Dr. J: When it comes to virtual classrooms: as a high school Spanish teacher, what do you want parents to know and do?
Profé Denham: I want parents to know that one of the best things their students can do to learn a second language is to read. I would also add that this is true of all levels of language learners, even the most novice of them. With proper scaffolding, such as providing vocabulary in context or reading materials with contextualized visuals, even novice readers can comprehend the reading.
Luckily, in a virtual world language classroom, reading materials should be very easy to provide.
So, given that reading will be one of the most important things students can do to be successful in acquiring a second language, I need parents to make sure their students are engaging in the second language. They shouldn’t use translation sites or apps. They should try to interpret meaning from the reading. Reading leads to writing and writing leads to speaking. But reading is a powerful base for language learning.
Dr. J: What specific tools are you using to engage your students?
Profé Denham: I use stories in all forms. I make up stories for my students on the fly or I read stories to them that I’ve written for them. Sometimes I read stories other students have created. I also use graded readers, which are books written for students learning Spanish. I’ve written 9 Spanish picture books. Seven of the books are a series about a super pig named Berta who always saves the day.
I love using infographics because they are an authentic resource. An authentic resource is something created by a native speaker for other native speakers. But because they are so visual, I can use them with all levels of Spanish students. I can use them with all students, from beginner to advanced, because I change what I want them to do with the infographic. For beginners, I might ask them to look for the Spanish word that corresponds to a number of English words or to write in English what the main idea of the infographic is. For advanced students, using the sam infographic, I might ask them who the target audience is and why they think that.
I use social media a ton. Once a month, in the evening, I do a Spanish Twitter chat with my students. A Twitter chat is a conversation that revolves around a hashtag. I use the hashtag, #rhsspanchat. The questions the students and I are discussing are presented in Q1., Q2., etc and then their responses are presented as A1., A2., etc.
I use Tweetdeck to schedule the instructions for the chat and all the questions in advance so I can focus on chatting with me students. A twitter chat is a pretty awesome way to get students engaged in different topics. For example, we were discussing fashion and I asked what they thought about school uniforms and why. Or, when discussing food, I asked if access to clean food should be considered a human right. The only rules of the chat are to be respectful and that the language come from them. No translators. Participation is not mandatory. I don't force students to use social media.
I make TikTok videos that teach quick Spanish lessons as well. Students love it and hopefully it helps them engage a little more.
Finally, I have my own website, profedenham.com. On my website I have over 40 Spanish grammar instructional videos, my picture books are available in Spanish, English and wordless as well as Teacher resources. Teacher resources are lessons I’ve used in the classroom that other Spanish teachers might like to try, such as the infographics with questions and other stories.
Dr. J: As a Dad, what are your hopes for your youngest, for his school experience?
Profé Denham: I want him to love learning for the sake of learning. I want him to get that charge when he figures something out. As an educator, I’ve had two or three exceptionally gifted students that drew their success in school, not from grades, but from the actual learning. They would get so excited when they understood the Spanish grammar structure and they could put it to use correctly in conversation. That instance of joy on their faces as the dance for that split second. That’s the way I hope he learns to love learning.
I hope he learns team work, empathy and perseverance. I hope he learns that individuality, weirdness even, should be worn like a badge of honor. I hope he learns to be a problem solver. I hope he learns to recognize lies and deceit. I hope he develops the courage to call it out when he sees it.
Dr. J: What’s one thing you do that has made the most difference in helping students see their potential?
Profé Denham: I removed textbooks and desks from my room. That changed everything. Before I removed the textbooks, I was always concerned with pacing, worried I wasn’t getting through enough of the material.
Then, one day, I came to the realization that Spanish isn’t learned in a vacuum, that it can’t be scheduled. We recycle language over and over again, so why wasn’t I teaching these high frequency words right from the beginning so my students could understand stories and tell them as well. It took me a few years to free myself of the textbook units, but I’ve been textbook free for the last four years and they’ve been my best years teaching yet.
As for the desks, getting rid of them meant that there was no barrier between my students and I. I was sick of the phones under the desks and the arguments that ensued because of their lies that they weren’t on the phone. Deskless changed that completely. Now we have room for movement, for stations, for gallery walks. There are bean bags if students choose to use them for Free Voluntary Reading. I can quickly move to a student who is disengaged and help them become engaged. Getting rid of textbooks and desks helped reach all of my students, not just the good ones and I’m better for it.
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