Foreign Languages Education Models

EL PRETERITO

Objectives:

Students will:

1. Recognize and respond to two grammatical forms: first and second person singular of preterite verbs (listening and reading).

2. Recall and use these same two grammatical forms (speaking and writing).

 

Materials:

8 pictures (4 Greg's and 4 Maria's), sticky tack or magnets, 24 handouts with activities

 

Input procedures:

For comprehensible input the teacher will: a) write on the board - mis actividades y las actividades de mi esposo, ayer. b) post pictures. c) write under pictures the activity performed and the time of day. d) recount activities of both Greg and Maria contrasting them with "pero". e) do the whole series twice asking yes/no questions. Then the teacher will erase the words under the pictures and ask yes/no questions such as "¿Yo preparé la cena? Sí o No etc. Then the teacher will ask open-ended questions such as "¿Qué preparé? ¿Arroz con frijoles o un sandwich?; ¿Greg leyó un libro o un periódico? etc.

 

Students will order the list of activities according to the order of the pictures on the board. Everything on the board will be erased. After the students complete the activity, the teacher will go over the correct order with them. A grammar explanation for "yo" and "Greg" may come after either activity 1 or activity 2.

 

Look at the sequence of pictures on the board that illustrates both your teacher's and her husband's routine for yesterday, February 4^th, 1999. Read silently the following sentences, and write the number that corresponds to the correct order in which they were performed.

 

__________ La profesora caminó a la universidad, pero su esposo manejó su carro.

 

__________ La profesora estudió para el examen de Educación, pero su esposo leyó un libro y bebió café.

 

__________ La profesora enseñó la clase de español, pero Greg almorzó en la oficina.

 

__________ La profesora preparó la cena, pero Greg miró la televisión.

 

Students will fill in a cloze activity as the teacher reads a passage to them. The teacher will ask for the correct information immediately after the students finish.

 

Student form: Input activity 3:

To exemplify a typical day in the life of the Traxler's, I will describe our routines for yesterday. Listen carefully to the passage as I read it to you. As you listen fill in the incomplete passage with the missing information.

 

"Ayer, yo caminé a la universidad a las ______________ de la mañana, pero mi esposo, Greg,

 

manejó su _____________ a la universidad. Luego, a las ________ de la mañana, yo enseñé la clase de

 

español, pero Greg almorzó en ___ ___________. Después, a las ______ de la tarde, yo estudié mucho

 

para mi examen de Educación con la Doctora Barry, pero Greg leyó ____ ____________ y

 

bebió___________. Finalmente, a las _____________ de la tarde, yo preparé la cena de arroz y frijoles,

 

pero mi esposo miró _____ ________________. Su programa favorito es 20/20."

 

Script for the previous passage:

"Ayer, yo caminé a la universidad a las ocho de la mañana, pero mi esposo, Greg, manejó su carro a la universidad. Luego, a las once de la mañana, yo enseñé la clase de español, pero Greg almorzó en la oficina. Después, a las dos de la tarde, yo estudié mucho para mi examen de Educación con la Doctora Barry, pero Greg leyó un libro y bebió café. Finalmente, a las seis de la tarde, yo preparé la cena de arroz y frijoles, pero mi esposo miró la televisión. Su programa favorito es 20/20.

 

Activity 4a. This activity has two parts. In 4a the teacher will read the statements on student form 4a and the students will decide who most likely said each of the quotes by placing a check mark under either Greg's name or Maria's name.

 

Student form: Activity 4a:

You have just overheard a conversation between Greg and Maria about what they did last week. Based on what you already know about what they did yesterday decide on who most likely would have made the following statements. Then place a check mark (ü) under either Maria's name or Greg's name to indicate your decision.

 

 

Activity 4b. Students will decide who is the hardest working, Greg or Maria. The instructor will have the activities for 4a on a transparency, and she will count how many students picked either Greg or María for each of the activities. Then she will ask “Quién es el/la más trabajador/a, Greg o María?

 

Output procedures:

Activity 5. Students will list three activities that they did. Then they will compare their list with any classmate’s. For each activity, the students find a person that has or has not done that activity during the previous week and collects that person’s signature. If the classmate signs under "Yo no", then that classmate must list what he or she did in the corresponding blank below. For each activity listed students need two signatures.

 

Student form: Output activity 5:

 

How do you compare with your classmates?

Step 1: Write five activities that you did last week in the blanks provided in the left-hand column below. Do this step by yourself.

 

La semana pasadaÉ
Ejemplo: hablŽ por telŽfono con mis padres.	Yo tambiŽn	Yo no	hablŽ con mis amigos.
1._________________________________	_______________	________________	__________________________________
2. _________________________________	_______________	________________	__________________________________
3. _________________________________	_______________	________________	__________________________________
4. _________________________________	_______________	________________	__________________________________
5. _________________________________	_______________	________________	__________________________________

Step 2: Now, compare your first activity with that of one of your classmates. Have him/her sign under either the "Yo también" column, if he/she did the same activity, or the "Yo no" column, if he/she did not.

Have the person who signed under the column "Yo no" write what he/she did instead in the blank provided in the right-hand column. Move on to another of your classmates and repeat Step 2 filling in the remainder of the blanks.

 

Activity 6. Students will write a short paragraph based on the information gleaned from activity 5. This may be a homework assignment.

 

Student form: Output activity 6.

Based on both you and your classmate’s activities indicated above, write a short paragraph in which you describe what each of you did or did not do last week. Write at least five sentences. Use connectors such as: y (and), pero (but), también (also).