"Is there anyone else that teaches like you?"

I have to share one of the best moments in my (short) career.  Not only did I have a great day creating compelling, contextual and comprehensible stories, but my fourth period said something that made me believe in TPRS/CI all over again.  They asked me about what teacher to take for second year Spanish.  I told them that I didn't have a favorite, each one was great in their own way, and each one would teach them a lot.  Before letting up, they asked, "Does anyone teach like you?" Throughout this year, I have explained to them that there are a few ways to teach languages based on the goal in mind.  They know my goal for them is fluency.  They got the answer they weren't hoping for: no.

And guess what?  THEY COMPLAINED!  They said, "But we like this class." Read: we feel successful in here.  We feel valued in here.  We feel confident in here.  One girl, whom I've had the pleasure of teaching Spanish 1 to twice said to me, "So next year is going to be difficult."  But I was sure to let them know that they could come back to me for 3rd year.  And I hope they do.  And I hope they tell their friends about me.  And I hope this TPRS/CI spreads like wildfire.

Oh, and on another note a boy asked about past tense.  Not in a grudgingly way.  Not in a "oh goodness I have to memorize another tense." In a curious sense.  With a sense that he wants to be able to communicate in the language.  It even sparked the thought that maybe I could start the past tense a little bit this year... but maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.  I don't want to rock the boat too much.

I am sold.  If fluency is our goal.  This is our method.

Real Progress DOES come from CCCI

I read the proof today!  My district participates in PLCs, thus we have common assessments.  Since I am the only TPRS in my school (and district) I feel pressure when it comes to common assessments because I worry they don't know how to "play" the game. 

Before spring break, our essential learning (per the mandated curriculum) was the perfect tenses.  I was feeling up-tight, under pressure and worn down, so I slipped back into the trap of "hammering grammar" (through CI).  No, it wasn't a good thing.  I stuck to what I had planned, what I had to say, and didn't give the students enough CCCI... in my first and second hour classes.  In my fifth hour, however, I always seemed to be in a more laid-back, student-centered mode and my fifth period blew the assessment away.  We had wonderful, student-centered, compelling, contextualized, comprehensible input... and they learned the perfects much better than my other classes.

As if that weren't enough, this class sometimes struggles more than my other classes because their background knowledge of the language has some gaps.  I was so proud.  It really set me straight. 

I even changed my original lesson plan today because of what I had learned from them.  Instead of using fill in the blank sentences with por and para, we talked about what we will do this weekend, when we are leaving for it, how we will get there, why we are going there, etc.  The students were much more engaged in the conversation than in some sentences on the board.  Much more worth our time.

CI wins again.

I feel a homerun coming...

So in light of taking back my classes after fighting severe over-exhaustion, my first year classes participated in an ask-a-story today.  I made a major switch in how I planned these, and so far so good.  I switched from asking questions on my plan, to stating facts that cannot change (but that didn't work so well - but that's ok).
We started with: quiere impresionar, rompe, le gustaría.  What we've got so far is a very handsome man named Jeffrey who smells really bad, but wants to impress a Betty White.  BW thinks J smells though. :( 

Tomorrow I'm going to have them go places until he breaks a present that contains soap on himself upon which BW thinks he smells good and is impressed by him.
We'll see!

Formal observations

Although I've been working on my perfectionism A LOT this year, formal observations still get my panties in a bunch.  I worry and fret, and usually get sick over nothing.  I know I'm a _____ (good? decent? second-year? average? outstanding?) teacher, and I should be ok with that.  I know I work my tail off and want the best for my students.  I try to work as a team with my colleagues and be a contributing member to teams  and committees that I'm involved with.  On the outside, I know my job will be ok.  On the inside, I worry. 

Nevertheless... I think this formal observation, while not my shining classroom moment, was a lot more stress-free than the last. It's possible that I'm just getting used to the beat of the formal observation drum.  This is my fourth now... and it helps that I really feel supported by my administrator in the method I'm using this year.  Who knows.

Despite all of the stress that comes with a formal observation, my shining moment today was when a student approached me after class and told me she dreampt in Spanish the other night!  HOLY MOLY!  No way!  I was super proud because I think that means she's getting ample comprehensible input in class (which only meets three days a week for 59 minutes!). Go me!