I teach in a large, diverse high school. My students are high school students typically beginning their studies of a foreign language. Many students live in poverty and take advantage of free and reduced-price lunch programs. Some of my students are refugees, and many of them are learning Spanish as their third or fourth language. The majority of my students have plans to attend college, many as the first members of their families to do so. They are interested in learning and using a second (or third or fourth) language, and they need additional opportunities to practice their skills beyond a textbook.
My Project
Comprehensible Input (CI) surrounds students with language that they understand, in ways they understand. Mirroring the way we all learned to speak as children. The program I'm asking for would bring my students hundreds of articles written in Spanish at levels that they can understand and feel successful using immediately. Garbanzo offers articles and stories written at multiple language levels, so I can use this program for everything from Spanish 1 to Spanish 4. It also allows me to differentiate for students that need challenges or assistance in the classroom without drawing attention to those students.
My level 1 students have never been as engaged as they are this year.
They are writing full and complete, comprehensible paragraphs in Spanish just a few weeks into the semester. They are understanding stories told to them. Much of this is due to changes in teaching philosophy like CI. I am so excited to see what else they can do!
I would like to bring Garbanzo into my classroom to expand on the successes I'm already seeing. The additional resources will help me to provide more and more input for students, and allow them to feel successful at multiple reading levels.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Dufoe and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.