Spanish

Structure

Sentence structure in the Spanish language can change meaning of sentence.

Eleven to twelve years old

Interest

Gender Neutral Trends

Attention Span

The parietal and temporal areas that mediate spatial, sensory, auditory and language functions are mostly mature by this age group. (pre-teen.teens)

Demonstrates selective attention.

Relevance

Erick Erickson

Industary VS Inferiority

Become aware of themselves as individuals.

Start becoming aware of their peers and holds to high esteem how their peers see them.

Identity VS Role Confusion

Begin to form values.

Challenge the self image they have developed in the earlier years. They are trying to "find themselves."

Developmental Theories

Gender

Females

Structure is enjoyed and followed. They see their teacher as someone who they look up to. They want a approval from them and follow the way their teachers have structured his or her classroom.

Males

They have their own way of doing things. They do not want to be upheld to a certain structure. They respond well to learning a free and kinesthetic learning environment. (Note: I do not mean to imply that they only learn that way, we are ALL capable of learning in different ways.)

The structure of indefinite and definite articles. Where and when to use them etc.

Cross-Curricular Ties

English: Structure of Argumentative Essays

U.S Government: The structure of the 3 branches in the U.S. (Legislative, Executive, and Judicial structures)

Math: Solving algebraic expression. There is always a structure or a way in which one can find X. One needs to follow PEMDAS.

Music: The structure of music, "the big picture" which includes rhythm, repetition, variation, etc.

Psychology: How the brain breaks chemical structures down into more simple and basic conscious structures.(Structuralism)

Increased attention span, but their interests change rapidly. Twelve to fifteen minutes without change in activity.

Lev Vygotsky

Social learning=Development. Students must interact first. Working in groups or teams leads to a friendly competition that will lead to retention.

Inner Speech (Self Talk)

Peer Group

Acceptance from age group and those that are older

Need to express him or herself to those around them.

Both

Are ready for harder tasks. Want to prove themselves. Preparing themselves for the "real world." Changes in behavior. Peer group importance rises.

Sentence Structure in Spanish

Listen to the way a sentence is said. What is the writer saying? What is he or she actually trying to say?

Example:Mi hermano está leyendo un libro. (My brother is reading a book.) or Un libro está leyendo mi hermano. (Literally: A book is reading my brother.)

Possible Misconceptions

Needing to add a subject everything in a sentance. You do not always need to add subject. Example: Compran Narajas. (They buy oranges

In Spanish you say the pronoun before the verb unlike in English. Example: Las compro. (I buy them.)

SVO (Subject, Verb, Object)

Spanish is a very flexible language. The word structure can be changed, but one must be careful.