March is the perfect time to bring some excitement into your Spanish class with Madness Brackets! I first heard about this idea from Spanish Plans years ago. This activity combines music, competition, and student choice — all while reinforcing listening skills.
In this post, I’ll share how to use Madness Brackets in your Spanish class, why they work so well, and how you can adapt them for different types of content all year long.
What Are Madness Brackets?
Madness Brackets are inspired by the excitement of sports brackets during March Madness — but with a language twist! Here’s how it works:
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Create a bracket with different Spanish-language songs.
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Students listen to the songs in pairs or small groups.
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Vote for their favorites, and advance the winning songs to the next round.
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Keep going until you have a class favorite!
It’s easy to set up and creates a ton of excitement in the classroom. Students get exposed to authentic Spanish-language music while improving their listening skills and cultural understanding. Plus, the element of competition keeps them motivated and engaged.
Why Madness Brackets Work So Well
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Student choice – Letting students vote makes them feel involved and invested.
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Repetition with purpose – Students listen to songs multiple times as they advance, reinforcing vocabulary and comprehension.
Not Just for Music – Use Brackets All Year Long
One of the best things about this idea is that it’s not limited to music or March. You can adapt the bracket format for all kinds of content and use it throughout the school year:
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Animated shorts – Let students vote for their favorite animated short in Spanish.
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Animals – Create a bracket featuring different animals and let students decide which one wins based on descriptive clues.
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Books – Compare different picture books or short stories.
Brackets are easy tool that can be used to introduce vocabulary, practice listening and speaking skills, and build classroom community.
How to Get Started with Brackets in Spanish Class
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Choose your theme (music, animals, movies, etc.).
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Create a simple bracket (you can use free online tools like Canva or Google Slides).
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Introduce the content and explain the voting process.
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Let students listen, watch, or explore — and then vote.
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Continue until you have a winner.
Madness Brackets with Animals
In this example, students will learn about eight endangered animals through readings and comprehension activities, which will take about eight classes. Introduce one animal per class. After every two readings, have students choose a winner to advance to the next round. Continue until only two animals remain, then have students pick the final winner. You can enhance the activity by showing a short YouTube video about each animal. It’s a great opportunity to use a map to explore each animal’s origin.
Example of what the Madness Bracket will look with animals! Find the readings on Teachers Pay Teachers!
Ready to Try Madness Brackets in Your Spanish Class?
Madness Brackets (or any type of bracket) are an easy and engaging way to bring excitement into your Spanish class while reinforcing language skills. Whether you use music, animated shorts, or another theme, brackets are a great tool for increasing student engagement and building cultural connections.
Have you tried Madness Brackets or another type of bracket in your class? Let me know in the comments — I’d love to hear about your experience.
