Nontraditional Hispanic students, though often pedagogically problematic in other ways, possess language resources that should not be overlooked and that ought to provide a model for other language learners. The paper illustrates: (1) the resources needed for foreign language capacity that exist in non-English-speaking sectors of U.S. society; (2)…

Examines form and gender correspondence rules for Spanish and attempts to evaluate them for potential utility to the foreign language user on the basis of formal and psychological criteria relating to how rules might affect performance, with specific reference to the role of rules as defined in monitor model. (Author/BK)

These guidelines serve as an introduction to a set of eight course curricula in the VESL (Vocational English as a Second Language) program. This document introduces the reader to the VESL concept; multi-cultural, competency-based materials of VESL (sequential modules, translated lexicons, grammatical structure for modules, punctuation and…

Discusses a general strategy for helping students acquire vocabulary, specifically how to master the vocabulary problem of "ser" and "estar." This is done by showing students, in interesting and recognizable ways, that English is sensitive to many of the same semantic differences of "ser" and "estar." (SED)

Teachers who want to incorporate songs into the curriculum should determine the desired goals to be achieved, which songs to use, techniques for classroom presentation, and what aspects to evaluate. Songs can help improve listening, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammatical, and reading/writing skills. (seven references) (LB)

This guide informs parents about some instructional practices that work well for all elementary school students, in particular English learners. It includes questions parents can ask teachers and principals to help them understand how their children's school approaches teaching and learning. Both English and Spanish versions of the document are…

Describes the Strategic Interaction Approach, which is built around the use of scenarios, rather than a grammar syllabus, and requires students to work through communication problems. Discusses its usefulness for short term courses aimed toward training professionals to gain working knowledge in specific fields. (EKN)

Examines effective ways of utilizing foreign currency from various countries whose official language is Spanish as means to promote conversation and enrich vocabulary in Spanish classes. Use of currency has pedagogical, cultural, and historical aspects. (Author/BK)

Describes attempt to give English-as-a-second-language students the opportunity to practice their English in a relaxed but productive way. Gives example of a conversational leaflet developed to guide conversation. (Author/BK)

"El Interprete," a communicative activity designed for third- or fourth-semester Spanish language students, promotes communicative competence through: (1) lowering stress; (2) having students work in pairs; and (3) helping students concentrate on the transmission of real messages. These activities are appended with suggestions for creating,…

Strongly suggests the establishment of methodology courses designed to address the needs of the exceptional child--specifically in relation to learning a foreign language. In addition, the need for more bilingual teachers in the fields of special education, reading, testing, and interpreting is stressed. (SL)

Discusses techniques for teaching descriptive adjectives in second-language classrooms that rely on humor to help relieve the stress of learning situations. Specific examples of Spanish adjectives and humorous phrases are provided. (contains two references) (MDM)

This guide provides Texas teachers and administrators with guidelines, goals, instructional strategies, and activities for teaching Spanish to secondary level native speakers. It is based on the principle that the Spanish speaking student is the strongest linguistic and cultural resource to Texas teachers of languages other than English, and one…

Reports on an experiment in which one group of high school students was taught using Total Physical Response (TPR) for 20 minutes a day and a control group was taught by the usual manner. Results showed students in the TPR group scored better on standard unit tests and expressed greater satisfaction with their teacher and course. (EKN)

This handbook contains information to assist teachers serving in Bilingual/English as a second language (BESL) assignments. Its purpose is to provide focus to the BESL program and to help LEP (Limited English Proficient) students improve their ability to read, write, and speak English, while developing needed concepts and skills. It was prepared…