Spanish Course SPL3 Syllabus McAuley Hall 5801 Smith Avenue Suite 400 Baltimore, MD 21209 Spanish for Elementary Students, Part III Course Syllabus Course Code: Required Text: SPL3 Español para chicos y grandes - An Interactive Spanish Course for Elementary and Middle School Children Level II textbook and workbook Other Readings: Additional reading materials or media files will be posted on http://bluejay.cty.jhu.edu Course Overview The Spanish for Elementary Students, Part III course is designed for 2 nd to 6 th grade students have had prior knowledge and experiences with the language or culture. The course syllabus provides a course outline that may help each student manage his or her study time more efficiently. The syllabus acts only as a guide, however, and students are free to study at their own pace. Students are encouraged to take full advantage of all materials provided to them in hopes of aiding their learning and retention of the new language. Practice, practice, practice practicing is the key to learning any new language. Once students have successfully completed Part III of the Spanish for Elementary Students course, students should be able to: 1. Recognize, understand, and pronounce more Spanish characters 2. Use some regular and irregular verbs in the preterit tense. 3. Learn more of the Spanish culture, such as its history and traditions. 4. Learn to use direct object pronouns (me, te, lo, la, nos, os, los, las) with the command form. 5. Learn about holidays. 6. Build up vocabulary about countries, nationalities, shopping and other activities; 7. Understand and use preterit tense. 8. Conjugate regular and irregular verbs(pat progressive, imperfect and preterit tense) 9. Learn to use direct object pronouns (me, te, le nos, os, les) with the command form. 10. Compare equalities and inequalities. 11. Improve conversational skills. Course Materials Students will need the following items to begin the course: 1. Syllabus this syllabus not only provides a course outline, but also provides a discussion of both the Mid-term and the Final exams. 2. Español para chicos y grandes Student workbook, Level II the workbook also has a CD-ROM included in the back-cover with activities that corresponds with each week s lesson. The CD-ROM is helpful for the verbal component of the course and can be played in the CD-ROM/DVD-ROM drive of a computer. The workbook contains all of the reading, writing, speaking, and listening assignments needed for this course.
3. Español para chicos y grandes Student Textbook, Level II. 4. Software Installations Skype a phone communication software Skype is an internet phone communication software that allows students to talk to their instructors and teacher s assistant at any time of the day for free. If students do not already have an account with Skype, an account can easily be obtained after the initial installation of the software. See Accessing Skype in the Technical Manual. Adobe Connect a virtual classroom software Students will access the online classroom from a link sent by TA via email. See Accessing Adobe Connect in the Technical Manual. Audacity an audio recording software Audacity allows students to record their own voices as an audio file so that it is easier for them to send their oral presentations to their instructors. See Downloading Audacity in the Technical Manual. 5. Contact Information Instructor contact information are provided in an email sent by the instructor at the beginning of the course. 6. A Spanish-English dictionary although a Spanish-English dictionary is not required, it may be useful as a personal reference for the duration of this course. Course Outline and Assignments Discussion Material Students will be attending online lectures twice a week via Adobe Connect. The lectures are onehour long and will be held in the evenings. Each student s assigned lecture time and days will be provided in the initial email he or she will receive from his or her instructor. Lectures are meant for students to better learn and to retain the new vocabulary, grammar, and cultural material associated with each lesson, and to also provide students with the opportunity to virtually interact with their instructor, teaching assistant, and peers. Additional one-on-one Skype phone calls for each student will also be scheduled for speaking and listening practice. The phone calls will be made in the evenings once a week. The phone call will be with the instructor for 30 minutes. Students will be asked to converse in Spanish as best they can so that they can practice and perfect their Spanish conversational skills through one-on-one communication. Students must email their Skype ID to their instructor as soon as they create their account. Students will be taking quizzes via CTY s Course Management System. This online Course Management System will provide the link to the recording of each lecture every week and copies of the lecture power points and additional links to available resources. Each student, however, will need a CTY student ID and a password in order to access the system. CTY Student IDs and passwords are in the general cover letter. Students should spend five to eight hours a week learning the material and completing the assignments for each lesson. If students cannot answer all quiz questions correctly their first time around, students should study the lesson once again until they can correct their answers. Reviewing previous lessons and assignments daily is also important for the retention of new material and helpful for preparing for future quizzes and exams. Students should take advantage of all the materials provided and remember to practice their Spanish daily, since practicing is the key to mastering any new language. Course Outline 2
Spanish Course SPL3 Syllabus Week 1 Introduction to the course SPL1 Overview and practice Parts of the human body. Outdoor Activities. Week 2 SPL2 Overview and practice Review of interrogative words. Review of verbs ending in ar. Review of reflexive verbs. Week 3 Lección 7 Feriados y fiestas Direct object pronouns. Activities A to G Week 4 Lección 7 Feriados y fiestas Direct object pronouns. Activities H to L Cultural note: Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. Week 5 Lección 8 El presente y el pasado Countries, nationalities and languages Preterit Tense, regular and irregular verbs. Activities A to L Week 6 Lección 8 El presente y el pasado Indirect object pronoun: me, te, lo, la, nos, os, los, las s Comparison of equalities and inequealities. Activities LL to N Cultural note: Uruguay and Paraguay. Midterm Exam REVIEW and EXAM Mid-term Exam Written The mid-term written exam is a comprehensive review of all the language points students have learned up to Week 6. It contains listening and multiple-choice questions that will test the student s understanding of the phonetics, vocabulary, grammar, and cultural information introduced in this course. It will therefore be helpful for students to review all of the lessons, including the discussion materials, prior to the exam. The mid-term exam accounts for 10 percent of the final grade. Students must receive at least an 80 percent as the cumulative grade in order to pass the course. Mid-term Exam Oral The mid-term oral exam tests students on their ability to speak, understand, and pronounce all of the Spanish vocabulary they have learned from Week 1 to 6. Week 7 Review and assessment.
Week 8 Lección 9 Vamos de compras Cloths and accessories Demonstrative pronouns. Activities A to G Week 9 Lección 9 Vamos de compras Preterit tense: whole conjugation of regular and irregular verbs. Activities H to K Cultural note: Chile and Argentina. Imperfect tense. Activities A to C Week 11 Lección 10 Cuando yo era chico Expressions with the verb tener Imperfect tense. Activities D to H Cultural note: The environment in Latin- American. Week 12 Review and assessment. Week 10 Lección 10 Cuando yo era chico Students must have had successfully completed all assignments, and quizzes, and have had consistent online participation before being eligible to take the final exam. Final Exam Written The written final examination is a comprehensive review of all the language points students have learned. It contains listening and multiple-choice questions that will test the student s understanding of the phonetics, vocabulary, grammar, and cultural information introduced in this course. It will therefore be helpful for students to review all of the lessons, including the discussion materials, prior to the exam. The final exam accounts for 10 percent of the final grade. Students must receive at least an 80 percent on all of the assignments, the quizzes, and the exams in order to pass the course. Students must have had successfully completed all assignments, quizzes, and the mid-term, and have had consistent online participation before being eligible to take the final exam. Final Exam Oral The final exam tests students on their ability to speak, understand, and pronounce all of the Spanish vocabulary they have learned since week One. Students must have had successfully completed all assignments, quizzes, and the mid-term, in addition to have had consistent online participation, before being eligible to take the final exam. Course Assignments Reading Assignments 4
Lessons may require students to refer to outside reading material in addition to their textbook. All reading materials will help students learn and review their Spanish vocabulary, grammar, and the related Spanish cultural lesson. The vocabulary introduced in each lesson can be divided into two categories: the required basic vocabulary and the supplementary vocabulary. The basic vocabulary includes spoken expressions and students are required to learn how to write the expressions. The supplementary vocabulary will be introduced but students are not required to learn how to write them. Writing Assignments Writing assignments require students to learn Spanish character composition. Students will learn how to compose and write short sentences. Written assignments can be submitted by either emailing them to the instructor, or by faxing them to the course fax number: 1-866-431-3280. All faxed assignments must include student name, teacher, class, and the lesson concurring with the assignment. Listening and Speaking Assignment Each lesson provides a Spanish dialogue for students to practice by themselves and with each others. Students will need to practice proper pronunciation, in addition to understanding and using Spanish language correctly. Grading Policy Below is the breakdown of the course grading percentage: Grading policy TOTAL = 100%*: Assignments Online participation Quizzes Mid-term written exam Mid-term oral exam Final written exam Final oral exam Grading Scale Numerical Grade (%) 20% 20% 20% Letter Grade 98 100 A+ 93 97.9 A 90 92.9 A- 87 89.9 B+ 83 86.9 B 80 82.9 B- 5
77 79.9 C+ 73 76.9 C 70 72.9 C- < 70 No grade issued * Students must receive a 70 percent or above to pass the course. Enrollment Cycle and Policies Course Advancement Chart Student enrollment is course-based. After successfully completing a course with an 80% or above as their final grade, students are eligible to enroll in the next course up. Students who have had previous experience and exposure to Spanish and who are unsure about which course to start at can request to take the Spanish placement test. Completion Documents CTY acknowledges successful completion of each course by issuing a Progress Chart and Certificate of Completion to students. Completion documents are printed at the end of the semester and mailed to the students homes. A Parents Guide to Requesting Credit is included with the course completion documents. Completion documents for school-based students are sent to the school. To request a Record of Attendance for all CTY courses, email your request to the CTY registration office at ctydistance@jhu.edu, or send a fax to 866-646-3816. Refund Policies and Procedures Parents and guardians who submit a written request to withdraw within the first two weeks of the course start date will receive a 50% tuition refund, provided that software and course materials (if provided by CTY) are returned in satisfactory condition. The application fee is nonrefundable. Refunds take up to six weeks to process, pending on the return and reception of the course materials. Please send requests to withdraw by email to ctyreg@jhu.edu. Students who withdraw or fail to participate after the two-week withdrawal period has ended may not receive refunds. Parents and guardians are encouraged to use the first two weeks of the program, during which a refund is possible, to decide whether the course will work well with student s schedule and make the appropriate decision. 6