Linguacious Review and a Giveaway!

Hello everyone! I am back today with a fabulous resource you can use with your bilingual students or even your own kiddos. Have you heard of Linguacious? Linguacious is a company that provides language learning products in Hebrew, Spanish, French, German, Mandarin Chinese, Brazilian Portuguese, English/ESL, Russian. I have been trying out a few of their products and am here with an in depth review AND a giveaway. 

Linguacious focuses on both the expressive and receptive language domains and their materials target all language skills: listening, speaking, reading, and writing. Keep reading to see how I've used them.

~Flashcards~

We all use flashcards with our students, well, wait until you try these! The Linguacious flashcards have:

1) vibrant, real life photos

2) easy to read text

3) a QR code that you can scan to listen to the correct pronunciation from a native speaker

The flashcards include suggested games you can try at home or at school. It is a great way to practice and truly internalize a new language. I have used them with my 2nd graders in a word study center where they scan the QR code, listen to the word, then they'll try to use it in a sentence. I've also used these with my 18 month old baby girl. Of course, she's not speaking in sentences, yet! With her, I'll point to the picture, say the word, then scan it with the phone QR reader (she LOVES to listen to the word pronunciation).

~Posters~

The posters are a quick way to have the same words as the flashcards. I have these displayed around the classroom and they are easy to scan whenever you want students to practice their words. There are 3 posters which include: a side of things around the home and a side of animals. 

Giveaway & Coupon Code

Linguacious and I have teamed up to bring you a 10% discount using MMBILI10 on your Amazon purchase. Take advantage before it expires on February 12th! Furthermore, we will be giving away a poster set to one lucky follower. All you have to do is follow the rafflecopter instructions below. Good luck and until next time, friends!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Comprehension Flipbooks in SPANISH

New resource alert! Comprehension Flipbooks in SPANISH! I am so excited to have completed this project just in time for back to school! I've been creating these flipbooks with my students since my first year teaching! We'd use different colored paper and have all our skills in a handy flipbook they could refer to during independent reading. We'd just write out everything and draw the graphic organizers, stem questions, etc. Let me tell you, it would take TIME oh precious TIME!!! I finally decided I needed an electronic version to make my life easier. 

Keep reading, for an explanation of these gems and a FREE sample just for my blog readers! 

These comprehension flipbooks have four parts:

1. Skill name

2. Skill definition/example

3. Stem questions

4. Graphic organizer

1. Skill cover page

I like to use these to introduce a lesson. We go over the name of the skill, any background knowledge they have about it, have they heard this before, when, what do they think this means? My students LOVE technology, so when I introduce the skill, I'll usually look for a Brain Pop video that explains a bit about it or a YouTube song that will be catchy to help remember the skill we are covering.

2. Guided definition

On this page, I provide the definition and an example or exercise for the students to read and/or take notes. This definition anchors the lesson and can be referred to throughout the week we practice that skill. 

3. Question Stems

During small groups, we use the stem questions during the reading to practice ways the skill can be assessed. Students can also use these in a center to ask each other questions pertaining to the skill being covered. This is a great way to build and practice academic language since students need the repetition and exposure to the questions. 

4. Graphic Organizer

The graphic organizer can be done with a read-aloud you’ve already covered and can be filled out together so that students have an accurate example in their flipbook of how to fill out graphic organizers with this skill.

I have two sets posted in my store: 

From SET 1
Cause/Effect - Causa y Efecto
Main Idea - Idea Principal
Making Inferences - Hacer Inferencias
Character/Setting/Plot - Personaje, Ambiente y Argumento
Summary - Resumen
Context Clues - Claves de Contexto

From SET 2
Compare/Contrast - Comparar y Contrastar
Sequence of Events - Orden de Sucesos
Drawing Conclusions - Sacar Conclusiones
Theme - Tema
Author's Purpose - Propósito del autor
Problem/Solution - Problema y Solución

I also have the BUNDLE posted which will save you 20% 

Hope you've made it this far, because you are in for a treat! Click on THIS LINK to download a FREE SAMPLE of my flipbooks. Try it out today with your students and come back to let me know what you think! This is an EXCLUSIVE SAMPLE just for my blog readers, enjoy!

Until next time friends, XOXO

Guide Words in the Bilingual Classroom

Welcome back to my blog friends! Today I am here to share all about guide words and ideas on how to teach this skill in the classroom. I find that my students have such a hard time using a dictionary since it requires previous background of alphabetizing a set of words. If students can successfully alphabetize words, then using guide words and the dictionary will be a breeze.

However, if that’s not the case, here are some ideas and resources I have found effective with my kiddos. Keep reading there will be lots of FREEBIES, ideas, and a quick giveaway just for you!

**Alphabetizing Mat FREEBIE**

To start off, we practice alphabetizing words in small groups. At my teacher table, I provide the guide words on this laminated mat and they have to find a word in the dictionary that goes between those guide words then write the words in alphabetical order. As students master that, I am able to switch up the activity (with the same mat) where they have to find three words that go with those guide words. Then eventually I give them three words, and they have to find the guide words. Flexibility, repetition, and practice all in one practical mat!

I provide the alphabet at the top as a reminder and review very much needed for this skill. Click the picture to download this FREEBIE.

**Mini Anchor Chart**

Students keep these in their interactive journals and refer to the anchor chart as needed. These are a great visual reminder of where guide words are located.

**Guide Words Spanish Unit with Task Cards**

After we practice alphabetizing in small groups and have done our anchor charts, students can practice with these amazing task cards! I added the multiple choice option to practice for state assessments. The difficulty level in alphabetizing the words varies, some to the first letter others up to the second or third! Great for differentiation and challenges! This unit also includes a recording sheet and an answer key for students to check their own work OR to make it easier for you or a sub! There is also practice cut/paste pages for extension activities. My kiddos love to use these and it keeps them engaged. (Note: some students may need the alphabetizing mat to complete this activity, which is a great scaffold and tool.) 

**Guide Words Center Activities**

To assess and make certain students understand the concept, I bring a few students to my teacher table and have them complete a guide word sort from this CENTER. Again, difficulty ranges from alphabetizing to the first letter and alphabetizing to the second letter (two sets provided). Students complete this with my supervision, record their answers, and check with the handy answer key provided. Then they complete a practice page from the extension activities. 

Looking for more guide word practice in Spanish? You can send home your spelling list, a dictionary, and this worksheet for them to practice even more. 

How do you incorporate guide words and this challenging task in your classroom? I’d love to hear your thoughts and suggestions below. Make sure to grab the FREEBIES above and rate them on TpT!

Check out my complete Guide Word BUNDLE HERE!!

Until next time friends XOXO!

Prefixes and Suffixes in the Bilingual Classroom

Hello friends!!! I am back today to talk about prefixes and suffixes in the bilingual classroom and how I teach my kiddos about this word strategy. Keep reading there is a FREEBIE just for you :) 

Also, make sure to subscribe to my email newsletter HERE. You will receive a FREE Spanish prefixes unit just for signing up and joining my email club!

**Sliders**
First of all, I begin with a hands on sliding activity. I write three words on a sentence strip leaving space between each word. With another sentence strip, I cut a piece and fold to make it into a pocket that can slide through the sentence strip. On this pocket piece, I write the prefix or suffix we are focusing on for that lesson. Students read the three words on the sentence strip, then slide the pocket piece along and read the same words BUT with the prefix or suffix. We discuss how the base word changed and what the prefix/suffix means.

**Mat FREEBIE**
Next, students use the Prefixes/Suffixes Mat with post its to fill in the chart as we practice different words and their meanings. I provide a root word, prefix/suffix, then they write the meaning of the new word. This is a quick and easy practice you can do small/whole group. You can even use these for interventions. I like to glue a copy of this mat to their interactive journal inside covers that way they are always handy and ready to review. Click here to download this FREEBIE!

Other options:
-use a dry erase marker
-print multiple mats per page to use as exit tickets
-enlarge to poster size and have students go to the board and fill out

**Centers**
Students will read through the 20 words and find the prefix/suffix the particular page focuses on. They color in the words they found with the prefix/suffix. After finding the words, they will select one word to create a sentence. Quick and easy prefixes and suffixes review for your kiddos.

Click here for a FREE page just for you my loyal blog readers!!!
The whole pack includes:
-6 prefixes pages (re-, des-, in-, i-, im-, pre-)
-4 suffixes pages (-mente, -ción, -ero/-era, -oso/osa)

**Prefijos Interactive BUNDLE**
After engaging students in different meaningful activities, I like to use anchor charts and interactive notebook pages to gauge their learning. Below is my Prefijos Interactive Bundle which can help you review and assess prefixes. Students love creating their interactive pages and then showing all they've learned through the assessments on each prefix.

BUNDLE includes 4 units (im-, re-, pre-, des-). Each unit includes:
-anchor chart
-brainstorm page
-2 interactive notebook pages
-matching game
-assessment

Here's a sneak peek at a few pages from one of the units:

I hope this post has been helpful and provided you with many ideas to teach prefixes/suffixes. What has worked for you? Feel free to leave me a comment below, I'd love to read about how you tackle this word strategy with your kiddos! XOXO, until next time friends!

Visit my store M&M Bilingual and type "prefijos" in the search box for a full list of resources perfect for your bilingual classroom!

**Note: I hope to have a Sufijos Interactive Bundle soon :) Follow my store to receive updates when it's posted.

Fluency Practice in SPANISH

Welcome back to my blog, friends! Today we are discussing Spanish reading fluency! As a second grade teacher, it is vital to have my students practice their fluency on a daily basis. At this point, they are still learning to read and are making the transition to reading to learn. It is common to see that most students who are struggling with fluency will most likely struggle with comprehension.

Therefore, practice is the key for building fluency. When I work with my fluency intervention groups, I target independent practice, small group activities, technology, and independent writing activities all using the fluency phrases below. Keep reading but make sure to subscribe to my email newsletter HERE. You will receive a FREE Spanish prefixes unit with a fluency sheet just for signing up and joining my email club! 

There are 80 phrases: 8 levels with 10 phrases each that the students practice and master to go to the next level. There is a lot of repetition and different types of practice for every learner.

PowerPoint slideshow: I like to use this during our breakfast time. As students are eating, I time the slideshow to project the phrases on the screen for daily practice. Trying to fit in as much as I can all in a day’s worth! :)

Flash cards: These are put on rings. I have all 80 in one ring for those students that can easily handle all the fluency phrases. I also have them divided by level for those that I want to practice a specific level.

Writing: I like to use these worksheets because I am targeting two skills in one: fluency and handwriting. I can easily slip these inside a sheet protector or dry erase sleeve to use over and over again!

Finally, the most important aspect of this fluency packet: assessment and progress monitoring. There is a student form, I only print one of these and enough copies of the checklist. I include a graph for students to monitor and color in their own progress. I test my students every 6 weeks, but also included a graph with more date slots just in case.

Head on over to my TPT store to download a PREVIEW of these activities and see if they are a fit for your students!

How do you target fluency in your classroom?  I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.  Until next time friends!