AP® Spanish Language Syllabus
Course Overview
I. Goals
• Students will expand their interpersonal communication skills in Spanish
through daily classroom interactions in the target language. This includes casual
conversations with the teacher and classmates as well as formal discussions. [C1]
• Students will increase and refine their writing skills in formal and informal
contexts.
• Students will develop their oral presentational skills, formal and informal.
• Students will broaden their comprehension skills of written and aural material.
• Students will broaden their understanding of the cultures that comprise the
Spanish-speaking world through the study of history, literature, art, music, and
current events.
• Students will make connections between their learning in the Spanish classroom,
their learning in other classes, and their daily lives.
II. Skills Developed
A. Express ideas accurately and fluently in writing and
improve writing skills through…
1. Essay Writing. Every three to four weeks, each student writes a formal, well
organized, analytical or persuasive essay of at least 200 words, on a unit-
related topic. The essay generally will be a reaction to a text or to information
discussed or viewed in class. It is evaluated for its content, organization,
range, appropriateness of vocabulary, and grammatical accuracy.
2. Other Writing Tasks. There are weekly writing activities related to topics
covered, such as journal entries, letters, e-mails, poems, dialogues, abstract
writing, creative writing, and reactions to articles and lectures. [C2] 1
B. Synthesize vocabulary and structures to broaden under-standing of newspapers, magazine articles, and literary pieces with increased ease and accuracy. Improve reading skills through…
1. Weekly Reading and Text Analysis. Students read and interpret
selected samples of authentic literary prose and poetry, current events
(newspaper and magazine articles), and other communications (letters
and emails).
C1—The teacher uses Spanish almost exclusively in class and encourages students to do likewise.
C2—The course provides instruction and frequent opportunities to write a variety of compositions in Spanish.
2. Reading Strategies. The following strategies (and others) are employed
regularly to help improve reading skills: thinking maps, word attack skills,
skeletal outlines, context clues, and interactive reading.
3. Research Projects. Students use reading strategies, vocabulary, and
background cultural knowledge to investigate various topics and to create
and present a synthesis. [C3]
C. Speak with fluency and accuracy, using rich vocabulary
and appropriate pronunciation and intonation. Improve
speaking skills through…
1. Interpersonal Language. Respond to conversational prompts,
such as interviews, voice mail, directions, advice, storytelling, and
speeches. Use rich vocabulary, accuracy in structure and syntax, and
fluency. There is at least one major assessment per nine-week cycle that
includes oral presentation. [C4].
2. Daily Participation in Class Discussions. Improve vocabulary,
fluency, pronunciation, and intonation through directed or free class
discussions in the target language.
D. Understand the spoken language both formally and
informally in conversations and narrations. Improve
listening skills through…
1. Interpreting Spoken Material. Interpret messages, lectures, and
other materials spoken using a variety of regional dialects. Become
familiar with pronunciation, dialects, and aural syntax [C5].
2. Listening to Narratives and Dialogues. Make inferences
and predictions and interpret linguistic cues when listening to simulated
and authentic sources.
C3—Instructional materials include authentic written texts that develop students’ reading abilities.
C4—The course provides students with regular opportunities to develop their speaking skills in a variety of settings, types of discourse, topics, and registers.
C5—Instructional materials include a variety of authentic audio and/or video recordings that develop students' listening abilities.
E. Expand knowledge and understanding of the practices,
perspectives, and products of Latin American and
Hispanic cultures. Enrich knowledge of these cultures
through…
1. Discussing Literary and Cultural Topics and Current Events.
2. Incorporating Culture in Other Skills. Culture is integrated through-
out the year, connected meaningfully to reading, writing, listening and
speaking skills. [C6]
F. Acquire and enrich vocabulary and grasp structures that
enable the student to manipulate a variety of written and
aural materials. Improve vocabulary through…
1. Reviewing and Building Vocabulary. Students use methods such
as word families / categories, vocabulary lists, and definitions to review and
build topic-related vocabulary.
2. Using Idiomatic Expressions, Cognates, Synonyms and
Antonyms Frequently. Learn and apply in aural and written exercises
the specific uses of idiomatic expressions, cognates, synonyms, and
antonyms.
3. Using Transitions. Learn to correctly use transition words and
expressions related to written and spoken Spanish. Use transitions to
introduce an idea, add another idea, express a contrasting point of view,
emphasize, give examples, draw a conclusion, etc.
G. Implement a variety of grammatical structures using
proper concordance, correct mechanics, and superior
language control. Improve knowledge of grammar
through…
1. Applying Grammatical and Syntactic Rules. Generally, the
problematic areas include, but are not limited to, tenses and moods,
nouns and their modifiers, and other verbal and syntactic constructions.
2. Implementing / Synthesizing Grammatical and Syntactic
Structures in Speaking and Writing.
C6—The course provides frequent opportunities for students to integrate the four language skills through the use of authentic materials.
Course Calendar
Semester 1
Week 1-3 Introduction of classroom rules, expectations, syllabus, and scoring rubrics; diagnostic evaluation.
Reading: “Primero de secundaria”, Nuevas vistas, Curso uno
Grammar: nouns, definite & indefinite articles, adjectives, accents,
the setter “h” and the “y” sound
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 4-5 Culture: Nicaragua, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Film: La lengua de la mariposa
Assessment: First oral presentation: Research an article on Nicaragua
from an authentic source.
http://www.prensa.com/
http://www.lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/news
http://www/el pais.es
www.lavanguardia.es/
http:/www./bbcmundo.com
http://www.abc.es/
http://www.latinworld.com/special/kiosco.html
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 6-7 Reading: “La guerra de los yacarés”, Nuevas vistas, Curso uno
Grammar: present tense review, preterite vs. imperfect, accents,
the letters “b” and “v”
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 8-9 Culture: Uruguay, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Film: Buscando a Nemo
Assessment: Debate on environmental issues:
http://www.niles-hs.k12.il.us/davmal/clases/AP/free
response/
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 10-11 Reading: “La Posada de las Tres Cuerdas”, Nuevas vistas
Grammar: present subjunctive, subjunctive in noun and adverb clauses,
accents, the “s” sound
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 12-13 Culture: Argentina, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Assessment: Oral Exam…simulated conversation from Spanish Oral
Communication Activities Book
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 14-15 Reading: “El décimo”, Abriendo paso, Lectura
Grammar: imperfect subjunctive, condicional, future, accents, the
“k” sound
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 16-17 Culture: Spain, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Film: Ever After
Assessment: formal presentation on current events in Spain
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 18 semester test preparation and semester tests
Course Calendar
Semester 2
Week 19-20 Reading: “Hay un naranjo ahí” and “La tortuga”, Nuevas vistas
Grammar: perfect tenses, sequence of tenses, accents, the “x” sound
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 21-23 Culture: Chile, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Film: Mar adentro
Assessment: Debate on the right to die issue
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 24-26 Reading: “Aydín”, Nuevas vistas
Grammar: infinitives, gerunds, prepositions, accents, the “r” sound
http://www.studyspanish.com
www.colby.edu/~nknelson/exercises
Week 26-27 Culture: Peru, Nuevas vistas and Think Spanish magazine
Assessment: Oral Exam...simulated conversation from Spanish Oral
Communication Activities Book
Unit Exam and quizzes
Unit-related essay
Week 28-29 AP Exam preparation – simulated conversations, formal speaking, essay
writing, AP Spanish: Preparing for the Language Exam
Week 30-31 AP Exam preparation - long narratives, informal writing, reading
selections, timed essays, Spanish: Preparing for the Language Exam
Week 32-33 AP Exam preparation, Spanish: Preparing for the Language Exam
Review sessions and final project guidelines
Week 34 AP Exam and review sessions; begin final project
Week 35-36 Final project preparation & presentations
Teaching Strategies
Use of technology
Many of the class projects take advantage of technology. We use the internet and library databases as a source of current topics, research, and presentation. Students present their research with PowerPoint, publishing software, and multimedia. Our school also has several computer labs that we use once or twice a month for research, preparing for projects and presentations, or occasionally for in-class writing.
Current events
During the year, students research an article of interest from one of the Spanish-language websites. I usually give them three general topics from which they can choose: health, politics, or world events. They must list and define topic-related vocabulary and write a summary or a reaction to the topic. They then prepare an oral report for the class about the article and finish with several questions for their classmates. This provides practice for the speaking portion of the exam and allows students to gain a greater understanding of the diversity of the Spanish-speaking world.
Authentic sources
Working with authentic sources is key to a successful AP Spanish Language Exam program. Many of the activities done during AP test preparation lend themselves to additional reading, such as author biographies; magazine, newspaper, or journal articles; and other internet sources. Students will read articles in preparation for essays and also give oral summaries of the readings to the class.
Student Evaluation
Exams generally contain a variety of components, including reading, speaking, writing, listening, and culture. These assessments contain free-response, multiple choice, true / false, and essay questions about the readings, the presentations, and language structures. Multiple-choice sections usually are analytical-type questions, and free-response questions often require making comparisons or synthesizing information in some way. Speaking is usually done as a separate evaluation, and depending upon the requirements, might be classified either as a quiz or a major grade. Formal writing is scored using both content and language rubrics. Additionally, there is ongoing assessment through spontaneous interviews, interactive readings, in-class essays (or other formal writing), and formal oral presentations.
Texts / Other Sources
Díaz, José M. and Stephen Collins. Abriendo Paso (and ancillaries). Needham, Massachusetts: Pearson / Prentice Hall, 2005.
Díaz, José M. and Gilda Nissenberg. AP Spanish: Preparing for the Language Examination. 3rd ed. White Plains, New York: Prentice Hall, 2006.
Cortez, Linda, Janet Welsh Crossley, and Jean Miller, eds. Nuevas vistas, Curso uno
(and ancillaries). Austin: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 2006.
Think Spanish magazine. Various articles. Nov. 2004 – Nov. 2005.
Mar adentro. Dir. Alejandro Amenábar. Perf. Javier Bardem and Belén Rueda. DVD.
2004. New Line Home Video, 2005.
La lengua de las mariposas. Dir. José Luis Cuerda. Perf. Fernando Fernán Gómez and
Manuel Lozano. 1999. DVD. Miramax, 2001.
Ever After: A Cinderella Story. Dir. Andy Tennant. Perf. Drew Barrymore and Anjelica
Houston. 1998. DVD. 20th Century Fox, 2003.
Buscando a Nemo. Dir. Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich. Perf. Albert Brooks and
Ellen Degeneres. 2003. DVD. Walt Disney Video, 2003.
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