Overview
Third-grade students in SFUSD Spanish Biliteracy and Dual Immersion Pathways Programs engage in 90 minutes of daily Spanish literacy instruction plus 30 min of English Literacy instruction. Students immerse in a variety of instructional contexts to continue supporting solid foundational skills in reading and writing.
ELA/Transfer/Phonics Block
During the English literacy instruction time, students are engaged in a 30-minute ELA/Transfer/Phonics block that includes explicit and systematic phonics instruction focusing on word parts. Phonics and Word parts instruction is anchored in continuous text following the syllabic approach framework. During Cross-linguistic transfer time, the teacher provides explicit cross-linguistic transfer instruction and gives students the opportunity to make explicit connections between both languages.
Spanish Reading & Writing Block
There is a 90-minute Spanish word study, reading, and writing block that includes reading, writing, and differentiated small-group instruction. Students practice reading independently, participate in shared reading, and interactive read-aloud, and receive word study explicit instruction. Students develop their writing skills by using a combination of dictating and writing a variety of sentences, that range from simple to more complex, to share information, ideas, and feelings.
Priority Standards
What students will know, what students will do, and what thinking skills students will develop to apply and transfer Spanish language understandings that endure within the discipline, leverage deeper understandings, and/or support readiness for success at the next grade level.
In third grade focus on these critical areas:
Fonética y reconocimiento de palabras
Conocen y aplican la fonética y las destrezas de análisis de palabras a nivel de grado, en la decodificación de palabras, tanto en forma aislada como en un texto.
Instruction: Signature Elements
Below are signature elements of SFUSD Spanish Language Arts instruction that students should experience regularly throughout third grade as they develop as biliterate readers, writers, speakers, & listeners.
Phonics & Word Study
Phonics instruction is delivered daily to ensure all students become independent readers and writers. The methodology includes systematic and explicit instruction that supports research-based approaches to teaching Spanish phonics.
Children progress at a much faster rate in phonics when the bulk of instructional time is spent on applying the skills to authentic reading and writing experiences, rather than on isolated skill and drill work.
Dictation
Adding dictation as a routine builds students’ writing automaticity. This culturally relevant strategy can be used as a formative assessment to collect information on student progress. It supports students' independence through the process of self-correction. Dictation helps tighten the relationship between sounds and graphemes. If you can say it, you can write it.
Small Group Instruction
Strategic and targeted small group instruction based on analysis of student data (both formal and informal).
During independent reading practice and learning centers, the teacher gathers a group of students with similar strengths and needs and instructs them on a skill or strategy.
Small group instruction lessons are designed to provide scaffolds for students to apply the skill or strategy in their own independent work.
Grouping remains flexible throughout the school year to accommodate student needs
Cross-Linguistic Transfer
Explicit cross-linguistic transfer instruction is key in supporting students in making connections between languages. Students engage in contrastive analysis to observe similarities and differences between both languages.
Additionally, students are able to devote more cognitive processing time toward the more complex orthography and morphology systems of English that require more time than the more transparent systems of Spanish.
Cognates
Cognates are words in two or more languages that share a historical root and, as such, are similar in meaning,
orthography and/or pronunciation (Lubliner & Hiebert,2011).
Taking into consideration that more than half to two-thirds of the vocabulary of an educated adult native English speaker are cognates in Spanish, explicit instruction of cognates will support and accelerate students' transference of skills from one language to the other.
Writing & Grammar
During the writing block, students are engaged in creating writing pieces from the Common Core State Standards that follow the writing process. This writing block includes lessons that provide direct, explicit instruction and guided practice in skills and strategies connected to the genre.
Grammar lessons, embedded in the writing curriculum.
Taller del escritor units begin with a fundamental study of sentences followed by ways to explore more robust sentences with a variety of punctuation marks.
Spanish Phonics & Spelling Assessments
These assessments should be used at least three times during the school year. As a diagnostic evaluation at the beginning of the year, and as a measure of progress for mid and end of year.
Materials
Below are items you should have to support your students' Spanish Language Arts instruction. If you are missing anything from the list, please first contact your site administrator or designated support. If they are unable to resolve the issue promptly, please contact Covadonga Valera-Collazo and Griselda AmezcuaGarcia from the SFUSD Multilingual Pathways Department Elementary Spanish Team.
Benchmark Taller de fonética Digital and physical materials available Visual Materials List Taller de fonética
Benchmark Taller del lector - Digital and physical materials available. Visual Materials List Taller del lector
Benchmark Taller del escritor y estudio de gramática - Digital access only Video: How to access taller del escritor lessons
Benchmark decodable readers (K-1: Digital) available if needed
Planning Guide
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AUGUST |
SEPTEMBER |
OCTOBER |
NOVEMBER |
DECEMBER |
JANUARY |
FEBRUARY |
MARCH |
APRIL |
MAY |
(Each phonics and reading unit is 3 weeks) |
Launch: Estrenemos Phonics and Reading |
Launch: Estrenemos Phonics and Reading Unit 1: Características de los animales |
Unit 1: Características de los animales Unit 2: Los personajes dan forma a sus historias |
Unit 3: La voz del pueblo |
Unit 4: Diferentes perspectivas, diferentes puntos de vista |
Unit 5: Adelantos en la tecnología |
Unit 6: Decisiones, decisiones Unit 7: Las comunidades antes y ahora |
Unit 7: Las comunidades antes y ahora Unit 8: La superficie de la tierra |
Unit 8: La superficie de la tierra Unit 9: Tiempo, dinero y valores |
Unit 10: Acciones, reaciones e interacciones |
Reflection Questions
- How are students' developmental needs, communities, and experiences being reflected and honored, or how could they be?
- What opportunities do you see for developing equitable access & demand, inquiry, collaboration, and assessment for learning?
- What are the implications for your own practice? What strengths can you build upon? What will you do first?
Want More?
Third-Grade Spanish Language Arts Standards
Contact the Spanish Language Team:
This page was last updated on September 8, 2023