Summer plans...Honors vs. Regular

This year, my department is launching Honors level 1 and 2 classes. Our goal is to better prepare students who will be continuing to level 3 and 4 because of the Indiana Honors Diploma requirements. With no official language requirement for the Core 40 diploma in Indiana and a school-level requirement for at least two years of language, the students who are on this track will be given more attention as well. I am excited about the possibilities but a little nervous on how to differentiate between Honors and Regular classes.

Here are some thoughts I have had so far:

1.  The content should be the same: I am firm in my belief that all students, no matter ability level, deserve the same curriculum. I want everyone to achieve proficiency and be able to communicate in French. All students need to be exposed to authentic materials written in the target language.
2. The delivery might be different: I plan on doing the same kinds of activities in both classes and giving them as much comprehensible input as possible. But, I think the level of what I do in the language will be different. In theory, Honors students should be able to interact with this materials more independently while I am envisioning a more directed approach in the regular classes. Obviously, the skills and tools needed to be able to interact with this material will need to be addressed with both levels at the beginning of the year.
3. The assessment will be different: At this point, I am planning on the same types of assessments (both summative and formative) but a different type of task. Both classes will see a variety of assessments but the level of thinking involved will be a little different. I've started this by differentiated the "Can-do" statement stamp sheets that I have created with the objectives. For the regular classes, there will be fewer required stamps while the Honors will be more in-depth.
4. The pace will be different: I am planning on focusing on a deeper level on the essential skills in the regular levels. The pacing will be slower. The Honors classes will move at a faster rate and will probably go a little deeper on some topics. It is something I plan on working on throughout the year. 

Do you teach Honors vs. Regular classes? Do you have any advice for me on how to differentiate between the levels?

A new year...a new tool

It has been far too long since I have shared what is going on in my classroom her on le blog. So, I would like to catch everything up. 1) The end of last year went just as well as the first semester had as far as the performance assessments and how my students grew in their proficiency. I was excited as I headed into the summer that they really were making progress. 2) This year brought some big changes for my program. I welcomed a second French teacher to help me handle my course load! Yeah! And she is really an answer to prayer! I am so fortunate to have a like-minded colleague who is willing to try new things and collaborate with me. She teaches 2 sections of French 1, while I continue with levels 2 through 5 in the senior high and 7th and 8th graders. I am so blessed this year to also have 2 sections of French 3. My 4/5 numbers are down, but these are now all my kids, who have only had me as their French teacher! 3) We have also adopted a 1:1 initiative at my school this year. I consider myself to be a huge techie teacher so I was thrilled when my administration handed me an iPad in April of last year and told me all of my students would have one this fall. I am enjoying how much there is to use that is free. Also, I am enjoying figuring out how to do what I do with new tools that serve to keep my students even more engaged. The students love that all they have to bring to my class is their iPad (or an iPad and workbook for my upper levels). Yes, it has been a challenge to get them to stop texting each other and playing games, but over time, things have started to get better as the newness has worn off. 4) I can't help sharing how excited I am about how great this year is going. I am seeing the fruits of my labor from last year. My students are more comfortable using Feench now and have a solid foundation. The understand proficiency and that speaking and writing are two important skills that they need the most work towards. They are beginning to buy into the idea that this language is something they can use outside the classroom. I absolutely love it! And, others are beginning to notice that what I am doing works! So, there are some ideas on what is going on with me and my students. I have recently been encouraged to share more of my ideas about teaching and teaching world language. So, I hope that my posts will be more frequent.

Reflections on the first "performance" semester

Whew, one semester down. One to go. I can now stop and take a break from the hustle and bustle of teaching for two weeks. I also now have time to stop and reflect on this semester. Though I have been teaching French for two years already, I feel like this semester has been a new turning point in my career. After two years and taking a group of students to France this summer, I finally realized the value of a proficiency-based, performance-based world language classroom. I have to admit that I fought a lot of the ideas of a proficiency-based classroom. What about the grammar? What if they don't understand? How can I make this work for the 7 different classes that I teach? But, with the encouragement and support of my #langchat friends over at Twitter, I knew this was the right decision for me.

The semester began much like every other semester. I greeted new students and was happy to see my continuing students in class. I handed out the syllabus. My French 4 students were really not surprised with the changes. After 2 years of having me in the classroom, they know that I like to experiment. My lower-level students, on the other hand, were a little worried. "You mean we have to speak, on our own, with no notes?" I could understand their concerns. But, as we looked at proficiency standards for their levels in speaking and writing and set goals based on those standards, they eventually became more confident.

Enter Gaston. Gaston, the happy snail. Though stuffed, he has a lot of power in my classroom. He tells us when to speak French and when we can speak English. If you want to speak English in an all French time in class, you must step into the "English box" or Gaston, and me as the teacher, will not understand you. At first, the students were shocked that they were actually expected to use French (go figure, since it is French class!). The French 2 students were especially against Gaston. But, as time in the semester went on, they began to buy in to the idea, slowly but surely. Now, they can do it and some of them even initiate conversation when we are in all French.

As far as assessment, I have realized this semester that performance-assessment holds the most power. While I have not eliminated all forms of traditional assessment (knowing my students the way I do after 2 years, there are some who just need that paper and pencil type test), I feel that I am better assessing what my students know. After each unit, we have a speaking and writing assessment. I am really happy with the rubric I have created. It allows for lots of good feedback for my students. Also, GoogleVoice has become my one and only tool to collect my speaking assessments. It is so wonderful for the classroom because I can play back the message for myself, share it with parents or students and show off what my students can do! Writing assessments are going pretty well as well. The best part about them is that it forces students to work on their communication skills. In order to get full credit, they have to do more than what is required. I love that students actually do this!

Another major change that I have made this year is a decision to not rely on the textbook for what I want to teach. Before, I just followed the textbook. Now, I use it as an additional resource for my students. I don't let it dictate what I do. I use more articles, videos, films, stories, etc. to introduce new material. The students are much more engaged as well. They especially love the videos! Most students are not too sad about not using the textbook. I did have one poor 8th grade student who wished we used it more. But, I think that she will see that we really don't need it as we move through more of this school year.

One thing that I continue to see a lot of value in are notebook foldables. I love using these as it creates an instant study guide for my students. While sometimes time consuming, I can see that some students really do utilize it as a study tool. It is especially great for vocabulary and verbs. They can really test themselves on their knowledge. Then, when they prepare for speaking and writing assessments, they see that it is the ultimate resource for the vocabulary that they need to complete their tasks.

So, as I relax and reflect, I continue to think about my new outlook on teaching a World Language. I am pleased with the progress so far. There is still more work to do but I am encouraged by what I have seen so far. My hope is that the students have learned as much as I have this semester! :)