COMMACK MIDDLE SCHOOL

At Commack Middle School, grade six students study one of the three world languages we offer: Spanish, Italian, or French. Students are engaged in the Foundations in Language learning experience for a total of twenty weeks, scheduled every other day for the full year. The year of study in grade six will be followed by a year of daily study at Level I in grade seven. In grade eight, students will take the Level II course, which will enable them to further develop as proficient communicators of a second language.

Listed below are the topics covered and the learning outcomes we anticipate for our sixth graders:

GREETINGS AND SALUTATIONS
Using the language they are studying, students will be able to:

• greet and introduce one another, and
• begin to understand and appreciate cultural norms of the people who speak that language.

PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
Using the language they are studying, students will be able to:

• provide and obtain personal information,
• express their likes and dislikes,
• describe their basic physical and emotional traits,
• communicate information using numbers through 50.

FAMILY LIFE
Using the language they are studying, students will be able to:

• identify and describe members of their family,
• discuss daily and leisure activities,
• better appreciate one another's family customs and traditions, as well as the customs and traditions of the target culture.

The grade seven Level I world languages course has been designed to challenge and support our students throughout the next phase of their second language study. This rewarding, student-centered second language experience follows the grade six Foundations in Languages course. The level 1 topics are presented to students daily for a full year.

The Level I course in world languages:

• emphasizes simple, selected sentence structures, not necessarily limited to the present tense,
• sets the stage for oral and written communication for the beginning language learner,
• fosters cultural understandings,
• includes age-appropriate communicative activities, strategies and goals that address the particular needs and interests of middle school students,
• encourages interdisciplinary connections, and
• provides the first step on the pathway to linguistic proficiency.
• Our introductory students will learn to:
• comprehend basic vocabulary and structures in face-to-face conversation with peers and familiar adults,
• comprehend the main idea of more extended conversations with some unfamiliar vocabulary and structures as well as derivatives of English words,
• call upon repetition, rephrasing, and nonverbal cues to derive or convey meaning from the language they are learning,
• use appropriate strategies to initiate and engage in simple conversations with more fluent or native speakers of the same age group, familiar adults, and providers of public services,
• understand the main idea and some details of simple informative materials written for native speakers,
• compose short, informal notes and messages to exchange information with members of the cultures where the language they are studying is spoken, and
• understand and appreciate some of the attributes of the cultures where the language they are studying is spoken.

Listed below are the topics covered in our seventh grade courses:

• Education: includes events and activities in school life and ways that schools differ in their routines and procedures.
• House and Home: includes types of lodging, rooms and other components of one's living quarters.
• Daily Routine: includes personal hygiene and daily responsibilities.
• Health and Welfare: includes parts of the body, illness and accidents. 

Commack Middle School grade eight students will continue their exploration of a second language. The Level II World Languages course follows the grade seven Level I course, and is designed to challenge and support the diverse academic and emotional needs of our eighth grade student body. The topics covered in this course provide an opportunity for deeper exploration of concepts, vocabulary and grammar, combined with a comprehensive review of previously learned material. The level 2 topics are presented to students daily for a full year. Listed below are the topics covered in our eighth grade courses:

• Community: includes places, professionals, physical features of the community & community activities.
• Meal Taking: includes types of food and drink, regional customs and mealtime interaction.
• Shopping: includes shopping facilities and products, shopping for specific reasons, and shoppers' information.
• Travel: includes making travel arrangements, transportation, accommodations, and tourists' needs.

Level II world languages students are expected to exhibit more comprehensive knowledge of vocabulary, grammatical concepts, cultural traits and patterns. All topics and outcomes address the New York State standards through extensive speaking, listening, reading and writing opportunities.

Sample Learning Opportunities

Listening

• Information and announcements from providers of common public services in face-to-face communications
• Information (bulletins/announcements) provided over loudspeakers, radio, and television
• Short presentations of interest to the general public given in person, on radio, or on television
• Listening/ Speaking
• Interaction with providers of common public services in face-to-face communications
• Informal everyday conversations with individual peers and adults
• Informal conversations with peers and familiar adults
• Interaction with providers of common public services by telephone
• Group conversations among peers and familiar adults
• Group discussions with peers
• Informal presentations to groups of peers and familiar adults

Reading

• Information provided to the general public on forms, signs, billboards and posters, labels, programs, timetables, maps, plans, menus, etc.
• Announcements, ads, and short reports of general interest in newspapers, magazines, and other publications; short, informal notes
• Simple business correspondence and pamphlets
• Facts, opinions, feelings, and attitudes in correspondence from acquaintances and friends(peers and adults)
• Letters to the editor and feature articles from general-interest publications
• Excerpts from poetry and prose for cultural appreciation

Writing

• Forms to be filled out for the use of common public services
• Informal notes for communications in everyday life situations
• Brief reports describing simple situations and sequences of events
• Personal letters to acquaintances and friends (peers and adults)
• Formal letters to agencies, institutions, and businesses on topics of personal needs

CLICK HERE TO ACCESS WORLD-READINESS STANDARDS FOR LEARNING LANGUAGES

CMS WL Dept Grading Policy Revised 2018

Within the 80% category, assessments will be weighed on a scale of 3-1.
 

Students will be evaluated uniformly at the culmination of each unit for which a collaboratively developed MYP topic-ending assessment and rubric have been developed. 

Students will have myriad opportunities each marking period to demonstrate their understanding through both authentic and traditional means. Students who don’t demonstrate proficiency on assessments will be allowed to earn a passing grade (up to 65 only) through completing corrections. Students wishing to complete corrections MUST attend extra help.

At the teachers’ discretion, students may continue to earn up to 5 bonus or extra credit assessment points for completion of relevant tasks.  Exception: Departmental culminating assessments are not eligible for quiz corrections.

Learning Languages with the Common Core State Standards

Performance Expectations

The Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts (ELA) and Literacy in History/Social Studies, Science, and Technical Subjects contains four strands: Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening, and Language. These four strands are represented in the National Standards for Learning Languages by the Communication standards (interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational) and the level of proficiency demonstrated.

In addition, the other four goal areas for learning languages - Cultures, Connections, Comparisons, and Communities - also support and are aligned with the Common Core. These standards describe the expectations to ensure all students are college-, career-, and world-ready.

The Common Core strands of Reading, Writing, Speaking and Listening are captured in the standards for the learning languages' goal area of Communication, by emphasizing the purpose behind the communication:

• Interpersonal (speaking + listening or writing + reading)
• Interpretive (reading, listening, viewing)
• Presentational (writing, speaking, visually representing)

In the description of Reading in the Common Core document, the use of both literary and informational texts is suggested. This same balance is identified in the Standards for Learning Languages.

In the description of Writing in the Common Core document, a balance of writing to explain, to persuade, and to convey experience is suggested. These same purposes for writing are identified in the Standards for Learning Languages.

The Common Core strand of Language is described for language learners through proficiency levels that outline three key benchmarks achieved in world language programs given sufficient instruction over time:

• Novice (the beginning level, regardless of age or grade)
• Intermediate
• Advanced

Many factors influence the rate of progress through these three proficiency levels and the level learners acquire by the end of high school. Chief among those factors are time and the degree of immersion in the second language. Students who begin study of a language in middle school or high school generally acquire an intermediate level of proficiency.