Content based thematic units allow students to engage with more complex subject matter despite having only a limited vocabulary. Visit Paris and identify its landmarks. Walk down a specific street and practice il y a. A map of Provence identifies the region through its painters; two songs bring alive its bridges. Sur le pont d'Avignon....Enjoy! 1. Paris 2. La rue Saint-Honoré 3. La Provence Subject matter: introduction to Paris and Provence Vocabulary: city; right and left; rivers Grammar: articles; il y a; il n'y a pas; adjectives Oral practice: identify places in Paris; find an address; identify rivers Homework: places in your own city; describe a region Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search

Maps are fun! There is so much information! No, your students will not be bored, they will never again think map work is boring. And you will be delighted they can find places on the map! Enjoy! Maps! Maps! Maps! All with basic information! Make those grey cells work! Some countries are large both in size and population; others are small in size but large in population. Get to know the different parts of the world where French is spoken. Maps are easy to photocopy and easy to understand! Maps included: Switzerland, Monaco, Luxembourg, Haiti, the French overseas departments, France, Québec and more. Le français en Europe Le français en Amérique Subject matter: geography of French speaking world Vocabulary: countries, languages, nationalities, numbers (1-10) Grammar: être; appeler, parler, articles Oral practice: map work Homework: map work Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search All Miraflores materials are exclusively in the target language.

1. Napoléon 2. Molière 3. Astérix Introduce your students to these three icons of French culture in your first year French class. Napoléon serves as a wonderful introduction to the vocabulary of the family because it combines the family with the historic reality. The unit on Molière, who is usually taught at a more advanced level where there are a lot fewer students, permits your students to do easy comparisons between school plays and Molière's works. Finally, Astérix introduces a cartoon character who is emblematic of the French speaking world. Subject matter: introduces people and cartoon character Vocabulary: members of the family; European countries; basic vocabulary of the theater and cartoon Grammar: possessive adjectives; avoir; comment and où; interrogative pronouns Oral practice: Napoleon's family; my family; theater and plays at my school Homework: genealogical tree; a play; a cartoon Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search

Content based materials! Beginners! Use these pictures to contextualize both clothing and colors. Learn about the Day of the Dead and integrate the vocabulary seamlessly. Everything in the target language. Miraflores la editorial dedicada a la cultura. Día de Muertos.

Miraflores does language in context. Here is a way to learn and review the numbers 1-100 with images from Québec. This is an ORAL exercise. Some teachers might like it for review and consolidation while others use it for preseting the numbers. (Stop and repeat when your students get stuck.) Numbers 70 to 100 are hard! I have opted for not writing the numbers out because pronounciation is much better when students listen instead of reading. The numbers are in order, from 1 to 100. Students look at the image and say the number. They can work in pairs, in threes, the entire class can participate. If there are images that are of interest, take a moment to talk about Québec, Canada´s French speaking province where all the street signs are in French. Encourage your students to read the words they do not know and you will notice how they like to figure them out. The images help!

**With every picture, students have to make a choice! **They visit Teotihuacán virtually. Why a photo-essay instead of a video? I could have very easily made a video on my recent trip to Teotihuacán. But I didn´t. I wanted this to be a participatory exercise, a CI resource. Active, not passive. The photo-essay is specifically aimed at Spanish learners at the Beginners 2 level. Every image has a prompt to make it an active experience. If I had chosen a video, it would be passive viewing and that is what I wanted to avoid. What do young people do when they visit Teotihuacán? They climb the pyramids. They race around and climb up and down, bursting with excitement, legs hurting from the many steps, often sunburned and always eager to buy trinkets from the vendors. I have focused on subir / bajar and comprar / vender.

Compare a woman from your country to Mexico’s China Poblana. · Use the text about the China Poblana as a starting point for a comparison. · Although the China Poblana was born in India, she has become the idealization of the Mexican woman. · Students compare the China Poblana to a woman in their own country who has also become a legend. · Students juxtapose the facts about the real person to the the made up facts that surround the legend. Assignment: Compare la China Poblana to ONE of the following women: · Pocahontas and SIX more suggestions for American women · Laura Secord, Canada · Eva Perón, Argentina · Joan of Arc, France and FIVE more suggestions of women from other countries Themes for cultural comparison: Personal life Clothing Art Cinema AND SIX more suggestions for cultural comparisons.

Hands on effective teaching. Entirely in Spanish. For high beginners or intermediate Spanish, middle and high school. A ONE PERIOD activity. Team collaborative activity. Taste, talk, read, think. Students learn about one the most important foods that the Americas gave to the world. Potatoes are not only eaten world wide but also have industrial use. Their variety is huge, their past fascinating. Includes: Tasting. Compare the picture of a child in the Andes with a Van Gogh painting of people eating potatoes. Work on geography with potato dishes from around the world. Everything from tortilla de patatas to samosas. Timed reading about potatoes with synthesis. Vocabulary of the potato with caloric information. Answer key Teacher’s guide

Hands on effective teaching. HOT! HOT! Entirely in SPANISH!!! For high beginners and intermediate Spanish levels. A ONE PERIOD activity to introduce chili peppers. Taste, talk, think!! One the most important foods that the Americas gave to the world. Students will learn about a huge addition to the world culinary feast. Before Columbus, there were no chilis except in the Americas. Columbus took chilis back to Europe. From there they spread and were adopted by many Asian and African countries. Now they are a mainstay of their cuisine. Includes: Pick and chose parts you want to do. Tasting Analyzing strength and potency Short reading for high beginners or intermediate levels Timed two minute reading for the same level. The vocabulary of body parts affected when one eats chilis. Class discussion and information

Two content-based units about Venezuela. Please preview. Unit 1. El petróleo: mucho más que un producto de exportación Venezuela supplied most of the oil used in the eastern states of the United States. How has the country used the oil wealth? Well? Poorly? Practice ordinal numbers and get your students to talk about oil dependence and consumption. What is petroleum used for? What is its future? Unit includes: Subject matter: daily life Vocabulary: ordinal numbers Grammar: agreement Oral practice: products made from oil Homework: consequences of rules banning use of petroleum run vehicles Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search and further research Answer key Unit 2. Simón Bolívar, el Libertador Bolívar’s face in on the bills; there is a mountain named after him; there is a city named after him; there is even a country named after him. Does that sound familiar? That’s right! Just like Washington. (He has a state not a country, named for him.) Learn more about Bolívar and make history come alive. Unit includes: Subject matter: history Vocabulary: government, democracy Grammar: preterit Oral practice: George Washington and other figures Homework: national heroes Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search and further research Answer key All Miraflores resources are exclusively in the target language. Full disclosure. For reasons I don´t understand, this is not a popular unit although my own students thought it interesting to learn about a national heroe and even more interesting to discuss oil and the future of our planet. Go figure. The continuing unravelling of Venezuela also makes petroleum, its sale and misuse, a difficult subject.

Two culture units on Colombia, probably one of the countries that invokes the greatest number of stereotypes. Click on Preview and read both units. All the Miraflores thematic units include: a level appropriate reading, comprehension, contextualized vocabulary and grammar, oral and writing assignments, Internet key words to further the themes and the answer keys. Unit 1. Gabriel García Márquez, escritor colombiano García Márquez was a great Colombian writer and although at this level the students cannot read his novels, they will get acquainted with his work. Many students never make it to the advanced levels, so I like to introduce writers earlier. This unit relates his works to information about Colombia. Unit includes: Subject matter: literature, culture Vocabulary: literary Grammar: preterit Oral practice: a novel Homework: a novel you have read Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search Answer key Unit 2. La cocaína, problema de nuestros días I had no restrictions, so a unit on drugs was fine. Understanding trade, middle men and cartels was fascinating. Sometimes the group discussion about legalization was very heated, other times students were all on the same page, and agreed on what needed to be done. It was also very instructive about what was happening inside and outside of my classroom. The first time I was surprised at the amount of information they all had about where drugs could be purchased, their price and more. I kept my mouth firmly shut when I left the classroom. Unit includes: Subject matter: daily life Vocabulary: commercial Grammar: preterit perfect Oral practice: drug problems in your community Homework: should some drugs be legal? Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search Answer key Comprehensible cultural input.

Two culture units about Colombia, a great painter and a walled city. Contextualized. Content-based. Please preview. Unit 1. Fernando Botero Have fun describing Botero’s over sized people! (What a wonderful way to practice those adjectives!) Acquaint your students with Botero’s huge bodies, round faces and tiny feet. Once they have studied the paintings in this unit, they will also understand his opinions about Colombian society. Unit includes: Subject matter: painter Vocabulary: painting Grammar: descriptive adjectives Oral practice: paintings Homework: stereotypes, Internet: key words for web searches / expand the topics Model tests Teacher’s guide Answer key Unit 2. Cartagena de Indias Cartagena de Indias is the only remaining walled city in South Americas with the walls intact in many areas. The unit is built around two short texts. The first is a dialogue between two young men during the colonial period. The second text describes what the city and its wall, built to protect the city from slave raiders, looks like today. And there is more! García Márquez uses the city as the locale for one of his books and the characters are described within this spectacular colonial city. Unit includes: Subject matter: port city Vocabulary: city Grammar: verbs with stem changes Oral practice: forts Homework: cities named after cities in the Old World Internet: key words for web searches / expand the topics Model tests Teacher’s guide Answer key ALSO AVAILABLE IN AN “ARTS BUNDLE” THAT INCLUDES: 1. Goya / Gaudí / Rodrigo; 3 interdisciplinary thematic units - SP Beginners 1 2. Cervantes and Sor Juana / Picasso / Felipe VI; 3 thematic units - SP Beginners 1 3. Rivera, Orozco, Siqueiros / Indigenous cultures: 2 thematic units - SP Intermediate 1 4. Fernando Botero / Cartega de Indias; 2 thematic units - SP Intermediate 1 5. Las Meninas / Felipe II; 2 thematic units - SP Intermediate 2 (You get ALL five for the price of four) All Miraflores resources are exclusively in the target language.

TTwo thematic units about Venezuela. Please preview. Venezuela has undergone some drastic political changes since I visited and wrote these two units. When I was there, Hugo Chavez was in power but he has since died and Maduro has taken over. Sadly the country is in a terrible state and seems to be getting worse every day. All the more reason to learn about Venezuela. Unit 1. Isla Margarita, turismo venezolano y extranjero Isla Margarita, like all the Caribbean islands, is spectacularly beautiful. The sand, the translucent warm waters, the fish you can see when you snorkle, it takes your breathe away. Students and teachers are always surprised by the variety in a single country. Venezuela has tropical beaches, high mountains, vast plains and a huge area that is part of the Amazon basin. Really? Practice fillers, such as bueno, pues, bien. Unit includes: Subject matter: tourism Vocabulary: natural world Grammar: prepositions Oral practice: imaginary vacations to Latin America Homework: natural world Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search, further the research Answer key Unit. 2. Caracas, una ciudad latinoamericana In Europe, the cities grew large in the 19th century; in Latin America they exploded in the 20th century. Why do people leave the countryside and head for the city? Is it good or bad? An easy math exercise will give you some idea of the numbers. Expand the vocabulary of stores. Repetition and extension! Increase understanding of the Spanish speaking world. Unit includes: Subject matter: history Vocabulary: urban life Grammar: definite and indefinite articles Oral practice: your city Homework: describe a city Internet: Key word list to facilitate a search, further the research Answer key

I was born in Peru, so when I was a child, going to the Andes was an annual event. I have a wonderful picture of myself in a cuzqueña costume at age eight or nine. My parents must have bought it there and I must have been trying it on. My childhood memories of going up to the Andes are not as happy because I always got soroche, altitude sickness. Apparently children suffer a lot from it. It went away after one or two days, but it always colored my views of going up to Cusco. When I was a child the spelling was always Cuzco but it has now been changed to Cusco. I was told that all the spelling changes were to make the word sound more like the original quechua, but in the case of this word, there really is no good reason as far as I can see. Here are brief descriptions of the two units. I always start with a reading because my students needed to read as much as possible. Please preview. Unit 1. El Cusco Fiestas! Celebrations! The Incas had great gatherings in their capital, Cusco, to celebrate the winter solstice. Today Peruvians celebrate the same day in the same place. Learn all about Peruvian fiestas, combining Inca and Peruvian, past and present, new and old. Unit includes: Subject matter - Reading: celebrations Vocabulary: celebrations; body Grammar: preterit Oral practice: Neruda poem Homework: visit Machu Picchu Internet: key words for research on topic and additional topics Model tests Teacher’s guide Answer key Unit 2. El señor de Sipán An archaeological dig is a huge challenge! The archaeologists want to save the artifacts for posterity; the police are desperate to keep the peace; the local people would like to make some money (some legally, others illegally) from the excavation. Delve into the mysteries of one specific dig, the Señor de Sipán, considered as important as the discovery of King Tutankhamen’s tomb in Egypt. As always, my content based units include some grammar, in this case the preterit and adverbs of place. It is completely contextualized. Of the many units I have written, over a twenty year period, the story of the dig at Sipán is one of my personal favorites. It combines intrigue, excitement and discovery. I hope you and your students will like it. All Miraflores resources are in the target language only. If you have taken students to Cusco, please share in the Comments section below. I also have written a unit about Machu Picchu, so you can also comment there. I believe visiting another country is an unforgettable experience.

Two thematic units. Contextualized and very rich in cultural information. Please preview. Perfect for International Women´s Day, March 8th. Let´s celebrate! Unit 1. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz y la cocina en los conventos de Nueva España She is our first female poet, our first great feminist. She chose the convent rather than marriage. What was convent life like? Sor Juana read and wrote, she corresponded with learned men all over the world and she cooked. Practice the imperative with a recipe for flan straight from the convent! Discuss how the role of women has changed over the centuries. Unit includes: Subject matter: colonial daily life; convent life Vocabulary: cooking (verbs and nouns); convent Grammar: imperative Oral practice: give ingredients until class guesses dish Homework: recipe; two famous cooks Internet: key words for Net search Model tests and teacher’s guide Unit 2. El Camino de la Plata The Camino de la Plata goes from Mexico City to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Read about marching north in search of silver from two points of view, a Spaniard’s letter to his mother and two Chichimecas talking. A cartoon included has the following caption: Voy a California por el oro. No me interesa construir naciones. Let your students discuss the opening of the American West, the gold rush, and compare it with the Mexican experience. Unit includes: Subject matter: silver towns / silver rush Vocabulary: colonial cities Grammar: imperative Oral practice: visit various cities Homework: daily life of rich and poor Internet: key words for Net search Model tests and teacher’s guide International Baccalaureate All Miraflores resources are exclusively in the target language. All Miraflores resources are exclusively in the target language.

As a Canadian I have easy access to Cuba for there are many flights a day. My trip to research these units was fascinating for the country is such a bundle of contradictions. I came away with a much deeper appreciation for the beauty of the island, breathtaking in so many places, and for a social experiment gone wrong. Two thematic units about Cuba. Please Preview both. Unit 1. Una plantación azucarera, Manaca Iznaga Slavery is a difficult subject. Learn about Manaca Iznaga, a Cuban sugar cane plantación. Slavery can be analyzed from many points of view: history, ecology, mathematics, literature and more. Give your students a choice as to what kind of oral presentation they would like to prepare. Allow them to follow their own interests and relate slavery to mathematics, science, art and literature. Includes: Subject matter: sugar and slavery Vocabulary: sugar and slavery Grammar: difficult genders Oral practice: description of two photographs Homework: a research project Internet: key words for Net search and further research Answer key Unit 2. Un galeón, Nuestra Señora de Atocha A ship is found on the ocean floor hundreds of years after it set sail. Who do the treasures found under the sea belong to? Do they belong to the diver who finds them, to the country whose waters they are in or to the Spanish crown, the original owners? How do you establish ownership? And why was there so much gold and silver on these boats? Was it stolen? The answers to all these questions are not straightforward and will give your students a better perspective on the Spanish colonial empire. Includes. Subject matter: transport Vocabulary: maritime Grammar: difficult genders Oral practice: the world in 1622 (role playing) Homework: the world in 1622 role playing Internet: key words for Net search and further research Answer key

Two culture units. Argentina vs. Paraguay - compare and contrast. Please preview. These two contrasting units, one about a sophisticated metropolis, the second about a forgotten backwater, serve as examples of the great differences between the countries of South America. In these difficult times where many people around the world are thinking about immigration and immigrants, these units will serve as good examples. Unit 1. Paraguay, la excepción a la regla Throughout history people have moved, sometimes just short distances, other times across oceans. Both Argentina and Paraguay are countries peopled by immigrants from many lands who together have forged new realities. Whereas in Paraguay the indigenous people and their language are very much still alive, that is not the case in Argentina. Paraguay is landlocked and much more rural. Find out more. Unit includes: Subject matter: immigration Vocabulary: public jobs Grammar: ´ción´ Oral practice: immigration Homework: immigration Internet: key words for Net search and further research Model tests and teacher’s guide Unit 2. Buenos Aires, París del Nuevo Mundo I loved Buenos Aires. Walking around, visiting some of the best bookstores in South America, eating empanadas on the street, taking pictures in San Telmo. What a treat. Take a walk around Buenos Aires. The grammar includes the passive voice. Unit includes: Subject matter: immigration, history, geography Vocabulary: public places, jobs Grammar: passive voice, ´ción´ Oral practice: immigration Homework: an interview, immigration Internet: key words for Net search and further research Model tests and teacher’s guide All Miraflores resources are exclusively in the target language.

Topics that inspire! Classroom tested with great success. All oral presentation topics are based on research. Key words guide the student's web research. Guidelines for research are provided. Cooperative learning is required. Suggestions are given for audience response. Spain: Bicycling and queens, cities and paintings! Students investigate and present many facets of Spain’s rich culture. 2. Three levels of difficulty, A, B and C. Each level is on a separate page. 3. Level A provides the student 3 suggestions, level B gives the student 4 suggestions and level C, 6 suggestions. Group work is required to divide the assignments and prepare for a class presentation. 4. There is always a central theme. All topics are guided. First sentences are provided. ALSO AVAILABLE IN A BUNDLE. EIGHT SETS OF ORAL PRESENTATIONS (PRESENTE A - PRESENTE H) FOR THE PRICE OF SIX. Presente B has 8 topics about Spain, each divided into three levels of difficulty. Here are the topics and some examples. 1. Visita Madrid – Each student acts as a tourist guide, guía de turismo, and takes the audience on a guided tour. One example: - ¡Tenemos mucha suerte! Esta semana celebramos la fiesta de San Isidro. Les voy a explicar la fiesta y vamos a participar. Palabras clave: Madrid + Fiesta de San Isidro 2. ¡Felicidades¡ Students hand out a prize and explain what it is for. One example: - Los Premios Zarcillo son para los mejores vinos españoles. Me complace otorgar el Gran Zarcillo de Oro y hablar de la región donde crece la vid del ganador. Palabras clave: Premios Zarcillo + Gran Zarcillo de Oro 3. «Vuestra Majestad» Participate in an «audience» with the queen, Isabel la Católica. An example: - Vuestra Majestad, vengo con alimentos del Nuevo Mundo. (Escoge varios.) Voy a decir cómo se llaman y dar sus colores y tamaños. Palabras clave: alimentos del Nuevo Mundo 4. Guernica – Oral presentations on the painting, the town, the bombing, all with the same name. 5. La Vuelta a España - Report on Spain´s national bicycle race, the Spanish equivalent to the Tour de France. 6. Monumentos – Associate an iconic landmark with a city. - Cuenca es la ciudad de las Casas Colgadas. Yo también tengo fotos. Es una ciudad fortificada. Es una ciudad bonita. Palabras clave: Cuenca + Casas Colgadas 7. Toros – A controversial subject. Different students explore and present conflicting opinions. 8. Don Quijote – Spain´s most famous book and its illustrious protagonist, Don Quijote. - Voy a hablar de Sancho Panza, el segundo personaje del libro. Primero, usando un cuadro, voy a describir su aspecto físico. Luego, voy a describir su carácter. Palabras clave: Sancho Panza

A CI activity. Every picture has a question or a space to fill or a comment to make. Engage your students in cultural resources! Learn about how holidays are celebrated in other countries. Both inside homes and in public places, nacimientos are a tradition in the Spanish speaking world. They can be large or small, made out of many different materials and can be sophisticated or very simple. In some countries the baby Jesus is only placed in the nacimiento on December the 25th. Pido por favor que agradezcan con un Like.

Here is my challenge to you. These two free units are about subjects teachers don´t often deal with: llamas and child labor. Take the plunge! Try one. They certainly worked well in my classroom. Let me know in the comments section below, what happened in yours. Laugh and cry! Content-based! Engage the students. Unit 1. La llama You may know that llama wool is used to make ponchos and sweaters. But did you know that the Incas sacrificed llamas in their rituals? That even today the excrement is used for fuel; that llama meat is considered a delicacy; that their fur makes warm slippers? Broaden horizons! Unit includes: Subject matter: animals Vocabulary: animals Grammar: por / para Oral practice: working children Homework: project: to better the conditions of a specific group Internet: key words for further searches; broaden the search Model tests Teacher’s guide Answer key Unit 2. La mina de Potosí Bolivia’s mines introduce a world of dangerous work but they are also a way of practicing those tricky reflexive verbs. Entire families work in the mines and child labor makes for an excellent discussion. Are the children that work in the mines any different from those that flip hamburgers? And if so, how are they different? The units make your students reflect, analyze and compare their world with other realities. Unit includes: Subject matter: mines Vocabulary: modes of transportation Grammar: reflexive verbs Oral practice: working children Homework: NGOs in Bolivia Internet: key words for further searches; broaden the search Model tests Teacher’s guide Answer key All Miraflores resources are solely in the target language.