+ World Languages

(four 50-minute periods per week)

French II at Shady Hill is a study of some of the various cultures of the francophone world through their shared linguistic heritage. The four basic language skill areas of listening, speaking, reading and writing continue to be developed at the same time that students explore the interconnection between culture and language.

Second year students build upon the foundation of skills that they constructed during the previous year, layering on the conversational vocabulary associated with new communicative contexts and mastering more advanced grammatical and verbal constructions. Materials are pulled from a wide variety of sources such as taped interviews, CDs of songs, excerpts of newspaper articles, magazines, web sites and children's books and videos.

As in the previous year, each six-week unit revolves around a developmental question or statement, which is accompanied by a number of linguistic and grammatical objectives. As real communicative competency is the ultimate goal, lessons are presented almost exclusively in French, and students engage in a wide variety of activities, which are all designed to encourage the growth of all four of the language skill areas.

Regular exchange throughout the academic year of pen pal letters with middle school students at the Collège Pasteur in St. Rémy, France allows Shady Hill students to hone their newly acquired reading and writing skills in French, and the cultural contact is a pleasure for all students on both sides of the Atlantic.

Mandarin II This continuation of Mandarin I is designed to increase general comprehension and facility with the language. The class introduces Chinese language and culture while teaching communication in both spoken and written Chinese. Students will gain additional proficiency in their four skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Practical objectives enable students to use Chinese in the classroom, on the playground, and in the local community. We use the second level textbook in the Ni Hao series. Chinese characters are used extensively throughout the text and are accompanied by Pinyin which acts as a guide to pronunciation and is gradually phased out as the student becomes familiar with the characters and vocabulary. This level introduces more than 300 words and phrases and there are 120 written characters to be learned. By the end of the course, students should be able to talk about birthdays, daily routines, house plans, clothing, weather and to hold conversations when going shopping, visiting Chinese families, making phone calls and going to restaurants. They will also be able to express opinions, arrange an outing and write a message, note or diary entry. Grammar is introduced and practiced in innovative and interesting ways with a variety of learning styles in mind. Culture is sprinkled throughout the course in an attempt to help the learner focus on the Chinese-speaking world and their culture, people, geographical locations and histories. Multimedia applications are utilized in class and encouraged for students to use for their individual and group projects.

Spanish II at Shady Hill continues its study of Hispanic cultures through its language. The four language skills –listening, speaking, reading, and writing – are developed concurrently throughout the year, with an emphasis on speaking and listening. Spanish is the primary language of the classroom.

During the second year, the focus will be on Chapters 5-9 of the Descubre textbook. With this text, the language is taught in context with numerous supplementary materials that support the development of each skill. The goal in the second year is to focus more on advanced grammatical topics and to expand the range of vocabulary allowing students to express themselves and discuss everyday activities. Through the cultural readings of the text, students are able to explore the differences between American and Hispanic cultures in everyday situations. The students are expected to speak and present in the target language on a weekly basis. There will be a special emphasis on project sharing.