World Languages
The world languages department currently offers French and Spanish. We use an immersion method encouraging students to communicate in the target language from the very first day of class. Our two-year language sequence is designed to give students the necessary communicative and grammatical skills to prepare them for college coursework in foreign language.
French 1
In this introductory French course, students learn the basics of communication and gain exposure to various facets of French culture. Students will gain confidence in speaking a foreign language by acquiring necessary skills for effective communication: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Students will acquire these skills through cultural activities, role-playing, poetry, and music. As we explore topics such as Conversational Basics, Interests of the Youth and Family, students will discover the ways in which the French language and French cultures are relevant to their own lives not only as students at Essex Street Academy, but also as developing global citizens. This course will be presented primarily in the target language (approximately 90%). Class Website
French 2
This course builds on communication skills and cultural knowledge to which students were exposed in the introductory course. Students will engage with the language through work in small and large groups, as well as through prepared and spontaneous dialogues, songs, poems, film, scripted listening activities and authentic texts. During this second year, students will focus more on reading and writing than in their previous year’s study while focusing on the topics of Personal Identity and Interests, Leisure Activities, and Clothing/Fashion. Students will explore French culture more deeply through research assignments and mini-projects to be completed in small groups based on 5 different regions of France: Aquitaine, Midi-Pyrénées, Languedoc-Roussillon, Pays de la Loire, and Centre. This course is taught almost exclusively in French.
Spanish 1
Spanish 1 semester 1 is a language course designed to build a strong foundation for linguistic and cultural proficiency. The four basic language skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking will be practiced and honed through a variety of weekly formative assessments. Just as with first language acquisition, students will be provided with a wide range of comprehensible input. In the spirit of Stephen Krashen’s theories on second language acquisition, students will have to grapple with input that is at their level and slightly above in order to create a strong linguistic base. All grammar structures and vocabulary structures will center around thematic units with materials mined from target cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. Students will be able to develop a deeper linguistic and cultural understanding of the Spanish-speaking world through this course.
Spanish 2
Spanish 2 semester 1 is a language course designed to further students’ linguistic and cultural proficiency. The four basic language skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking will be practiced and honed through a variety of weekly formative assessments. Just as with first language acquisition, students will be provided with a wide range of comprehensible input. In the spirit of Stephen Krashen’s theories on second language acquisition, students will have to grapple with input that is at their level and slightly above in order to create a strong linguistic base. All grammar structures and vocabulary structures will center around thematic units with materials mined from target cultures of the Spanish-speaking world. Students will be able to develop a deeper linguistic and cultural understanding of the Spanish-speaking world through this course.
Other Electives
Forensics
Through this course, students will learn the relationship of forensic science to criminal investigation emphasizing logic and technology. Working independently and in groups, students will learn to analyze and interpret evidence while understanding the limitations of the laboratory and significance of various types of evidence. Examples of techniques students learn in this course are fingerprinting, crime scene investigation, blood spatter analysis, serology, DNA analysis, forensic pathology, forensic anthropology, entomology, trace evidence analysis, toxicology, and drug chemistry.Landmark and historical cases (such as Daubert, OJ Simpson, and JFK) will be studied to gain a better understanding of the progression of forensic science and learn from past mistakes. Students will also learn to design their own experiments and critically evaluate scientific experimentation as to its admissibility in court.