Yesterday we graded our writing assessments. In DPS that means getting together all the district language teachers in one big room and, using a super cool assessment rubric that has taken us five years to create and refine, assess their work  from Novice Low (NL) to Intermediate Mid (IM) according to the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines. Yes, […]

Here is a text taken from an addition I just made to the content of the cRD – 7 article. I thought some explanation of the term “snowplow reading” was in order: The snowplow should indeed be a slowplow – nice and steady. It is as simple as it sounds. We read for as long

In this last post in the cRD thread, James asks a few questions with my responses below: Two questions: 1) By “snowplowing through the boring parts” do you mean “translate the text into English out loud while reading the French/Spanish/German/whatever text in the book”? Like all the students follow along while the teacher or a

This is another exchange that represents a follow-up to the cRD discussion, Jennifer in NJ asked: I’d also like to know how this fits into the new weekly schedule as of 2013. Ben is saying this can last a whole 50-some minute period….. I replied: The only thing is to make reading a novel a

This addition to the cRD discussion is in the form of an exchange between Robert and me. I add it to the thread for general interest and clarification: Robert: If the stories are based on something the class creates, haven’t you already done essentially all of the discussion before the story is created? Then the

So the process is that the kids read the paragraph quickly, we translate it, all that in five minutes, and then off to the CI races with TPR as long as it goes, then some basic R & D about the text for major reps (“Who turns?” x 50 variations on that, etc.), then some

Here is an example of cRD. On page 48 of Le Voyage de Sa Vie, the protagonist Jean-Luc is grabbed by the villain La Femme Insecte. The scene I would focus on lasts only three lines. It has only about four dominant verbs and is therefore perfect for a very compact R & D 53

I have mentioned RT and TPR and PSA and how they will occur much more often as teaching strategies in this new version of R & D. PSA will be a big player in it as well. A big player. A really big player. Because PSA shifts the discussion from the text to one about

Clearly, Sabrina’s Great Insight has prompted a need for some of us now to go over much of what we have done with TPRS/CI and re-evaluate all of it in terms of the need for thousands and not hundreds of reps, so I am starting to do that here with R & D. This is

So, in this new version of R & D I just snowplow* the boring parts of a chapter (Susie) and isolate and go crazy with the one or two paragraphs that lend themselves to RT and TPR and stuff like that (Blaine). As stated, I have always wanted to blend those two opposing approach to

So let me restate this change in what I consider R & D to be in its most effective form: 1. We address much less text to start class, just one short paragraph that has action in it. Again, if the text lacks action and power, if it can’t be TPR’s very well and if

Still reading about cRD? Then you are a marine. A CI Commando. Let’s make hats for San Diego. With CI Commando on them. So, among other things, in this more compact version of R & D: 1. I go slower. OK, that’s not new but I gotta say it and do it anyway. Gotta the