Elementary Spanish Program - Curriculum Information

Elementary Spanish Program

1919 14th Street, Suite 421, Boulder, CO 80302
303-440-7196
kidsspeakspanish@gmail.com

The ESP's mission is to bridge cultural barriers, educate young children, and prepare them for life in our world community through teaching Spanish.

Curriculum Information

Auditory I and II Programs:

Our introductory programs are designed to give children a strong auditory foundation so that they will feel comfortable hearing and speaking Spanish. The classes consist of songs, games, and other lively activities followed by discussion and reinforcement of skills. ESP offers two years of auditory curriculum so that young children may have the opportunity to develop strong listening and speaking skills before beginning literacy instruction in Spanish. Auditory I is for all students in grades K-5 who have never taken Spanish classes. Auditory II is for all first and second grade students who have completed the Auditory I program. Also, please note that the Auditory II level is only for children who cannot read and write yet. Each child that has completed Auditory I/II level and that is at least in 3rd grade will automatically be enrolled in Reading and Writing. The required minimum class size for both levels is twelve.

Introduction to Reading and Writing Program:

This level of classes incorporates many songs and games as well as a series of reading passages and dialogues. Students read together to practice their decoding and comprehension skills while learning new vocabulary and grammatical structures. ESP workbooks reinforce writing skills. This program is for third through fifth grade students who have completed at least one year of the ESP Auditory program. The required minimum class size for this level is ten.

Spanish Literature Program:

Students read children’s literature in Spanish to practice decoding and comprehension skills while further enhancing their Spanish vocabulary. Hands-on activities reinforce the content of each book. A wide variety of titles is available so that teachers can choose reading relevant to the interests a nd abilities of their students. Tuition includes the Spanish books that students take home after completing study in class. This program is intended for fourth and fifth grade students who have completed the Introduction to Reading and Writing Program. The required minimum class size for this level is six.

Viva el Español

All ESP classes will be working with Viva el Español which covers 6 levels of ESP classes. The ESP office staff , ESP Board, and ESP teachers are very excited about the implementation of Viva el Español which we think will provide consistency between the levels and guarantee a fun, creative and challenging learning environment.

Lesson planner cards describe every step to be taken in the classroom: vocabulary to teach and how to teach it, materials to bring, games and songs, TPR commands to use, and most importantly, the goal for each lesson.

Español con los Pérez

Español con los Pérez is a complete Spanish teaching material that will take students through the vocabulary and grammar necessary to understand and communicate in and about everyday situations in the Latin world.

La Familia is the first combined text- and workbook in a series of six theme books. In La Familia students will get to know the parents, the grandparents and especially the three children in the Pérez family. They will get to know their different personalities and how they tackle daily life. When studying La Familia students will not only read and learn about the Pérez family, they will also be asked to describe their own experiences. Students are welcome to create a fantasy family if you find it too intimidating to include their own family in the learning process. Story telling and TPR are part of the daily classroom activities. It is our belief that the result of language learning process depends on the level of relevance in the teaching material used in the classroom. The focus of Español con los Pérez is to give the students the tools to communicate in Spanish through engaging different learning styles. Español con los Pérez is built on a variety of exercises leading to listening, reading, communication, and writing skills in Spanish with the main focus on the communicative skills. Language learning is fun; but also hard work. It takes time and effort. Plan to practice 15 minutes daily.

Español con los Pérez consists of six theme books:

La Familia: The Family
La Escuela: The School
El Trabajo: The Work
La Rutina Diaria en la casa de los Pérez: The Daily Routine in the Pérez Household
Las Vacaciones: Vacations

We are thrilled to provide material that covers vocabulary, dialogs, songs, games, cultural arts and crafts activities, social studies, teaching of Latino traditions and habits all focused around a specific theme. All students will have a workbook for use in the classroom and at home. Additional materials, assessment sheets, teacher resources, flashcards, etc. are available for all teachers at all levels.

It is our goal to implement the Viva el Español and Español con los Pérez curriculum as listed below.