Who We Are and What We Do -STANDARD- Montessori-Inspired Spanish World Language - Verbs and Pronouns for Elementary and Middle School Students

Montessori-inspired Spanish world language grammar boxes with learning and teaching materials, brought to you EXCLUSIVELY by El Puente Bilingüe! 

What is it?

These Montessori-inspired pronoun and verb analysis boxes, and the materials and lessons that accompany them, have the potential to catapult your students' Spanish language learning to high levels! Watch this free info session at your leisure to learn more!

Please also see our Deluxe and Eco options, which hold the same content but vary by material type (box materials and preprinted vs. digital learning cards).

The STANDARD Set Includes:

• 2 Boxes, beautifully designed and built for heavy duty use.
  
• Sliding Lids that double as conjugation boards
  
• Stabilizers (for the conjugation boards)
  
• 347 Learning cards on digital files (not pre-cut or laminated)
  
• Digital file of Lesson Guidebook 
• Digital file of Set-Up Guidebook 

Created specifically for Spanish world language learners, these lessons and materials embrace a Montessori approach. They harness the knowledge and skills that students have already acquired through their first-language learning materials and experiences, to support them in learning the Spanish language. Read here for more information on this approach and its effectiveness in language acquisition.  By gaining knowledge and skills concerning the structure of the Spanish language, students will be set up as capable and efficacious lifelong Spanish language learners. 

How does it work?

The materials in the box are for teaching, learning, and practicing the building blocks of beginner Spanish through topics. 

After learning the subject pronouns and the concept of conjugation, students are taken on a journey through the basics of present tense verbs. They will be presented with opportunities to master the patterns for regular verb endings, followed by the most commonly used irregular verbs. Finally, learners will be empowered as lifetime language learners through the practice of the Spanish Verb Study, where they will analyze new verbs through short sentences or as infinitives. Individual and group work time will have consistent opportunities for self-monitoring, collaboration, and construction of knowledge. 

The book includes clear explanations of how to use the materials as well as the research behind it. There are 27 lessons as well as printable/reproducible materials in the back of the book, both for student and teacher use. The material is not worksheet focused at all, so the student reproducibles that I am referring to are charts that can be used over and over again. 

What about other vocabulary and skills?

Included in the box are 60 unique verbs as well as all the subject pronouns (not vosotros), but lessons also include and build upon other vocabulary and earlier skills such as articles and nouns and gender agreement. Prerequisite vocabulary include general terms found within the categories of family, school, home (rooms and general furniture found in the rooms), neighborhood, human beings (general titles, parts of body, personality and physical characteristics), greetings and feelings. Other prerequisites include knowledge of the workings of the Spanish language, including patterns in numbers, word endings, and gender and number agreement.

El Puente Bilingüe provides curriculum for all of the prerequisite topics in the Laying the Groundwork set. We acknowledge that many Montessori schools who are teaching a world language have may have addressed those prerequisites already, and there is detailed information in each lesson regarding which prerequisite skills and vocabulary are needed.

While the El Puente Bilingüe curriculum can be used alone as the sole Spanish language learning curriculum for elementary students, it can also complement an existing Spanish world language program.

What we have designed here is something that has never been done, and we are proud to be the exclusive creators and providers of this curriculum line!

Who should use this material?

The suggested age for this material is upper elementary and middle school, but it is possible for younger students to use it if they have already built a strong foundation through their English grammar and language materials. The curriculum is designed for small group instruction. Each of the 27 lessons contain the following components:

• Learning objectives
  
• Assessment suggestion
  
• Materials list
  
• Prerequisite knowledge information
  
• Lesson delivery
  
• Independent questions or challenges
  
• Mastery track activities 
  

Who should teach this material?

Believe it or not, you don't have to be a licensed Spanish teacher to present this material. If you have a basic understanding of beginner Spanish grammar and you are confident with the prerequisites listed (or could gain confidence with a bit of review) you could teach this material, especially if you are also a Montessori guide.

That being said, a Spanish speaker or a licensed Spanish teacher would be able to present this material without difficulty. The lessons are written clearly but with room for creativity. The assessments are generally done through observation. 

Our school is a dual language school. Will these work for us?

These materials are designed to help someone who is studying Spanish as a world language, so the approach they take are not an approach of teaching Spanish to a native Spanish speaker. In other words, there are Spanish language Montessori materials all over the world but they support students who are already speaking the language, as opposed to students who are coming to the language after the age of 6 or 7. Yes, they may serve your community well. But our materials and lessons treat the learner as a second language learner, so it all depends on the overall approach your school is taking when it comes to your Spanish language learners. 

Spanish varies around the world. What can you tell me about the Spanish presented in these materials?

The Spanish in these materials does not include the use of Vosotros, which is used mainly in Spain. The focus and origin of the Spanish used in these materials is Latin American with much influence having come from Mexico.

What are the dimensions of each box?

Each box measures 17 3/4" X 12" X 3 1/8"

What else should I know?

Shipments will go out about approximately 8 weeks after the order is placed.

A Little About Me

I spent 3 years working in a Montessori school, and my son attended a Montessori school. I have a masters degree in curriculum and instruction with a concentration in bilingual education, and I am a licensed Spanish teacher. I have 12 years of teaching experience, and every one of those years have involved Spanish in some way. I am a lifelong Spanish language learner, married to a lifelong English language learner, and with a bilingual son.

I am very passionate about these Montessori-inspired Spanish language materials, and I am delighted to finally be able to present them to the world!