Oscar 2024

Do you want to learn how to make your arts unit come to life? Would you like for your students to experience works of art in an interactive and engaging way? Learn how to design these interactive activities using minimal technology, as well as how to make the experience comprehensible for all language learners. Come and experience how we can leverage the Google Arts and Culture app to make art come alive and promote proficiency all while having fun!

How do we take students' language beyond the basic content vocabulary of nouns, verbs, and adjectives? “Level-up” words and phrases are pieces of the target language that are not inherently tied to any content like school, hobbies, or the environment, but rather enhance students’ language abilities and broaden their linguistic repertoire. High frequency phrases like it seems like, this is why, and as a result are a few English examples. Learn why we should include this language in our classes, discover how to incorporate them into everyday lessons, and see examples of how to use Extempore to facilitate exposure and meaningful practice of this language.

Interacting in a language class can be intimidating for the best of us. However, engaging in oral interactions is paramount to becoming proficient in a language, to believing in one's own abilities and engaging in the learning process.

How do we get students to engage with content so that meaningful learning happens? How can educators gradually release responsibility for learning over to students, so that students do more of the work? Join this ACTFL Teacher of the Year and experience hands-on learning of activities that engage students in communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and problem solving. Most activities are low or no-prep and can be reused at various levels and with varied content. They hit multiple modes of communication, use authentic resources, support social justice themes, and require students to speak interpersonally. The learning routines require students show what they are thinking and learning decreasing grading. Step away from the copy machine and say good-bye to your turn in work bin!

How do we guide learners from input to output while also making our students more independent learners? The Gradual Release of Responsibilities (I do, we do, you do) is a framework to help scaffold our lessons and units to achieve those goals. Explore this framework and how it applies to learning a second language. We examine lesson examples in the 3 modes of communication as well as how to apply this framework to planning thematic units that gradually guides students to communicating independently