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South Dade Senior High School Foreign Language Department AP Spanish Language Syllabus Professor: Sr. Yanglier Suarez-Lopez Course Overview: This one year of immersion in the AP Spanish Language Program is going to provide students not only with the necessary tools to improve their skills in reading, speaking, writing, and listening, but also with a general knowledge of the Hispanic countries, their culture and principal global problems that affect those countries. Therefore, at the end of the year, students have to be able to communicate in an effective and acceptable form in writing and speaking, and to work and understand critically authentic written materials in Spanish; besides, the cultural immersion is going to enhance students’ humanist thoughts of many global problems that affect the Hispanic world. The AP Spanish Language course is taught completely in Spanish. We encourage all students throughout their Spanish studies to practice the target language consistently with their teachers and peers. They should be able to use the Spanish language to understand conversations, lectures, oral presentations, newspapers, letters, instructions, internet articles, and short stories at a level of one year college; express themselves orally by convincing, arguing, inquiring, and describing. Therefore, students are going to develop the following skills: reading and listening comprehension; writing essays, translating from English language to Spanish and vice versa, and knowing and applying grammar structure. Students have to be able to speak Spanish fluently and correctly and to identify the grammar structures more used in Spanish. Likewise, students will be exposed to selected works of the most famous and representative Hispanic writers. As prerequisites to be admitted in the AP Spanish Language Course, students must have taken Spanish during their freshman and sophomore years, except that they can show a level 3 of proficiency in Spanish on a placement exam applied by the teacher. In any case, students’ level 3 of proficiency and professor’s recommendation would be obligatory requirements to be registered in the AP Spanish Language Course. General Assessment Policy: According to the AP Spanish Language style of assessment, students will be evaluated in the four basic skills of the language development: listening comprehension, reading comprehension, writing, and speaking by intertwining these skills. In addition, cultural and historical issues of the Hispanic world will be assessed as well. Writing Skill:

- Students must write different kind of texts at each chapter, such as letters, emails, narrative essays, poems, legends, newspaper articles, and other texts related to the studied topic. In those texts students will intertwine the language skills and information obtained at reading or

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listening activities with the writing process, developing students’ capability of thinking critically.

Speaking Skill:

- Students will make an oral report of a previous- selected topic; teacher would advise students on the topic and its relevance for the taught themes and its possible connation with other social-humanistic disciplines. Likewise, students have to be able to summarize and report orally information obtained from aural and reading sources. Furthermore, students will simulate dialogues or conversation with their peers and the professor.

Reading Skill: - Students will be exposed to authentic reading materials and different types of texts such as

poems, newspaper articles, and narrative essays, integrating the development not only the passive skill of reading but also the active skill of writing and speaking. This kind of evaluation will combine multiple choice and essays questions.

Listening Skill: - During this course students will be exposed to authentic aural materials from different

Spanish Language media sources in order to improve the students’ listening skills and general knowledge. These audio activities will be intertwined with reading, speaking, and listening activities.

School Assessments:

- One vocabulary quiz for each reading - One reading comprehension quiz (multiple choice) for readings - One grammar quiz for topic - A writing report for each reading of three hundred words such as letters, essays, emails,

electronic and text messages - An oral report for topic of five minutes - Listening activities for each topic - A final test for each topic. This final test will intertwine the four skills and the culture

immersion. - Four former AP Spanish Language tests to practice and make the students aware of the

exam’s format and structure. - Final test at the end of each semester.

Resources:

Books:

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Díaz, J. M., Nadel, M., & Collins, S. (2007). Abriendo Paso ( Lectura & Gramática). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Genevieve, B. (2002). Leyendas Latinoamericanas, 2nd Edition. Columbus: The McGraw-Hill Companies.

Hiller, J. F. (2007). Spanish Four Years: Advanced Spanish with AP Component, Second Edition. New York: Amsco School Publications, Inc.

Marquéz, S. (2000). La Lengua que Heredamos, 4th Edition. New York: John Wiley & Sons, INC.

Valdés, G., Teschner, R. V., & Enríquez, H. M. (2008). Español Escrito, Sexta Edición. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education.

Local Newspapers in Spanish:

El Diario de América, weekly publication in Miami-Fort Lauderdale areas

El Nuevo Herald, daily publication in Miami

El País from Spain

El Universal from Colombia

Web Pages:

http://www.cnnenespanol.com/

http://www.washingtonhispanic.com/

http://www.elpais.com/global/ (El País)

http://www.abc.es/ (ABC)

TV Channels Broadcasting in Spanish: National Broadcasting:

- Univision 23

- Telefutura 69

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- Telemundo 51

- CNN EN ESPANOL Local or Miami TV Channels in Spanish:

- America TV

- Mega TV Curriculum:

Theme 1: La Diversidad de los Grupos Hispanos en los Estados Unidos (The diversity of Hispanic Groups in the US).

Reading:

Grupos Hispanos en los Estados Unidos, a newspaper article

Writing:

Review the format of essay and letter

Grammar:

vowels and consonants: diphthong, triptongos, and hiatus.

Orthography:

rules of using C

Theme 2: La monarquía y la democracia, el Reino de España como ejemplo de esta combinación (Monarchy versus Democracy, Spain as a classic example).

Reading:

“El Flamenco: vínculo de inmersión de los gitanos en la vida cultural y política de España”, a narrative essay.

Writing:

Practicing the Format of the electronic messages

Grammar:

Review the main cognate words in English and Spanish; diphthong and tritongos and division of words in syllable.

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Orthography:

Rules of using the S; the endings SIÓN and XIÓN

Theme 3: Méjico como paradigma cultural de América (Mexico as a cultural paradigm in the West Hemisphere).

Readings:

- “Juana de Asbaje: su vida antes del convento”, a biography. - A selection of Juana’s poems. - “Frida Kahlo: pintora por derecho propio”, a newspaper article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- An oral report about the life of these famous painters - Interpreting poetry: “Redondillas”, by Juana de Asbaje - Interpreting a Frida Kahlo’s painting

Grammar:

- Similarities and difference between English and Spanish; false cognates - Simple, derivate. And compound words - Family words - Suffix and prefix - Change from IE to E and UE to O

Orthography:

- Homophones: C and S; S and X

Theme 4: El papel de los emigrantes en la economía, política y cultura de la sociedad estadounidense (The role of the emigrants in the economy, politics, and culture of the American Society).

Readings:

- “Los Mexicoamericanos, éxito e integración”, a newspaper article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- Letter to a friend about the importance of the last names for Hispanic - An oral report about the immigration issues in the US.

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- Advantages and disadvantages of being Hispanic in the US: a written report

Grammar:

- Uses of definite Articles - Omission of articles - Concordance in gender and number of articles and nouns - Contraction of DE plus el (del), and A plus el (al) - The neutral article LO - The indefinite articles, and their omissions

Orthography:

- Basic rules of accentuation - Accentuation of hiatus - Uses of Z

Theme 5: La peculiaridad el estatus político de Puerto Rico, el dilema de la colonización y la descolonización en el mundo de hoy (The peculiarity of the Political Status of Puerto Rico: the dilemma of colonization versus decolonization).

Readings:

- “La Encrucijada política de Puerto Rico”, a political report.

Writing and speaking activities:

- An oral report about the importance of maintaining the language as an element of people’s idiosyncrasy.

- An essay in which students explain the controversy between Puerto-Ricans living outside the island and those living inside the island.

- To prepare and apply a survey among Puerto-Ricans, living in our community or attending our school, whereby they issue their opinion over the political status of the island.

Grammar:

- Cognate words - Accentuation of monosyllables - Uses of capital letter - Uses of diminutives

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Orthography:

- Homophones: S and Z

Theme 6: Los sistemas totalitarios y la democracia: Cuba (Totalitarianism versus Democracy: Cuba).

Readings:

- “Audaz Rescate en Cuba”, a narrative essay

Writing and speaking activities:

- To performance an interview to a Cuban student or family member in order to determine some details of his/her exile.

- To investigate the political of Embargo and write an essay whereby students take a position in favor or against of this policy.

- To write a report from the reading whereby students include six or seven details of the main character personality.

Grammar:

- The verb - The infinitive - The gerund and the past participle - Irregular and regular verbs - The auxiliary verb HABER - The indicative mood and irregularities in the present - Other rules of accentuation

Orthography:

- Using the B and V, first part.

Theme 7: El papel de la música y el arte en la sociedad (The role of the music and art in the society).

Readings:

- “Quisqueya”, a narrative essay

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Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will prepare a report about Dominican Republic - To investigate about Fray Bartolomé de las Casas and the writer Manuel de jesús Galván

and make a report to the class.

Grammar:

- Irregular past participle - The future tense - Practice the accentuation

Orthography:

- Using the B and V, 2nd part.

Theme 8: Los derechos civiles y políticos de las minorías (The Civil and Political Rights of Minorities).

Reading:

“Rigoberta Menchú”, a biography summary

Writing and speaking activities:

- To report a legend that students know or heard from your ancestors. - To make a report about the different species which are in danger of extinction in our

community and propose possible and viable solutions to stop their extinction - To investigate about the different kinds of experiments that cosmetic and pharmaceutical

companies performance on animals, and express opinions in favor or against them

Grammar:

- The subjunctive mood: forms of the present, irregularities in the present of the subjunctive; the imperfect of the subjunctive.

- Sequence of verbal tenses.

Orthography:

- Homophones: B and V

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Theme 9: La brutalidad de la Guerra: paz y armonía, principios de las Naciones Unidas (The Brutishness of the War: Peace and Harmony, UN Principles).

Reading:

- “El Salvador en Camino de la Recuperación Nacional”, a political report

Writing and speaking activities:

- A report about the importance of sports in the society and as a mean to contribute to peace among states.

- An investigation about civil wars in the West Hemisphere, making an oral and written report.

Grammar:

- Commands or imperative moods - Compound verbal tenses in the subjunctive mood. - Practice of accents

Orthography:

- The punctuation signs

Theme 10: La importancia del legado de las culturas de la antigüedad (The Importance of the Legacy of Ancient Cultures).

Reading:

“Copán, ciudad Maya de Honduras, a narrative essay

Writing and speaking activities:

- A brief oral report about the pre-Columbian civilization in the West Hemisphere. - Why it is important to preserve our ancestor ruins? Students will report and know what

international and national institutions are in charge of preserving the historical legacy left by the Pre-Columbian civilizations.

Grammar:

- Other cognates - Part of the sentences - Impersonal sentences

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- Concordance of the subject and verbs - The order of elements of the sentence - The main and subordinate sentences

Orthography:

- Uses of D

Theme 11: La literatura como un elemento de paz (The Literature as a peaceful Vehicle).

Reading:

“Rubén Darío: una gloria de Nicaragua”, a narrative essay

Writing and speaking activities:

- Interpreting the poem “Lo Fatal” - Search information about the Modernism in Hispano-American, and make an oral report

about this movement of the literature.

Grammar:

- Review the preterite - Review the imperfect tense - Practice of accentuation

Orthography:

- Uses of H

Theme 12: La protección del medio ambiente, reto o necesidad (The challenge of protecting the environment).

Reading

- “Costa Rica: ejemplo positive de Hispanoamérica”, a newspaper article

Writing and speaking activities:

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- Students will analyze an ecological problem in our community or in the world, getting the most relevant details in order to write a letter to the pertinent authority whereby they describe the problem and possible ways of solving it.

- Students will investigate and make a report about the possible relationship between analphabetism and poverty or underdevelopment.

- Students will express their ideas about the arm race in the world.

Grammar:

- The present participle used as an adjective - Compound adjectives - Other false cognates - The gender of nouns - Nationalities - Practice of accents

Orthography:

- Homophones: with H and without H

Theme 13: El comercio como mecanismo de paz y armonía entre las naciones (The Commercial Activity or Trade as a mechanism to bring peace and harmony among the nations).

Reading:

“Panama la Tierra del canal”, a newspaper article

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will discuss the hardest topic of colonization and sovereignty. Making an oral and written report. Furthermore, they will email the UN Council of Decolonization to encourage these institutions to act in favor of the few colonies or oppressed nations.

Grammar:

- Nouns: number and gender - Compound names and their plural form - Practice of Accentuation

Orthography:

- Uses of R and RR

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- Difference between D and R, and L and R

Theme 14: Las artes plásticas como reflejo de los vicios de nuestra sociedad (The plastic art as mirror of many social problems).

Reading:

“Fernando Botero: una gloria de Colombia”, historical and biographical article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will investigate El Greco style of painting and compare it with Botero’ style. They will prepare an oral and written report.

- To describe some Botero’s paintings in order that students can appreciate social problems and concerns on Botero’s paintings.

Grammar:

- Review some special rules of uses adjectives - Practice of accentuation

Orthography:

- Uses of G and J

Theme 15: Tierra de los Libertadores (The land of liberators).

Reading:

- “Simón Bolívar: El Gran Libertador”, a historical and biographical article. - “Bolívar”, José Martí (Tres Héroes), a poem - “Bolívar”, Luis Llorens Torres, a poem

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will write a short biography of Bolivar. - Students will write a comparison between Bolivar and Gorge Washington, and they will

report orally to the class

Grammar:

- The past participle as an adjective - Superlative and comparative forms of adjectives

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- Practice of accents

Orthography:

- Uses of G and J, 2nd part

Theme 16: Ecología: la Evolución de las especies, un acercamiento científico y religioso (Ecology: the evolution of Species, a scientific and religious closeness).

Reading:

“Las Islas Galápagos, un reducto de pura naturaleza”, a cientific article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will report about the different and necessary ways used by the Ecuadorian government and UNESCO to protect and preserve the Archipelago of Galapagos.

Grammar:

- Review the conditional tense - The past probability, how to express it in Spanish - Review the compound verbal tenses in the indicative mood. - Practice of accentuation

Orthography:

- Uses of LL

Theme 17: La corrupción, una de las mayores infamias de políticos en la sociedad. (The Corruption as one of the worst infamy of politicians in our society).

Reading:

“Los Fujimori de Perú”, a political article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- Make a survey in the school or among your family members in order to get their definition of being successful. The results of the survey will be exposed to the whole class, plus a written report.

Grammar:

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- Review the different kinds of pronouns - Direct and indirect objects - Pronouns used with reflexive verbs - The circumstantial complements - Other uses of the reflexive pronouns

Orthography:

- Uses of Y

Theme 18: Las diferencias entre idiosincrasia y nacionalidad. (The differences between idiosyncrasy and nationality)

Reading:

“”Orgullosa tradición del sombrero boliviano”, a cultural article

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will be able to understand the cultural, symbolic, and ritual differences among the different people that integrate the Hispanic world. An oral and written report will be indicated to cover this topic.

Grammar:

- Demonstrative adjective and pronouns - The relative pronouns - The indefinite pronouns

Orthography:

- - Practice of accentuation

Theme 19: Dictadura y Democracia, Chile (Dictatorships versus Democracy, Chile).

Reading:

- “Elizabeth Subercaseaux: sin pelos en la lengua”, a political article. -

Writing and speaking activities:

- Students will summarize newspaper article of this recognized journalist

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- Students will look information in the Hispanic newspaper about the Dictatorship of Pinochet, they emphasize in stories of people who disappeared during the dictatorship. This information would be the base for an oral report.

Grammar:

- Adverbs - Adverbial phrases

Orthography:

- Practice of accentuation

Theme 20: Paraguay, tierra de leyendas (Paraguay, land of legends).

Reading:

“El Regalo de la Diosa Luna”, a legend.

Writing and speaking activities:

- The autonomy as a governmental regime: students will investigate the existence of autonomies in Latin-American and in the world, explaining the viability of this system of government.

- Students analyze the sociological theory that “racial homogeneity reduces social tension in a country”; in contrast, multiracial nations tend to be more unstable. Students have to take a position and explain their posture.

Grammar:

- Prepositions - Uses of Por/Para

Orthography:

- Practice of accentuation - Homophones: LL and y

Theme 21: La Disyuntiva de la sobrepoblacion (The problematic of the overpopulation)

Reading:

“Horacio Quiroga, *A la deriva*”

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Writing and speaking activities:

- Discuss about the dangers that people can affront at the cities - Write a short story that includes elements of the reading

Grammar:

- Conjunctions - Uses of pero, sino, and sino que - Clauses with si - The commercial mail, its basic elements

Orthography:

- Practice of accentuation - Parónimos

Theme 22: El Baile como expresión de los sentimientos humanos (The dance as a form of human expressions).

Reading:

“El Tango Argentino retorna por sus laureles”, a cultural article.

Writing and speaking activities:

- Discuss and know the different dialects spoken in Latin-America. Students will do a research of them and make an oral and written report of them; besides, they will include their opinion about the necessity of preserving or eliminating those primitive dialects.

- Make an interpretation of the meaning of the tango “Cambalache”

Grammar:

- Interjection - A review of the most used slangs or idiomatic expressions

Orthography:

- Practice of accentuation

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