How do you pick which vocab words in a story are the ones to focus on? How do you shelter the vocab (but not the grammar) to keep the input comprehensible and easy to acquire? And how could an anchor chart help?

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Anchor charts aren’t just valuable in an elementary classroom - they are GOLD in a World Language classroom too!

Imagine it: You’re telling a story about a cute little puppy who wants to go to Canine University to become a guide dog. He struggles to keep up in class, and eventually fails out. Finally, he saves a woman from great danger and achieves his goals! It’s gripping and adorable and student interest level is 🔥.

This story, based on the movie talk ‘Pip’, is a great source of input.

FAQ:

How do you pick which vocab words in a story are the ones to focus on?

How do you shelter the vocab (but not the grammar) to make the language sticky and easy to acquire?

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How could an anchor chart help? 
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STEP 1: It starts with writing an Anchor Chart-Inspired Story Script. Here’s how I do it.

Script Strategy A: Start with high-frequency verbs.

Study the action in the story and generate a list of the top 3-5 most recycled verbs. These will go on the anchor chart in the conjugated form.

Script Strategy B: Pick the top 8 - 10 vocab words or phrases that you see repeated in the story. If you have required vocab lists to teach, choose from that list if relevant. These will go on the anchor chart as well.

Script Strategy C: Start with building up the setting, then character development, then problem, then solution.

Repeat - Reuse - Recycle the key words in the script. It won’t bore your students! It will keep the story comprehensible.

STEP 2: Tell the Story

Once I have the main script written based around these words/phrases, I tell the story. My students take notes as I go, and I annotate the key verbs and structures on the screen or on the whiteboard as I describe the stillshots, images or drawings. After some T/F, circling and comprehension checks, I move to the anchor chart creation. Sometimes this occurs on day 2.

STEP 3: Co-Create the Anchor Chart in Real-Time WITH EACH CLASS

**I use these big post-its to make the anchor charts. They re-stick easily** **when you need to move them around.**

Together, my students and I create the anchor chart as I re-narrate the story. Since I guided them toward the notes they should take, they should have written the key words down. This builds our relationship as they see their value to our community and feel ownership of the content.

I add the Spanish with the translation (or an illustration if the meaning is clear). Kids enjoy this because they feel safe making a list of words to help them - and it rewards them for taking good notes.

Pro tip - throw a Starburst to a kid who offers up a key word from their notes, or give them a Shout Out! You’ll see many more busy pencils the next time around.

🙌 Benefits of Anchor Charts 🙌

**I use Mr. Sketch markers for anchor charts - they are THE BEST! Grab them** **here!**

Benefit 1: The kids see the words go up in the natural sequence of the storyline. Helps when working on story sequencing.

Benefit 2: Illustrations help to give kids additional imagery for retention.

Benefit 3: Spelling is reinforced - you can do this all in L2 to naturally infuse the Spanish alphabet in your lesson.

Benefit 4: Creating this in real-time WITH EACH CLASS dramatically increases student vocab retention. You’ll actually see kids who are absent the day of co-creation feel disconnected to the new vocab.

MAXIMIZE VALUE- Gamify the anchor chart!

Play flyswatter with the anchor chart. Kids can run up to the chart or recreate the chart on mini-whiteboards and play in pairs.
Have kids fill out blank bingo cards with the vocab on the anchor chart and play a few rounds.
Do charades with the vocab from it.
Assign motions to the action words and have kids practice them as a Brain Break.

Class Jobs: Assign kids ‘BLURT RIGHTS’ to the words on the chart - each time they come up in the story re-tell, the blurters get to shout out the word or do it’s gesture.
Yo tengo, ¿Quién tiene?: write the words and their meanings (or image) in a table on a Google doc. Cut apart and distribute. Kids have a minute to walk around and find their match only using Spanish.
Use the Yo Tengo, ¿Quién Tiene? cards to play grab it - place face up on a desk between partners with their hands behind their back. First one to slap the card you call wins that card.
Picture talk T/F with vocab Marcador game: Show images from the story. Partners place a marker on the desk between them with hands behind their backs. Use the anchor chart vocab to make a true or false statement about the image. First one to grab the marker when TRUE wins that round.

REPEAT - REUSE - RECYCLE VOCABULARY

This won’t bore your students - it keeps things COMPREHENSIBLE!

EVERY SINGLE TIME you mention the vocab on it, point to it! I have a big dowel I use (named Bastón) so I can point to it from many vantage points.

Pro-tip: I take the anchor chart down during the summative assessment since I’m evaluating what students have truly acquired, but then it goes back up on the wall to store it for future reference.

I highly recommend trying anchor charts- it took a bit to get fast at it but now I can’t imagine life without them.

Give it a try - I’ve made it EASY by giving you AN ANCHOR CHART PRO-TIPS CHEAT SHEET for FREE!

Wishing you all the very best,