Student Favorites

Foreign Language In The Elementary School

First Grade | Second Grade | Third Grade | Fourth Grade

First Grade
When asked what their FAVORITE Spanish activity was the first grade students responded…(typed as written)

The Fishing Game:
By attaching sticky magnets to the fishing pole, you can play "Vaya de Pesca." The teacher can make objects to practice many types of vocabulary in this game (family, colors, numbers, sea animals, etc.) Students can fish for a family (of fish or sharks) to practice the family words. They can also go fishing for small fish of various colors or marked with various numbers. As one student fishes, the class counts up to twenty (or thirty). When the student makes a catch, the class says what object has been pulled up. The next student to fish is one that can volunteer the correct information about the object found in the ocean. Setting down a blue towel sets the scene for this activity.

"My favorite game is the fishing game were you get out a pole and some sea animals and we have 20 seconds to get won one." (Claudio H.)

Singing Spanish Songs:
"My favorite song is azul, blanco, rojo, violeta, amarillo, anaranjado, verde, y rosa. It is the color song in Spanish. We sometimes pick people to start the song." (Tono B.)

The Buzz Game:
This game can involve keeping score or just be played for fun to practice vocabulary. It is easy to adapt it to any set of vocabulary words (animals, sea animals, classroom objects, numbers, letters, etc.) One person goes out of the room. Another student picks a Buzz object. The student returns from outside the room and says the name of each object in the center of the circle. The class is silent until they say the buzz word. Then the class yells out, "Buzz!"

"I like buzz. You take wooden or cardboard people. You make someone go out of the room. You make someone go to the chalkboard and tally. You pick someone to pick one of the characters. That character is the buzz word. Then you yell "entra, entra" and the person outside comes in. They say a person in Spanish. When he or she says the "buzz thing", you all yell BUZZ. The tally marker makes one tally every time the person who went out does not say the buzz word." (Cloi D.)

"I like it when we play Buzz. Someone goes out of the room and you pick an object. Then they come back in and try to guess the object. When they do, you say Buzz." (Maria T.)

"I like it because we get one tally for the whole class. No one loses and no one wins." (Kimberli W.)

The Counting Game:
This is a fun game to practice numbers though it can be played with letters or vowels.) Students stand in a circle. They count in sequence (uno, dos, tres, cuatro, cinco) and then the whole class calls out SIÉNTATE. That student sits and the pattern continues until one person is left standing and is the winner. This game can be played by counting from 10-15 to practice difficult numbers or in any other sequence desired.

"I like the counting game because I can learn how to count 1-29 in Spanish. You count and if it stops on you, you have to sit down. I like having a winner in a game and to figure out who will be last standing." (Pedro G.)

Ball Toss:
This is a wonderful way to warm the class up or to practice a new question and answer set. The teacher can ask all students to stand, and ask a question in Spanish. The person who catches the ball answers the question in Spanish. This can be a teacher-directed activity if it involves new material or it can be student-directed. Students can answer the question, ask a new person the question, and then toss the ball to another student. With younger students we often skip the tossing and pass the ball in a circle.

The best acitvity is ball tas because this is fun. You throw a ball and ask a question. The person who catches answers the question." (Augustin H.)

Goldilocks:
This is part of a storytelling experience that involves TPR. Students learn verbs, nouns, and whole sentences in Spanish. They also have a fun song that is used as a transition for this entire mini-unit.

"I like the Goldilocks song. When we learned the whole story of Goldilocks in Spanish. I liked it because it was a great song and I liked acting out the story." (A.B. M.)

Tic-Tac-Toe:
This is an adaptation of the regular game of tic-tac-toe. It can be played with small pictures of many types of vocabulary words, with numbers, or with letters. It is a great way to warm up or close a lesson.

It is like regular tic tac tow, except it is in Spanish. Some times we do boys versus girls." (Abi P.)

"It has teams and there are numbers, sea animals, and colors and if you say it right your team gets an X or O." (Arturo)

"There are pictures in the spaces and if you say it right you get an ex or an o" (Mateo F.)

Directed Coloring:
Students love working on coloring pictures as a way to practice numbers and colors in Spanish. This can be done as a listening activity with the teacher directing the students' use of colors. It can also be done as a substitute activity by having students follow a key.

"The best Spanish activity is coloring. This is how you play…you just color!" (Jorge K.)

General First Grade Thoughts on Spanish Class:

"Sometimes you have to always speak Spanish." (Andres M.)

"Spanish rules because I like learning a different langwig." (Arturo S.)

"It is awesome." (Chana L.)

"I think it is nice to know another language. When you do you feel proud." (Maria)

"Spanish is important because if you go somewhere that they speak Spanish, you'll know how to do it." (Mateo H.)

"Spanish is important because it is fun." (Carlota S.)

"Spanish is important because it sort of makes you smarter." (Emilia M.)

"Spanish is important so when I grow up I now how to talk to other people." (Alejandra C.)

"Spanish is important because you can make new friends." (Clara C.)

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Second Grade
When asked what they thought about Spanish, the second grade students responded…(typed as written)

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Third Grade
When asked what they thought about Spanish, the third grade students responded…(typed as written)

Advice for FLES teachers:

"Play concentration, buzz, do the calendar, and what kind of day it is outside." (Juana R.)

" I think they shouldn't speak a lot of English. Teach us about five words a Spanish class." (Yesi J.)

"I think the Spanish teacher should speak a little English and have their own Spanish room." (Mateo S.)

"I think the Spanish teacher should speak a little Spanish and a little English." (Carlos W.)

"I think the Spanish teachers shouldn't speak one word of English." (Carmen C.)

"Get a cool classroom and do fun things." (Conchita S.)

"Try your best. Be nice." (Madi L.)

The Best Spanish Activity Is…

"Watching a movie in Spanish." (Mateo S.)

"Buzz." (Carlota Q., Adan K., Raquel R.)

"Bingo." (Magdalena D.)

"Doing things in our Spanish Diario because it is fun and quiet." (Margarita O.)

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Fourth Grade
When asked what they thought about Spanish, the fourth grade students responded…(typed as written)

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