It’s so important for our students to hear a variety of speakers and accents when learning a new language, because that’s what they will encounter during authentic communication. We have to provide opportunities for them to practice listening in Spanish as much as possible. With YouTube and other resources so readily available, there are millions of ways to introduce students to native speakers from all over the world! But sifting through millions of videos to find level appropriate (and school appropriate) listening activities takes hours.
How to find level appropriate listening activities quickly
YouTube is the best place to find authentic interpretive listening activities, but it’s not the only place. Over the years I have found videos and recordings from native speakers around the world and created interpretive listening activities to assess student comprehension. Each one of these activities has been tested on middle school Spanish students to make sure the level was appropriate. While some teachers may find some of these activities too advanced for their particular students, there are lots of ways to make them accessible to all.
How to make listening accessible at any level
#1: Slow it down
Did you know you can slow down YouTube videos?!?!
This is absolutely perfect for those wonderful clips you find that are just a little bit too fast for your kiddos to understand. We want them to practice listening in Spanish without shutting down!
Click on the gear image in the bottom right corner. Then select the playback speed.
I typically slow it down to 0.75. Anything slower than that can distort the quality and just sound really strange. (Side note: You could also use this tool to speed things up! Great for online courses, mandatory trainings, or watching something where I just need to get to the important part!)
#2 Use subtitles
If you have shown DVDs or movies over streaming services in your classroom, then you are familiar with the option of using subtitles in English or Spanish. Most YouTube videos also have the option of turning on closed captioning (CC). This is a great way to simplify listening practice for your students as well! I will admit that the closed captioning is not always perfect, and content creators have to give you the option when they create their videos (pictured above), but most of the higher quality videos have it. Think of all the money you can save without having to invest in pricey DVDs! And then in addition to listening practice, they also get some reading practice as well!
#3: Look for cartoons in your language
Did you know that most cartoons your students watched in English also come in Spanish (and some other languages too)?! Students will be so engaged when you show them Peppa Pig, Sponge Bob, or Wild Kratt in the target language! It brings back fun memories for most students, and the visual nature of cartoons makes it easier for them to understand. These are great to use for movie talks too! Students listen to you narrate while the video is muted, and this allows you to focus on some key phrases or structures. Then for fun, you can replay the video with full volume on regular or slow-speed for them to hear and compare. Need another scaffold? Try subtitles too!
How to introduce listening in Spanish to students
Before you begin, it’s important to set clear expectations for your students and provide them with strategies to succeed at listening in Spanish. Otherwise, you will inevitably hear a chorus of:
“S/he speaks too fast! I didn’t understand anything!”
Tell your students:
“This will probably sound fast to you. That’s ok. Spanish speakers do tend to speak more quickly than English speakers. Your goal is to keep listening and not shut down. Before we start, I’m going to share some insider tips!”
Student tips
1. Tell students to pre-read the questions and make a prediction about the main idea of the recording.
2. Encourage them to ask questions about words on the page they don’t understand and to make notes in the margins.
3. Assure students that they will listen to each recording more than once. During the first time, they should only listen for some of the answers. If it feels easier than expected, they can listen for a few more. The next time, listen for the rest or check your work.
When students know what to expect, they generally respond better. Additionally, this introduction lets them know that you are on their team and want them to be successful!
Teacher tips for successful listening practice in Spanish
Once you have gone over the expectations with students, there are a few different ways to facilitate the activity. The first time you do any type of listening in Spanish, pass out the handout and ask them to complete the activity on paper while you play the recording for the whole class. This will avoid outside distractions. Play the recording once, give students a few seconds to regroup, and then play it a second time. Then go over the answers as a class.
The first Spanish listening activity I generally do with my students is numbers and days of the week. We do the whole page of activities together, over a few days, to build confidence. Never assign more than two Spanish listening activities in a class period or it can feel overwhelming.
Once students have the necessary strategies they need to feel comfortable listening in Spanish on their own, you can begin assigning it for homework. Using these activities as homework is great for a few reasons:
- Students can work at their own pace. Some students only need to listen once while other students need to hear the same recording four times.
- You don’t have to waste time passing out, collecting, and untangling headphones or letting kids go to their locker to get their own.
- Listening activities for homework forces students to listen to Spanish outside of class as well!
If you pass out a photocopy with six activities, you can ask students to complete two each night and go over the answers each day in class until the whole page is complete.
Many times, students will earn very high grades on these assignments because they have been given the ability to work at their own pace. This doesn’t bother me because they are getting the repetition I want them to have!
