com/groups/growingwithci
• Claudia en Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/claudiamelliott/

Profe de español, descarga gratis 5 leyendas latinoamericanas fascinantes y comprensibles para tu clase: https://growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas

Profe de español,

Grab this free resource and bring into your classroom 5 fascinating and comprehensible leyendas Latinoamericanas.

Go to growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas to grab your free copy.

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We all want our students to acquire the language. We also want them to read it and, eventually, write it. But are we teaching them how to become readers and writers in the target language?

That’s what I discuss with Dr. Lara Bryfonski in this episode. Lara is a professor at Georgetown University and coauthor of The Art and Science of Language Teaching. Together, we explore why developing literacy and acquiring a language are different processes—and how we can support both in our classrooms.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Why we cannot always assume that students’ reading and writing skills in their first language will transfer automatically to the language we teach.
• How to find out what support students need when they read.
• What to do before, during, and after reading to help students make sense of a text.
• How to show students what they can do when they reach a word or paragraph they don’t understand.
• Why writing needs time for brainstorming, drafting, feedback, and revision.
• How to teach useful peer feedback, even when you have a large class.

One thing surprised me during our conversation: I was already using some of these strategies. Understanding how they help students develop literacy skills made me want to name and model them more intentionally.

If you’ve ever finished reading with your class, looked at the comprehension questions, and wondered, How do I actually help my students become better readers?—grab your cafecito ☕️ and join us. This conversation gave me tools I can use in my next lesson.

MORE FROM GROWING WITH PROFICIENCY

• Follow me on Instagram: @claudiamelliott
• Read the Blog
• Growing With Proficiency on Teachers Pay Teachers
• Join the waitlist for Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy

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Subscribe to Growing With Proficiency — The Podcast so you don’t miss our next conversation. If this episode helps you, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps more world language teachers find the show. 🎙️

Gracias for listening. ❤️

Profe de español,

Bring five fascinating, comprehensible Latin American legends into your classroom for free. Grab your copy at growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas.

Profe de español,

Grab this free resource and bring into your classroom 5 fascinating and comprehensible leyendas Latinoamericanas.

Go to growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas to grab your free copy.