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AP Spanish Language & Culture

Course No: 4143
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Year
Course Type: AP/Honors, Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Spanish 3 or 3H or 4
Criteria for Enrollment: See criteria for Honors Enrollment. Students are required to take the Advanced Placement exam in May.
Fulfillments: Meets one year of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

AP Spanish language covers the equivalent material of a third-year college course in advanced Spanish composition and conversation.  The aims of this two-semester course are: to improve dramatically the student’s speaking ability; to review systematically grammar previously studied; to master — orally and in writing — new and more complex grammar concepts; to expose students to the literary use of Spanish and to increase both their literal and critical reading skills; to prepare students for the Advanced Placement Spanish Language Examination; and to enhance the students’ knowledge of the cultural diversity of the Spanish-speaking world.  Students will be required to speak Spanish in a variety of situations ranging from class discussions to oral presentations and debates.  Students will read newspaper and magazine articles, short stories, poems, and excerpts from novels or plays by peninsular and/or Latin American authors.  The selected class materials are designed to stimulate and perfect conversation and to assist students in the imitation of the native speaker’s pronunciation, rhythm, moods and humor as their abilities increase. This class is conducted in Spanish, and students are expected to speak Spanish at all times.

*Class receives honors weighting in SI weighted GPA and UC/CSU GPA calculations

Artesania de las Americas: Handicrafts of the Americas

Course No: 4146
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: G
Prerequisite: Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP
Criteria for Enrollment: Minimum semester grade of C+ in Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP, plus recommendation of Language Department Chair
Fulfillments: Meets one semester of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

This one semester course will explore the origin, cultural value, and materials used to create a variety of Latin American handicrafts. Students will make their own craft for each unit. Scheduling approximately 9 class meetings per handicraft project would allow for 5-6 different units during a semester course.  The class would be conducted in Spanish. Students would also learn new vocabulary and review a major grammar point per project.

 Each craft project would be accompanied by:

    1. historical background of object
    2. cultural value and meaning of object
    3. vocabulary list related to current topic
    4. at least one main grammar review point
      • formal and informal commands
      • preterite & imperfect
      • present subjunctive
      • future & conditional
    5. at least 2-3 reading comprehension activities
    6. music/videos/visuals

*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.

Cine Mexicano

Course No: 4147
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Available to students who have completed Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP
Criteria for Enrollment: Minimum semester grade of C+ in Spanish 3H, 4 or 4AP. Students who have completed only Spanish 3 must have recommendation of Language Department Chair.
Fulfillments: Meets one semester of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

Students will explore Mexico through the lens of film for one semester in this advanced Spanish course designed for students who wish to improve their Spanish language skills and cultural knowledge.  In class, students will view full-length feature films, shorts, and documentaries.  Students will learn about the Golden Era of Mexican Film during the 1940’s and 1950’s. Students will focus on New Mexican Cinema with films from the 2010’s.  Students will learn to appreciate Mexican directors, like Luis Buñuel & Claudia Saint-Luce, and actors, like Pedro Infante, Mario Moreno “Cantinflas”, Blanca Estela Pavón, Karla Souza, Eugenio Derbez. Students will gain perspective on the Mexican experience, taking a critical look at poverty and wealth, gender issues, music as a tool for change, migration, and the family unit amongst other themes.  Students will be asked to view a brand new Mexican movie at a film festival.  In-class discussions will provide a forum for students to think critically and trade ideas with each other.  Writing assignments will include movie critiques and alternative final scenes.  Students will get to make their own short films as well.  In order to immerse students, the class will be conducted in Spanish and students are expected to speak Spanish in class.

*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.

Cuentos Cortos – Short Stories

Course No: 4149
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 11, 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: G
Prerequisite: Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP
Criteria for Enrollment: Minimum semester grade of C+ in Spanish 3, plus recommendation of Language Department Chair
Fulfillments: Meets one semester of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

In this one semester Spanish course, students will explore, use and improve their Spanish by reading outstanding short stories by some of the most successful authors of our time; Gabriel García Márquez, Isabel Allende, Julio Cortázar, Jorge Luis Borges, Carlos Fuentes, & Juan Rulfo, just to name a few. Students will read ONE short story per week. Students will be asked to read, understand, & analyze these short stories. For quizzes students will need to recall characters, vocabulary, and storylines and critically think about themes.  Class discussions and debates will provide a forum for students to become literature critics and trade ideas with the teacher and classmates regarding the messages provided in the stories. Students will be able to strengthen their grammar, vocab and speaking skills in Spanish. In order to immerse students in the target language, the class will be conducted in Spanish and students are expected to speak Spanish at all times.

*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.

Español Moderno

Course No: 4145
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: G
Prerequisite: Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP
Criteria for Enrollment: Minimum semester grade of C+ in Spanish 3H, 4 or 4AP. Students who have completed only Spanish 3 must have recommendation of Language Department Chair.
Fulfillments: Meets one semester of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

This is an advanced, semester-long course designed for students who wish to improve their Spanish language skills and cultural knowledge, with particular emphasis on the improvement of oral communication skills.  Students will gain a better understanding of the culture, history and traditions of Latin America and Spain by watching films and participating in class debates and discussions.  New vocabulary and expressions will be taught to allow the students a better understanding of the authentic materials used in class.  The class will review some of the advanced grammar structures learned in previous classes, but no new grammar structures will be covered. This class will be conducted in Spanish, and students will be expected to speak Spanish at all times.

*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.

Musica del Caribe

Course No: 4148
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 11, 12
Course Length: Semester
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Available to students who have completed Spanish 3, 3H, 4 or 4AP
Criteria for Enrollment: Minimum semester grade of C+ in Spanish 3H, 4 or 4AP. Students who have completed only Spanish 3 must have recommendation of Language Department Chair.
Fulfillments: Meets one semester of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

Students will delve into Caribbean music for one semester in this advanced Spanish course designed for students who wish to improve their Spanish and cultural awareness. Genres include salsa, son, merengue, bachata, rumba, latin jazz, and cumbia. Through music, students will better understand the beautiful culture, complex history, and powerful influence of Caribbean people from Cuba, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and Colombia.  Students will learn to recognize styles and instruments, break down song lyrics, watch films like Buena Vista Social Club, and read related literature like stories by Gabriel García Márquez.  Themes of the music include love and friendship, religious syncretism, political resistance, baseball and fútbol, and racial, geographic, and national identities.  Students will experience artists like Bomba Estereo, Carlos Vives, Celia Cruz, Afro-Cuban All Stars, Gloria Estefan, Tito Puente, Juan Luis Guerra, Sara González, and Prince Royce.  Students will create and dance to different Caribbean rhythms.  Students are asked to go see a live concert and report back on their experience. Students do not need a background in music to take this course.  In order to immerse students, the class will be conducted in Spanish and students are expected to speak Spanish in class.

*This class will be offered pending adequate enrollment.

Spanish 1

Course No: 4110
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 9, 10, 11
Course Length: Year
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: None
Criteria for Enrollment: None
Fulfillments: Meets one year of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

Spanish 1 is designed for the beginning Spanish student.  No background in Spanish is expected.  Comprehension, speaking, reading, and writing skills are developed simultaneously from simple to more complex sentence structures.  The language skills are presented in a logical progression so that the student learns by practice both in the classroom and at home with the help of on-line tutorials.  The learning process is based on the active participation of each student in a variety of formats.  Students learn essential vocabulary, basic structures of the language, and cultural aspects of Latin America and Spain.  By the end of the course, each student has the ability to do the following:  ask questions and answer  them affirmatively  or  negatively  using  present tenses; arrange proper word order; speak and write clearly; write short compositions; and use common idiomatic expressions.

Spanish 1 Accelerated

Course No: 4111
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 9
Course Length: Year
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Some background experience in Spanish
Criteria for Enrollment: Oral and written placement examination
Fulfillments: Meets one year of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

This course is designed for incoming freshmen who have some experience in Spanish but did not place in Spanish 2 Honors at St. Ignatius. Since these students already have some basic skills in Spanish, they will review and/or learn, at an accelerated pace, the vocabulary and grammar structures taught in a regular level one course. Significant emphasis will be placed on improving students’ speaking and writing skills. They will acquire an expanded vocabulary, a deeper understanding of grammatical concepts, increased reading proficiency, improved oral expression, increased aural proficiency, the ability to write short compositions, and further knowledge of Spanish and Latin American cultures.

Spanish 2

Course No: 4120
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 9, 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Year
Course Type: Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Spanish 1 or Spanish 1 Accelerated or placement by written or oral examination
Criteria for Enrollment: Satisfactory completion of Spanish 1 or placement by written and oral examination
Fulfillments: Meets one year of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

Spanish 2 is a language course designed for students who have successfully completed their first year of Spanish.  It is a two-semester course which aims to improve the student’s ability to speak, read, and write in Spanish, to systematically review grammar previously studied, and to master new concepts in Spanish, and to enhance the student’s knowledge of the cultural diversity of the Spanish-speaking world.  The emphasis on improvement of oral skills will be considerable, and the student will be encouraged to speak in Spanish on a variety of topics and in a number of situations ranging from question and answer to oral presentations and/or situations.

Spanish 2H

Course No: 4123
Subject: Spanish
Grade Level: 9, 10, 11, 12
Course Length: Year
Course Type: AP/Honors, Elective
UC/CSU Subject Approval: E
Prerequisite: Spanish 1 or Spanish 1 Accelerated or placement by written and oral examination
Criteria for Enrollment: See criteria for Honors Enrollment
Fulfillments: Meets one year of language graduation requirement

Important Language Department Information

Spanish 2H is an accelerated course designed to challenge the student who, during his/her first year, has actively participated in class, mastered the grammar and vocabulary presented in level one and/or demonstrated the ability to advance more rapidly than the average college preparatory student.  The teacher will aid students in acquiring the following skills: increased oral proficiency on a variety of topics, an expanded vocabulary, the ability to read selections appropriate to intermediate level students and increased ability to write essays.  The course materials are designed to stimulate conversation and to perfect that skill, striving to imitate the native speaker’s pronunciation, accent, and rhythm, as the student’s abilities increase.  Students will also become more informed about some of the contemporary problems and difficulties affecting Hispanic communities.  Students will further develop their ability to express themselves in spoken and written Spanish.

*Class receives honors weighting in SI weighted GPA