My Classroom

So, I've put a ton of thought into making my classroom an inviting atmosphere for learning Spanish. Here are a few pics:

Welcome to my classroom! That's my desk!

There's a pinata hanging over my desk that my students made of my head last year when I student taught. They told me they were making a pinata of Dora la Exploradora... and the next moment I turn around, and it's hanging over my desk.

Notice the Promethean Board! I love technology... but not as much as... Well, actually...

So, hopefully you can tell from the pictures I took, but my classroom is HUGE! I love it! There's tons of space for moving around during conversation activities and learning centers. I feel very blessed.

So, this is "Spain". If my students are being amazing and get their work done quicker than the other students, I give them a ticket to Spain. So, they get to go sit on the cool chairs and play games in Spanish or read Dr. Seuss books in Spanish. They love the chairs especially.

I have a window! (Very few of the rooms in our school do)

I have 3 rules, and I'm very serious about them. They encompass A LOT.

My co-worker Melody helped me come up with this. We make sure the kids know that making mistakes is essential for becoming fluent in a foreign language. I think it has made them feel much more comfortable with speaking Spanish in class.

I teach the students a new phrase in Spanish every week. We practice it during the "Bienvenida" everyday, and I use it to get their attention by saying the first half of the phrase and having them recite the second half. Works super well.

So, "Puntos de Fiesta" are rewarded when my classes demonstrate good behavior in the classroom, like staying on-task, speaking in Spanish, being polite and kind, quieting down quickly, etc. When each class reaches 100 points, they get a "fiesta" for an entire class period. I'm amazed how motivating this is.

This is the class calendar. The kids write on it only in Spanish, and we go over the events of the week they have written on it everyday at the beginning of class during the "bienvenida", the welcome.

This is my word wall. It's a work in progress. As the kids learn new vocabulary, I try get it up on the wall for them to reference during class. The more exposure, the better.

So, apparently maps are expensive. I still need one of Central America, oh... and apparently Spanish is spoken in one small country in Africa: Equatorial Guinea. Who knew?!

And the traditional teacher posters. Gotta have 'em.