Classroom Guidelines
and
Syllabus for Spanish 3
Course Description:
This is an advanced level Spanish course. It will combine elements of Vocabulary,
Grammar, Culture and Literature to give a World Languages experience. We will use
different egions from the Spanish speaking world to expand on our vocabulary and
grammar concepts in the Spanish Language.
Instructor and contact information:
My name is Mr. Aldrich. Often you will hear me called Sr. Aldrich or El Cid. I am happy
to answer to all of these.
The easiest way to contact me outside of class is via e-mail. If it is during school hours
please send it to my school address aldrichd@cersd.org. I try to check this e-mail a
couple of times during the day.
If it is after hours I will also take e-mails at home at sr.aldrich@gmail.com. Like all of
you I lead a very busy life so if I do not answer right away I may not be home or
available to help yet.
Textbook:
We will be using the Exprésate textbook Level 3. The textbook is broken into Capítulos
(Chapters). Each of the Capítulos are broken into sections. Those sections are the
Vocabulary sections, called “Vocabulario”, the Grammar sections, called “Gramática”.
The order is Vocabulario 1, Gramática 1, Vocabulario 2, Gramática 2.
In addition to the textbook itself, we will be using the Cuaderno de Vocabulario y
Gramática (Vocabulary and Grammar workbook) and the Cuaderno de Actividades
(Activities workbook). All of this will be provided to you.
Other available materials:
In addition to the textbook and workbooks, we also have online resources and CD
tutorials and flashcards that are available.
 The online resources are available at the following URLs:
o Exprésate textbook general site – www.go.hrw.com
o My internal web site – www.moodle.cleelum.wednet.edu
o My external web site El Cid’s Web Page (www.inlandnet.com/~elcid)
 Flashcards and tutorials can be downloaded from my website.
They will run on either a PC-Windows machine or a Macintosh
machine.
Classroom Procedures
There are a few procedures you will be expected to follow in class.
 You are expected to be on time. If you are late and you are with another teacher or
office personnel, bring a note. Failure to do so will cost you points from your
grade.
 Have your materials ready to go. Every day you should have access to your
textbook, paper, and something to write with. If you accidentally come without
one of these, borrow the missing item(s) before class starts so that you are not a
distraction to yourself, your neighbors, or me.
 Homework is assumed to be due the day after I assign it unless I say otherwise.
 When you come into class, there will be an activity on the board or you are to
study your vocabulary. You are to work on this while I am taking role.
 Though I do not expect a silent classroom I do expect you to listen when I am
explaining something, whether I am explaining it to you or not.
 I do not like people getting up and walking around the classroom when I am
talking. Please stay seated and wait. If it is urgent, raise your hand.
 Gum is allowed as long as it does not interfere with class and I do not find it
anywhere but the garbage can. If the class can’t comply with this simple
stipulation I will stop allowing it so please, keep it in your mouth or in the
garbage can.
 There is no food allowed in the class unless it is part of a class activity. If you are
eating in my class I will ask you to through the food away.
 There are no drinks allowed in the class except for water in a clear, closable
container. The exception to this is if it is a pre-approved drink as part of a
classroom activity.
 I reserve the right to limit you two bathroom passes per term. Use them wisely. I
will start by not doing this but if the number of bathroom trips becomes excessive
or I keep getting interrupted to be asked I will implement the limit.
Tests and Quizzes:
Each section of the textbook is associated with a quiz and/or test. Like the Capítulos, the
order will be Vocabulario 1/Gramática 1 quiz, and the Vocabulario 2/Gramática 2 quiz.
At the end of each of the Capítulos there may be a Unit Exam. In addition to the book
quizzes and tests I may also give additional quizzes on materials covered in class.
The unit tests follow the lesson quizzes and will be given when the initial quizzes
indicate additional review and assessment is needed. All quizzes and tests are
comprehensive. That is to say that if I was tested on conjugating –AR verbs on a quiz or a
test. When I get to the next chapter I still need to be able to conjugate –AR verbs.
Because of this, think of each assessment as an opportunity to measure what you do and
don’t know. If you find that you did poorly on a section. Ask questions about it and make
sure that you can do it. The concepts keep coming back and you will need to know how
to do the early things in order to do the later things.
For both quizzes and tests there are some procedures and guidelines you will need to
follow.
 You will be given a finite amount of time in which to complete the assignment.
 Once the quiz or test has been started there is no talking until I say that all the
tests are done. This is only fair to those who do not finish early and should not
have to deal with the distractions of noise.
 You may have a blank piece of paper to write on but I must see it at the start of
the assessment.
 When I finish correcting an exam I will open it up for you to look at and fix any
mistakes you made. This is very important to me. Spanish is a cumulative class. If
you don’t see what mistakes you made you cannot assess how well you know the
subject. This is an opportunity for you to shape the learning. You can ask
questions and get more explanations before we take a unit tests or move on to the
next Capítulo.
Homework:
Homework is given one to three nights a week. It is intended to give you more practice
with the concepts that were learned during the week to help solidify them and give you a
chance to formulate questions about them before we take quizzes on the material. It is
usually exercises from the Cuaderno de Vocabulario y Gramática but can come from
other sources including exercises from the textbook and the Cuaderno de Actividades.
Vocabulary:
Vocabulary should be studied every night. There is no night that you do not have Spanish
to do. Every night you should study your vocabulary for no less than 15 minutes even if
you have homework, Studying vocabulary more than 30 minutes in a single setting is
usually counterproductive. If you wish to study for more than 30 minutes in a night, you
should take a break, do something else, and then return to the vocabulary.
Daily Participation:
Daily participation points are points that I give you for being in class and participating
responsibly in the classroom activities. You are given daily points. You loose them for being
absent, tardy, or not participating responsibly in class. You do not loose them if you are gone
for a classroom sponsored activity such as a field trip or presentation. Since participation
points are given freely, if you lose them you cannot make them up unless it is an excused
absence. If you are absent and it is excused you can make up the points in one of two ways.
1. You can spend time before or after school working on Spanish in my classroom.
2. You can bring in tangible forms of study.
Some examples of tangible forms of study are:
 Worksheets that were not assigned as class work or homework
 Worksheets that you make and provide answer keys to
 Study guides that you create about topics we are currently covering or have
previously covered.
 A printed sheet from my website or the studypanish.com website showing a 100
percent score.
I am looking for what seems to be sixty minutes worth of work to equal one day of
participation points.
Here is a typical schedule of study for a Capítulo. Remember that this can change somewhat
according to the class schedule, the complexity of the concepts, and other events that influence
the flow of the classroom.
Day
1
10
Class events
Introduce the Capítulo and the country in takes place in.
Introduce the vocabulary
Do exercises from the book
Assign homework
Review the vocabulary
Talk about the homework
Do more exercises from the book
Introduce the Grammar 1 concepts
Concentrate on the first one or two concepts
Do exercises from the book
Review the grammar concepts from day 3
Concentrate on remaining concepts from Gramática 1
Do more exercises from the book
Assign homework
Review for quiz
Section 1 Quiz
Cultural exploration
Look at the Vocabulario 2
Do exercises from the book
Assign homework
Review the vocabulary
Practice putting the vocabulary into context
Introduce the Grammar 2 concepts
Concentrate on the first one or two concepts
Review the grammar concepts from day 7
Concentrate on remaining concepts from Gramática 2
Do more exercises from the book
Assign homework
Review for the quiz
Section 2 Quiz
Review for Unit Test
11
Review for Unit Test
12
Unit Test
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Student Responsibility at home
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 1
20 – 30 minutes of homework
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 1
20 – 30 minutes of study for the quiz
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 1
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 1
20 – 30 minutes of homework
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 2
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 2
20 – 30 minutes of homework
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 2
20 – 30 minutes of vocabulary study
for Vocabulario 2
20 – 30 minutes of homework
15-20 minutes of review Vocabulario
1&2
15-20 minutes of review Vocabulario
1&2
15-20 minutes of review Vocabulario
1&2
Look at the vocabulary from the next
section
Course Study/Objectives
Each Unit will take three to four weeks to complete and will cover the following topics.
Unit
You will Learn to:
You will use:
Capítulo 1
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Talk about the past
Talk about what you liked and used
to do
Ask for and give advice
Talk about the future
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Capítulo 2
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Express interest and displeasure
Invite someone to do something
Describe the ideal friend
Express happiness and unhappiness
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Preterite and imperfect
Ser and Estar
Subjunctive mood
Pronouns
Comparisons, demonstrative
adjectives and pronouns
Negative words and time
constructions
Capítulo 3
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Complain
Express an opinion and disagree
Make suggestions
Apologize
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Imperfect
Ir a + infinitive in the imperfect
Nosotros commands
Object pronouns
Subjunctive with the unknown or
nonexistent
Subjunctive with expressions of
feelings
Verb + Infinitive
Subjunctive with will or wish
Subjunctive with negative or denial
Future tense
Conditional Tense
Capítulo 4
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Ask about the latest news
React to news
Comment on food
Explain and give excuses
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Present progressive
Present perfect indicative
Present perfect subjunctive
Preterite
Se + indirect object pronouns
Past progressive
Capítulo 5
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Ask for and give opinions
Introduce and change a topic of
conversation
Make suggestions and
recommendations
Turn down and invitation
Express certainty
Express doubt and disbelief
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Comparatives of equality and
superlatives
Passive voice
Subjunctive with hopes and wishes
Past perfect
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Capítulo 6
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Indicative after expressions of
certainty
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Capítulo 7
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Ask about information and explain
where you found it
Talk about what you do and do not
know
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Talk about challenges
Talk about accomplishments
Talk about future plans
Express cause and effect
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Capítulo 8
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Capítulo 10 
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Capítulo 9
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Say what you can and cannot do
Talk about what you do and do not
understand
Write a formal letter
Talk about your plans
Set the scene for a story
Continue and end a story
Talk about your hopes and wishes
Express regret and gratitude
Talk about past events
Express and support a point of
view
Make predictions and give
warnings
Express assumptions
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Subjunctive after expressions of
doubt and disbelief
Haber
Indefinite expressions
Gender of nouns
Indicative in compound sentences
Verbs that change meaning in
preterite and imperfect
Grammatical reflexes
Lo and lo que
Subjunctive after adverbial
conjunctions
Subjunctive with future actions
Indicative with habitual or past
actions
Verbs with indirect object
pronouns
Verbs that express “to become”
Uses of se
Conditional
Past subjunctive with hypothetical
statements
More past subjunctive
Preterite and imperfect
Por and para
Subjunctive
Sequence of tenses
Expressions of time
Future tense
Subjunctive with doubt, denial and
feelings
Subjunctive and indicative with
adverbial clauses
First homework assignment for Spanish 1
Your first homework assignment is to fill out this form and return it to me. Use print for all
information. If you only have one parent at home write NA in the blank so that I know you
did not turn in an incomplete homework.
Last Name: _____________________________
First Name: _____________________________
Parent or Guardian Name: ______________________________________________
Parent or Guardian Name: ______________________________________________
By signing we acknowledge that we have read the preceding information.
Student ____________________________________________________
Parent _____________________________________________________
Parent _____________________________________________________
Date: _____________________________