The Ethel Walker School
Curriculum: World Languages
In this course, students will hone their listening and speaking skills by engaging with the diverse cultures of the French-speaking world. Students will enrich their vocabulary and develop their ability to inform, explain, persuade, and narrate in French with greater accuracy, fluency, and complexity. Speaking practice will include class discussions, debates, and oral presentations. At the same time, students will learn about the richness and diversity of the French-speaking world through written texts (e.g., fiction, articles, poetry), oral texts (e.g., interviews, podcasts), radio and television segments, cinema, music, and art. The course will be conducted entirely in French. Prerequisite: Completion of French 4.
This course provides a thorough review of grammar and methodical practice in composition leading to command of practical idioms and vocabulary. Additionally, students in this course will develop an understanding and awareness of the Spanish-speaking world’s diverse cultures through the study of journalistic and literary works and other works of art created by authors and artists from Spain and Latin America. Students will continue the development of the four language skills: listening, writing, speaking, and reading. Authentic materials are often used to practice these skills in the classroom. Group discussions, songs, movies, magazines, newspapers, and the internet are all used to help students broaden their vocabulary, increase fluency and deepen their knowledge of Spanish grammar. Prerequisite: Completion of Spanish 4.
Special topics in Advanced Latin: How Republics Fall: Cicero and Caesar (and Catullus!). In this class we will follow the events leading up to the collapse of the Roman Republic from the perspective of two of the most important and influential figures of that period, Gaius Julius Caesar and Marcus Tullius Cicero. We will read, annotate, and discuss excerpts from Caesar’s Commentarii on the Gallic and Civil Wars, along with selections from the political orations and personal letters of Cicero. From time to time we will check in on the perspective of the “Man on the Street” in the person of Gaius Valerius Catullus, a private citizen, distinguished poet, and acquaintance of both Cicero and Caesar.
Course Length: 1 Year
This course is designed for students who have previously studied French. In Middle School French, learners will continue to expand their vocabulary and build upon the structures they acquired previously. By the end of the year, not only will they be able to talk about themselves and the familiar topics covered during the previous year with greater confidence and in greater complexity, they will also begin to develop narrative competency in multiple time frames as they talk about what they did in the past and what they will do in the future.
This course serves as an introduction to the Spanish language through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By the end of the year, learners will be able to talk about very familiar topics: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; and their favorite pastimes and hobbies. Learners will also discover the many places in the world where Spanish is spoken through music, video, artifacts, and projects.
This course serves as an introduction to the study of another language. Students will master the foundations of Latin grammar, including the core grammatical concept of inflection. Through short readings, students will become comfortable interacting with Latin prose. Collaboration is a core component of the class, and students will also learn about how best to work together in large and small groups. Special attention will also be given to the context of the ancient world. Students will learn about Roman families, houses and urban and rural domestic life. They will also explore Roman religion and mythology, including the Olympians and the myths that shape many of the stories we tell today.
Foundations in Language is a 6th grade course designed to give students a strong understanding of the mechanics of language, with an eye towards the foreign language study that will follow. Students will understand how language works through an exploration of words and their origins, grammar, sounds, and writing systems. Students will investigate the development of writing and different writing systems. Students will discover the etymologies of English words and learn how other languages, including French, Latin, and Spanish influenced the development of English. Students will undertake a survey of English grammar: exploring parts of speech, clauses, and sentences. Finally, students will be able to contrast human language with computational language systems.
What is Ancient Rome, and why do we care? In this first-year course, students will learn about the ancient world through geography, mythology, history, archaeology, and, of course, language. Through short readings, plays, and cartoons, students will become comfortable interacting with Latin prose. Special attention will also be given to the context of the ancient world.
This course is a continuation of French 3. Learners will examine the history, contemporary life, art, and culture of the French-speaking world, while reinforcing and building upon the skills developed in Levels 1-3. This course uses authentic literature and film to expose learners to diverse Francophone perspectives. Learners are expected to make cultural comparisons, participate in individual and group analysis, and draw conclusions about historical and current events. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves fully and spontaneously in paragraph-length language on a wide variety of everyday topics as well as topics of personal or general interest. Learners will be able to formulate and support hypotheses, make arguments, and sustain narration in multiple time frames. Students will be able to negotiate meaning in a wide range of unfamiliar contexts with confidence.
Prerequisite: French 3
This course is a continuation of French 2. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in French 2 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in increasingly complex sentences on a variety of everyday topics, topics of personal interest, and studied topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include what they should/could/would have done, what they would/could/should do, as well as expressing counterfactuals, necessity, opinions, and feelings. Learners will be able to comfortably negotiate meaning in a range of unfamiliar contexts.
Prerequisite: French 2
This course is a continuation of French 1. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in French 1 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in complete sentences on a variety of familiar topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include: what they were doing or used to do and what they will do.
Prerequisite: French 1
This course serves as an introduction to the French language through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By the end of the year, learners will be able to talk about very familiar topics: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; their favorite pastimes and hobbies; what they did over the past weekend as well as what they are going to do over the next weekend; and what they want to do versus what they can or must do. Learners will develop the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
This course is a continuation of Spanish 3. Learners will examine the history, contemporary life, art, and culture of Spain and Latin America, while reinforcing and building upon the skills developed in Levels 1-3. This course uses authentic literature and film to expose students to Spanish and Latin American perspectives as well as the importance of Spanish in the United States. Learners are expected to make cultural comparisons, participate in individual and group analysis, and draw conclusions about historical and current events. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves fully and spontaneously in paragraph-length language on a wide variety of everyday topics as well as topics of personal or general interest. Learners will be able to formulate and support hypotheses, make arguments, and sustain narration in multiple time frames. Students will be able to negotiate meaning in a wide range of unfamiliar contexts with confidence.
Prerequisite: Spanish 3
This course is a continuation of Spanish 2. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in Spanish 2 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in increasingly complex sentences on a variety of everyday topics, topics of personal interest, and studied topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include what they should/could/would have done, what they would/could/should do, necessity, opinions, and feelings. Learners will be able to comfortably negotiate meaning in a wide range of unfamiliar contexts.
Prerequisite: Spanish 2
This course is a continuation of Spanish 1. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in Spanish 1 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to express themselves in complete sentences on a variety of familiar topics. Specific structures that learners will acquire include what they were doing or used to do and what they will do. Learners will continue to develop the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
Prerequisite: Spanish 1
This course serves as an introduction to the Spanish language through reading, writing, speaking, and listening. By the end of the year, learners will be able to talk about very familiar topics: themselves; the weather; their likes, dislikes, and preferences; their families and homes; their favorite pastimes and hobbies; what they did over the past weekend as well as what they are going to do over the next weekend; what they want to do versus what they can or must do, as well as developing the ability to negotiate meaning in unfamiliar contexts.
This course is a continuation of Latin 2. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in Latin 2 and engage in the target language with greater ease. By the end of the year, learners will be able to read and understand increasingly complex sentences and will be able to comfortably negotiate meaning in a wide range of unfamiliar contexts. Novellas will explore topics in mythology and Roman history.
Prerequisite: Latin 2
In Latin 2, students begin to go deeper with their Latin language skills, learning more challenging and sophisticated grammatical concepts. Learners will build upon the structures they acquired in Latin 1 and engage in the target language with greater ease. Students are assessed through reading novellas of increasing length and difficulty, and explore.
Prerequisite: Latin 1
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