Bridges: The Art and Science for Creating Community Connections

Sample Lesson Plans

Lesson One: History

(This lesson plan is to be taught in a 82-minute class. However, it can be modified to teachers' needs)

Goals

Introduce students to the "Romanization" of the Iberian Peninsula; understand the importance of history as an essential part of the identity and devepment of countries; start thinking about art and architecture as absolutely necessary elements in everyday life.

Learning Objectives

As a result of this lesson students will be able to:

1. Practice their reading comprehension skills.
2. Build on their oral reading skills.
3. Read and gather information of a text written in Spanish in order to select the main ideas.
4. Develop understanding of other civilizations and cultures.
5. Broaden vocabulary.
6. Practice the preterit (imperfecto and indefinido) tenses.
7. Express relevant information in their own words.

Materials

Adapted brief text on the "romanization" of Spain, handout on the reading, graphic organizers, maps of Spain, power point presentation, LCD projector, Computers with Internet access, copies of Astérix en Hispania.

Initiation

"Pass the bull" strategy: I start all of my lessons asking students questions while passing around a foam toy (a bull). All these questions are related to material we have previously covered: grammar, vocabulary, and cultural aspects. It is a fun, useful strategy because it allows me to assess students daily and it helps to start the class on a good tone, since students like it. This time students will be asked to conjugate different verbs in either the pretérito indefinido or pretérito imperfecto forms.

Procedure

1. The students will get a graphic organizer in which they will write everything they know about the Romans (which, hopefully will be a lot since students at Career have to take two years of Latin)
2. The teacher will ask students and a volunteer will be recording the answers on the board.
3. Students and teacher will review the answers together making sure they are accurate.
4. The teacher will then give the students the brief reading comprehension text that they will first read silently while they underline vocabulary words or concepts they do not understand.
5. The teacher will ask different students to read the text out loud. Then, the teacher will ask other students to orally summarize the relevant information.
6. The teacher will show a power point presentation explaining the material on the reading, as well as pictures and maps. Students will be asked to take notes.
7. The teacher will, randomly ask students to read or even try to explain one of the slides.
8. Teacher and students will discuss the presentation briefly. The teacher will make sure all the concepts are understood and that the students have no questions.
9. The teacher will give students the handout with questions and activities (matching words and concepts, filling the blanks…) and assign it for homework.
10. The teacher will give students copies of the first couple of pages of Astérix in Hispania, where all the characters are presented. Students will be asked to read the descriptions.

Closure

To conclude the lesson the teacher will ask some students what character he/she likes the most and why.

Assessment / homework

As already mentioned, the students will complete the exercises related to both the reading and the Power-Point presentation; that way the teacher will detect if the students have understood the concepts.

(A follow up lesson will be necessary)

Lesson Two: Geography

(This lesson plan is to be developed in an 82-minute class)

Goals

Become familiar with the geography of Spain and be able to research relevant information independently.

Learning Objectives

As a result of this lesson students will be able to:

1. Practice their reading comprehension skills.
2. Learn about the different political divisions in the Spanish geography.
3. Research on particular topics in the target language.
4. Read and gather relevant information of a text written in the target language.
5. Expansion of vocabulary.

Special needs

This is a follow up lesson, students already know what comunidades autónomas, provincias y municipios are; they are also familiar with the map of Spain.

Materials

Computers with Internet access, printer, LCD projector

Initiation

Teacher will "pass the bull" asking students geography questions: e.g.: ¿Cuáles son las provincias en la comunidad autonomía de Castilla y León? (What provinces in the autonomous community of Castile-Leon?)

Procedure

1. Teacher will ask students to log in the Mapas Interactivos website:

tp://www.xtec.net/~ealonso/flash/mapasflash.htm, and will give them about ten minutes to at least complete the Provincias de España puzzle (fácil), the ¿Dónde tán…? Provincias de España map and the ¿Cómo se llama? Comunidades autónomas de España map.

2. The teacher will pair up all the students and will give them the rubric with the information (e.g.: Situación, provincias que la forman, capital de provincia, otras ciudades importantes, monumentos importantes, fiestas, ríos, sistemas montañosos, etc) they will have to be complete by the end of the period.
3. Students will be asked to answer some of those questions orally before the end of the period.
4. Teacher will collect the work.

Closure

To wrap up the lesson the teacher will ask the students to write in a piece of paper what aspect of the comunidad autónoma they were working with they liked the most and why (this time the can answer in English if they want)

Assessment / homework

The teacher will provide students with two maps of Spain: one with provinces and another one with the autonomous communities to fill in with the names.

(There will be a follow up lesson in which students will share information on the community they worked in with the rest of the class)

Lesson Three. Architecture

(This lesson plan is to be developed in an 82-minute class as well.)

Goals

Students will

Learning Objectives

As a result of this lesson the students will be able to:

1. Reflect in the importance of architecture and how it affects everything in our lives.
2. Review basic bridges concepts they have already learned.
3. Review geographical concepts they have already learned.
4. Practice their oral Spanish skills and pronunciation by talking to a native speaker.
5. Improve their listening comprehension skills.
6. Practice reading comprehension skills.
7. Build on new vocabulary terms.

Materials

Power Point presentation on the Santiago Calatrava´s bridges in Spain, computer, LCD projector, computers with Internet access, printed copies of the Power Point presentation, rubric explaining the "Bridges Jeopardy" activity- how to write questions, Calatrava´s handout.

Special Needs

-Students need to bring the questions they have already written for the interview

-Visitor from the community: an architect

Initiation

The teacher will introduce the visitor to the students and will ask a couple of volunteers to explain to our guest what are we learning with the unit.

Procedure

1. The teacher will give students a hard copy of the Calatrava´s Power Point presentation so they can take notes slide by slide.
2. The teacher will show the Power Point Presentation on Santiago Calatrava, asking the guest to participate and/or make remarks on structures, materials, etc, in different slides.
3. After the presentation, the teacher will pair up students so they can compare and contrast notes.
4. Different students will be asked to comment on different slides and to read the notes they have taken.
5. Our visitor will talk about her/his job and answer questions students may have.
6. Then, students will be asked -in order- to start formulating the questions they have ready for the "interview" (they already know the order, who is reading whaich questions and all the details). One of the students has already been assigned to record all the answers, so we can put the whole interview together and then "edit" it and send it to our speaker (if interested!).

Closure

Students will be given a flashcard and they will write down the name of their favorite bridge (of all the ones he have looked up to this point) and why is so.

Assessment / homework

The teacher will give students both the handout on Calatrava and the rubric for the "Jeopardy" game. Students will have to complete the handout and write at least 5 good questions for the game following the rubric.