Inside: How to use high frequency verb units for distance and hybrid settings with advice from real teachers. Plus additional resources and extensions for Super 7 are provided as well.
Distance & Hybrid Super 7
If you have been around here for a while, you know that I have many blog posts about using my high frequency verb units focusing on the Super 7 verbs. I know many of you have used my most popular resource focusing on these verbs for novice Spanish over the past few years. This is my fourth year using variations of that unit to start Spanish 1.
As many of you know, this unit got a big digital upgrade this past spring. This blog post better explains the digital/hybrid unit if this is new to you and you want to learn more. Basically now I have everything plus a lot of new stuff in a giant Google Slideshow in the new unit. There is also a Blended bundle if you are new to these units and want everything for both face to face plus digital options.
Since school started I have really wanted to pull together all of the great adaptions to this unit that teachers have been providing as feedback on TPT as well as in the Mis Clases Locas FB group. I know that every situation we are in this year is so unique and different and I wanted to pull together ideas from real teachers who are using this unit this fall. This way you can see a variety of perspectives on what it means to make it work for them.
Fully virtual ideas from real teachers (using this unit.)
- Use the slides with PearDeck to make them more interactive online. (Natalia A)
- Use the unit as a review for Spanish 2 – With so many Spanish 1 year cut short, reviewing these high-frequency words is more important than ever this year in Spanish 2. Laura O says, “This is the best thing ever for distance learning! I used it for new learners in level 1 and as a review in level 2. Everything is done for you and easy to use. I love how each day has a new focus, reading, listening, writing, etc. Such a time saver and kids learned so much. I will use it again for next year!”
- Use Nearpod with the Google Slides and embed in your LMS to engage students virtually. (Joy H)
- Use story videos to increase input while not directly with the teacher – “This resource is a life saver for our current situation of COVID. It inspired me to create story videos to accompany it, although it has everything you need already. This will lay a solid foundation to start off the year with my novice learners for future storytelling.” (Theresa J). You can find the story videos Theresa created that go great with the unit & subscribe to her YouTube channel here.
Hybrid (virtual & in person simultaneously using the Blended bundle )
- Use Loom to film yourself giving notes – “A perfect resource for hybrid classrooms. I have students at home AND in person, but this allows me to connect with them and them me all the same! The whole package is just awesome. I filmed myself on Loom over the notes and my students gave great feedback of the whole experience!” (Libby H)
- Use with a majority in person with a few online – “This resource was great for my planning sanity! Students enjoyed the activities and I enjoyed not being stressed about teaching 100% in person with a few students online.” (Maideli G)
- Upload on Canvas – “This is easy to upload to Canvas. It’s a great way to start the year and the links work well. The students enjoy the music. Some of my students are present in class and it works with them as well. It’s great that both the distance learning and “regular” classroom items are included.” (Sarah W)
- Make the slides interactive Pear Decks to engage students simultaneously at home and in person. Victoria H combined the slides from the distance unit and the in person unit to create a giant PearDeck. She added audio, as well as comprehension check slides. With it, she is able to engage her learner both at home and in person simultaneously. Below is an example of how she added in the special person questions for ALL students to answer during the Pear Deck. She also has added pear Deck Slides that say things like “how many times did you hear tengo in the song?” or ” which meme was the funniest and why”?
My Hybrid for Spanish 1 (block of in-class & then online supplement the next day)
- This post goes into detail about how on our block schedule we do one verb per day between our 99 minutes in-person block, and an hour of supplemental work the following day. I posted the whole slideshow on Google Classroom in advance, adding daily agendas like the one below.
- I focus on the in-person heavy input when I have them with me: vocabulary introduction, personalized questions to practice, special person interviews, introducing the song, brain break with song, discussing jokes, story, and free write.
- On the virtual days, students do more individual practice: Quizlet practice, Lyrics training with songs, story videos, watching special person interviews again, completing joke reflections in slides, as well a nugget each day for No Lo Tengo from Sr. Wooly.
- I spent about one month using this unit, with students 7 days in person for 99 minutes every other day, and them working on individual online practice on the opposite 7 days. Then we had another block for review & assessments.
Review & Assessment for Distance & Hybrid Super 7
- Google Form reading quiz – For an assessment over the special person interviews about halfway after the fourth verb we did a Google Form Quiz. I just typed up statements about students with multiple choice of the students who had gone. (Then just copy the question and change the statement to save typing up the options again). If you use it in quiz mode and assign points, it is easy and self-grading!
- Review of the unit & verbs – On our last day of the unit, we did the Find Someone Who in partners with the TPT digital add-on. See this post on how to use the add-on. I assigned one question page and one answers page & you can differentiate on if your students need the support of sentence starters or not. Students wrote about themselves on the first page to practice being interviewed. Students then interviewed each other using the questions and writing about the partner on the second page. We did this in person with masks, but you could have students meet digitally to interview in breakout rooms as well. (You could also do something similar with the Question Cards if you laminated them & had multiple sets).
For summative assessments Distance & Hybrid Super 7
- Writing – Students just did a free write about one of the special people (& they could compare to themselves if they wanted). The goal was 10 sentences. I graded it using a proficiency-based rubric.
- Speaking – I asked students a few random questions from the Question Cards. Due to small classes, I just pulled one at a time to my desk with a mask to ask them while others were writing. You could also do this in pairs with students asking each other. If you are online students could sign up for a time or join a meeting room with you to do the assessment. Another option would be to use Flipgrid with question prompts for students to answer.
- Listening – Since students were working on “no lo tengo” from Sr. Wooly as a part of our unit, especially on their online days, our listening assessment was based on that song.
Teri la Tortuga – NEW story extension of unit for Distance & Hybrid Super 7
My fellow Iowa Spanish teacher El Tuerto Guty has created a really fun story unit that works great right after finishing my Super 7 unit. Everything you need for a couple of days unit is included. There are three full-length videos, as well as audio files and a full teacher guide. The videos and audio can be downloaded, if you or students do not have access to the Internet, or watched on Youtube.
There is a unit plan in the guide that includes: reading, listening, comprehension activities, writing, all with a focus on reinforcing the high-frequency verbs. It is so well put together that students could do it as a sub plan or it could be used by a teacher over a few days. I plan to use it for our 99-minute block class, plus our hour of online supplement the following day. You can get the unit here.
Want more? Try all of the units & Bundles, including Past Tense Too!
- NEW Mega Bundle of Present, Imperfect & Preterite Distance Units
- Sweet 16 Present Distance Learning Unit
- Sweet 16 Blended Bundle
- Preterite Distance Learning Unit
- Preterite Blended Bundle
- Imperfect Distance Learning Unit
- Imperfect Blended Bundle
- The present distance learning high frequency unit
- Blended Present High Frequency Verbs Bundle
How are you using these resources in your unique situation?! Comment here or send me an email and I will add your variations here as well!
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