Growing With Proficiency The Podcast

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One Resource, One Activity, Endless Possibilities for Pre-Reading, Reading, and Post-Reading

This episode is exactly what we need at this time of year! With our plates full and creativity hitting a plateau, it’s easy to feel stuck. But what if you could give your go-to activities a fresh twist without starting from scratch? That’s the focus of today’s episode!

If you’re spending way too much time brainstorming new ways to work with texts, check comprehension, or ask open-ended questions—or if you have fantastic resources but want to make them more dynamic and engaging—this episode is for you. 🎧 Click play now!

I’m joined by my friend and the incredible manager of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast, Lisa McHargue, as she shares actionable tips and ideas to repurpose your favorite strategies and resources.

Here’s what we’re diving into:
✨ Adapting Personalized Questions (PQAs): Simple tweaks to make them more engaging.
✨ Open-Ended Questions: How to spark deeper thinking and interaction.
✨ Dynamic Reading Activities: Keeping students interested from start to finish.
✨ Matching Activities: Creative spins to maximize comprehension.
✨ True/False and Comprehension Questions: Innovative approaches to make them more interactive.
✨ Opinion Questions: Encouraging thoughtful responses with a twist.
✨ Resource Repurposing: Practical tips to adapt materials for different classes and contexts.

We’ll show you how small adjustments to your existing activities can unlock creativity, increase engagement, and boost learning outcomes. Sometimes all it takes is a little thinking outside the box to transform your classroom into a vibrant, innovative space!

🎉 Plus, don’t miss the tool or activity of the week! This episode features an incredible brain break—the Number Challenge Brain Break—that transitions seamlessly into a powerful comprehension check.

Get ready to simplify, repurpose, and energize your teaching!

Important Links:

Growing With Proficiency The Spanish Teacher Academy Waitlist

Dia de Gracias Reading: http://growingwithproficiency.com/thankyou

Growing With Proficiency Blog

Teachers Pay Teachers Store

Lisa’s Unit Hubs Training: https://lisamch.com/hub  

Lisa’s IG: https://instagram.com/lisajmch 

Our guest’s Bio:

Lisa McHargue is a former high school Spanish teacher turned online digital organizer. She taught Spanish for ten years, the last seven in a 1:1 school. She's a minimalist living her best life binge-reading fiction and helping teachers and online business owners take control of their digital chaos and create systems to keep it organized. When she's not geeking out about organization or minimalism, she's probably hanging out with her family or pretending to be a contestant on The Great British Baking Show.

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In this final installment of our three-part series, Elevating Intermediate Learners with Comprehensible Input, we’re tackling the questions YOU asked! From authentic resources to grammar instruction, writing support, and feedback, this episode is packed with actionable insights to help you simplify and strengthen your classroom practices.

Let’s remember that whatever strategy you’re incorporating in your class, it has to be sustainable—because you deserve strategies that work without burning out.

Episode Highlights

🌎 Authentic Resources: Are authentic resources helping or frustrating your students? Learn how to bridge the gap between cultural authenticity and comprehensible input.

📚 Grammar Instruction: Why teaching grammar for grammar’s sake is pointless.  Strategies like P.A.C.E., Pop-up Grammar, and Structured Input Activities that make grammar meaningful.

✍️ Writing Support:  The Breathe In/Breathe Out approach: Reading as input, writing as output.  Break writing into manageable steps with scaffolds and examples.

💡 Feedback: Shift your mindset: Feedback isn’t about fixing everything—it’s about guiding growth.  Strategies to help students listen to feedback while they are working on their product.

🎉 NEW SEGMENT: The Tool or Activity of the Week: Quizzizz!

This segment is sponsored by Mitten CI Language Conference! Register by December 1st to grab your early bird discount and infuse happiness into your teaching!

Resources & Links Mentioned

Free resources:

Scaffold for AP Free Responses

AP Question Guide

📖 Previous Episodes:

Episodes 60–66: Sustainable practices in the language classroom.

Episode 41: Using Structured Input Activities for grammar instruction.

🔎 Edutopia article 

🌟 Mitten CI Language Conference: Register now and save: Mitten CI Conference Registration

Join the Conversation

Did this series spark ideas or questions? Share your thoughts!

📧 Email me: [email protected] 

💬 DM me on Instagram

Thank you for being part of this series. Don’t forget to revisit parts 1 and 2 to explore how comprehensible input can transform your intermediate learners’ experience. ¡Sí se puede! 🎉

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In Episode 121 of Growing With Proficiency The Podcast, Claudia dives into the second part of her series on intermediate learners, focusing on two major challenges: output and curriculum. Claudia shares actionable strategies on how to support student output meaningfully, reduce the overwhelm of curriculum, and keep learners motivated as they navigate this critical stage.

This episode is packed with insights to help you create a more manageable and motivating classroom experience.

Episode Highlights:

• Supporting Student Output with Purpose:  
  • What is the role of output and the importance of meaning when it comes to output.
  • How low-stakes output activities can help reduce stress and increase input opportunities.
  • The role of model texts in guiding students to produce the language and the importance of scaffolding output. 
• Dealing with Curriculum Pressures:
  • Strategies for managing a heavy curriculum while keeping the focus on input and maintaining flexibility.
  • How can overlapping themes across units help cover more content without rushing through topics?
• Keeping Intermediate Learners Motivated:
  • Tips on fostering intrinsic motivation through self-evaluation, scaffolded tasks, and regular progress checks.
  • Celebrating comprehension wins and supporting students through the challenge of producing output is important.

Resources and Links Mentioned:

Free Resource: 

"Apoyos" for Intermediate Learners and AP Students

Episode 56: Output with Dr. Florencia Henshaw

Episode 119: Elevate Intermediate Learners Part 1

Join the Growing With CI Facebook Community

Get Involved:

Have a question for Claudia about intermediate learners or another topic? Send your questions via:

Instagram DM: @claudiaelliott

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: Growing With CI Facebook Community

Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast, leave a review, and share this episode with your fellow language teachers!

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¿Te preguntas cómo ayudar a tus estudiantes de nivel intermedio a dar ese salto de comprensión y expresión en el idioma? En este episodio, exploramos estrategias efectivas para brindar el apoyo que necesitan en esta etapa crítica de su aprendizaje. Conversamos con Esther Galo, profesora de español con 15 años de experiencia enseñando AP Español Lengua y Cultura y 5 años en el Bachillerato Internacional. Esther comparte estrategias que puedes implementar en tu clase para ayudar a tus estudiantes a avanzar en su dominio del idioma.

📝 Lo más destacado del episodio:

Andamiajes y textos modelo: Descubre cómo los textos modelo y los marcos de escritura pueden servir de guía para que los estudiantes se sientan más seguros al expresar ideas en español. Esther nos comparte cómo podemos incorporar estas estrategias cada día. 

Trabajos colaborativos: Aprende a implementar actividades en grupo que facilitan el aprendizaje a través de la interacción y la cooperación. Exploramos cómo podemos hacer estos trabajos colaborativos oralmente pero también de manera escrita para fomentar una colaboración auténtica y significativa.

Desarrollar habilidades de metacognición: ¿Cómo pueden los estudiantes volverse más conscientes de su propio proceso de aprendizaje? Esther explica cómo enseñar habilidades de metacognición puede ayudar a los estudiantes a reflexionar sobre sus avances y ajustar sus estrategias, mejorando así su autonomía en el aprendizaje.

🌐 Recursos mencionados en el episodio:

Estructuras para apoyar a estudiantes de AP

Esther´s website: https://www.sragalo.com/

Advanced Spanish purchase link: https://stan.store/sragalo

¿Listo para implementar estas estrategias y ver cómo tus estudiantes de nivel intermedio alcanzan nuevos niveles de comprensión y expresión? ¡Escucha este episodio y lleva tu enseñanza al siguiente nivel!

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In this episode of Growing With Proficiency, The Podcast, we’re diving into the essentials of comprehensible input (CI) for intermediate and upper-level Spanish learners. Teaching these levels can feel overwhelming when expectations are high, proficiency levels vary, and the curriculum demands keep piling up! But, as always, no estamos solos – we’re in this together!

In this first part of our three-part series on CI in the upper levels, I’m tackling two major challenges:

• Realistic Expectations: Language acquisition takes time, and today we’re talking about what it means to set achievable goals based on ACTFL guidelines, focusing on how much exposure our students realistically get.
• Scaffolding for Mixed Levels: In any upper-level class, student proficiency can vary widely. We’ll look at strategies to scaffold input and make CI accessible to everyone, from novice-high to intermediate-mid students.

Stay tuned for Part 2, where we’ll discuss the impact of curriculum overload and the challenges of messy student output. Plus, in our upcoming Spanish episode, we’ll be joined by a special guest to talk about CI strategies for AP classes! 

I’d love to hear your questions for Part 3 of this series. Email me at [email protected] or message me on Instagram at @claudiamelliott or in our free Facebook group, Growing with CI.

Mentioned Links:

• Leyendas Reading Resource: growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas
• Mascotas Reading Resource: growingwithproficiency.com/mascotas
• Panorama Cultural (TPT Store): Search Claudia Elliott Growing With Proficiency or visit my TPT store for cultural resources perfect for your Spanish class.
• ACTFL Performance Descriptors: Check the ACTFL guidelines for deeper insights on language acquisition timing and expectations.
• GWP Spanish Teacher Academy Waiting List
• Growing With CI FB Community
• Blog

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After nine weeks of school, we all know our students are starting to feel tired, and listening just isn’t going as smoothly as it used to. But we also know how crucial listening is for language acquisition. That’s why I’m re-releasing one of our most popular episodes from Growing With Proficiency, The Podcast—Episode 5!

In this episode, I share five simple, yet powerful strategies to help get your students engaged and listening. This is one you’ll want to listen to more than once because these strategies are not only easy to implement, but they work wonders in the classroom. Tune in and get ready to refresh your approach!

📍 Links:

• Freebie - Legends!
• Freebie - Mascotas
• GWP Spanish Teacher Academy Waiting List
• Growing With CI FB Community
• Blog
• Teacher Pay Teachers Store

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In this episode of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast, I sit down with the amazing AnneMarie Chase to talk about a topic that we can't avoid as educators—assessments! Together, we dive deep into the concept of low-stress assessments and how to shift the focus away from simply measuring language accuracy to building language proficiency in meaningful, stress-free ways.

We discuss:

• Four key elements of a good assessment: ease for the teacher, sneaky ways to provide more input, low stress for students, and allowing every student to succeed in some way.
• The importance of mindset shifts when it comes to assessments, including using them as learning opportunities for students, rather than "gotcha" moments.
• Anmar’s brilliant “magic cards” method for assessing speaking and other skills throughout the school day without the traditional pressure of formal tests.
• How assessments can serve as a great class practice activity where students engage with listening and reading tasks in a highly focused way, allowing us to truly see what they can do.
• How we can assess speaking in a way that is fun for students and teachers. 

Plus, we talk about making the assessment process manageable for teachers, sharing tips for getting grading done in class so you're not drowning in paperwork after hours.

Tune in and get ready to make assessing your students a more productive, low-stress, and even enjoyable part of your teaching practice. Nos vemos pronto, chao!

📍 Links Mentioned:

• AnnaMarie  Chase's Blog
• Assessment training
• Edutopia article: What does research say about testing?
• Back to School Bundle for Spanish Classes
• GWP Spanish Teacher Academy Waiting List
• Growing With CI FB Community
• Blog
• Teacher Pay Teachers Store

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In this episode, I’m sharing five valuable insights from the recent Florida Foreign Language Association (FFLA) conference that can transform your language classroom. Discover practical strategies and fresh ideas to engage your students and elevate your teaching. Here’s what you can expect:

1. Reading Strategies: Learn how to keep reading accessible while challenging students with higher-level discussions using the question ladder and the “Last Word” game.
2. Content-Based Learning Approaches: Explore how Heather Sweetser's session inspires teaching content through language, focusing on meaningful topics like cultural traditions and environmental issues.
3. Blending Textbooks with Comprehensible Input: Get insights from Dr. Ethiene on using CI techniques within a textbook-based curriculum, leading to happier students and higher achievement.
4. Pre-Reading Activities for Prediction: Discover Lisa Bartels’ approach to helping students predict texts using grids and language chunks, making complex texts more manageable.
5. Input-Based Games for Active Learning: Find out how games like “¿En qué estoy pensando?” can boost listening skills and student engagement with low prep.

Tune in to learn how these takeaways can help you create a more dynamic and student-centered language classroom. Don't forget to check out resources mentioned in this episode at growingwithproficiency.com/mascotas and growingwithproficiency.com/leyendas.

Resources:
Back to School Bundle for Spanish Classes
GWP Spanish Teacher Academy Waiting List
Growing With CI FB Community
Blog
Teacher Pay Teachers Store

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Have you ever hesitated to try something new in your classroom, convinced it would require too much work and too little control? That's exactly how I felt about using stations in my language class - until I tried it, and loved it!

In this episode, I’ll share why I decided to try stations, how I set it up, and 10 ideas for different stations.  From small-group discussions to gaming and independent reading, the station ideas I'll share are easy to set up, engaging, and adaptable to any level or language. So, grab your favorite beverage, sit back, and get ready to explore the power of stations in your world language class!

Resources and Links

GWP Spanish Teacher Academy Waiting List

Click here to download 5 comprehensible legends in Spanish: Leyendas Latinoamericanas

Join my Free FB Community Growing With CI

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En este episodio, Claudia explora cómo las charlas del calendario van más allá de discutir el clima y la fecha. 

Aprende a crear discusiones orgánicas y significativas en el idioma meta, abordando la vida de los estudiantes, eventos comunitarios y asuntos globales. 

Descubre los beneficios de las charlas del calendario para fomentar la curiosidad, proporcionar input comprensible y promover la comunicación auténtica. Claudia comparte estrategias para implementar estas charlas en varios niveles de español, asegurando que sean relevantes y comprensibles. 

Growing With Proficiency TPT Store

Teacher Guide: How to Shift to A Comprehensible and Communicative Teaching Approach

Growing With Proficiency The Blog

Growing With Proficiency The Spanish Teacher Academy Waitlist

Free FB Community: Growing With CI

https://www.diainternacionalde.com/