Grades: 10-12

Credit: one

This fifth year course is offered to increase Spanish linguistic skills in all four areas: speaking, reading, writing, and listening. Emphasis will be on spoken Spanish and the ability to converse at a sophisticated level on a wide range of topics. The course will be structured around a systematic study of the culture and civilization of Spain and Latin America, to include history, art, music, literature, politics, and developments in the sciences. The primary goal of the course is for students to increase their fluency while enjoying a broad spectrum of culture. Students will read from a culture and civilization text in Spanish, as well as from magazines, newspapers, and web sites in Spanish. They will also read literary selections representative of the periods studied. To increase oral fluency, they will discuss and actively debate pivotal and controversial issues in the history and culture of Spain and Latin America. There will be independent and group presentations in class, as well as occasional essays to improve writing skills.