Daily Routine:
1st Graders will start class daily in front of the calendar, like
Kindergarteners, on a daily basis. During this time, the students count
together to 31 in Spanish, sing the Days of the Week song, Months of the
Year song, and repeat and recite the date of hoy es, ayer fue, y mañana es
(today is, yesterday was and tomorrow is). Individual student then have the
opportunity to try things on his or her own. Some count, others sing a
song, while some chose to try the date. We spend a healthy portion of class
time, the first two days of the week I have them, in this manner, in front
of the calendar.
First graders are also working on “activity books”, which
we add pages too weekly. The pages in the books correlate to what we’ve
been working on; numbers, days of the week, months, colors, school supplies,
parts on the body, fruits, and basic expressions
Students are constantly adding to there "song bank", which aids in
expanding vocabulary, provides an outlet for oral expression and connects to
their activity books. Songs also indruduce aspects of grammar in context.
Songs for 1st grade include;
Que bonita bandera
Buenos dias
San Severino
Mama you Quiero
Noche de paz
Los dias
Los meses
Colores
De colores
En nuestra Tierra tan linda
El burrito enfermo
La tia Monica
La cancion de la comida
Sun sun ba ba e
Damos Gracias
Que llueva
Weather song
La cancion de los objetos de la clase
La Granja
Al tambor
Cabeza, hombros, piernas...
*At home, you could ask your child to try and teach you what they’ve
learned, in front of the calendar. See if they can tell you the days of the
week, count to thirty one, say the months, etc. Bringing Spanish out of the
context of the classroom, and into their homes, I believe will be very
helpful in validating their learning efforts in class and move new
vocabulary to memory more quickly. Students also take home a “special word”
each week. It would be helpful if you encouraged them to teach you their
special word, and maybe their friends’ special words as well.
We are also learning many new songs these days, so ask your students if
they can teach you their new song; maybe even a few gestures!
