PBL Interviews in 3rd Grade Spanish
Learning a new language is a complex and challenging process, and it can be difficult to feel confident in one’s burgeoning skills – especially at the start of a new school year. One approach to building confidence is through project-based learning (PBL), a pedagogical method in which students create an artifact (or artifacts) to present their gained knowledge. To be considered an artifact, an object needs to be lasting, durable, public, and materially present, and may include a variety of media such as writings, art, drawings, three-dimensional representations, videos, photography, or technology-based presentations. These artifacts serve to demonstrate learning not only to a teacher or audience, but also to the student themselves, who gain a tangible example of their own mastery.
In 3rd Grade Spanish, students are wrapping up a review of all they learned last year: grammar and vocabulary related to greetings and farewells; personal information like one’s name and age; dates and days of the week; and more. To demonstrate their knowledge of these topics, 3rd Graders have engaged in activities related to all four skills involved in learning a language: listening, speaking, writing, and reading. These skills recently came together in an exciting interview project in which 3rd Graders conducted interviews with Spanish learners in the 8th Grade.
After writing an invitation letter to the 8th Graders, 3rd Graders met with their classmates to practice their interview questions. Finally, they welcomed 8th Graders into their class to conduct the interviews and record them to Seesaw, the digital platform that allows students to share their work with those at home and at school – making these PBL artifacts published and durable. These recorded interviews are an excellent example of PBL in action, serving not only to remind 3rd Graders of all they have already accomplished in their study of Spanish, but also to help create the community connections that enhances all language learning.
