PBL Projects
This is a list of PBL projects I have attempted in my Spanish 1, 2, and 3 classes. I have included links to posts related to each project (where available) and evaluated the success of each project.
For more information on Project-Based Learning in the Target Language,
check out the PBL FAQ page.
What do visitors to our community need to know to enjoy their stay?
How can I change one habit to improve my life?
Why should people watch telenovelas?
How can we work with local animal shelters to promote animal welfare?
How can we present highlights of a country’s history in a 10-minute skit for a language competition?
Audience: language competition judges
Why students care: competition, choice
Success level: 9
What the project needs: more scaffolding for research and script revising in the TL
How can we help children at a struggling rural school in Colombia?
Audience: Colombian school children, charity organizers
Why students care: sympathy for children, curiosity about their lives
Success level: 8
What the project needs: more focused final goal and incorporation of communication into the final product
How can we create a picture book that teaches children to accept others’ differences?
Audience: elementary ESL class/library
Why students care: interaction with children, exercise creativity
Success level: 8
What the project needs: scheduled story time with actual Spanish-speaking children, more focus on story development scaffolding in TL
How can you market a product you’ve invented to a Spanish-speaking audience?
Audience: representatives of local Latino community
Why students care: marketable skill/product, exercise creativity
Success level: 8
What the project needs: actual representatives from the community were hard to bring in, but the products and presentations turned out well
What are some recipes children can make themselves?
Audience: elementary ESL class
Why students care: interaction with children, field trip, eating
Success level: 8
What the project needs: to focus on simpler recipes, perhaps more culturally oriented, not requiring heating, if possible, more practice interacting with children
How do you respond to a medical emergency if the people around you speak only Spanish?
Audience: English-speaking EMTs, Spanish-speaking patients
Why students care: marketable skill/product
Success level: 7
What the project needs: a more flexible app interface and means of testing the final product with audience as well as more defined requirements
How can I convince my friends to study abroad with me?
Audience: classmates
Why students care: college goals + friends
Success level: 7
What the project needs: a more relevant audience and more defined requirements
How can you get kids in another country to participate in a fan club devoted to what you’re most passionate about?
Audience: English class in Argentina
Why students care: kids their age, choice
Success level: 7
What the project needs: more defined requirements and more opportunities for presentation
How can we inspire children to read in Spanish?
What are some fun games or crafts from Spanish-speaking countries that you could teach children?
Audience: Local Latino families/elementary ESL classes
Why students care: choice, interaction with children
Success level: 7
What the project needs: more scaffolding for research and presentation strategies
How can we save the world one material at a time?
Audience: school/local/online community
Why students care: choice, connections with other classes
Success level: 7
What the project needs: more specific–OUTSIDE–audience, more follow-up and connections IN other classes
How can we convince middle schoolers who speak Spanish to come to our school?
Audience: middle school ESL students
Why students care: school pride, marketable skill/product
Success level: 7
What the project needs: more defined requirements and opportunities to address audience directly
Is the person who other people see the person who you really are?
Audience: classmates
Why students care: self exploration, music
Success level: 6
What the project needs: a more significant audience and product goals, clearer connections between texts and self
Should narcocorridos be banned in Mexico?
Audience: students’ choose
Why students care: hot-button topic, music
Success level: 6
What the project needs: a predetermined audience and medium for presentation
4 Comments
Yun He · November 29, 2016 at 9:23 pm
I love the ideas of your project! Thank you for sharing.
Rosemarie Leite · February 23, 2017 at 7:41 pm
I love the ideas you posted! Do you have a printable list you might want to share? I'm new to google formats and PBL.
Gracias,
Sra. Leite
rosemarie.leite@boone.kyschools.us
Theresa Baginski · March 15, 2018 at 2:41 pm
Thank you for sharing your projects. Do you have any workshops planned in the future on getting started with PBL in the language classroom?
Laura Sexton · March 23, 2018 at 12:10 am
Good question! Nothing is lined up right now, but I'd love to visit! We're also looking into setting up a PBLL conference for Summer 2019!