¡Bienvenidos a la clase de español!
St. Mary’s offers Spanish to Grades 4-6. Our language standards and benchmarks are grounded in the national Standards for Foreign Language Learning in the 21st Century. Students leave St. Mary’s prepared to be successful in a high school level foreign language education.
The Spanish curriculum teaches oral comprehension, reading, writing and speaking using authentic print and auditory resources whenever possible. We use The Natural Approach with the primary goal being proficiency in communication skills. This is accomplished by students reacting and participating in direct instruction and inputs, increasing student comprehension. Grammar is taught but not emphasized and language acquisition happens naturally.
Spanish culture is also taught by celebrating Spanish holidays, cooking and eating authentic Mexican food, and when possible going on field trips where students have the opportunity for real world Spanish speaking practice and cultural experiences. In the past, Spanish classes have gone on service trips to Mexico.