This two minute Spanish language video, produced by a Mexican news network, is an authentic resource that introduces students to José Martí, a politician, writer, and fighter for Cuban rights. It is a perfect complement for any lesson or activity focusing on José Martí or his famous literary works including "Cultivo una Rosa Blanca" and "Nuestra America." Students in the novice high to intermediate low range can use this resource to interpret basic information while students in the intermediate mid to intermediate high range should try to comprehend enough information to explain the cultural and historical significance of José Martí and his work.
This three-minute Spanish language video, produced by a Mexican news network, is an authentic resource that takes students on a tour of Barcelona. Novice level students (level 1) can use this authentic resource to recognize arts and other graphic representations of the target culture as they identify the key cultural elements in the video such as the port, La Rambla, the 1992 Olympic Stadium, and Camp Nou Stadium. Intermediate and advanced level students can interpret what is heard to comprehend the target language while identifying (level 2), investigating (level 3) and analyzing (levels 4 & 5) the perspectives of the architectural artwork found throughout Barcelona.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to reinforce food vocabulary while listening to an authentic resource. The featured artist, Nino Ferrer, is originally from Italy but moved to France where he gained popularity. This activity starts with preliminary questions before having students listen for lyrics that are missing in the provided cloze activity. Students then respond to comprehension questions that are posted on the included pdf worksheet. Finally, students participate in an interpersonal conversation about a picnic, using some of the vocabulary they gained from the song.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity introduces students to the Paris of the 1940s and 50s. This activity focuses on the song Sous le ciel de Paris by Yves Montand. A pdf worksheet is provided to help guide the class through this activity. Students start with preliminary questions in which they reflect on background information about the time period. After listening to the song students complete activities that ask them to identify various aspects of the song including the people and the city of Paris. At the end, students compare this song to songs in the United States that focus on specific places.
This novice mid to novice high French activity reinforces clothing vocabulary through music. Students listen to a French song by the rap group Omnikrom. Before starting the song, students use the provided pdf to answer a series of pre-activity questions before moving on to the song itself. Afterward, they are provided comprehension questions to check for understanding. Students are also asked to identify lyrics pertaining to clothing and fashion that appear throughout the song. This particular song specifically uses a dialect from Quebec. At the end of the activity, students explore differences noted in this dialect.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity introduces students to the classic song My Way. While most students have heard this song due to its' popularity in the United States, many do not realize it was originally written in French. This version is recorded by Claude François, a popular French singer in the 1960s. A pdf is provided to guide students through the activity providing some background information about the artist and song as well as comprehension questions to complete after listening to the song. Students should then listen to the song again while using interpretive listening skills to fill in missing words on the provided lyric page. Students then compare the French lyrics to the English version and end the activity by creating their own verse to the song.
This novice high to intermediate low French musical activity reinforces house vocabulary as students see many of their vocabulary words appear in context. The featured song is Y’a une fille qu’habite chez moi by Bénabar. As he humorously describes his home it becomes apparent that a girl must be living there because things are much different than when he was single. Students use the provided PDF to work through a series of activities with this song. First, students review housing vocabulary by answering a series of pre-activity questions. During the song, they are asked to identify missing lyrics by completing a cloze activity. Finally, students are asked to identify key vocabulary phrases and use the imperfect tense to describe the singer's life before his girlfriend arrived.
This novice-mid to novice-high French activity allows students to review material learned in lower-level French classes. This is an interactive Jeopardy board that can be played on the linked site or can be downloaded or embedded where needed. Students can select how many teams will play. The categories in this game include Vocabulary, Perfect Tense, Indirect Objects, Demonstrative Adjectives, and Cultural Facts. This would be useful in preparation for a semester exam or at the start of the following school year to review earlier vocabulary.
In this novice-high to intermediate-low French activity, students will learn to give and follow commands as they use mass transit maps to get from one place to another. With a partner, they will choose from the provided city maps and figure out how to get from point A to point B using the best option for public transportation (bus, metro, train, ferry, walk). Students will then take turns presenting their routes and following the routes created by others showing that they can both give and follow directions/commands in the target language and simulate interactions that are likely to happen in the target language.
The linked resource is a set of 28, full-color, printable animal cards that are perfect for a variety of Spanish learners. Each card features a full-color animal image along with the Spanish name for the featured animal. These cards include animals from the following ecosystems: Desert, Rain Forest, Ocean, and the Arctic. These animal cards can be used with novice low learners but the animals featured are those that upper-level students are more likely to encounter during environmental units (intermediate proficiency levels). Lower levels can use the cards to help students identify the words associated with each animal. Intermediate levels can have students each hold up a card and ask questions to a partner about the animal and the ecosystem it belongs to.
This novice mid to novice high French activity reinforces education and school vocabulary in a song about education in France during the 1960s. The featured song is Sacré Charlemagne by France Gall. Students start by discussing prior knowledge of music from the time period. Students then complete a cloze activity by listening for key lyrics during the song followed by a series of comprehension questions. Finally, students analyze the cultural components of the song including why Charlemagne is 'blamed' for students having to go to school. (Charlemagne, sometimes nicknamed the Father of Europe, played a big role in early education reform.) Students will also notice the references to no school on Thursday, opening a discussion of comparisons between the US and French education. (Note: In 1972, the French government changed the off day from Thursday to Wednesday.)
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to gather information from four different heritage French speakers: Franck, J-C, Stephanie, and Virginie. Students are asked to gather information as the speakers describe what they did last weekend as well as when they were younger. This activity is split into two different sections and they can be used as a group or separately. The links to the interviews used in this activity are posted in the comment section below. Each video provides optional French and English transcripts.
Key grammar points in these audio clips include: past tense
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to gather information from four different heritage French speakers: Franck, J-C, Stephanie, and Virginie. Students are asked to gather information as the speakers describe holidays, what they did when they were little, and what they did when they were 15 years old. The activity is split into four different sections that can be used as a group or separately. The links to the interviews used in this activity are posted in the comment section below. Each video provides optional French and English transcripts.
Key grammar points in these audio clips include: Past Tense, Imperfect Tense
This printable Spanish resource is an infographic in the target language focusing on the need to wash hands regularly. It is appropriate for novice high to intermediate low students. Seven different formal affirmative commands are used in context allowing students to see how these commands are used in formal writing. This document also demonstrates how pronouns are used with affirmative commands. Students can use this infographic to identify the health-related vocabulary words used throughout the authentic resource. If time allows, students can create their own health-related instructional poster.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to gather information from four different heritage French speakers: Franck, J-C, Stephanie, and Virginie. Students are asked to gather information as the speakers describe their health, clothing style, and past times/hobbies. Speakers use phrases like 'should' rather than direct commands when describing how to have a healthy lifestyle. This activity is split into three different audio sections that can be used as a group or separately. There is also a list of French questions to aid in interpersonal conversations as students discuss the information they interpreted from the video. The links to the interviews used in this activity are posted in the comment section below. Each video provides optional French and English transcripts.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to gather information from four different heritage French speakers: Franck, J-C, Stephanie, and Virginie. Students are asked to gather information as the speakers describe life in high school and college and discuss what they studied. This activity is split into four different audio sections that can be used as a group or separately. There is also a list of French questions to aid in interpersonal conversations as students discuss the cultural information they learned. This lesson also asks students to compare differences between life on university campuses in the US to life on campuses in France. The links to the interviews used in this activity are posted in the comment section below. Each video provides optional French and English transcripts.
Key grammar points in these audio clips include past tense.
This novice high to intermediate low French activity allows students to gather information from four different heritage French speakers: Franck, J-C, Stephanie, and Virginie. Students are asked to gather information as the speakers describe what they will do this summer (future), how long they have been somewhere, what their job is like, and their opinions on various careers. This activity is split into four different audio sections that can be used as a group or separately. There is also a list of French questions to aid in interpersonal conversations as students discuss the information they interpreted from the video. The links to the interviews used in this activity are posted in the comment section below. Each video provides optional French and English transcripts.
Key grammar points covered in these activities include future tense and past tense.
This paired French activity guides novice high to intermediate low students through an interpersonal conversation about careers. Using the provided checklist, one partner interviews the other about his career preferences. Then, using a target language website, each student researches the top two careers chosen by their partner. Students finally choose the job they feel is best for their partner and give a verbal presentation to the class explaining why they selected a specific job for their classmate.
This is an intermediate low to intermediate mid reading and listening activity that introduces students to Inca Kola, a popular soda beverage in Peru. The linked article includes 5 multiple choice comprehension questions to check for understanding. Students are then asked to watch 4 different Inca Kola commercials and prepare answers to provided questions. This activity is set up to be completed for homework but can be completed within the classroom if desired.
In this novice-mid to novice-high German activity, students will explore the Bundesliga website, an authentic resource that provides up-to-date information on the world of German Football, or soccer. Students are first asked to identify key vocabulary words related to sports. Then, using this site, each student reviews the 18 Bundesliga teams and selects one on which to investigate further and prepare a report to share with their peers.
In this novice-mid to novice-high German activity, students investigate popular German magazines to gather basic information. Students start by choosing one of three authentic resources to explore. They examine the front page of the current magazine and make inferences into who the target audience may be. They then select one article of interest and write a paragraph describing what is occurring (novice low-novice mid) or what happened (novice high-intermediate low). Students finish the activity by sharing their findings with classmates.
This intermediate low to intermediate mid Spanish activity focuses on identifying a person or object that most influenced them in their childhood. Students start by looking at a photo of a mural and participate in an interpersonal conversation about influences in their life. Second, students listen to the provided interview to gather information about what most influenced the speaker's life. Finally, students complete a quick presentational writing activity in which they share the most influential thing in their life. Optional extension activities are also provided.
In this German activity, students will explore the internet and locate a site about education in Germany using the target language. Using the website for the Goethe Institutes, students will gather information provided in the webquest such as when courses are offered, how much do courses cost, and other registration information. After exploring the provided site and interpreting what they have read to locate key information, students are asked to choose from a list of similar sites and write a brief review of their chosen language learning organization. They will present their information about educational activities using a variety of words, phrases, and simple sentences.
This intermediate low to intermediate mid German activity introduces students to the punk rock band Die Ärzte. Students listen to their song "Westerland." Throughout the song, students are asked to used interpretive listening skills to gather information provided on the attached activity sheet. Next, they are asked to read the provided German lyrics and use their comprehension skills to answer a set of questions. A list of useful vocabulary is provided to assist with more difficult phrases. Finally, students are asked to present information about their favorite location, following the model presented in the song. The entire student handout is prepared in the target language.
This intermediate low Spanish activity offers students an opportunity to experience regular preterit verbs in context. Students will use interpretive listening skills to gather information from an interview of a native speaker from Mexico. The vocabulary focuses on relationships as he describes how he met and proposed to his wife, providing students perspective on the idea of relationships within the target culture. Corresponding worksheets are provided to guide students as they identify preterit verbs used throughout the authentic resource. This resource offers a variety of ways for students to work with the preterit actions creating a timeline of events and writing a narrative that uses a variety of preterit clue words.
This Spanish resource is a collection of 19 audio activities on a variety of intermediate-low, intermediate-mid, and intermediate-high topics. Each audio clip provides an interview with a native or heritage speaker, a theme, objectives, before viewing question with keywords, during the video activity, after the video questions, and personal reflection questions. Vocabulary topics covered include family, food, celebrations, school, clothing, shopping, identity, language, hobbies, and weather. Grammar topics covered include ser and estar, present tense, present progressive, preterit, imperfect, and future tenses.
This canvas-based site offers a series of short, interpretive listening assessments in Spanish. There are 3 novice level, 8 intermediate level, and 2 advanced level video clips. Each activity should last no longer than 5 minutes making it a perfect start of a class activity or end-of-class comprehension check. Students listen to heritage or native speakers and then answer 5 multiple choice questions to assess their comprehension. The activities can be integrated into an existing Canvas course or used as a stand-alone activity.
This novice high to intermediate low Spanish activity provides several examples of native speakers discussing their favorite foods. Students are asked to gather information from authentic resources, focusing specifically on the names of dishes, ingredients, the origin of the dishes, and other pertinent information. As an extension students can use the information to create a written or oral presentation comparing the foods from the video with their own favorite foods. Students can also discuss their favorite foods with classmates in an effort to enhance interpersonal communication skills.
Novice mid and novice high Spanish students work with a series of infographics focusing on fruits and vegetables. Each student is encouraged to gather specific information from the authentic resource they are assigned. After gathering the required information students complete an interpersonal communicative activity by interviewing their peers about the other infographics.
This google slide presentation is prepared for intermediate low to intermediate mid-French students who are learning to use the past tense and specifically the phrases I have or I did. These comprehensible phrases are repeated over and over in various slides along with a photo to illustrate the meaning of each sentence. In the end, the photos are repeated without the written sentences to allow students an opportunity to recall the conjugations and/or vocabulary. Finally, students are asked to construct the grammar concept on the last 2 slides.
This intermediate-mid to advanced-low Spanish lesson offers an opportunity for students to listen to heritage speakers as they describe their families. Students are able to rely on family vocabulary and knowledge of a variety of tenses to gather information about each speaker. The activities in this lesson are specifically created for students who are considering a career in medicine. This allows students who may be participating in a high school health academy course to connect their language skills with their professional goals. By referring to the video speakers as 'patients' students practice asking questions about family history, listening for health-related facts, and gathering information on simulated patient history forms. While the content covered in this lesson (health vocabulary, family vocabulary, past tenses) is crucial to most Spanish programs, this unique twist allows students interested in the health field to see how these topics can impact their future profession and goals.
This novice-high to intermediate-low Spanish activity focuses on the correct uses of ser and estar. The provided lesson activity includes 4 heritage speakers describing their past. As students listen they are asked to complete a cloze activity that requires them to specifically listen for examples of how the speakers are using ser and estar. Students then discuss the uses of ser and estar that were observed in the video samples. Finally, students are asked to create their own dialogues showing that they can correctly use these two verbs in the preterit and imperfect tenses.
This novice-mid to novice-high French activity explores the online Menu for Paris's famous Les Deux Magots Cafe. Students explore authentic resources as they search through the cafe's website and menu looking for recognizable words and cognates. Students are asked to examine the menu and identify starters, main dishes, and desserts. As a follow-up activity, students are encouraged the print the menu and use it to role-play ordering a meal at Les Deux Magots.
This resource provides 6 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates the task of reacting, recommending, and making requests. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how imperative and subjunctive moods are formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include conjugations that take the subjunctive, imperative mood, irregular subjunctive, past subjunctive, regular subjunctive, and subjunctive usage.
This resource provides 3 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates the task of talking about future events. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how the future is formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include: regular simple future and irregular simple future
This novice high to intermediate low Spanish listening activity requires students to listen to a heritage speaker from El Salvador as she describes her childhood. Students interpret the information provided, specifically paying attention to the authentic use of the Spanish past tenses. Students are asked to watch the video three times. The first time, they are encouraged to identify key vocabulary. The second time, they are to discuss a summary of the video with partners and after the third, they are to ask each other questions.
This resource provides 14 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates the task of speaking about past actions. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how the imperfect, simple past, and compound past tenses are formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include: imparfait; passé composé, and passé composé vs imparfait.
This resource provides 6 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates the task of expressing hypotheses. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how the conditional and past conditional tenses are formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include the conditional, conditional past, and si clauses.
This resource provides 12 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates comparative phrases throughout the conversations. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how comparatives and superlatives are formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include: comparisons with adjectives, superlatives with adjectives, bon/meilleur vs. bien/mieux
This resource provides 21 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates how to use descriptions in conversation. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how descriptions enhance conversation through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include an introduction to adjectives; introduction to negations, gender, introduction to nouns, irregular adjectives, number - singular and plural, participles as adjectives, present tense, and relative pronouns.
This resource provides a large variety of authentic audio and video clips by native speakers from around the Spanish-speaking world. Clips are organized by proficiency level (beginner, novice, intermediate, advanced, and superior) and by topic. Each video clip provides resources to assist in interpretive listening activities including a Spanish language transcript, an optional English translation, a list of related vocabulary, and review of covered grammar points. These audio and video clips make it easy for students to analyze spoken language as they explore various dialects and compare language usage with their own.
This novice-mid Spanish activity combines emotions, personalities, and animals into a unique interactive unit. A Google Slide Presentation guides students and teachers through a warm-up, key activity, and wrap-up. During the warm-up students describe emotions using the provided emotion cards. Students then use interpretive reading skills to take a target language personality quiz and determine which animal best represents their personality. This quiz is similar to those studied in Psychology classes. Finally, students work in groups to use presentational writing and speaking skills to share their strengths and weaknesses based on their quiz results.
This website offers direct links to 11 different Chinese language newspapers. These authentic materials in the target langauge were published for Chinese speakers and provide lots of interpretive reading practice for students as they explore current events from throughout China.
This intermediate-low French activity encourages students to talk about daily routines using reflexive vocabulary. A Google slide presentation guides the teacher and students through a warm-up, main activity, and wrap-up. In the warm-up, students observe a series of photos and describe the actions that appear in one of the photos. Classmates then use interpretive listening skills to determine which photo is being described. The main activity is a game in which students roll dice to determine which questions they will need to answer. The question sheet is included but teachers will need to provide 2 dice - one with numbers and one with colors.
This intermediate-mid to intermediate-high French lesson focuses on describing plazas and giving directions. A Google slide presentation guides the teacher and students through the lesson. First students are provided a map and asked to work in pairs to describe how to get from one place to another. (The map can easily be changed to reflect your own hometown.) Afterward, students are provided one of six plaza cards depicting photos of popular plazas in France, Belgium, Morocco, and Canada. Using guiding questions students, discuss various aspects of each plaza and compare them with locations found within their own culture.
This intermediate-low to intermediate-high Spanish activity examines audio and written examples of autobiographies, a concept also covered in other disciplines. Students will interpret auditory and written resources as they listen to the song ¨Autobiografía¨ by Luis Enrique on YouTube and read a written autobiography about his life. This lesson relies heavily on past tenses as students examine Luis Enrique's life and compare the two resources before preparing their own autobiography. By introducing students to authentic musical resources, students are encouraged to continue exploring the artist outside the classroom. All printed resources required for this activity are included on the link.
This website offers direct links to a variety of German-language newspapers from around Europe. These authentic materials in the target language were published for German speakers and provide lots of interpretative reading practice for students as they explore current events from the German-speaking world. Resources are well organized and provided from Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxemburg, and Switzerland.
This resource provides 3 separate video clips of French speakers, each of which illustrates the task of asking and responding to questions. Students use interpretive listening skills to identify main ideas and examine how questions are formed and used through these authentic resources. The videos were prepared for intermediate and advanced level learners but could be used with novice learners as a way to introduce them to authentic language. Each video clip provides a French-language transcript and links to grammar reviews and activities for the concepts that are heard in the clip. The concepts covered include: interrogative and exclamative quel; interrogative pronoun lequel; interrogative pronouns; interrogative words: où, quand, comment; introduction to interrogatives; questions with subject/verb inversion; yes/no questions: est-ce que, n’est-ce pas
This website offers direct links to over 30 French-language newspapers from around the globe. These authentic materials in the target language were published for French speakers and provide lots of interpretative reading practice for students as they explore current events from the French-speaking world. Resources are well organized and provided from Canada, France, Tunisia, and Switzerland
This website offers direct links to a variety of Spanish language newspapers from the United States and around the globe. These authentic materials in the target language were published for Spanish speakers and provide lots of interpretative reading practice for students as they explore current events from the Latino world. Resources are well organized and provided from Argentina, Canary Islands, Chile, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, Venezuela, Spain, the United States and more.
This is a novice, mid-high level Spanish listening activity in which students watch an authentic resource (McDonald´s commercial) while interpreting the information provided. The activity includes a link to the commercial on YouTube and a cloze activity for students to complete while watching. Three personal connection questions are provided to allow students an opportunity to practice writing or speaking skills as they compare the gathered information to their personal lives.
This is a novice mid to high Spanish language activity that encourages students to interact with an authentic text and engage in conversations using travel vocabulary. In this detailed activity, students begin by playing a premade Kahoot game that encourages a review of travel-related vocabulary. Students then participate in a Spanish language Buzz Feed quiz to determine what type of things they like and dislike on vacation. Finally, students engage in interpersonal conversations about their travel styles. A Google slide presentation is provided to guide teachers through this activity.
This novice-high to intermediate-high German activity provides resources necessary for completing a series of communicative and interpretive tasks as students explore the world of fast food using a variety of authentic resources. Interpretive reading skills are used as students explore a target language menu. Audio files and video files are included for interpretive listening tasks. Other printable resources (including a menu) are included to assist in interpersonal communicative tasks as students practice ordering food. The resources are carefully chosen to introduce students to a wide variety of authentic foods, introducing them to culturally appropriate products. The included activities can be adapted for a variety of levels in middle school and high school German classes.
This Spanish unit provides activities to go along with the TPRS book Esperanza by Carol Gaab. The unit resources are available free but the book must be purchased. This linked unit includes a pre- and post-assessment that measures how well students feel they can meet the Can Do Statements associated with the unit. Activities in this unit include KWL using Padlet, Smashboards (with rubrics) to illustrate each chapter and an interactive choice board that provides a variety of differentiated assessment options. The unit also includes a project using Thinglink in which students research places in Guatemala and present their findings in a formal presentation. Throughout the unit, students will participate in interpersonal conversations, presentational writing, presentational speaking, grammar explorations, cultural explorations of products, practices, and perspectives, and connect with other classes as they explore topics like the Civil War in Guatemala, immigration, amnesty, and civil rights.
