The Affective Filter is one of Dr. Stephen Krashen’s hypotheses for language acquisition. It refers to the learner’s emotional state when learning a language. If a student is feeling stress during class, this could generate a mental block and cause them to feel overwhelmed, making the affective filter go high. The best approach for students’ acquisition process is to keep the affective filter low by fostering a positive and relaxed learning environment that motivates students to engage, stay motivated, and remain open to input.
Here are some suggestion to help keep that affective filter low:
Mistakes Are Ok!
Make sure your students understand that it is totally fine to make mistakes. When students make errors while communicating in the target language, it is best not to interrupt. Instead, as a teacher or instructor, engage with the students by modeling the correct way to express the idea. For example, if a student says, “This is a car blue,” the teacher would respond, “Yes, this is a blue car.” This approach ensures the student does not feel corrected and allows them to hear the correct form in context. Encouraging students to take risks in this way helps to keep the affective filter low.
Make Sure You are Using Comprehensible Language
Something that can quickly generate stress is a learner who doesn’t understand what’s being said to them. This will generate the affective filter to elevate. The best way for teachers to lower stress in the classroom is to always use comprehensible language and ensure that students understand the messages in the target language. It’s important to understand the proficiency level of our students, use visuals and body language to support the messages, as well as pause to check understanding
Games, Games And More Games!
Use non-competitive games. Participating in non-competitive games is an excellent way to minimize the affective filter, especially with activities such as memory games and bingo that involve vocabulary, phrases, or sentences from stories.These games don’t require a lot of preparation; some of them can even be created with your students. Games that incorporate movement are also great, such as Four Corners or A mí también. Total Physical Response (TPR)-based games, such as Follow the Leader, Simon Says, and Charades, work great too!
Stories
Stories are valuable tool for language teaching as they engage learners emotionally, provide contextual learning, expose them to natural language patterns, help them create emotional connections, and present a variety of language use. All these factors contribute to a positive learning environment with a lower affective filter. After telling or reading a story, you can extend it by having students engage in role-playing or acting out the narrative.
Less Is More!
When structuring lessons, consider the “less is more” approach to prevent overwhelming your students. Providing a manageable amount of new vocabulary and language structures helps maintain a low affective filter. Focus on quality over quantity, allowing students to thoroughly internalize the language before introducing new concepts. This contributes to a sense of achievement, reducing stress and anxiety for the learner.
An environment that promotes a low affective filter prompts learners to be more successful at acquiring a language!
A short story can be used in more than one class! There are many activities you can engage in after telling or reading a short story. Here are ideas some that will help you maximize short stories:
Start by Introducing the Characters of the Story: If possible, print the characters and discuss details such as sizes, colors, ages, and so on. Create gestures for each character and use TPR to introduce them if the characters are animals.
Tell the Story: There are various ways to narrate a story. You can draw the story, use props, or read it aloud.
Retell the Story: Utilize pictures from the story to recount it, and pose questions about it. Depending on your students’ proficiency levels, you can ask yes-or-no questions like “¿Hay un cerdo? ¿Sí o no?”, make statements where students complete your sentences, such as “El muñeco de nieve está ______.” or ask open-ended questions like “¿Por qué está triste el muñeco de nieve?”
Play Games That Connect to The Story: Incorporate guessing games, memory games, and more! For instance, in the case of this story, students can find under which number there is a nose for “el muñeco de nieve.”
And Don’t Forget to Play Matamoscas: “Matamoscas,” or “flyswatter” in English, is an easy game to play. Divide the class into two teams and give each team a flyswatter. Display words or pictures related to the story on a board. Speak a word or describe a picture in Spanish, and players must quickly find and hit it with their flyswatter.
Act it Out: Print out props and take turns allowing your students to act out the story. This is a fun and engaging way to provide repetition. With elementary students, it works best if the teacher narrates the story.
Use Mini-Books: Have your students color the mini-books and share them with their families and/or caregivers, or simply keep the story to read it.
Storyboards: Storyboards are excellent for helping students understand the main ideas of the story. They not only reinforce vocabulary but also check comprehension.
What other activities would you add or use when incorporating short stories into your classes?
Returning to school after the winter break can be a challenging experience, not only for teachers but also for students, as both often feel fatigued and out of their regular routines. My recommendation is to keep it simple and introduce engaging activities that can be completed within a single class period.
Here are some ideas for what you can do on the first class after the break:
Roll a Story: The “Roll a Story” activity is an engaging and easy-to-use activity that is excellent for providing input at the novice or beginner levels. You can download it here.
Roll a Monster: Your students just need dice, a template with different parts for the monster, a page for students to draw and color, pencils, and to get ready to roll the dice to create monsters. Find it here!
Colgadores para puertas: It’s a simple and relaxing activity for the first days of the new year. Just print it and give it to your students for coloring and cutting out. Download it here.
Color by Code Winter Pages: This is one of the most low-key activities. Just print the pages and let your students color! Find this resource on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Calendar Talk: Download this calendar template and use it to fill out with your students the different holidays and celebrations in January. Don’t forget to add birthdays!
Every year comes with its share of highs and lows, and though this particular year brought its challenges, I’m grateful to say that I’m in good health. I’ve found immense joy in conducting training sessions for teachers, and I hope the coming year will bring even more opportunities for me to do so.
Looking ahead, I’m excited to continue using my blog as my primary platform for sharing my experiences. While I have a presence on other social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook, I believe my blog allows me to provide deeper insights and support to others.
I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for your presence and support. Thank you for being a part of this journey. and wish you peace for the new year.
Here are the top three most visited posts on my blog this year:
1. Activities to Foster Mindfulness in the Spanish Classroom
From calming breathing exercises to mindful storytelling in Spanish, this post covers practical and creative ideas to help your students develop essential life skills while improving their language proficiency.
Explore exciting activities and strategies that will help your students gain vocabulary and confidence. Whether you’re a new or experienced teacher, this post provides valuable insights and practical ideas to add enthusiasm to your Spanish lesson
3. Story Asking in the Elementary Classroom
Create engaging stories with your students effortlessly! This post offers valuable tips for incorporating story asking into your lessons.
I’m always grateful for all the readers here! Thank you for your support in this blogging adventure. Wishing you a Feliz Año Nuevo!
Creating a gratitude map with students is simple and does not require a lengthy process. This activity can be done at any time of the year.
To begin, download the templates HERE and select the one you consider most suitable for your classes. Subsequently, facilitate a group conversation about the things your students are grateful for. Make sure to take notes, and if possible, accompany them with drawings or visuals.
Next, ask your students to draw or write in each space of the template the things they feel grateful for. Encourage them to decorate their gratitude maps with colors, markers, and other creative elements. This will make their maps more attractive and personal.
Finally, create a space for your students to share their gratitude maps. If possible, create an area in the classroom or school where you can display their gratitude maps. Remember to adapt the activity according to the age and level of your students.
¡Hola! I am Carolina, a Colombian elementary Spanish teacher based in Boston, MA. Fun for Spanish Teachers is the result of my passion for teaching Spanish to children and my desire to inspire collaboration and creativity in a vibrant teaching and learning community. It’s the perfect stop if you are looking for songs, games, teaching tips, stories, and fun for your classes.
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