Spanish for Music Teachers

Book excerpt: The number of Spanish-speaking students in the United States continues to grow dramatically, leaving many English-speaking teachers--especially music teachers--searching for tools to effectively bridge the communication gap. Spanish for Music Teachers, authors Jacob Prosek and Heidi Nelson draw from their studies abroad and years of classroom experience to present practical, ready-to-use strategies, vocabulary, repertoire, and reproducible materials for K-12 music educators who serve English Language Learner (ELL) populations. The authors provide an overview of ELL instruction, including insights into ELL terminology and an explanation of the ELL program models present in schools today. They also recommend easy-to-implement ELL strategies that will significantly improve the music classroom for all students. Throughout the book, teachers will find hundreds of practical Spanish words and phrases--alongside their English translations--that cover everything from specific musical terms and instructions to basic conversational Spanish. Additionally, Prosek and Nelson provide bilingual vocabulary cards ready-made for photocopying and convenient templates of bilingual letters to send home. The authors also dedicate three chapters to selecting repertoire with the ELL student in mind. Prosek and Nelson discuss how to choose linguistically and culturally diverse songs, and they include a carefully selected list of fifteen Spanish songs and fifteen English songs--complete with music notation, teaching suggestions, and translations--to put to use in the classroom right away. Designed for music teachers with any level of experience with Spanish, Spanish for Music Teachers is the perfect music curriculum companion. This much-needed resource equips teachers with the practical tools to immediately make a significant and lasting impact on all students.