Abanicos: lengua y cultura is designed for a first semester of elementary Spanish but it can be used to review vocabulary and grammar at any level. It offers textbook pages in color and printable worbook pages that align with the textbook. The vocabulary and grammar derive from the topics in the textbook. These topics cover physical and political geography of the Spanish-speaking world, traditions, and popular culture. Reading, listening, speaking, and writing are goals in each section. The book is complemented by videos, games and grammar practice, quizlet sets, and other resources found on internet. This project will continue with the second semester book in the near future. I welcome ideas and collaboration as well as suggestions for improving. I hope this book will be useful to many Spanish language instructors and learners.  

Acceso is a complete, interactive curriculum for intermediate-level learners of Spanish. The materials on the site are provided freely to the public and are intended as a replacement for commercial textbooks, which are generally ill-suited to the learning outcomes now considered crucial to successful language study. These materials are supplemented by an online workbook built on the MySpanishLab platform of Pearson Education, Inc., as well as detailed lesson plans, rubrics for the evaluation of student work, and reliable instruments for measuring student progress and learning outcomes. Winner of 2012 Computer Assisted Language Consortium (CALICO) Focus Award

Reviews
CALICO Journal 29.2 (Jan 2012): 398-405.
Hispania 95.2 (June 2012): 365-366

The lab will start off with some conversation starters having to do with numbers, each prompt has a quantitative aspect involved. During the main activity lab students will get to learn each other's experiences in other countries, focusing on country similarities.

In this lesson plan, students will learn about the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac. In the introductory first lesson, they will see how animals are often used as symbols. In the second lesson, they will hear one of several versions of how the 12 animals were chosen. They will then focus upon a few of the animals in the story and see how they can be used as symbols of certain human characteristics. In the third lesson, they will be introduced to the other animals of the zodiac, and they will be given a chart on which they will assign traits to each animal. Then they will consult a number of websites to find the traits traditionally associated with the animals, which they will add to their list. Then, they will come up with a number of ways to compare and contrast the animals in the list. In the third lesson, they will focus upon the animal associated with the year of their birth, learning about its traits and discussing whether or not these apply to themselves and their peers. Finally, each student will make an acrostic, combining the letters of his or her first name with adjectives that relate to his or her zodiac sign.

In this activity, students will practice answer the phone and having a conversation in Chinese, using mannerisms common in Chinese. They will practice trying to make plans with someone over the phone, explaining their schedule, and politely accepting or declining an invitation.

In this activity, students will practice asking someone they meet where they are from and their nationality. Students will start by asking each other what country they are from, and then each student will be given a country card at random. Students will then practice asking and answering questions about various nationalities.

Students will investigate musical genres in Spanish Speaking countries in order to better understand the history and influences that created the music, as well as the cultural connections/impact of the music today. Begin studying Bomba as a class and work through the investigation process together; then students can select a different genre of music to research and explore before creating a visual essay about their topic.The complete lesson plan included is the 4th class period of a 8-10 period unit of study; the complete unit slides are included in the resource folder with all readings, videos, etc. Lessons are in Spanish, but could be adapted for an English class with Spanish translanguaging as many of the videos are included with closed captions. 

This OER Myths and Legends was created by Yulia Evans as part of the 2024 World Language OER Summer work and training. Educators worked with Chrystal Liu, Nick Ziegler and Dorann Avey to create OER Learning Plans and materials. The attached Lesson Plan “Bremer Stadtmusikanten” is designed for 9 - 12 World Language Arts teachers for Novice Learners of German. Students will interpret the video, analyze the plot and be able to retell the story in German. This Lesson Plan addresses the following NDE World Language Standard(s): NE WL 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1b, 4.2aIt is expected that this Lesson Plan will take students 50 minutes to complete.

Resource: This is a website made by the German Bundestag explaining where, what and how their government works.

The Cali Chiu course is designed to give undergraduates a working command of Valley Zapotec, an indigenous language of Oaxaca, Mexico, also spoken by many immigrants to California. The course presents a new simplified system for writing Valley Zapotec, along with a guide to pronunciation and information on building Valley Zapotec words and sentences. This book provides background material for an instructor’s class lectures, but it can be used for self-study along with the accompanying audio material.

What types of things do you need at a party?  What are some decoration items?  What do people eat?  There is a lot that goes into planning an event and to be able to provide a clear description of your event in Spanish, you will learn these words!ACTFL StandardsCommunication: Interpretive Communication, Presentational CommunicationCultures: Relating Cultural Products to PerspectivesLearning TargetI can recognize information about when and where an event will take place.Habits of MindThinking and communicating with clarity and precisionCritical Thinking SkillClarity

What types of things do you need at a party?  What are some decoration items?  What do people eat?  There is a lot that goes into planning an event and to be able to provide a clear description of your event in Spanish, you will learn these words!ACTFL StandardsCommunication: Interpretive Communication, Presentational CommunicationCultures: Relating Cultural Products to PerspectivesLearning TargetI can recognize information about when and where an event will take place.Habits of MindThinking and communicating with clarity and precisionCritical Thinking SkillClarity

This OER "Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival" was created by Chen Zhang as part of the 2024 World Language OER Summer work and training. Educators worked with Chrystal Liu, Nick Ziegler, and Dorann Avey to create OER Learning Plans and materials. The attached Lesson Plan is designed for 9 - 12 World Language Arts teachers for Novice Learners of Chinese. Students will learn key phrases related to the Mid-Autumn Festival, analyze and evaluate cultural elements, build background knowledge to clarify and deepen their understanding of the festival and use relevant evidence from a variety of sources to assist in analysis and reflection. This Lesson Plan addresses the following NDE World Language Standard(s): NE WL 12.1.6b, NE WL 12.1.6l, and NE WL 12.1.6o. It is expected that this Lesson Plan will take students 90 minutes to complete.

Chinese Take-In provides an interactive environment where first-year Chinese learners can practice listening outside the classroom according to individual needs and paces while receiving immediate feedback.

Chqe’tamaj le qach’ab’al K’iche’! seeks to develop a beginner to advanced level online course for K’iche’, a Mayan language of Guatemala. The team includes faculty and grad students at The University of Texas at Austin and at Vanderbildt University, as well as associates in Nahualá who are all working together to develop materials relevant for the course.

This will be the first full online course of any Mayan language. Based on the variety spoken in Nahualá, it seeks to develop oral fluency in the student in addition to an understanding of the grammar as well as reading skills. The intended audience for this pedagogical resource is foreign students interested in developing their language skills, as well as native teachers in bilingual schools through western Guatemala.

Circumlocution is a necessary skill for negotiating meaning in the target language.  This activity could be used at any level as partner practice, as a written assessment, or as a game like "Taboo".  Phrases should be taught in advance or students may have them available.  Vocabulary could be varied according to the unit and level of instruction.  This activity could be a filler for a few minutes at the end of class or as a longer activity.  

This OER activity was created by Anita Saalfeld as part of the 2024 World Language OER Summer work and training. Educators worked with Chrystal Liu, Nick Ziegler and Dorann Avey to create OER Learning Plans and materials. The attached activity is designed for 9 - 12 World Language Arts teachers for Novice Learners of Spanish. Students will arrange parts of a sentence to create descriptions of vocabulary words. This Lesson Plan addresses the following NDE World Language Standard(s): NE.WL.1.2.c and NE.WL.4.2.d.It is expected that this Lesson Plan will take students 10-15 minutes to complete.

This OER Lesson plan/unit was created by Trinia Perigo. The attached Lesson Plan is designed for 9 - 12 World Language Arts teachers for student learning of Mid Novice Learners of German. Students will practice speaking about clothing, exchanging information through interaction and negotiation of meaning. This Lesson Plan addresses the following NDE World Language Standard(s): NE WL 1.1, NE WL 1.2It is expected that this Lesson Plan will take students 5-10 minutes to complete.