Students watch & review "101 Dalmatians" en español

Mr. McVeigh's Spanish 3-4 students are watching "101 Dalmatians" in Spanish.  The students will be acting as newspaper movie reviewers: they'll write a two-paragraph article that reviews the movie and summarizes their favorite scene. To do that, they'll use the art vocabulary from Etapa 2 as well as the communications vocabulary from Etapa 3. Once they've written their compositions, they'll do a peer-editing activity and then create a final draft of their work.

Mr. Blackwelder, Teacher of the Month!

Mr. Blackwelder, our very own Japanese teacher, was selected November's Teacher of the Month!  This is the second World Languages Teacher to be so honored (Mrs. Arinn Smith was September).  We're proud that the great work that Mr. Blackwelder does has been recognized. 

Omedeto gozaimasu!

Murals Project in Spanish 3-4

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 3-4 class is studying Mexican Murals of "Social Realism" style.  They are working singly or collaboratively on producing a small mural and essay explaining it.  The class will choose the best work to be displayed in large size on the class bulletin board.

Crossword Puzzles in Spanish 1-2

Mrs. Trott's classes are creating crossword puzzles with new vocabulary by bringing one blank crossword to give to another student to complete and one with the answer key for Trott. Fun!

Des Signets in French 1-2

Mrs. Leidhoff's first-year French students are presenting des “signets” to demonstrate good use of adjectives and to speak about themselves and their personalities. Students will share out  in carousel. These “signets” are so creative!

Family Trees in ASL 1-2 and signing for the holidays

Mrs. Lenhof's ASL 1-2 began developing a Family Tree story to present to each other in small groups. Next week they launch into Group Stories using units 1 - 8. They will be working collaboratively with Mrs. Smith's 3 - 4 students on presentations. Also, to celebrate the holidays, they are preparing songs to sign to various classes on campus.

ASL 3 & 5 Video presentations and volunteer work

Mrs. Smith's ASL 3 and 5 are finishing up their 1st video recorded presentations introducing a family member for their video portfolios. They will also be volunteering at Deaf Community Services annual Christmas Party this Sat. The students will be working with Deaf children creating holiday crafts and playing games

What is TPR/S?

TPR/S is an oral/aural techinque used in Mr. Lawhead's class to enhance students oral fluency.  Using hand gestures to tell stories assists students in learning vocabulary and to be fluent in describing the world around them.  Mr. Lawhead uses stick-figure stories on the board or paper to present students with new situations to talk about.  The video shows a student telling a story to her partners.  No English is allowed during this time.

Tijuana Dump School Christmas program

Miss Leigh Murrell and the Spanish National Honor Society have organized the annual program to purchase Christmas gifts for children in Tijuana.  These children live near the Tijuana dump and most of the families make their living by collecting material for recycling or resale.  The school provides educational and social welfare support for the community. 

Libro de la Selva (The Jungle Book)

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 5-6 classes, after having viewed the classic Disney cartoon Jungle Book in Spanish, are using it as a basis for their writing:  first, a timed, in-class compare & contrast essay and now, a lighter and more fun creative writing assignment using coloring book stencils to illustrate their stories.

ASL 1-2 "School Days" presentations

Mrs. Lenhof's ASL 1-2 students are gearing up for their "School Days" presentation where they will hone their ASL skills thus far in presentation and in respectful evaluations of their peers.

ASL video-taped presentations

Mrs. Smith's ASL 3 & 5 will be presenting their 1st timed video-taped presentation about a family member who has inspired them....the presentation focuses on sign production of numbers, tense and listing patterns along with enhancing fingerspelling while building confidence with an audience and the camera.

French 1-2 & 3-4 working hard!

Mrs. Leidhoff's second year class presented travel brochures and mock flight simulation activity.

French 1-2 students learned about the geography of France (i.e. major features and surrounding countries) by doing a map activity. They also played memory games to learn the countries and their capitals in French.

Caperucita Roja (Little Red Riding Hood)

Mr. Lawhead's 5-6 classes, after collaboratively writing the story of Caperucita Roja (Little Red Riding Hood) , had the opportunity of changing the ending to something more creative and less traditional. Spansh 3-4 students are preparing brief skits about "Un Problema en el Aeropuerto" (A Problem in the Airport) for Monday and Tuesday.

Día de los Muertos Display and Presentation

Ms. Murrell's honors and AP students hosted other World Languages classes in the library on Friday.  Students were given a short presentation on the traditions and meaning of the Día de los Muertos celebration.  Afterward, classes were able to view displays of ofrendas (altars), tumbas (graves), calaveras (skulls), cempasuchitl (marigolds) and other Día de los Muertos traditions.

World Languages teachers get into the spirit of Hallowe'en

Gorilla - Mr. R. Lawhead, Spanish

Japanese man - A. Blackwelder-sensei, Japanese
Sumo wrestler - Ms. L. Murrell, Spanish

Día de los Muertos in Spanish 3-4

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 3-4 students recently watched a video about the Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico.  They are creating tombstones and obituaries for real and imagined people to practice using the past tense.

Día de los Muertos in Spanish 7-8

Ms. Murrell's Spanish 7-8 class is preparing their Day of the Dead presentations for November 5th.  You can follow their project in their Wiki.  Spanish 5-6 researched a country, created a map and then wrote a story using the past tense in Spanish on the class Google site.  You can also review blog posts for Spanish 7-8 here and Spanish A-P here.

Ms. Frederickson's French 5-6 students are performing skits where they are TV chefs presenting a cooking show.  In honor of Halloween, their dishes contain strange ingredients with extra points for a truly hideous "plat du jour"!

Spanish 5-6 students face oral evaluation

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 5-6 students are preparing for their first oral evaluation after weeks of TPR/S training.  Students will view a 4-panel cartoon and describe the story it represents.

Students experience and adapt French Literature

Mrs. Leidhoff's AP French students are adapting a narrative story of La Genie du Mangier to a presentational piece.  French 7-8 students are reading Les Miserables and will be adapting it to TPR/S (Total Physical Response w/Storytelling).

Travel logs in Mr. McVeigh's classes

Mr. McVeigh's Spanish 3-4 classes have started a Short Story/Travel Project.  They will create a travel log that describes a real (or imaginary) friend and visit three destinations in a Spanish-speaking country.

Mrs. Arinn Smith - Teacher of the Month!

The World Languages Department is delighted that our own Arinn Smith, ASL teacher, has been honored by students with election as "Teacher of the Month".  Congratulations, we're proud of you!

Study Abroad Programs in Spanish

Mrs. Trott's classes had the opportunity to hear Mr. Rene Martínez from Learning Programs International present information about programs for Spanish study in other countries.  These programs are available for people looking to improve their Spanish proficiency, earn college credit or just looking for volunteer opportunities. 

Mr. McVeigh's students are doing informal role-playing with one student playing a nosy reporter and the other a pampered star! Do the students actually know that they're learning narration in the past and using interrogatives?  Shhhhh!

ASL 1-2 students give presentations

Mrs. Lenhof's ASL 1-2 students are giving their first presentations:  "Who Am I?"  They also enjoy playing a game called "Sign Libb" for reinforcing their descriptive vocabulary.

Newcasts in the French Honors & Spanish 1-2 news

Mrs. Leidhoff's French Honors students took the roles of newscasters and were recorded giving their newscasts to the delight of the class.  Meanwhile, French 1-2 students are learning the rudiments of telling likes and dislikes with a visual aid.

Country Profile Projects

Mr. McVeigh's Spanish 1-2 class will be recorded this Wednesday as they present their research on Spanish-speaking countries.  With parent-permission, we hope to post some of these videos on the blog and Mr. McVeigh's school website.

ASL Club and other class news

75 students have signed (is that a pun?) up for the ASL Club!  ASL 1 and ASL3 are mentoring between levels and have their first "meet & greet" this week.  Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Lenhoff are having a lot of fun watching their students put the language into action!

French 5-6 takes a walk!

Ms. Frederickson's French 5-6 class took a walk around the campus last week and wrote about what they saw and what they did.  Students got a little fresh air and a good lesson on the two past tenses in French.

Interviews

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 3-4 class is busy preparing questions to interview each other.  Interviews will happen on Monday and a poster will be made with all the information gleaned from each other along with a hand-drawn portrait of the interviewee (a source of great amusement).

AP French present Classic French Theater

Madame Leidhoff's AP students are presenting classic French theater to an audience of Honors Placement students.  French 3-4 are presenting the story "Le Tailler Fute", a story from the Ivory Coast.

Ms. Murrell's classes are busy!

Ms. Murrell's Sp. 56 is sharing introduction videos with students in Arkansas and Ohio.  Spanish 7-8 is writing a short story about ghosts which practices narration in the past tense.  AP Spanish are discussing the pros and cons of technology in their first "philosophical chairs" activity.

More info on World Languages on the Scripps Ranch H.S. website

Ms. Leigh Murrell has updated the SRHS website with tons of good, helpful information about the World Languages Dept.  This is your one-stop shopping trip for everything you ever needed to know of World Languages.  Check it out!

Spanish 1-2 Country Projects

Mrs. Trott, Dr. Jacobson and Mr. McVeigh's classes are all working on the "Country Project".  Students are doing research in the library, writing a report and designing a poster that illustrates their Spanish-speaking country.

¡A Cantar!

Mr. Lawhead's classes have received their "Cancioneros" (songbooks) and have been heard singing in Spanish!  Selections include:  La Cucaracha; Pobre Nacha; Marisabel; and De Colores!

Japanese class on Channel 5 Morning News

Mr. Blackwelder's first period Japanese class was featured on the Channel 5 Morning Show!  Students spoke about why they were studying Japanese and Mr. Blackwelder taught the television audience (and the interviewer) how to speak Japanese!  

ASL has their first voice-off!

Advanced students in Ms. Smith's American Sign Language class are introducing themselves and discussing their "likes and dislikes".  ASL 1-2 are learning a new game called "Fly Swatter".  Plans for an ASL Club are in the works as well!

Pen-Pal letters in Spanish

Dr. Jacobson's classes are exchanging Pen-Pal letters with Spanish students at Mira Mesa H.S. She also offers on-line homework help Monday through Friday. Contact her through her school e-mail!

Past Tense and French Artists for French 5-6

In Ms. Frederickson's French 5-6 classes, the past tense review is made more enjoyable by creating a timeline of the life of a famous French artist with graphics and decorations.

Appointment clocks in French

Madame Leidhoff's classes are making their appointment clocks to be used throughout the year to interact in paired and group activities.

"The son of a frog is still a frog!"

Mr. Blackwelder's Japanese 3-4 classes are studying Japanese proverbs and will be acting many of them out in skits.

Total Physical Response w/Storytelling

Mr. Lawhead's Spanish 3-4 students have begun their first mini-story using the TPR/S methodology!  Soon, they'll be telling their own stories!  For more information on TPR/S, see the links on Mr. Lawhead's web page on the SRHS website.

Intro Movies in Ms. Murrell's classes!

Ms. Leigh Murrell is into technology big time!  Her classes are producing individual intro movies to be displayed at Open House.  Her Spanish 7-8 students are working in groups to produce digital story personal narratives.

¿Quién soy yo? Spanish 3-4 project

Mr. McVeigh's Spanish 3-4 students are creating a "Quién Soy Yo?" (Who Am I?) booklet that lets them write about themselves using photos and illustrations.  It's a fun way to review vocabulary and structures from last year!

World Languages Department Hike

Several members of the WL department got to know each other better by hiking together at Mission Trails Regional Park last Thursday, August 27.  The easy four mile jaunt began as the heat of the day was dissipating and ended in the dark.  All agreed that it was a lot of fun.

It's a brand-new year!

World Languages will provide this blog so that parents, students and other members of the department can see the exciting things that are going on in the department.  Follow our blog to find out about special projects, important dates and daily activities of our classes!

We're Excited!

The World Languages Department welcomes several new faces this year.  With the retirement of Mrs. Joan Woods-Petties, Mrs. Nina Morrill and the departure of Mrs. Meri Dobbs and Mrs. Gloria Guilas to other schools, World Languages welcomes Mr. Mike McVeigh (Spanish), Ms. Leigh Murrell (Spanish), Ms. Arinn Smith (ASL) and Ms. Karen Lenhof (ASL).