How best to fill class time?

Question

I teach the same class, Spanish I, 3rd and 4th period, but while 4th period is 90 minutes, somehow 3rd has been stretched an extra 10-15 minutes (blame shortened lunch and the dumb kids with firecrackers last year who are to blame for that).

I want to keep the classes on the same schedule, but it seems like I cover so much more stuff in 3rd and 4th seems behind.

How can I fill that extra 10-15 minutes without putting 4th at a disadvantage and without seeming to reward 3rd with something fun that 4th doesn't get to do?

These are brand new classes--they can barely say "me llamo" right, so the writing will be extremely limited.

Answer 1

Have 3rd period students write in Spanish (as much as they can manage) to their friends in 4th period. You could suggest getting them to write poems in Spanish, or make riddles, or ask questions. Only allow them 7-10 minutes to write then take another 5 minutes to allow some of the students to share. Make mailboxes with the names of students from 4th period (sounds childish but keep reading.) This way, at the end of the 10 minutes each student will place their note into one of the mail boxes (make sure each box has a note) and as the 4th period students are coming into the class they may quickly collect their mail and take their seats. (You may want to allow for the 4th period students to write back now and then, or assign a response as homework)

Answer 2

I also have Spanish and have one level III class that is over a lunch period so it is longer. These are some things that I do:

Send kids to the board to practice vocabulary (winning team gets candy).
Play a game of baseball where the "hits" are questions answered correctly. You can take 5 minutes and do it in one class and continue the game over several days. The longer class period will just play longer.
Sometimes I just allow them to work on homework.
Use a sentence board for Jeopardy. The game can be continued each day for a week as you use the extra time to play.
Start the class with a word scramble. It can take about 10 minutes. Scramble vocab words and the kids work in groups to unscramble them. It helps them to learn them and refine the spelling.
You can make a board game and ask the teams questions. Use magnets as place markers. Again, this can be review stuff that you use over a period of several days.
I play basketball. Buy a hoop and soft ball at the dollar store. The kids try to make a basket when they answer a question correctly. Winning team gets candy or a sticker or a homework pass or something.
Flyswatter game. Put several words randomly on the board. Two kids at a time go up with a flyswatter each. They hit the word that you say (the translation) or say a description of the word... la vaca could be un animal que da leche. My kids beg to play this game.
Sing Dance Laugh and Eat Tacos songs.

These are things that you can do with the other class too, but they are things that you can draw out for an extra 10 minutes if you need to so that you can use the time effectively. The longer class will get more practice and may be stronger students, but it is an advantage.

Good luck.

Answer 3

Can you break up the class by giving them 10 to 15 minutes of study before one of your mini-lessons? I use daily writings or paper corrections to do this. They are usually ready for some slower mental time by that portion of the day. I do not like block scheduling for just this reason. Fun isn't always an answer. Productive may better serve you.

Answer 4

do any of your kids have problems with Spanish? try tutoring time. or even have them perform skits in Spanish so that they can practice the language. (no extra credit for this, wouldn't be fair to the other classes who don't have the time to do this)...what about games: conjugating an irregular verb (like the word "ir" - to go)...how 'bout an alphabet game: Asesino, Basquetbol, Cancion, Chancla, Danza, Elefante, Feliz, etc. (you can even have them conjugate the words that they called out to extend the time a little longer. I don't know...good luck

Answer 5

I would use this time to have students work on their conversational spanish one on one with you while the other students write (in spanish) in a journal. My spanish teacher had us write in journals daily about anything and everything. Our entries became more elaborate with the more words we learned (and felt comfortable using). It really helped me out in the long run. :)

Answer 6

CHeck with other teachers to see what they are doing. I would suggest a homework time. This lets the class get a headstart.

Answer 7

yell at them eveytime they do something wrong that will waste about 10-15 min.

Answer 8

Let them work on their homework.