Señora (Mrs.) Roberta Escobar
1st/ 2nd year Spanish OVHS
Thank you for stopping by to get to know me better as your child's teacher! I adore the Spanish Language, almost more than English. I have been married to my husband of El Salvador for 7.5 years, with him for 10, and have been living life fully immersed in the Spanish Language for that entire decade! I am fluently bilingual and have assisted with Community and Church translations many times over the years.
While no one ever knows a second language as well as their first, I can assure you that your child has a confident resource in me as my second language replaces my first quite often in day-to-day life.
FUN FACTS:
I spent two months living independently in Spain to finish my student teaching
I have been to El Salvador twice and plan for more future trips!
I believe no child learns the same, just as not every adult learns the same. If they are going to succeed, then you need to hit their learning style. I incorporate all the major learning styles in my weekly plans (visual, audio, verbal, physical, logical)
HOW I TEACH YOUR KIDS
Your child may or may not have homework each night, it simply depends on what we are doing the next day. I am not a huge supporter of homework as "busy time" or a way to add grades to the gradebook. If I send home something to do, then it is purely an assignment to strengthen them in whatever we are learning. Homework is NOT an appropriate teaching tool, for me it's solely an educational resource for review.
Your child may tell you that we played games, watched a video or did a hands-on project quite often. This is the gift of being an Elementary Ed teacher first; I believe the same process that we use to teach Kindergarteners new skills when learning to read is the same process we should follow when teaching teenagers and adults how to learn a new language. Did you realize that a child's language part of their brain closes around 5 years old? This is a biological protection feature to help them cue into their home language and learn it fluently. Any languages introduced before 5 and learned continually after get locked in as well. That is why preschool and before is the best time to introduce a second language and EXACTLY why your teenager (or any adult) finds it very hard to begin learning that second language. By adolescence your brain has been so tightly closed off to your first language that you literally have to open it back up and retrain it.
I get that. I remember struggling in high school and the only reason I was able to fall in love with this language was because I had a teacher who understood this as well.
Navigating this process effectively can take weeks for each concept to be learned effectively, but when done right you can be assured your student has been given the best chance at learning their new language.
This learning experience consists of four stages:
Concrete Experience (CE): feeling (get the students personally invested the lesson)
Reflective Observation (RO): watching (role modeling)
Abstract Conceptualization (AC): thinking (games and group work)
Active Experimentation (AE): doing (exams, presentation and quizzes)
Please give your child grace and encourage them to give themselves grace as well. Any child truly wanting to learn this language can succeed in time. And if they simply need this class to complete a credit...well...I can help them get there as well:) My classroom is a safe place to make mistakes and grow!
THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW AS A PARENT:
GRADING:
This year 2023-2024 your child's grade will be category weighted for my class. Each item will still have point values but the categories will be weighted as such:
Classwork/Participation- 40% of grade (daily or 3 times a week at minimum)
Tests: 20% of grade ( once a week)
Quiz: 20% of grade ( once a week)
Projects: 20% of grade ( several throughout the semester but not weekly)
PHONES:
There is a STRICT no phone policy in my room. This supports the student handbook and enables learning in the class. All students have been made aware of it and should have brought home papers for you to sign. It is also on Canvas as an assignment.
1st offense: Phone placed in my "phone jail" for the period.
2nd offense: Phone placed in my phone jail until the end of the day and YOU are contacted so that you know your child is having trouble staying off their phone in class.
3rd offences: Phone placed in my phone jail until the end of the day and an office referral made so that we can better get a handle on following the phone policy with that child.
Thanks for letting me teach your children! Please do not hesitate to email me questions
rescobar@socs.k12.in.us. My extension at the high school is 6308
