We are learning how to talk about what people wear and how to describe their clothing.  So, just to spice things up a bit, I found this atrocious paper doll online (the file is downloadable at the bottom of this entry) and printed it out for the kids.  I told them that they had to dress "Fabio" in at least 5 articles of clothing or accessories from their vocabulary list.  I also told them that I wanted to see the most bizarre outfits possible.  The teenage boys especially began scouring their lists for the most horrible outfits, just a few of which are pictured at left.

Next, we wrote descriptions of what Fabio was wearing in Spanish, including colors and patterns. 

Tomorrow when they return to class, all of the Fabio's will be displayed on the board.  Each student will be handed a description and be asked to locate the correct Fabio based on that description. 

Then, we will talk about what made it easy to find the correct Fabio (details!) and what made it difficult (lack of details).  We will work together to add details to the descriptions that didn't make the cut.

Here are some links to additional activities that you can use to teach clothing:

Spanish "Whodunnit" Activities
"La Camisa Negra" por Juanes:  Song Activities
Clothing Internet Activity

One of my favorite reference books that I use constantly when lesson planning is a frequency dictionary.  A frequency dictionary is exactly what it sounds like, a dictionary where words are listed in order of how often they appear in written and spoken language rather than in alphabetical order. 

One of the reasons that I originally wanted to stray from the textbook purchased by our district was because of their vocabulary selection.  I remember that in the Spanish I book, one of the terms to be learned in reference to describing people was "silla de ruedas" (which does not even make the cut in the frequency dictionary as it is not one of the 5000 most frequently used words in Spanish).  Any word is a good word, I get it, but when the goal is to build fluency, I just think the word for "wheelchair" can wait.  Or maybe, as in real life, we let that word come up when it is needed.  Sticking to words that are the most frequently used, especially in the lower levels, is crucial to getting students to the point where they can read and listen with comprehension.

Another nice thing about this dictionary is that it has thematic lists.  So, if you want to teach students some words for jobs or professions, this book will tell you that learning words like "autor", "médico", and "profesor" (the top 3 most referenced professions) will be more valuable to students comprehension than "marinero" (the 4,949th most commonly used word in Spanish).

Finally, seeing as over 20 different countries have declared Spanish as their official language, and even more as a secondary language, this tool can help you sort through the different words for "cake", for example.  Do you teach "torta"?  "pastel"? "bizcocho"?  This book will confirm that "torta" is in fact the most common word for "cake", with pastel coming in a close second, and "bizcocho" (a word mostly used by people from Puerto Rico) not even making the list. 

If you don't want to run right out and buy a frequency dictionary, I noticed that I was able to access the same frequency dictionary online (though if you are like me, there is something very loveable about a hard copy):

Spanish Frequency Dictionary

If you would like to ponder this topic more, here is a very interesting read on Lingholic's blog where he discusses the idea that you can understand a large percentage of written and spoken language with a relatively small active vocabulary - as long as that vocabulary consists of the most frequently used words!  So, it makes sense to me to approach teaching vocabulary in this way if our true goal is to have students that are able to understand and communicate with others through the language. 

Early on in my teaching career I noticed that retention (or the lack thereof) was a huge obstacle that stands in the way of fluency.  I did a lot of research and came across an interesting article on improving memory.  My goal was to develop a tool that I could use to help my students acquire vocabulary more quickly and retain that vocabulary for a longer period of time (preferably a lifetime).

So I chose a few of the tips mentioned in the article, and came up with a system through which I could help my students do the following:

1.  Focus their attention on the words they needed to study
2.  Structure and Organize
3.  Relate new information to things they already know
4.  Visualize concepts to improve memory and recall
5.  Pay extra attention to difficult information
6.  Utilize mnemonic devices to remember information
7.  Teach new concepts to another person

What I ended up with was a template that students could use to develop hints for vocabulary words by doing all of the above.  After several years, I can say the feedback has been very positive.  I have students now in college that say they use this technique to learn material for their classes at the University level.  I have former students who use this method in their subsequent Spanish classes, not because someone is making them (yes, at first I had to make them), but because they know that it works.

Here is the link to the template I created and directions on how to start using it with your students:

Vocabulary Hint Template & Instructions

**I am offering this template for FREE in my TpT Store until Sunday, April 27th!**

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