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- I don't know a Foreign Language. What can I, as a parent, do to help?
- Why English to Spanish when learning vocabulary and using flashcards?
- Did you know Ms. Patana, you have a reputation for your class being hard?
- What can we do to start preparing for the Final Exam now?
- Is there any additional help? Additional practice that I can do?
- What do you mean by doing my homework as if it were a quiz?
- Can I do Extra Credti?
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I don't know a Foreign Language. What can I, as a parent, do to help?
Learning a foreign language takes a lot of discipline and a lot of
memorization. What is a language without words? Vocabulary is an
easy area where you can help your child greatly. You can say the
words in English and have your son/daughter say the words in
Spanish. Because spelling is important also (Spanish is a phonetic
language... how it sounds is how it's spelled), you may say the
words in English and have them write it down in Spanish.
There is additional information on the Important Handouts page on how to use
Flashcards too!
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Why English to Spanish when learning vocabulary and using flashcards?
This isn't a FAQ from parents... but it is from students! It is
harder to learn new vocabulary from English to Spanish. Our goal is
to speak Spanish not just listen to it. In order to do that, the
vocabulary must be readily available in our brains. Because Spanish
is similar to English, it is easier to listen and recognize the words
than to produce them ourselves.
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Did you know Ms. Patana, you have a reputation for your class being hard?
Yes. I hear that every now and then! Rest assured that I'm
not "being hard" or trying to make life difficult, but I do expect
all students to do their homework (this tends to be a difficult area
for some). Homework is necessary to reinforce what has been taught.
The homework, for the most part, is not very demanding. There is
homework every night and it does reflect what we have been doing that
day or week. For the most part, it should not take over half an hour
for the student who takes his/her time to do the work (or is
struggling in class).
Also, it is important to do homework correctly, as if you are quizzing
yourself. Treat the homework as if it were a test or quiz to see how much
you already know! Think first with a pencil... then either take out your
notes or look in the textbook to review what you did not understand, then
make the necessary changes. By thinking first, then reviewing notes, you're
employing your thinking skills (brain) to do the homework instead of just
writing down answers or transferring information from the notes/pages to the
homework (which lacks the involvement of your brain).
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What can we do to start preparing for the Final Exam now?
First and foremost doing the homework with the intent to learn and
review at the same time. Think with a pencil and correct with a pen!
In addition to this students should be organizing their 3 ring binder
again to make sure they have all of their notes.
Make a list of all that they can remember learning and then bring it
in to me so we can go over it or get together with another student to
compare notes! Then ensuring that they have all this information in
their 3 ring binder and any information that is missing should be
either looked up in the book and take notes (or copy notes from
another student), and do activities from the book.
Reviewing their workbook activities and doing any activities they may
have not done and making a list of what needs to be reviewed.
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Is there any additional help? Additional practice that I can do?
Yes! I'm available, there are online activities and free Spanish tutors.
I am available after school usually 2 days a week. I try to keep
Mondays and Thursdays available for students.
In addition, there are activities that can be done online... many that
coincide with the textbook! Click on "Add't Textbook Activities for
Spanish ...." on the home page, then follow the directions to find the
activities.
Furthermore, the Spanish Club provides free tutoring to those students who
are interested. Just contact me if you'd like to request a student tutor!
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What do you mean by doing my homework as if it were a quiz?
It is important to do homework correctly, as if you are quizzing
yourself. Treat the homework as if it were a test or quiz to see how much
you already know! Think first with a pencil and answer as many of the
questions/blanks as you can ... then either take out your notes or look in
the textbook to review what you did not understand, then put your notes away-
again- and make the necessary changes. By thinking first, then reviewing
notes, then thinking again about what you reviewed, you're employing your
thinking skills (brain) to do the homework instead of just writing down
answers or transferring information from the notes/pages to the homework
(which lacks the involvement of your brain). Whew! It works though!!!
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Can I do Extra Credti?
Yes! For every test, you can do a test reflection sheet to get back 5% of
your grade. You have one week from the time your test is given back to turn
this in. Fill out the Test Reflection sheet and do your activites on the
back or staple it to the back. These are availabe on line under the
Important Handouts link ("Extra Credit for Tests")or in the front of the
classroom on the table.
Also for Quizzes and Homework you can look under the Important Handouts Link
to see what you can do with los Burros Bolivianos. ("Remediation: Los Burros
Bolivianos for Homework and Quizzes")
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