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About the Course
Develop your Spanish language skills and learn about the cultures in Spanish-speaking parts of the world. You’ll practice communicating in Spanish and study real-life materials such as newspaper articles, films, music, and books.
Skills You'll Learn
Understanding Spanish when you hear it and read it
Holding conversations in real-life situations
Writing stories, letters, emails, essays, and other texts
Equivalency and Prerequisites
College Course Equivalent
An intermediate level (typically third- or fourth-semester) college course in Spanish language
Recommended Prerequisites
There are no prerequisites, but students are typically in their fourth year of high-school-level study. In the case of native or heritage speakers, there may be a different pathway of study leading to this course.
Exam Date
About the Units
The course content outlined below is organized into commonly taught units of study that provide one possible sequence for the course. Your teacher may choose to organize the course content differently based on local priorities and preferences.
Course Content
Unit 1: Families in Different Societies
You’ll learn Spanish language skills in the context of studying family life and values in Spanish-speaking communities and explore contemporary beliefs and challenges that families face.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Interpreting promotional materials
- Understanding the elements of a formal letter
- Describing data from a table, chart, graph, map, or infographic
- Conducting an interview
- Crafting an email reply
- Participating in an informal conversation
- Giving a presentation related to family and society
Unit 2: The Influence of Language and Culture on Identity
You'll build your vocabulary and learn about how language and culture shape and reflect evolving ideas about identity in Spanish-speaking societies.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Identifying the main idea and summarizing short stories
- Comprehending articles and infographics
- Interpreting audio and video reports
- Drawing connections between texts and their larger cultural context
- Justifying ideas and opinions in writing
- Giving a presentation comparing Spanish cultural concepts to familiar ones
Unit 3: Influences of Beauty and Art
You'll explore how ideas of beauty and art influence and reflect culture in Spanish-speaking communities.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Analyzing articles, advertisements, and promotional materials about art
- Interpreting literary texts
- Understanding what is included in the format of typical letters and interpreting their meaning
- Interpreting data represented in charts
- Crafting an email
- Practicing conversational skills through class discussion
- Giving a presentation comparing art across cultures
Unit 4: How Science and Technology Affect Our Lives
You'll examine how developments in science and technology affect daily life in Spanish-speaking communities and use your growing language skills to help you interpret unfamiliar words and engage in more complicated texts.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Interpreting charts, tables, infographics, and maps in context
- Understanding and responding to interviews
- Comprehending verbal instructions
- Interpreting a range of sources and perspectives around a topic
- Writing essays and citing sources
- Giving a presentation on the impacts of scientific and technological developments
Unit 5: Factors That Impact the Quality of Life
You'll learn more about contemporary life in Spanish-speaking communities and how social status, cultural perspectives, and access to jobs and resources can make an impact on the quality of life.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Connecting literary texts to larger cultural topics
- Interacting with online tools
- Interviewing community members
- Understanding video interviews
- Interpreting instructions
- Crafting an email reply using idioms and expressions
- Participating in conversations and debates
- Giving a presentation comparing cultures and quality of life
Unit 6: Environmental, Political, and Societal Challenges
You'll explore how complex global issues affect people's lives in Spanish-speaking communities and engage in deeper discussions to suggest possible solutions.
Skills you will practice may include:
- Analyzing articles and charts on environmental issues
- Listening for connections and meaning in video reports
- Making cultural connections among video presentations
- Writing essays to address global issues and suggest solutions
- Giving a presentation comparing reactions to global challenges across cultures
Credit and Placement
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Course Resources
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