Course Overview
This course provides students with the necessary instruction, practice, and evaluation to help
them develop advanced oral and written competency in the Spanish language. All course
activities are aligned with the course goals listed in the College Board publication Course
Description for Spanish Language and Spanish Literature, May 2007, May 2008, which states
that “the course is meant to be comparable to fifth and sixth semester (or the equivalent) college
and university courses that focus on speaking and writing in the target language at an advanced
level (p. 3).” In order to achieve this, the teacher will use Spanish almost exclusively in the
teaching of this course and students are encouraged to do likewise.
Course Goals
The successful AP Spanish Language student as described by the Course Description for
Spanish Language and Spanish Literature, May 2007, May 2008 will be able to:
• Identify and summarize the main points and significant details and make appropriate
inferences and predictions from a spoken source, such as a broadcast news report or a
lecture on an academic or cultural topic related to the Spanish-speaking world.
• Identify and summarize the main points and significant details and predict outcomes from
an everyday conversation on a familiar topic, a dialogue from a film or other broadcast
media, or an interview on a social or cultural topic related to the Spanish-speaking world
• Identify and summarize main points and important details and make appropriate
inferences and predictions from a written text such as a newspaper or magazine article or
contemporary literary excerpt.
• Write a cohesive and coherent analytical or persuasive essay in reaction to a text or on a
personal, academic, cultural or social issue, with control of grammar and syntax.
• Describe, narrate, and present information or persuasive arguments on general topics
with grammatical control and good pronunciation in an oral presentation of two or three
minutes.
• Use information from sources provided to present a synthesis and express an opinion.
• Recognize cultural elements implicit in oral and written texts.
• Interpret linguistic cues to infer social relationships.
• Initiate, maintain, and close a conversation on a familiar topic.
• Formulate questions to seek clarification or additional information.
• Use language that is semantically and grammatically accurate according to a given
context
Course Outline
Instructional materials, activities, assignments, and assessments are appropriate to this fifth and
sixth semester college level course. For the AP Spanish Language Course, we use Una Vez
Más (Prentice Hall) and Nuevas vistas, Curso Uno (Holt, 2003) as the core materials. The novel
Crónica de una muerte anunciada, as well as selections from other texts, online newspapers,
magazines, and other Internet sources are used.
Una Vez Más provides students with a complete grammar review and extensive practice. I
usually assign a lesson for the students to complete at home. In class we discuss any questions
that they may have after doing the lesson, and I point out any details or information that was not
covered previously in Spanish I-IV. There are two tests that accompany each lesson. I use the
first as an in-class pretest, which students complete in groups. The second test is given as a
formal assessment and graded as such. A strong command of grammar is essential for
communicative functions, and I have found that my students need this formal grammar review. I
pace the lessons so that we complete Una vez más in March, allowing more time for intensive AP
exam prep in April.
Nuevas vistas provides students with an interesting array of authentic literary selections, as well
as grammar and vocabulary practice. In addition, each unit or Colección offers information on a
Spanish-speaking country, a cultural topic related to the colección’s theme, and a Comunidad y
oficio selection relating the use of Spanish to the world of work. The cuaderno de práctica offers
targeted grammar and vocabulary activities as well as reading and writing practice. Because we
use Una vez más for our grammar review, I pick and choose from the grammar lessons in
Nuevas vistas to review and reinforce topics as needed. The accompanying video program
provides footage for each colección, with interviews, discussions, dramatizations, and CNN en
español. We use the essay topics provided in Holt’s 2007 AP Language Exam Prep book to
practice at least one formal AP essay for each colección. We also use the multiple-choice
listening and reading comprehension practice, as well as other free-response exercises to
practice the AP exam format throughout the year. Nuevas vistas allows for interaction in the
classroom, language development and usage opportunities, as well as practice with the item
types on the AP Spanish Language Exam.
For our midterm exam, I create a shorter version of an AP Spanish Language Exam using items
selected from Holt’s 2007 AP exam prep book. I use two class periods and the official exam
period to administer this midterm exam. My school requires that all AP courses replace a final
exam with a final project in June. The novel Crónica de una muerte anunciada and its author
García Márquez are the focus of the final project, which consists of a 3-page paper and a 10
minute oral presentation.
Listening Skills
The textbook Nuevas vistas provides video segments which include numerous authentic
interviews. These provide excellent listening activities, as comprehension is aided by the visual
input. Depending on the segment, the students may take notes, outline the information, or listen
for specific information to complete a worksheet. After listening and watching the video, the
students work in pairs or small groups to discuss the segment.
Holt’s text AP Language Preparation is used primarily during the second semester to improve
student listening skills and to develop their oral ability to synthesize and present information in a
more formal manner. The activities include listening to short narratives and dialogues with
multiple choice responses and listening to extended auditory selections with multiple choice
responses while taking notes.
At least three Spanish language films are viewed and discussed each year. The following films
have been used in recent years:
Diarios de motocicleta
El hijo de la novia
Mar adentro
Mariposa
Not only do the themes of these films relate to those of several of our literary selections, they also
provide the students with listening comprehension practice with both peninsular and Latin
American Spanish, as well as dialects and register within each.
Notes in Spanish podcasts are used at least two times per month to build listening skills and
cultural knowledge, as well as to serve as topics for discussion.
Puerta del sol audio magazine, both the current year, and past issues is used two to three times
per month for authentic listening selections relating to authors being studied or cultural topics of
interest to the class.
Spanish Audio Gazette lab.chass.utoronto.ca/rescentre/spanish/ is an Internet resource that we
use regularly. The listening selections are catergorized by country of the speaker, so it is an
excellent resource to develop students’ ability to comprehend the many dialectical variations of
Spanish. In addition, each selection has transcript with glossed vocabulary that can be printed for
the students. For that reason, I find this website to be most useful during the first semester, as the
students become accustomed to using authentic sources in the classroom.
Many other sources are used for listening activities including music/video sources such as iTunes
and YouTube. Radio Naciones Unidas www.un.org/radio/es/, BBC www.bbcmundo.com/, and
CNN en español www.cnn.com/espanol/, are news sources that I use at least once a week for
current events.
Speaking Skills
The development of speaking skills is the most difficult task for most of my students. To facilitate
the acquisition of these skills, Spanish is used exclusively in the AP class. The following activities
provide opportunities for the students to speak both formally and informally in the classroom:
Formal:
• Each marking period students prepare 5 minute oral presentations on cultural topics of interest
to them.
• Formal 10-minute presentation as part of final project based on novel Crónica de una muerte
anunciada
• Oral presentations (after reading one short reading and listening to an auditory source on a
related topic, the student is given 2 minutes to prepare a 2 minute formal presentation,
synthesizing the material for both sources)
Informal:
• Daily classroom interaction/discussion/conversation
• Paired speaking activities from Español en pareja (Langenscheidt)
• Group speaking activities from Conversar sin parar (Newberry House)
• Discussions of literary selections from Nuevas vistas (Holt)
• Guided conversations (student practices guided conversations by following given prompts in
English)
• Días de conversación, in which the students decide on a particular topic beforehand and
prepare their thoughts. The next day the class then sits in a circle and discusses the topic. The
goal is to move from just the sharing of ideas to questioning each other and perhaps arguing,
defending one’s point of view, compromising, etc.
• Weekly current events reports by a different student each week
• Skit presentations, often relating to characters and themes in literary selections
Reading Skills
The course provides frequent opportunities for students to integrate the four language skills
through the use of authentic materials. Students are familiar with literary analysis techniques from
their English courses. By transferring these skills to Spanish literature, they learn vocabulary and
other linguistic features through reading and class discussions, and they continue to improve their
writing skills by writing summaries, essays, and other composition exercises. Specific reading
skills practiced are:
• Acquisition of vocabulary and structures through summarizing, reading and discussion
• Acquisition of advanced grammatical structures through reading and discussion
• Development of reading comprehension skills
• Development of ability to compare/contrast various works
• Development of ability to synthesize themes and content of various works
We read and discuss in Spanish the following texts from Nuevas vistas (Holt).
First quarter: Darío, “Mis primeros versos”, Soto, “Primero de secundaria”, Quiroga, “La guerra
de los yacarés”, Jiménez, una selección de ”Platero y yo”, Menchú, una selección de “Me llamo
Rigoberta Menchú”
Second quarter: Shua, “Posada de las Tres Cuerdas,” Landauro, “La puerta del infierno”,
Alegría, “Güeso y pellejo”, los hermanos Quintero, “Mañana de sol”,
Third quarter: Allende, una selección de “Paula”, Martí, una selección de “Versos sencillos”,
Vale, “Verde luz”, Urías, “Hay un naranjo ahí”, Neruda, “La tortuga”, Ulibarrí, “El forastero gentil”
Fourth quarter: Manrique, “Coplas por la muerte de su padre”, Machado, selecciones de
“Campos de Castilla” , Lorca, “Romance sonámbulo”, García Márquez: “Crónica de una muerte
anunciada”
In addition, reading comprehension skills are developed through numerous other reading
assignments including:
• transcripts from Puerta del Sol listening selections
• transcripts from Notes in Spanish podcasts
• online newspaper articles either selected by the students for current events reports or selected
by the teacher because it relates to a specific theme being discussed. Sources include:
www.bbcmundo.com, www.nacion.com, www.elmundo.es, www.elpais.com, and
www.prensaescrita.com
• online magazine, blog, poetry, critical analysis, or cultural reading selections relating to themes
being discussed
• reading selections from AP Language Preparation (Holt 2007 Exam Edition)
Writing Skills
This course provides constant opportunities to develop writing skills. From open-ended questions
on reading comprehension assessments to formal essays analyzing and synthesizing three
sources, the students are practicing their writing skills on a daily basis.
During the first semester, one of the ways they practice informal writing is to email me every two
weeks with their latest news and activities. I respond to each, which seems to promote interest in
the activity. During the second semester, the students keep a journal that is turned in every week,
and to which I respond as well.
To further build writing skills throughout the year, students write:
• summaries of short stories that are primarily read independently outside of class.
• short narratives written during many class activities, such as pre-reading or closure exercises.
The students use a whiteboard to summarize, classify, organize, or analyze information in
writing.
• creative writing assignments including poems in the style of a selected author, rewriting the
ending of a story, etc.
• formal essays with assigned topics and 3 sources, many of which come from the AP Language
Preparation (Holt 2007 Exam Edition). After reading 2 short readings and listening to an
auditory source on the same topic, the student practices writing formal, 300 word-minimum
essays, synthesizing information from all 3 sources.
• a 3-page final paper as part of a final project based on the life of García Márquez and his novel
Críonica de una muerte anunciada
The constant formal and informal writing as described above, combined with teacher
evaluation and feedback develops excellent writing skills by the end of the course.