BY MóNICA MULHOLLAND!

Baltimore Marriott !april 21, 2012!

Connections through writing !

Overview

  Warm up

  Intro on Writing & Creativity

  Putting it in Action: Show & Tell

  Writing in the Times of the Internet: Blogging

  Samples: Compositions, Poetry & Art

  How? Handout with guidelines

  Recap. Q & A’s

 Writing is a very complex activity.  Dr. Seuss, “Every word is a struggle –every

sentence like a pang of birth”.

 Most writers produce several drafts.

 Writing in a foreign language is particularly difficult.

 GRAMMAR + VOCAB = ???

  The writer reveals his/her personality, strengths and weaknesses ------ IDENTITY

 Writing helps build IDENTITY ------- reflection, introspection, taking it out of our chest, sharing.

Goal for this Session: How can we

make it easier or, at least, more

pleasurable?

MAKE IT MEANINGFUL & AS STRESS-

FREE AS POSSIBLE

EMPHASIZE THE POWER OF CREATIVITY WE ALL HAVE WITHIN

OURSELVES

PROVIDE STIMULATING AND FLEXIBLE

PROMPTS

CREATIVITY

A SKILL

STEPS

POWERFUL

SELF-CONFIDENCE

Edward de Bono’s

Lateral thinking

SHOW & TELL

REALLY LISTEN TO YOUR PARTNER

Writing in the Times of the Internet

Acknowledge its existence and power

Look at the advantages as well as the disadvantages

Find a way of making the most of the advantages

Writing in the Times of the Internet

 Use technology to empower students, to allow them to find their voice in the foreign language through technology.

 “Internet brings the vernacular (home) not only to speaking but also to writing”. Daniel Cassany, 2010.

 Build bridges between the VERNACULAR and the ACADEMIC (or standard)

  IT IS MEANINGFUL & PURPOSEFUL

  IT PROVIDES AN AUDIENCE

  IT BRINGS SOCIAL INTERACTION TO THE CLASSROOM

  REAL-LIFE LEARNING

  ENGAGING (sts’ feedback)

  INCORPORATES THE 5 C’S OF LANGUAGE LEARNING

  BACKWARDS PLANNING

Nuestro blog

Theme 1: Show & Tell

Theme 2: Lit

Inspirations“Canción de otoño en

primavera” (1905)

Juventud, divino tesoro, Ya te vas para no volver.

Cuando quiero llorar, no lloro,

y a veces lloro sin querer….

Era una dulce niña, en este

mundo de duelo y aflicción.

Miraba como el alba pura;

sonreía como una flor.

Era su cabellera oscura

hecha de noche y de dolor. Yo era tímido como un niño...

Nuestro blog: www.nuestroblog.info

Theme 3: Intercultural exchange

FamilyRootsChile:Earthquake

I appreciated the extra practice and it was cool using some form of technology to write our compositions. I think I enjoyed responding to my fellow classmates’ post rather than coming up with my own because I felt it was more conversational and not a “report”.

What are the Students’ Views?

  I felt I was exposed to more than just the textbook; that something was actually tangibly within my reach when we attended the symposium on El Salvador. The panel of experts that was provided and the questions brought up from the audience were great. It woke me up to what was going on outside of the U.S.– I felt more engaged in my composition.

  I enjoy interacting with the other students more than anything else we do in class. Learning a language is about communicating and sometimes I don’t feel comfortable communicating with a professor who is grading my every word but with fellow classmates who are learning the language like I am, it makes for a more relaxed and enjoyable experience when doing activities.

  This type of activities challenges you to think, form an opinion and then to express that opinion in another language.

  I really enjoyed the movie and working with my group to be able to develop different ideas and profound concepts from that film. Recording the message was awkward because that part was individual but it was an ok project. I would do it again.

  I really like Nuestro Blog because it allows me to see the way that other students write, and how I can improve on my writing skills. It also allows me to get to know my classmates on a more personal level; most college courses aren’t very personal so it’s a nice change.

  I think the process is very helpful because we get a lot of feedback on our writing and it shows us ways to improve.

  The process was a bit unusual, and at first I did not like the idea of making my stuff public but then I really liked it and it allowed me to see in what areas of my writing I need to work on.

  I think the process is very helpful because we get a lot of feedback on our writing and it shows us ways to improve.

  The interaction was great because everybody took it seriously.

  This is a nice way to learn about your classmates and also allows students to share their feelings openly.

  The process is very effective because if you are going to post something on the web, it has to look professional with a minimum amount of errors.

  I liked it because I learned through reviewing and because it gave me a chance to just write freely and write better.

POETRY & THE VISUAL ARTS INSPIRED BY “COLOR DE ESPERANZA”

DE DIEGO TORRES

Volunteer Student Contributor

Volunteer Student

Contributor

Topicsofherchoice:

 Familylife

 Pets

 Visitstothemuseum

andtheater

 Poemtoherlostpuppy

 Newpuppies

 HerfirsttriptoSpain

Participants  George Mason University

(Intermediate-advanced levels)

 Catholic Univ. of Am. (Basic Spanish Program)

 NVCC Basic Spanish Program

 University of Mary Washington: Basic Spanish Program

 Universidad Union. Lima, Perú

Participants  Montville Township High School, Montville, NJ. AP

Spanish

  Instituto Superior de Publicidad, Buenos Aires, Argentina: Prof. Sandra Goronas

 Teacher Training Institute, Posadas, Misiones, Argentina

  Spanish 4 Foreigners, Salta, Argentina

  Instituto Politécnico, Santa Fe, Argentina

ContributorfromBuenosAires,

Argentinasince2007x

Recap & feedback

Session Description !

  Connections through Writing!

  Real-World Communication!

  Engaged & Meaningful Learning !

  Interaction beyond the classroom

Questions or comments?