SPANISH FOR TEACHERS OF
ENGLISH LEARNERS
Judith Cruzado-Guerrero
Gilda Martinez-Alba
Towson, Maryland
Agenda
• Focus & Course Design
• Strategies to practice Spanish,
• Strategies to facilitate instruction using Spanish,
• Strategies to increase family involvement.
• The beginning course was designed to assist educators to
communicate informally with children and families who
speak Spanish as their first language.
• The course introduced Spanish words and phrases useful
for every day communication in a school setting.
• Educators had opportunities to practice their
conversational skills and explore strategies and resources
in Spanish to better communicate with Spanish speaking
children and families.
Overview of the Course
• Not mandatory!
• Dates of the Course
• Spring Semester / 14 classes
Course Content
• Monday – F2F and online classes
• Flexible individualized Assignments & Communicative Approach
• Materials for the Course
• Book, IPad / Phone / Computer
• Expectations
• Flexibility, practice,
willingness to try, positivism!
In Classroom: Communicative Approach
• Focus on classroom interaction
and learners’ participation in
communication.
• Instructor pair and group
learners to enhance negotiation
of meaning and development of
confidence by engaging in
tasks
• Activities and tasks are fluency
based and include real life
situations which involve games,
role-playing, simulations and
problem-solving.
• Instructor acts as a facilitator of
learners’ task performance
Low Anxiety Environment: UDL Principles
• Multiple means of representation
• Multiple means for engagement
• Multiple means for expression and actions
Course Content
¿Cómo se dice?
Names
Homework
Questions
Classroom
Items and Use
Saludos y
Despedidas
Commands
Class
Routines
Rules
A must! Cultural Notes: ¿De donde eres?
Opportunities to explore Spanish speaking places or events in the community
and share in class! Bodegas, fiestas, restaurantes, peluqueria, etc!
Cultural Notes: Spanish Idioms
• Literally: When chickens pee.
• Translation: Never.
For example, children should not speak when adults speak.
Los niños hablan cuando las gallinas mean.
IDIOM GAME TIME!
Camina con los codos.
Meaning
• Literally: He/she walks with his/her elbows.
• Translation: He/she is cheap.
No tener pelos en la lengua.
Meaning
• Literally: He/she does not have hair on his/her tongue.
• Translation: He/she does not hold back what he/she
thinks.
Ser uña y carne.
Meaning
• Literally: Be nail and skin.
• Translation: Be very close.
Ojos que no ven,
corazón que no siente.
Meaning
• Literally: Eyes that do not see, heart that does not feel.
• Translation: What you don’t know won’t hurt you.
Dime con quien andas
y te diré quien eres.
Meaning
• Literally: Tell me who you are with and I will tell you who
you are.
• Translation: Birds of a feather flock together.
Más sabe el diablo por viejo
que por diablo.
Meaning
• Literally: The devil knows more because of his age than
because he is the devil.
• Translation: With age comes wisdom.
En un abrir y cerrar de ojos.
Meaning
• Literally: In an opening and shutting of the eyes.
• Translation: In the blink of an eye or very quickly.
Cuando las gallinas meen.
• Literally: When chickens pee.
• Translation: Never.
For example, children should not speak when adults speak.
Los niños hablan cuando las gallinas meen.
Spanish Idiom Websites
• http://www.omniglot.com/language/idioms/spanish.htm
• http://www.fluentu.com/spanish/blog/spanish-idioms/
• http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Spanish/Idioms
• Images: Google Images & Clip Art
Speaking with Instructor & Families
In Classroom:
Small group
activities
Speaking
activities with
Instructor
*Phone
Conversations
* FaceTime
Weekly
Speaking Task
(homework)
*Conversations
with students
and families
Listening to…
• Children’s Stories
• Example: La Oruga Muy Hambrienta
• Slower Version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcEGU3WM3Q4
• Faster Version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g11vCMejbD4
• Children’s Songs
• Example: Como te llamas? What’s your name? Rosy & Andy
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ij5R1YTG48Q
• Spanish Proficiency Exercises
• http://www.laits.utexas.edu/spe/
Writing in the Classroom
Día de la
Semana
Libros de
Dr. Seuss
Martes
Fox in Socks
Miércoles
Thidwick the
Good-hearted
Moose
El Gato con el
Sombrero
Lunes
Jueves
Viernes
The Lorax
Huevos Verdes
con
Jamón
Actividades:
Vamos a celebrar el
cumpleaños de Dr.
Seuss y comeremos
un dulce.
Los estudiantes
pueden usar
calcetines locos.
Vamos a hacer
manualidades.
Los estudiantes
pueden usar
sombreros locos.
Vamos a comer
huevos verdes con
jamón para el
desayuno.
Reading with Students
Children’s Books
*Formulating Question
*Sharing vocabulary
Songs
Notes
Rules
TED Talks
• http://www.ted.com/talks/browse?language=es&sort=new
est
• Provides captions in Spanish to many talks
Top 20 TED Talks…
• http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_20_most_popular_ta
lks_of_a
• See this example at 2:02, and use Spanish captions.
Final Projects
Back to School
Night
Presentations
School Tour
Classroom Tour
Literacy
Strategies for
Families
Additional Resources
• 12 Helpful Cognate Rules:
http://www.linguasorb.com/learnspanish/spanish-cognates
• Top 20 TED Talks:
http://www.ted.com/playlists/171/the_20_most_popular_ta
lks_of_a
• See this example at 2:02, and use Spanish captions
• Butterfly Spanish Lessons
• Tio Spanish Lessons
• Applications: Duolingo, Brainpop
• Univision: http://www.univision.com/
TED Talks
• http://www.ted.com/talks/browse?language=es&sort=newest
• Provides captions in Spanish to many talks
Butterfly Spanish
• https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9yudInUYzMh9H4g
Js4DrHg
• YouTube channel with short, easy to follow, basic Spanish
lessons.
Tio Spanish
• https://www.youtube.com/user/TioSpanisheng
• He has basic to more difficult Spanish lessons, all in
Spanish with the finger puppets.
Cool App/Website to Learn Spanish:
• Duolingo
• https://www.duolingo.com
Cool App/Website to Learn Spanish:
• BrainPOP ES
• http://esp.brainpop.com
Latest Application….for me:
• Word Lens Translator
• Download it now if possible. It is a must see! 
• It will translate any large signs for you from English to
Spanish (or Spanish to English).
Conclusions
• Include multiple ways to show the information, engage
students and opportunities to demonstrate what they
are learning in Spanish.
• Maintain a low anxiety environment by grouping
students for your activities and including technology.
• Plan meaningful interactive activities in and out of the
classroom that include real life situations.
Contact Information:
• Judith Cruzado-Guerrero
• jguerrero@towson.edu
• Gilda Martinez-Alba
• gildamartine@gmail.com