Our school is a STEAM school and we are encouraged to integrate STEAM concepts in our everyday lessons. That seems like a pretty tall order as a Spanish teacher but, I decided that if done well, it could also be a super fun time! So, I set to work creating lessons that I felt held true to my subject while also bringing in science concepts. "Alex el Científico" is what I came up with.

My goal since becoming an elementary level Spanish teacher last year (after 15 years at the high school level) was to create different lesson tracks for each grade that I teach, K-5. This would ensure that each year students are learning new things and participating in new and exciting activities. However, creating good quality lessons takes time and it has been a slow process. I am proud to say that I have now gotten a really great start on separating all of the grades into different learning tracks and I have managed to create three lessons for my new Kindergarten series and three for my new STEAM focuses series. Both continue with my the use of my alpaca named Alex for continuity purposes and I think they are both pretty fab. 

In "Alex el Científico", students are introduced to a culturally significant concept that ties into a science based activity. Students learn about the cultural side and science side together and then participate in experiments and activities using focus vocabulary in the target language. I just finished my first week using these lessons and I have to say that they were a smashing success. I decided that second grade was a perfect audience for my Spanish/Science mashup and we started out with a lesson about cloud forests in Costa Rica and the water cycle. 

Students made a rain cloud in a cup and a water cycle in a bag all while using key vocabulary like "nube, agua, precipitación, condensación, evaporación and lluvia". It was a ton of fun and I think they definitely absorbed some of the Spanish content.

You can purchase the entire lesson on my TpT including the lesson plan, water cycle worksheet, flashcards, cloud in a jar experiment sheet and presentation. Let me know how the activity goes for you and be sure to check out my other STEAM & Spanish combo lessons including a Don Quijote + Windmill Science and Galapagos + Animal Adaptations!

With littles it can sometimes be challenging to review vocabulary words in a way that engages them while still being effective. This is especially difficult if they are extra little and have not yet grasped reading. This is where the monster box comes in! 

This super easy activity simply requires you to make a box look like a monster (mouth hole necessary) and to write/type some flashcards with pictures of the vocabulary you want to focus on. After that it's a lot of repetition and a bit of excitement. Every time I do this activity my students are excited that the monster box has returned and they are on the edge of their seats hoping it will be their turn to interact with our monster box and vocabulary words.

I've created a FREE printable giving you directions on how to make and use a monster box with your next vocabulary lesson. It even includes a mouth and eyes for your box. To get it just click the image below!

I hope the monster box is as successful with your kids as it is with mine! In fact, I'd love to see how your monster boxes turn out so comment below with your pics if you like! Thanks for visiting and enjoy!