Especialistas are "Specialists." This is your chance to be an especialista about one aspect of culture related to the Spanish language.
During the final few weeks of our quarter, middle school students are working on Especialista research projects. Students get to choose a topic they are interested in, related to the Spanish language or Spanish-speaking cultures. I guide students through the research process: Choosing a topic, writing and narrowing down research questions, taking notes during research, recording sources, and presenting their information in a creative way (either to their peers in class, or to younger classes.)
Thanks to our brand new mobile lab, students are able to use netbooks to access the internet for their research.
Listed below are the steps of this project, the dates when we worked on these in class (in case you were absent), and files associated with each step, in case you are missing them.
Step 1: Choose a Cultural Topic.
Tuesday, January 4th.
Download the file here. Remember that your topic must be related to the Spanish language or Spanish-speaking culture in some way.
Step 2: Write Research Questions.
Wednesday, January 5th.
Download the file here.
Step 3 and 4: Begin Research - Take Notes and Record Sources.
Thursday-Friday, January 6th-7th. (Will continue next week.)
Download a template for notes and sources.
If you would like practice with note taking, this might help.
Step 5: Present Your Information
Presentations will be scheduled during our final week of the quarter, on one of the following days: Tuesday 1/18, Wednesday 1/19, or Thursday 1/20. Please sign up for a presentation time in class.
See exactly how this will be graded: Rubric
Get some extra credit: Especialista Extra Credit
ALL MATERIALS, PRESENTATIONS, AND EXTRA CREDIT ARE DUE BY THURSDAY, JANUARY 20th. (I will have a sub on the 21st, our last day of class, since I am taking the 6th graders on a field trip.)