Ideas For Teaching The “Los Pollitos Dicen” Song

Ideas For Teaching The “Los Pollitos Dicen” Song

by | Mar 27, 2018 | songs

“Los Pollitos” is one of those traditional songs that everyone who grew up in a Spanish speaking country knows from childhood. It’s catchy, cute, and fun so I make sure to teach it every year to my Kindergarten students. I am sharing some ideas that I use while teaching this song.

Use TPR while teaching the song. I like using American sign language, or I sometimes create the gestures along with my students. Click on the links below to see some of the signs for the song:

dicen  pio, pio, pio
cuando tienen hambre,
cuando tiene frio. 
el maiz y  el trigo
y les presta abrigo (I use love /hug for this one).
Bajo sus dos alas, (I point at the arms and bend them like wings),
Accurrucaditos, (again use sign for love or hug)
Hasta el otro día, (ASL for “next/ day“)

Make props to use while singing the song. Download them HERE!

After singing the song, your students can color a simple page related to the song.

I’ve had the chance in previous schools to have real chicks in the classroom and sing the song to them. We don’t have real pollitos now, but I still have fun teaching this song. 

Watch a time-lapse video of little chicks hatching

There are different versions of the song on YouTube. Choose the one you like or think works best for your classes.

Have fun singing!
Carolina

You might like these resources on Teachers Pay Teachers:
Teaching Days of the Week in Spanish

Teaching Days of the Week in Spanish

by | Mar 19, 2018 | Days of the week in Spanish, los días de la semana

This is game that works wonders with preschool students and, in my experience, is one of their favorites. I have never had a class that fails to embrace this game. In fact, because there is such demand for it, the game presents a great opportunity to learn “otra vez.” Once students start saying (or pleading!) “again,”  just respond by asking them “¿otra vez?” I even use the song to teach “more” in sign language. This game is also great for students to learn how to be patient as waiting for the last person is not always something that kindergarteners and first graders like to do. This game doesn’t require any preparation other than that you might want to teach this song before playing the game.

How to play the game:

Have your students form a circle while standing. Choose a student to start first. To choose students impartially, I like using chants similar to “Eeny, meeny, miny, moe” in Spanish. I use “De tin marín, de do pingüe, cúcara mácara títere fue, uno, dos y tres.” Please share in the comments if you have any other ones you use!

After deciding on the student who will go first, we start singing the song for the days of the week while pointing at the students in the order of the circle. We sing, “lunes, martes, miércoles, jueves, viernes, sábado, domingo, siéntate.” This is an elimination game. Whoever is after “domingo,” we will say “siéntate” and that student has to sit. We continue the song until two people are left standing in the circle. We continue singing, and the last person standing wins the game. We also sing using different voices that vary according to speed and pitch (fast, slow, high, low).  I hope your students have fun playing this game just as mine do!

Have fun!
You might also like these resources available on Teachers Pay Teachers:
   

 

A Peek Inside My Deskless Classroom

by | Sep 18, 2017 | classroom decoration, deskless classroom, Spanish class, Spanish Classroom

I hope everyone is having a great school year so far! This will be my 4th week with students. We spent the first week and a half making it a safe place for our students, getting to know to know one another and giving them a chance to get to know the space. I teach K-5, and this week was my first full week with my K students. Everything is so new for them that our school principal and their teachers feel that for specialists to start teaching them subject material from day one could be terrifying! I love this new approach of getting to know our students before we dive into our curriculums.

 
I have been working on classroom routines, classroom rules and encouraging them to use hand signals when we are in class. I have decorated my classroom with some input for them but will be adding more little by little. I feel that it doesn’t make sense for me to fill every space on the walls of my classrooms with signs that they don’t yet understand, and I know I am not in need of them yet.
I have been making some changes around the room according to the needs of my students. I have a deskless classroom. My K-2 students sit on the rug, and grades 3-5 have assigned seats.  Each chair has a pocket where we keep our notebooks and pencils. That saves me time when we do writing activities.
 
 
 

I have a calendar, but I mostly use an online version projected on the board. The online version of the calendar has links to guess the day’s temperature in different Spanish countries.

 

I have about 115 students, so this poster has been helpful to remember dates. Every month we change it, and the children quickly write their name and date of their birthday.

 
 
 
 
 
I have a class list and have assigned a number to each of my students in each grade. I use these popsicle sticks (not a new idea!) to choose participants in the different games we play, since sometimes it is hard to choose. Students also have the choice to say “paso” to indicate “I pass.”
 
 
 
 

I added a reading corner to my classroom. I haven’t use it yet, but I plan to add copies of the TPRS® stories we do this year. I have some students who are heritage speakers, so I think they could benefit from other stories as well.

 
 
 
 
I also like comparing the time zones in different countries. I have a clock that shows Colombia, one for Austin and one for Equatorial Guinea. I might change the countries later. 
 
I have decorated the classroom with some useful language, question boards and signals, and classroom rules. At the top of the board, I keep the flags of the countries of study. We do about 8 per school year with grades 2-5. One more thing is that this year the interactive board comes with a microphone which is great for the little ones. They can hear me better and are more engaged.
 
 
 
I have a projector that I can use to work on rewriting stories together or simply filling out worksheets in class. Best thing to have ever!
 
 
 

Next to the projector, I have a table with different props and with some Yoga cards that I use as brain breaks with my students.

 
 
I also have use this fun game called “La caja mágica de pañuelos”  or “Magic Tissue Box.” You can read all about it here!
 
 
 
 
I also keep a chime handy when the attention getters I use don’t work. Voice saver!
 
 

I have decorated the classroom with art from different Spanish speaking countries. I wish I had one to represent each country. So far I have a lot from Colombia, Panamá, La República Dominica, Guatemala, Ecuador, México, and Chile. I write the name of the country under the piece of art so students know where it comes from.

 
 
I also have have other small decorations around the room, mostly around my computer. I have a chair next to some furniture that is part of the classroom.
 
 
 
 
 
 
I use this chair for students to sit when we sing the birthday song.
 

This is a Friday selfie! Feeling ready to go home!

 
 
How is your school year going? Do you have a classroom, or are you traveling? I used to be a traveling teacher and wrote a post a while back about how I used to roll! You might find the post helpful!
¡Feliz año escolar!
 
You might like these resources available on Teachers Pay Teachers:
 
MONARCH BUTTERFLY MIGRATION FOR SPANISH CLASS

MONARCH BUTTERFLY MIGRATION FOR SPANISH CLASS

by | Jul 26, 2017 | culture, Day of the Dead, El Día de los Muertos, Monarch butterflies

A few years ago the science teacher at my school approached me with an exciting idea. It was September, and she started the year off teaching about the Monarch butterfly migration. She wanted to create a cross-curricular connection and shared with me the idea of joining a symbolic butterfly migration through an organization called “Journey North.”  It was the best idea ever!

She taught the butterfly life cycle in her science class, which included raising the butterflies in her classroom. She also taught the Monarch migration and why they are important connectors of ecosystems and landscapes. 


In our Spanish class, we learned about the butterfly migration traveling from north to south because it was the fall. These are some of the questions we used and might help you start a conversation in class. Having a map and a paper butterfly helps a lot!

¿Dónde vivimos? ¿Vivimos en Colombia o en Estados Unidos?
¿Cuál es la estación? ¿Es el verano? ¿Es el otoño?
¿Qué animal es? ¿Es un perro? ¿Es un gato? ¿Es una mariposa? ¿Es un gato o una mariposa?
¿Qué clase de mariposa es?
¿Por qué van las monarcas al sur?
¿Adónde van las monarcas?
¿Adónde en México van las monarcas?
¿Cuándo van las monarcas a Michoacán?
¿Qué se celebra en México el 1 y 2 de noviembre?
¿Qué representan las monarcas para las personas en Michoacán?

Each student decorated small paper butterflies and wrote basic information such as:
Yo me llamo _________.
Yo tengo ______ años.
Yo vivo en __________.
Mi color favorito es___________.



We also decorated a bigger butterfly the size of a filing folder and added a picture of our class in the middle. We also needed to include a self-addressed, stamped envelope (10” X 13”) in order to get our butterflies in the spring. I uploaded a picture of a big butterfly to the Journey North website and shared it with parents. On the map, we were able to see the schools that were participating in the country, as well our big butterfly.

We also read a story called “Monarca va a Michoacán” to introduce and review high-frequency vocabulary.


We made a connection with the homeroom teachers. During their reading time, students had different books related to butterflies and also to “El Día de los Muertos.” It’s believed that Monarchs are the souls of the departed and loved ones, and they arrive in Michoacán to join the celebration. Students read “Uncle Monarch” in their classrooms, and that helped us make a connection to explore the Day of the Dead celebration.


We also got to say “adiós” to our real butterflies before they embarked on their journey south.  

In Spanish class, we read a bilingual book called “El Día de los Muertos.” It led us to make a comparison between Halloween and this beautiful celebration for them to understand the meaning of the Day of the Dead and why it’s important to the Mexican people – and how it differs from Halloween.

This beautiful video is also great to support this unit!

When the spring came, we had an awesome surprise! We got mail from Journey North with beautiful paper butterflies made by children in Mexico and other parts of the United States. This was an amazing experience not only for the teachers who got to work together but also for the children who were excited about their paper butterflies. This is also an opportunity to raise awareness about Monarchs and what could happen if they go extinct. 



Thinking about joining the journey this year? Click here to visit the link to learn how to participate and download the “Teacher Packet” with all the steps to join the symbolic migration. The deadline to join is around the first week of October, so make sure you don’t miss the date. 

Last, but not least, I recorded this song with some friends in 2012 to use in my classes. I am not the best singer but had a lot of fun recording this song. 

Like it? Pin it!
 

Mini Book: ¡Viva Colombia!

by | Jul 15, 2017 | Back to School Resources, Colombia, el 20 de julio, La Independencia de Colombia

This year marks the 207th year since Colombia gained its independence from Spain on July 20th, 1810. Colombians observe this day by taking the day off from work. Many of the main celebrations happen in Bogotá, Colombia’s capital city. The Army puts on various parades, and the president delivers a speech to commemorate the day. It is also common for Colombians to show pride by wearing the colors of the Colombian flag (yellow, blue, and red), and many people put flags up outside their houses.

What a great way to celebrate by sharing this librito with you! Please click on the picture to download your copy!

 
This is a video tutorial showing how to make the book:
Just in case you need one more video, this one shows the steps more slowly. 

 If you want to learn more about how this holiday is celebrated in Bogotá, this video is quite elaborate and has plenty of detail.


¡Qué viva Colombia!
More resources for teaching Spanish available on Teachers Pay Teachers