PhotoTalk!

FL/ESL Technology Classroom Project

Our Scott County school district has experienced a steady influx of native Spanish language speakers who have Limited English Proficiency (LEP). In the 2005-2006 school year, I will be teaching a Spanish course in which both LEP and Spanish language students will be mixed together. In addition, native vocabulary in the areas of health science, integrated science, and robotics and technology terminology would be provided. The Spanish language teacher will closely collaborate with both the health science and physical science teachers, taking the new science terminology and create bilingual PowerPoints, demonstrating both the words and phrase with the pronunciation of the Spanish science terminology.

Through this grant, the digital cameras will be utilized in the many technology projects that will be required of the Spanish-language learners and English language learners.

These projects include:

Epals letter writing with photo exchanges
Poster Project -- website for presentations of 3,000 words or less and one photo
Storybook project–-vocabulary or grammar practice when students tell their life stories and illustrate with photos in the target language
Video Projects -- where students create iMovies or Movie Maker projects with photos to use school, homelife, travel stories.
PowerPoint presentation – presentation format that includes photos of Spanish restaurant experience.

In addition, through the provisions of this grant, I will utilize a special unit for Spanish mural art. This unit will feature a collaboration between the art teacher, in order to teach the student design elements of the great muralists, i.e., Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo and others. As a class, we will have each student research one famous artist and select one work with which to describe how the design elements reflect the philosophy and thinking of the painter.
Then, through the Tool Factory workshop paint program with the Spanish language upgrade, each student will be required to create an artwork in the style of their selected painter, but reflecting the concerns and philosophies of our day. As in the case of the other projects, the cameras could be included to capture contemporary scenes. I would need a laser photo printer and paper with extra ink cartridges which I would purchase with the $500.00. This critical arts and humanities component will be made possible if I could win your grant.

The $500 will be used to provide a laser printer with which to produce hard copies of exceptionally great images.