Anyone out there consider themselves a “culo inquieto”? Am I allowed to say that on a blog?? 😉 We all have students who need activities that require movement in Spanish class. And we have lots more who like the chance to get out of their seats. I always try to remember these students when I find myself sitting for a meeting that lasts several hours. Our students are asked to sit all day long. So here are some ideas to get students up and out of their seats!
Running Dictation
One of my new favorite activities that require movement in Spanish class is a running dictation. There are a few variations to how to do this, but essentially, you have students working in pairs. One student sits at a desk with paper and pencil (or they could type). The other student runs to a place in the room (or in the hallway) where you have hung up a story. That runner reads a sentence or 2, and then comes back to tell their partner what to write. About half way through, they switch roles.
This activity helps students with reading, listening and writing. You can extend it by asking students to do follow up activities. You can differentiate by cutting the story apart to make it more challenging (the students need to find the right parts of the story or sequence it themselves!)
Add a prize or 2 for the winner and the best team work!
Practice New Vocabulary
Set up a blank sheet that looks like a BINGO board. Half of the class gets one of those. Then, create a sheet with pictures of vocabulary terms students are using. Hang those around your room or in the hallway. Again, students work in pairs. The runner must go look at the paper with the images, and come back to tell their partner what vocab words are represented. The writer must write in the vocab terms in the TL and illustrate them. They must get the words in the same order as the paper with the images!
Students can switch roles halfway through. They have a lot of fun working together to remember the vocab words and to try to figure out how to illustrate them! And again, prizes are always fun!
Turn and Talk Is a Perfect Way to Add Activities That Require Movement in Spanish Class
This activity is so versatile! It’s fast to create and so easily differentiated! I use my task cards or I write things on index cards. I give each student a card. Then I ask them to line up, and everyone must be facing another student. Line one reads their card, and line 2 performs the task. Here are some things they might need to do:
-answer a question
-translate a verb
-translate a sentence
-conjugate a verb in a particular person/tense
-use a word/verb in a sentence
-decide if the statement they heard was logical or ilogical
-tell what character the description fits
*The choices are endless!
Need More Activities That Require Movement in Spanish Class?
Email me! I have lots of ideas, and I’d love to hear yours as well! You can reach me at contactspecialtyspanish@gmail.com
Resources
Spanish Culture Spanish/English Digital Escape Room
Spanish Task Cards: Travel Situations for Speaking or Writing!
Spanish Task Cards Bundle for Present, Past and Future Speaking & Writing
