Uncategorized Archives - Bryce Hedstrom - TPRS Materials & Training

A BUNCH OF BOOKS OR A COUPLE OF CLASS SETS?

Brett, an experienced Spanish teacher in South Carolina, writes: Hi Bryce, I was just reading your article about 9 Steps to FVR. I'm trying to build up my reading materials. I basically have none at my new school. Would you recommend prioritizing based on getting a bunch of different books or buying class sets of a couple of select books? Good question. I would go with a bunch of different books. Here's why: Students acquire more language when they can choose their own reading materials. The free choice aspect gives them more buy-in and more engagement. When they can decide what [...]

By Bryce Hedstrom|2019-11-29T17:43:38-07:00November 29th, 2019|Categories: Books, Classroom Library, Light Reading, Novels, Questions, Reading, Uncategorized|Tags: Comprehensible Input-based teaching, Light Reading, Reading, Reading in a Foreign Language, Word Frequency|0 Comments

THIS YEAR, FOR SURE!

SEATTLE, WA—Veteran local Spanish teacher Y.A. Basta, 37, reports he is still confident that this year his attempts will finally be fruitful and yield classes full of fluent speakers after 14 consecutive years of frustration. Basta admits that in the past, students could not remember anything, or even order a cup of coffee in Madrid, despite up to 4 years of intensive study in his classes. While most teachers would cry out, “Enough!” and seek different methods after such a run of failure, Basta is not swayed, confirming to sources that he will “stay the course” until he is successful [...]

By Bryce Hedstrom|2019-04-01T16:34:54-06:00April 1st, 2019|Categories: Just for Fun, Satire, Uncategorized|0 Comments

SPECIAL PERSON STUDENT INTERVIEWS

Engaging students at a personal level is the way to their hearts and minds. Aaron Mendelsohn, a high school teacher in Massachusetts, sent me this note the other day: I just want to share with you that I have gotten A LOT of mileage out of Persona Especial! What a great activity. Thank You! When I asked him to elaborate, he replied with this: Persona Especial has been a success for a number of reasons. I'm gonna start off by sharing what was on my mind when I wrote to you a few days ago: PE is almost a O [...]

By Bryce Hedstrom|2018-12-01T10:52:54-07:00November 30th, 2018|Categories: Acquisition vs. Learning, Compelling Input, Persona Especial Activity, Special Person, Uncategorized|0 Comments

FORMER STUDENT GETS PHD IN SPANISH

The student has excelled the teacher, the ultimate wish of any educator. I received word the other day from a former student, David Dalton, that he has a PhD in Spanish and is now an assistant professor at The University of North Carolina. He has a book coming out next month called Mestizo Modernity: Race, Technology, and the Body in Post-revolutionary Mexico. Here is a pdf where you can get a discount on the book: file:///C:/Users/bryce/Downloads/Mestizo_Modernity_INDIVIDUALS_AU718.pdf Dr. Dalton's faculty page is here: https://pages.uncc.edu/ddalto14/

By Bryce Hedstrom|2018-07-29T16:04:49-06:00July 29th, 2018|Categories: Books, Hope, Uncategorized|0 Comments

LEVEL 3 PASSWORDS THIS YEAR

These contraseñas are ones that we have used to enter the class this year. They are well-known Spanish cultural sayings, quotes by famous Spanish speakers, phrases that require a subjunctive, useful idiomatic expressions, or just for fun. Write in Spanish. (Answers and commentary will be shared in an upcoming blog here.) “Little by little one goes far.” _ I was born the (#) of (month) of the year (#). “Zamora was not won in an hour.” What English saying conveys a similar message? I forgot! / It forgot me! It left me. / It went away from me. [...]

By Bryce Hedstrom|2018-05-21T16:30:16-06:00May 21st, 2018|Categories: Passwords, Uncategorized|0 Comments

KRASHEN’S HYPOTHESES OF LANGUAGE ACQUISITION: Introduction (#1 of 9)

More teachers are discovering the joy of teaching with comprehensible input-based methods like TPRS. To effectively implement the WHAT and the HOW of these methods, understanding the WHY is crucial. Dr. Stephen Krashen’s Hypotheses of Language Acquisition are the why. In this series of posts we will explore each of Krashen's major hypotheses and how they apply in the classroom. Krashen’s is not the only model of learning teachers need to know, but due to their enormous influence, it is crucial that modern language teachers understand these hypotheses and how they apply in the classroom. This is the same series of lessons [...]

By Bryce Hedstrom|2018-10-22T20:55:23-06:00April 28th, 2018|Categories: Administrators, C.I. Skeptics, Issues in Second Language Education, Krashen, Teacher Training, Uncategorized|0 Comments