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Proficiency by the Bikes

Published by Laura Sexton on

They say you can’t hit a target you can’t see, so as we were setting up interactive notebooks today, page 3 (right after Table of Contents, First Day Fun Stations summaries, and an about me section with a lot of “soy”)  became “Proficiency.”

I stole the bicycle analogy from Srta. Barragán (who got it from Kelly Daugherty and Martina Bex) and basically chopped up the page. I removed the grades and decided to scrap the level labels–as they won’t be used as grading descriptors per se–then scrambled the bikes and level descriptions before making copies.

I clipped the bikes to move around on the SMARTboard, too, and added ACTFL proficiency levels through Intermediate Mid (because that’s as high as I’d expect anyone to go since there’s nothing above Spanish III available at our little early college.)

Everyone got a little scrambled half-sheet to cut apart and rearrange in the following order.

1. Arrange the bike pictures in order of proficiency (arrange together on the SMARTboard). Do not glue.

2.  Discuss which level goes with which bike (It’s important to leave the lonely bike by itself without a label).

3. Now glue–but leave space for the descriptors.

4. Check out this Glog made from ACTFL proficiency guidlelines and exemplars, and let’s watch Leonor and identify the descriptor that matches her level (Novice Low).

5. Let’s watch Jesús now. What level is he? Nope, still Novice Low! (Glue)

6. Let’s watch Oahn. What level is she? Yep,[insert Novice Mid descriptor here]. (Glue)

7. And Guadalupe? Yep [insert Novice High descriptor]. (Glue

8. Let’s figure out what’s the highest next and fill in the rest. GlueGlueGlue (I probably would have gone a little higher with the example videos if I didn’t have strictly Spanish I this semester.)

9. Now take a look at this glorious proficiency continuum I made:

Proficiency continuum a la Creative Language Class through Novice High–
because I only have Spanish I right now. And walls.

What’s the red? (Yes, Novice Low) The blue? (Yep, Mid) And the yellow? (You guessed it) Why does it go this high? Because NC says your goal in Spanish I is Novice Mid–Novice High if you’re a super high-flier. And I can’t put anything on the walls.

10. Finally, highlight the level that you want to achieve by the end of Spanish I.
Now they’ve got a target they can see right in the front of their interactive notebooks! But as we know from the interactive notebook session, the right side is mine to dictate, and the left is for students to reflect (something I’m being extra careful to allow for since the brain session). So tomorrow, we will review their goals, and on the left they will make a web map around 3 circles: INTERPRETIVE, INTERPERSONAL, and PRESENTATIONAL and begin connecting those modes to ways to use Spanish beyond class to set their first personal goal!