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I have been reflecting on my professional journey, specifically goals, challenges, accomplishments, and shortcomings. Looking back over the years, I realized that one of my goals throughout my professional journey has remained constant: to stay involved, give back to educators,…
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I wanted to share one of the more impactful podcasts that I listened to recently: “Hard Words: Why aren’t kids being taught to read?” The podcast can be found on many podcast platforms, including: Apple, Spotify and many more; simply…
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In this feature, we showcase “Arepas ¿De dónde son?” by Adriana Ramírez and is available through Voces Digital. Title: Author: Language: Spanish This Book / Reader is: for language learners (individual / classroom) Link to Purchase / Access the Book / Reader:…
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Thank you to Voces Digital for reviewing and showcasing “Juana, La Avanzadora” AND “Teresita, La maestra del piano” by Margarita Pérez García and Adriana Ramírez. Title: Author: Language: Spanish This Book / Reader is: for language learners (individual / classroom) Link to Purchase…
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Thank you to Bryce Hedstrom for reviewing and showcasing “Hi-Impact Reading Strategies: How to Accelerate Fluency and Proficiency with Reading”. Title: Hi-Impact Reading Strategies: How to Accelerate Fluency and Proficiency with Reading Author: Bryce Hedstrom Language: English This Book / Reader is: a personal /…
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Thank you to Keith Toda for reviewing and showcasing “Confidence Readers” by Adam Giedd. Title: Confidence Readers Author: Adam Giedd Language: Spanish This Book / Reader is: for language learners (individual / classroom) Link to Purchase / Access the Book…
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As you may know, I’ve been rethinking how I engage with my students and how I need to make sure that the communication in my classroom is purposeful. That is, I am trying to communicate in a way that allows…
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In this post, I wanted to follow up with some more functionalities of deepl.com/write. If you didn’t read the original blog post on deepl.com/write, you can find it HERE. (I encourage you to read it before reading this post!) Note:…
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I recently heard about deepl.com/write. (It is free.) It is a AI-powered writing assistant tool. It helps improve written communication by correcting grammar and offering alternative word and/or sentence choices. It currently supports English (American), English (British), French, German, Italian,…
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I am about a week removed from the ACTFL conference. During this week I’ve had time to reflect on my time in Philadelphia at the conference. First, let me share a bit of gratitude. I am thankful that I had…
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After recently attending and presenting at the FLAM (Foreign Language Association of Missouri) St. Louis Regional Conference, I had a chance to reflect on the experience. It was a great experience, not only motivating and inspiring. It was wonderful to…
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Note: This is a longer blog post, but I promise it is worth your time to read it! This is my first of what I hope are many collaborative posts with Keith Toda. I first met Keith at the 2023…
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I wanted to share a quick update on Soundscapes. I’m hoping this makes your teaching life a bit easier. If you haven’t gotten the chance to read the original post about Soundscapes, you need to read it HERE, before continuing.…
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What does cybersecurity have to do with a world language educator? Let me explain. When I first graduated from college, I started in computers and networking. There was definitely a learning curve, but I enjoyed computers and technology – and…
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I first came across the idea of “soundscapes” at the Comprehenisble Iowa conference. At the conference, I had the pleasure of seeing Diane Neubauer present on this activity (and other interactive listening strategies.) It was a great presentation and it…
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The following post is courtesy of Keith Toda. You can find the original post by Keith Toda’s here. It is re-posted here with his permission. Note: I also saw Keith give a presentation about this topic at the Comprehensible Iowa…
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Recently, Pat Brown and I had a featured article in the Spring 2024 issue of ACTFL’s of ‘The Language Educator’. I know that some do not have access to the article, so I wanted to share a summary of the…
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I have recently put out some posts on my X (Twitter) handle – @e_r_richards – about contributions that German-Americans have made to the candy industry in America. Below you will find a more cohesive list of Germans, German-speaking immigrants, and…
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I will once again begin gearing up to take my students abroad this summer to Germany. Although we will only be in Germany this trip abroad, our previous travels have taken us to other German-speaking countries, including: Austria, Switzerland and…
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I wanted to run this by German language educators and learners and get your thoughts. (See below.) As I was looking for a Eselsbrücke (donkey bridge), to help German students with present tense, regular verb conjugation. Despite receiving a healthy…
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This an simple, low prep activity that students really enjoy. It is similar to 20 questions, but you can vary it to help keep it feeling new for students. (Find that link below!) Here is the basic set up: 1.…
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Note: Please read the post “What’s in the Bag?” before reading this post: As I wrote in the original “What’s in the Bag?” post, my students really enjoy this activity and they always ask to play it. However, as with…
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Note: Please read the following blog posts before this one: Keywords (and Pictures) This activity is a simple variation to “Keywords (and Pictures) & Read, Draw, and Discuss / Listen, Draw, and Discuss” . However, instead of using drawings during the activity, students…
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This activity is similar to “Picture Talk”. If you are are not familiar with Picture Talk, you find out more here: How do I do a Picture Talk Picture Talk 101 This is most likely not the newest, most groundbreaking…
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Note: Please read the following two blog posts before this one: This activity is a simple variation to “Read, Draw, and Discuss” and “Listen, Draw, and Discuss“. The short of it is, instead of using drawings during the activity, students…
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This activity is an excellent way to personalize a text/story and give students ownership of it. In this activity, students are not only supported in their engagement with the language, but they also get the benefits of repetition of the…
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This activity is similar to Read, Draw and Discuss, however it has a twist. You’ll notice that it is “Listen” and not “Read” in the title. It is an excellent way to scaffold support for listening comprehension with students. In…
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The following post is courtesy of Keith Toda. He teaches Latin at Parkview High School, a public school in Lilburn, GA. He teaches with four other Latin teachers in one of the largest Latin programs in the nation (USA). I…
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A recently posted on an activity called “Read, Draw, and Discuss“. After incorporating this activity, I started incorporating whiteboards and drawing more often in my classes at all levels. (I will post more on how I incorporated them later. So,…
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As language educators, we know that reading in the target language is crucial for language development (both in the L1 and L2). We also know that we have choices about what we choose to read in the classroom. This includes,…
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