My name is Esmeralda Arismendez and I teach Spanish 1 and Spanish 2. I am orginally from Floydada and I graduated in 1982 from Floydada High School. I also graduated from South Plains in 1984. I went to Texas Tech and got a Bachelor's of Science in Elementary Education. I taught 2nd grade for four years in Lubbock. My family and I moved to Round Rock and I received a Spanish certification. I taught Spanish 1a and 1b at Round Rock middle school. My family and I decided to move back to West Texas and I was hired here in this wonderful town of Shallowater as a Special Education teacher at the middle school. I taught at the middle school for 6 years and then I moved up to high school to teach Spanish. I enjoy teaching Spanish. It has been a wonderful experience. It has been great working in this fine school with such great students. Being in different school districts, has given me the opportunity to compare school districts and I can truly say that this is a great district to work for and and to teach such great students.

Spanish 1 is a course that is introductory to Spanish. We spend a lot of time on vocabulary, some grammar and lots of singing. Singing is part of my curriculum. I try to incorporate songs that pertain to the units being taught. Units that I try to have, include family, clothing, colors, seasons, body parts, numbers, etc. We also have food days in celebration of 16 de septiembre and 5 de mayo. We do activities that involve listening, speaking, reading and writing that correlate with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills.

Spanish 2 is a course that is more intense on grammar. We do vocabulary also, because learning Spanish is always learning new words. I also make singing part of the curriculum. Singing in Spanish 2 is a little different than Spanish 1. Spanish 2 we sing more contemporary songs. Spanish 1 we sing more instructional songs. I have students in Spanish 2 that I taught in Spanish 1 and they remember a lot of the songs. They apply it to their learning and it makes it very interesting. We do dancing also, and we also have food days in celebration of 16 de septiembre and 5 de mayo. Students bring Mexican or Spanish food (there is a difference) to share with one another and enjoy a day of festivities. All my classes plus Spanish club get to participate in this event with different activities. Spanish 2 classes make piñatas. They have a contest between groups and the best piñata gets a prize. Cinco de mayo is one of our major celebrations we have for the year. Spanish 2 also does activities that involve listening, speaking, reading, and writing that correlate with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills.