If you have questions about the World Languages Department curriculum, you can email Mrs. Grimmer, World Languages Department Chairperson, or call her at 315-624-1257. The World Languages Department at the Senior High School includes:
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GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS Students are required to earn one credit in a World Language in order to graduate. Students pursuing an Advanced Regents Diploma are required to complete three credits in one World Language and pass the Regents exam. |
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COURSE DESCRIPTIONS FRENCH 1 1 unit of credit Lawyers, doctors, businessmen and women, teachers, government workers, CIA and FBI agents, import-export companies, entertainers, communications experts, airline employees, travel agents and world travelers are among those who will use French to better their lives. French 1 is the first step to listening, speaking, reading and writing this language. The goals of this course are to do as much as possible in fulfilling the topics, situations, functions, and proficiencies of Checkpoint A of the NYS Syllabus. Our new French text series combines videos, workbooks, cassettes and a whole new method to help our students master the four skills of the language. Learning a language is much like playing a sport or a musical instrument; foreign language is a skill. If the students practice, they will master the skill and be able to add it to their many other skills as they go through junior high and high school. Learning French can be fun and students will have a sense of accomplishment as they learn about a new culture! Come to France through the classroom! Texts: Discovering French Nouveau by Rebecca and J.P. Valette (including workbook, video series, and CD's, DVD's, textbook website). FRENCH 2 1 unit of credit A continuation of French 1 with special emphasis on communication in the language. This is the pre-Regents year and all skills will be sharpened (listening, speaking, reading and writing) in order to prepare you well for your third year of French and your Regents Comprehensive Examination (in which we have been extremely successful in the past). As you continue this year, you must remember that practice is the answer to improving any skill. If you do this, you will be successful. More formally, this second year course continues the three-year sequence of French in the Regents Tract. It emphasizes Checkpoint A of the NYS Syllabus with a thorough review of year one, then continues with most of the remaining grammar and vocabulary necessary to fulfill the items in Checkpoint B. In the four skills and cultural areas, the student should, at the end of the year be able to: comprehend short conversations, initiate and sustain a conversation, read simple narratives and simple authentic materials, write simple notes, letters and short reports using elementary vocabulary, and distinguish some culturally authentic patterns of behavior from authentic models. Text: Discovering French Nouveau by Rebecca and J.P. Vallette (including workbook, video series, and CD's, DVD's, and Textbook website). PREREQUISITE: French 1
FRENCH 3 1 unit of credit This is the Regents/Checkpoint B Examination Level. Students will endeavor to master the items in Checkpoint A of the NYS Syllabus while trying to work continually on Checkpoint B of the Syllabus by upgrading all proficiencies. This will be done by refining all difficult grammar materials from Levels 1 and 2, learning tenses not taught at previous levels, and giving short oral reports for better fluency. The text used for French 3 is a continuation of the Level 2 Text, Discovering French Nouveau by D.C. Heath. Also used at this level is the Amsco Workbook Troisième Livre and Regents exams from past years. The multi-media lab is very important for all levels of French in the High School and is used as often as possible. PREREQUISITE: French 2 FRENCH 4 1 unit of credit Level 4 gives French students the opportunity to practice and perfect the skills they learned in other levels, while acquiring new high level skills in the language. For many students, this course will be a step towards the Advanced Placement Language Course taught at Level 5 the following year. The emphasis is on meaningful tasks that incorporate a wide variety of vocabulary and grammatical structures in authentic cultural contexts. Students will practice speaking skills through activities with partners, class discussions, reading aloud, and taping in the lab. They will read excerpts from French literature, read about French history, and investigate and report on French art. Opportunities to improve listening skills will come from French music, movies, and the textbook video series. The framework for the course is the text Discovering French Rouge by Jean-Paul and Rebecca Valette. There will be ample writing tasks to practice new vocabulary and grammar in authentic situations. PREREQUISITE: French 3 and the French Regents Exam ADVANCED PLACEMENT FRENCH LANGUAGE AND CULTURE 1 unit of credit Students enrolled in this course are required to take the accompanying Advanced Placement Exam in May. The Advanced Placement Course in French Language and Culture is offered to those students who have completed four years of the language. This course enhances all four skills of the language. Throughout the year, each student is carefully monitored in these four skills. The goals of this course are met by having the student do the following: write on a variety of topics; make oral presentations; speak with partners and in the lab, watch and listen to French video materials, songs, and films; read excerpts from well-known French-language literary works; read articles from authentic French sources, engage in real-life speaking and writing situations, give personal reactions to contemporary issues. Texts: Allons au-delà! La langue et les cultures du monde francophone, Richard Ladd, 2012, AP French : Preparing for the Language and Culture Examination, Richard Ladd, 2012. The course is built around several themes and stresses the use of authentic materials and real-life situations. Themes include Family and Community, Contemporary Life, Science and Technology, Personal and Public Identities, Beauty and Aesthetics, and Global Challenges such as the environment, tolerance, peace, war, and immigration. PREREQUISITE: French 4 LATIN 4 1 unit of credit This course strengthens competency in Latin through the reading and enjoyment of select Roman authors. The works of Caesar, Cicero, Plautus, Ovid, Vergil, and Catullus provide students experience with a variety of Roman themes and styles. Independent and cooperative assignments are given on more sophisticated topics such as philosophy, art, comparative literature, and literary analysis. Students may opt to participate in the University in High School program to earn college credit. Texts: Ecce Romani 5; Jenney, Fourth Year Latin; Our Living Heritage, Book III; Vergil's Aeneid, Clyde Pharr. PREREQUISITE: Latin 3 and Latin Regents Exam SPANISH 1 1 unit of credit The first year of Spanish is an introduction to language and culture of the Spanish-speaking world. The student learns to understand, speak, read and write simple, everyday sentences on a variety of topics, fulfilling the functions and proficiencies of Checkpoint A of the New York State Syllabus. Additionally the student learns and masters basic grammar structures to acquire a proficiency in oral and written Spanish, stressing communication skills. The student learns to appreciate and open his/her mind to the culture and life styles of Spanish-speaking peoples. Text: Avancemos I by McDougal Littell. SPANISH 2 1 unit of credit This course continues the three-year sequence of Spanish in the Regents track. It continues to emphasize Checkpoint A of the NYS Syllabus. Spanish 2 reviews and expands the work of Spanish 1 by building and strengthening communication skills as well as grammatical structures. The students are able to comprehend and participate in short conversations. Translations, writing and reading comprehension are increased at this level. The students write notes, letters, and short reports using Level 2 vocabulary. Cultural material is presented through class discussion, films and personal experiences. Texts: Avancemos II by McDougal Littell PREREQUISITE: Spanish 1
SPANISH 3 1 unit of credit This is the Regents/Checkpoint B Examination level based on 3 years of work. Students are expected to practice listening, speaking, reading and writing by using what they have learned in Checkpoint A of the State Syllabus. They will also be working on Checkpoint B by: reviewing grammar points from Levels 1 and 2, practicing more difficult situations using these grammar points; reviewing the 5 major tenses and compound tenses and learning the subjunctive mood. Conversing on suggested topics, learning about Spanish people and culture from reading selections, composition/letter writing, reviewing previous Regents Exams, are some of the classroom activities. Texts: Avancemos II by McDougal Littell PREREQUISITE: Spanish 2
SPANISH 4 1 unit of credit This course ties together the past three years of study in order to build a practical application and fluency of the language. Spanish will be the primary language of the course in order to build comprehension abilities. Students will also speak the language through: formal and informal conversation, discussion of short stories, cultural and topical reports, and spontaneous situational skills. After reviewing the major indicative and subjunctive formations in the beginning of the year, students will practice their grammar skills through translation and free composition. Throughout the year, a survey of Spanish literature from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century will be presented. Texts: Album PREREQUISITE: Spanish 3 and the Spanish Regents Exam.
ADVANCED PLACEMENT SPANISH LANGUAGE 1 unit of credit Students enrolled in this course are required to take the accompanying Advanced Placement Exam in May. The Advanced Placement course in Spanish Language is offered to students who have completed four years of the language. This course concentrates on all four skills of the language and is an intense study of grammar usage in written and oral areas. The following are included: informal and formal oral presentations, composition, listening comprehension practice (Tal Como ES Dialogos, EAV Diaiogues, AMSCO Publishing Company), stimulate spontaneous dialogue, oral rejoinders, and reading comprehension. In addition to this work, the study of contemporary Spanish and Hispanic prose and poetry is incorporated into the course. Texts: A Toda Vela ; AP Spanish: Preparing for the Language Exam PREREQUISITE: Spanish 4
MANDARIN 1 (MVCC Dual Credit Course) 1 unit of credit Mandarin 1 introduces students to the official language of the People's Republic of China (also of Taiwan and Singapore) in all its amazing facets. Focusing on Checkpoint A of the NYS syllabus, this course provides students who have no prior knowledge of Chinese, the tools they will need to further their study of Mandarin at the high school or college level. Students begin by learning the Pinyin system (the official Chinese phonetic spelling system) to have a solid foundation of correct pronunciation. Students learn to read and write Chinese Characters in simplified form. Students will also be introduced to Chinese culture to make a connection with their daily life. PREREQUISITE: Regents sequence in a Foreign Language or concurrently enrolled in level 3 of another language
MANDARIN 2 1 unit of credit Mandarin 2 presents an opportunity for students who have successfully completed Mandarin 1 to further their ability to read, write, speak and understand Mandarin. Mandarin 2 continues to emphasize checkpoint A of the NYS Syllabus. Mandarin 2 reviews and expands the work of Mandarin 1 by building and strengthening students' communication skills, as well as their understanding and mastery of grammatical structures. Culture material is presented through the textbooks, class discussion, various forms of media, and first-hand accounts of the instructor. Text: Chinese Link (Level 1 Part 1) published by Pearson Education, Inc. PREREQUISITE: Mandarin 1 |