This year we have a unique situation in which a graduation date for seniors was locked. Then…. we had 5 snow days. This created a situation where 3 grades have a whole extra week of school as compared to our seniors! So how do we get end-of-year buy-in in Spanish class?
1. Create a Fun Review For Final Exams
Chances are, your students need to take a final exam. That is always a good carrot to dangle! Students need to prepare and review for the exam, and there’s no reason you can’t make it fun! Here is a list of ideas for creating lots of end-of-year buy-in!
-do vocab Bingo
-use www.flippity.com to create games
-use www.wordwall.com to create games like: Whack-a-Mole, Quiz Show and so many more!
-Use Blooket.com to review vocabulary or grammar (once you enter your terms, which you can export from other sources) there are tons of different game options!
2. Teach Culture For End-of-Year Buy-In
If you have extra time before you want to start your final review, culture is always something that students enjoy. If you are lucky enough to have culture embedded into your curriculum with fidelity, there are still so many things that you can add!
Maybe you want to create an activity that goes along with your experiences traveling or studying abroad? That’s where I got the inspiration for this activity about Youth Hostels! Do your students know about famous cities and tourist attractions? Mine never got a deep dive into Spain, so I created this Digital Escape Room which combines solving a crime with a tour through Spain!
Do your Spanish students ask to learn “real” Spanish? Why not offer them a chance to learn how to text in Spanish or some common slang expressions? My students were my inspiration for this Slang and Texting Bundle of Activities!
3. Give Students Choice
Another great idea is to simply ask students what they want to learn! If you have a little extra time, students LOVE to tell you what they are interested in! Here is a list of ideas from my Spanish 3 students this year! I WISH I had time to get to them all!
-animals
-review of calendar/weather/dates
-sports/famous athletes
-food
-music and dance
-pets
The list could go on forever! I hope that over time, I can create a variety of optional learning opportunities that cater to their interests. Even if I never have extra time at the end of the year, I can offer them as optional assignments during the school year!
I wish everyone a wonderful end to the school year and a happy summer vacation!
Resources
Spanish Youth Hostels: Presentation, Video, Reading
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