Practical Proficiency Podcast
Where world language teachers gather to transition to proficiency oriented instruction through comprehensible input. All through practical, real-life, teacher-friendly ideas that make teaching language more joyful! Hosted by Devon of La Libre Language Learning.
Episodes
32 episodes
What If You Had a Planning Partner in Your Pocket? UNIT IDEAS SERIES: Adverbs of Frequency
Planning a world language unit doesn't have to be a solo mission - this episode offers a detailed walkthrough of teaching adverbs of frequency with a proficiency-oriented approach. I share my exact five-day plan for introducing, practicing, and...
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Season 3
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Episode 32
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14:39
Language Glue: Why Your Students Can't Remember What You Taught Them
Language teachers everywhere face the same challenge: how do we create units that actually lead to acquisition instead of just memorization? The answer lies in understanding how our brains naturally process and store language.In this ey...
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Season 3
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Episode 31
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25:08
Guest Kia London on Patience in Proficiency & 90% Target Language : A Teacher's Journey
Patience trumps perfection when transitioning to proficiency-based language instruction, as veteran Spanish teacher Kia London reveals in this enlightening conversation about her journey teaching at a new school. With 19 years of experience acr...
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Season 3
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Episode 30
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47:42
UNIT IDEAS: Description - Physical and Personality Traits Units for Proficiency-Oriented Instruction
The ability to describe people - both physically and by personality - isn't just another vocabulary list in your world language curriculum. It's a pivotal developmental milestone on your students' language journey, marking their transition from...
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Season 3
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Episode 29
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29:46
Party Host, Not Grammar Ghost: Why Interpersonal Mode is the Secret Sauce & How to Do More Speaking in Class
The moment a language student first connects with a native speaker is electric—that realization that "I can actually do this!" This transformative experience is precisely why students enroll in language classes, yet ironically, interpersonal co...
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Season 3
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Episode 28
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37:11
Carnaval & Mardi Gras Unit Ideas: Why Carnaval is a Must-Teach Celebration | UNIT IDEAS Series
Step into the vibrant world of Carnaval! In this UNIT IDEAS mini-episode, we explore how this much-beloved celebration transcends mere festivities to become a powerful teaching tool for world language educators. Carnaval is not just a festival ...
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Season 3
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Episode 27
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32:41
#26 - Wildly Engaging & Easy Activities with Music: An Interview with Roxxem's cofounder Shawn Lee
Ready to transform your language classroom with the power of music? Discover how Roxxem, an innovative platform co-founded by Shawn Lee, is changing the game for language educators. By turning popular songs into engaging lessons, Roxxem offers ...
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Season 3
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Episode 26
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43:23
#25 - 10 Tips for Student Relationships & Classroom Management in Language Class
Strong relationships is the first and most essential foundation to a target-language rich world language classroom. Tune in to see my top 10 tips for classroom management and building student relationships specific to world language teachers!&n...
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Season 3
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Episode 25
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28:41
#24 - Innovative Literacy Strategies for Language Teachers with DigiGals: Jen Degenhardt & Theresa Marrama
The Digigals, Jennifer and Theresa, have written a combined 120 novels for world language classes. Listen with us as the Digilangua creators, known as the Digigals in their dynamic duo, answer real community questions from the Practical Profici...
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Season 3
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Episode 24
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53:03
#23 - What Should I Teach In Levels 1 & 2? Units and Skills
Ever wondered: am I teaching the right things? How do I know that my units are getting the job done? This episode mini-series on unit and skills to include in each level was inspired by a common question from the Practical Proficiency Netwo...
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Season 2
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Episode 23
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34:38
#22 - What Level is My Student? Intermediate Low - ACTFL Levels Deep Dive
Intermediate Low is the most misunderstood proficiency level. Let's dive in with a teacher-friendly description of what your intermediate lows can actually do with language. We'll also talk about how to adapt your curriculum to better serve you...
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Season 2
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Episode 22
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27:39
#21 - Teacher Longevity and Maintaining Joy with Kia London | Meet the Speaker Series
The Practical & Comprehensible conference is back for 2024! Meet presenter Kia D. London to hear more about her awesome presentation and focus on teacher longevity and maintaining joy, especially as an introverted middle school teacher ...
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Season 2
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Episode 21
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30:23
#20 - Beating Teacher Burnout with Clarity and Confidence | Pav of Fle avec Mme D| Meet the Speaker Series
The Practical & Comprehensible conference is back for 2024! Meet presenter Pav of Fle avec Mme D to hear more about her awesome presentation and focus on beating teacher burnout through her journey of having no designated prep time...
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Season 2
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Episode 20
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25:25
#19 - Identity Self-Exploration with Students, Representation, and Social Justice with Middle Schoolers with Allison Perryman | Meet the Speaker Series Practical & Comprehensible
The Practical & Comprehensible conference is back for 2024! Meet presenter Allison Perryman of The Cultural Classroom to hear more about her awesome presentation and focus on social justice, representation, and identity self-exploration...
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Season 2
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Episode 19
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34:41
#18 - Using Research-Based Social Justice Units and Teaching Techniques with Timothy Chávez | Meet the Speaker Series Practical & Comprehensible
Practical and Comprehensible is the premiere conference event each year for proficiency-oriented world language teachers! This year, come meet the speakers on the Practical Proficiency Podcast to get a sneak peek and bonus conten...
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Season 2
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Episode 18
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31:41
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#17 - Using Art in World Language | Practical & Comprehensible Meet the Presenter: Courtney of Llearning Llama
The Practical & Comprehensible conference is back for 2024! Meet presenter Courtney Bonino of Llearning Llama to hear more about her awesome presentation: ARTful Lesson Planning! Her presentation this year is all about how...
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Season 2
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Episode 17
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19:53
#16 - Novice High | What Level is My Student?
This one is for novice high - the level you'll spend the most time with in your career! Listen to get in-depth examples for exactly what novice highs can do with language, in teacher-friendly language of course!
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Season 1
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Episode 16
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25:49
#15 - Novice Mid: What Levels Are My Students? ACTFL Levels Deep Dive
We're continuing this series on the new 2024 ACTFL guidelines. This answers a common question I get - what level should my students be in and how do I know that? Let's talk about what Novice Mid actually looks like and what it means for y...
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Season 1
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Episode 15
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12:05
#14 - What Level is My Student? Novice Low - ACTFL Levels Deep Dive
The new ACTFL Proficiency guidelines for 2024 are HERE! Our new series comes from a common listener question - what level should my students be in and how do I know that? Let's talk about what Novice Low actually looks like and what ...
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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15:26
#13 - Element 10: Culture | 10 Elements of Proficiency-Oriented World Language Instruction
It's here, the one we world language teachers have been waiting for - culture lessons! However, culture is complex. Our solution to exposing students to widely diverse cultures should be equally complex and thoughtful. Here's some practical ide...
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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22:00
#12 - Element 9: Proficiency-Oriented Assessments | 10 Elements of Proficiency-Oriented World Language Instruction
Hey hey hey, it's assessment day! This could be a giant deep dive. Today, we're focusing on how to switch mindsets from our assessments being an occasional to a REGULAR and CRUCIAL piece of the proficiency-oriented classroom. ...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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18:08
#11 - Element 8: 60% Input | 10 Elements of Proficiency-Oriented World Language Instruction
Today's element - input! This is a proficiency teacher favorite. We always talk about how important it is, but that doesn't always mean that YOU need to be the source.
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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7:39
#10 - Element 7: Inclusive and Community Oriented Spaces | 10 Elements of Proficiency-Oriented World Language Instruction
In this episode, we discuss a list of the people I enjoy learning from to further my journey into equity-driven education. These are the trusted speakers, writers, and teachers to follow and keep in your feed!
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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9:30
#9 - Element 6: Conduit for Conversation | 10 Elements of Proficiency-Oriented World Language Instruction
Today's element - the class! Everything should be a conduit for conversation in world language. So where does that leave teachers? As the party host, of course!
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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7:27
#8 - Allison Wienhold of Mis Clases Locas - Movies in World Language Class
Let's dive into how to use movies in your classroom! Allison of Mis Clases Locas is an expert in utilizing culture-rich movies as a source of input and cultural perspectives, especially for multiprep teachers. Connect with her below and...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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37:18
