Foreign Languages

Chinese

Chinese I

Teacher: Joanna Pan

Textbook: Chinese Link (Elementary Level Chinese), textbook and workbook Part 1 (Simplified Character Version)
Dictionary : XIANDAIHANYU XIAOCIDIAN (现代汉语小词典) , XINHUA ZIDIAN （新华字典）

Using a whole language approach, this is a beginning Mandarin Chinese course intended for students with no or little prior knowledge of any Chinese dialect or written Chinese. Mandarin Chinese is based on the Beijing dialect and is the national standard language of the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan).

This course will focus on the Chinese Pinyin Romanized writing system, the four Chinese tones, rules of phonetic spelling, and pronunciation drills. We will look at the creation and evolution of Chinese characters, their stroke order, structure, and calligraphic techniques. Reading and writing skills are introduced, including basic sentence pattern analysis, and the development of language skills in listening, speaking, reading, and writing. The teaching of Chinese history and culture is an integral part of the course.

Supplementary teaching materials:
Setting the Stage for Chinese(演中学) by Yuanchao Meng（Plays and Performances for Grades 7-12）
The Enduring Legacy of Ancient China with a CD-ROM with more than 250 colorful images & documents (Social Studies/ Chinese Culture & History)
The Way of Chinese Characters (汉字之道)，The Origins of 400 essential words

GOALS:

  • To understand basic pronunciation and grammar rules of Mandarin Chinese language.
  • To learn and pronounce standard Chinese words, and to learn how to read and write them using simplified Chinese characters and pinyin.
  • To construct correct sentences and use them in real life settings and role playing.
  • Carry out simple conversations in Chinese in a limited range of topics

 

Chinese IB/Chinese II/Chinese III

Teacher: Joanna Pan

Textbook: Chinese Link (Elementary Level Chinese), textbook and workbook Part 2 (Simplified Character Version)
Dictionary : XIANDAIHANYU XIAOCIDIAN (现代汉语小词典) , XINHUA ZIDIAN （新华字典）

These courses are a continuation of Chinese I, with the level of study dependent on the students’ Chinese language capability. They begin with a review of grammar and work to the further development of reading and writing skills in Mandarin Chinese. Students will be expected to build upon the vocabulary and grammar they learned in previous Chinese classes and apply their knowledge to everyday communication in Chinese.

These courses will continue to emphasize Chinese pronunciation, the pinyin Romanized system, writing Chinese characters, calligraphic techniques, and sentence composition. Students will gain additional proficiency in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Mandarin in practical situations. We will continue to examine Chinese history and culture in order to help students to better understand Chinese language.

Supplementary teaching materials:

Setting the Stage for Chinese(演中学) by Yuanchao Meng（Plays and Performances for Grades 7-12)
The Enduring Legacy of Ancient China with a CD-ROM with more than 250 colorful images & documents (Social Studies/ Chinese Culture & History)
The Way of Chinese Characters (汉字之道)，The Origins of 400 essential words

GOALS:

  • To understand basic pronunciation and grammar rules of Mandarin Chinese language.
  • To learn and pronounce standard Chinese words, and to learn how to read and write them using simplified Chinese characters and pinyin.
  • To construct correct sentences and use them in real life settings and role playing.
  • Carry out simple conversations in Chinese in a limited range of topics

Chinese III B is for students in Chinese IB, who are learning at Chinese level III.

Chinese IV B is for students in Chinese IB, who are learning at Chinese level IV.

Spanish

Spanish IA

Teacher: Mrs. Maria Fernanda Lattore

Text: Spanish I Exprésate! Holt, Rinehart, and Winston (2008) – Chapters 1-5 change for Exploratory Spanish Teacher’s Discovery (2009)

Students will build a foundation of basic Spanish language skills, in the following areas:

  • Listen, speak, read, and write accurately on a limited range of topics
  • Understand the basic grammatical structure of Spanish
  • Learn about Spanish and Latin American culture and traditions
  • Learn basic vocabulary useful for every day situations
  • Conjugate common regular and irregular verbs in the present tense

General topics of study include: greetings, name, nationality, days and dates, telling time, describing friends, expressing likes and dislikes, family, school supplies and classes, sports and leisure activities, and geographical/cultural attributes of various Spanish-speaking countries.

Grammatical topics include: gender, nouns, articles, pronouns, present tense verbs, question words

Spanish IB

Teacher: Mrs. Maria Fernanda Lattore

Text: Spanish I Exprésate! Holt, Rinehart, and Winston (2008) – Chapters 6-10

Students will build a foundation of basic Spanish language skills, in the following areas:

  • Listen, speak, read, and write accurately on a limited range of topics
  • Understand the basic grammatical structure of Spanish
  • Learn about Spanish and Latin American culture and traditions