World Languages

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: none

In this course, students learn basic conversational skills such as greeting people, introducing themselves and others, talking about the weather, describing personality traits, talking about schedules and daily activities, and giving opinions. They learn to tell time, count, ask questions, and give the date. Spanish one uses the Teaching with Comprehensible Input approach which emphasizes listening and reading comprehension at the first-year level. Students learn to speak and write at a basic level in the present tense using high-frequency vocabulary, verbs and expressions. Students will read a level one graded novel in the second semester. Cultural topics are presented throughout the year in mini-lessons including the Running of the Bulls, the Castells tradition of Catalunya, and the Spanish Civil War.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Spanish I

The course of study for the second-year student of Spanish will focus on activities geared toward increasing proficiency in speaking Spanish, improving reading and writing skills, and deepening understanding of Hispanic cultures. Level two builds language skills through the methodology of Teaching with Comprehensible Input, using high-frequency vocabulary, verbs and expressions. The class used carefully scaffolded story-telling techniques such as ‘movietalk’ and ‘storyask’ to build comprehension and fluency. The two Spanish past tenses are explored in the second semester. Cultural topics include examining the indigenous civilizations of the Caribbean and Mexico, as well as contemporary aspects of Latin American cultures.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Spanish II

In third-year Spanish the emphasis is on oral fluency, reading, and writing. Students will use proficiency-based materials, including video and audio recordings, to hone oral-aural skills and to study culture. More complex grammatical structures are studied to enable the student to arrive at a higher level of linguistic performance. Students at this level should be able to conduct a relatively lengthy conversation in Spanish with other Hispanic speakers.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Spanish III

This course offers a review and deepened understanding of cultural and grammatical concepts studied in levels I-III. Students engage in activities designed to help them reach greater proficiency in speaking, writing, listening, and reading. They study vocabulary and structures that enable them to communicate in a wide variety of thematic areas, including the environment, technology, fashion, human rights, personal identity, entertainment, career choices, health, and contemporary global challenges. Presentational and interpersonal speaking modes are practiced through such activities as creative presentations, formal debates, informal conversations, and interviews. Presentational and interpersonal writing practice includes drafting responses to a variety of types of comprehension questions, crafting formal essays, writing personal correspondence, as well as taking class notes and creating graphic organizers. Other activities include listening to music, viewing videos and films, and reading culturally authentic texts from a variety of sources. The course is conducted entirely in Spanish.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Spanish IV and department approval (Detailed info)

The year begins with a review of verb conjugations in the indicative and the subjunctive moods. A comprehensive grammar review follows as students practice the usage of these verbs and new vocabulary in thematic units in writing compositions. Vocabulary is also studied through context by reading short stories and poetry of renowned Spanish-speaking authors. Speaking skills are stressed daily in class using discussions and question-answer patterns. Listening comprehension is improved through Spanish films, songs and actual AP Spanish Language Test tapes in the classroom and in the language laboratory. Culture of Spanish-speaking countries is studied through the preparation of a Power Point® presentation the first semester. This project is presented to another PT Spanish class during the third quarter.

Grade 12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Spanish IV

This course is a college-level Spanish immersion course divided into two semesters. Instruction focuses on international business during the first semester and global issues of the Hispanic world for the second semester. Weekly presentations are an integral part of both semesters of the course. For the presentations, students research a topic, compile data, present findings, and answer questions in seminar-style roundtable format. Emphasis is placed on using Spanish language throughout this process to prepare, present, and converse, using advanced level structures and vocabulary. Topics of exploration include microeconomics, macroeconomics, international trade practices, origins of Hispanic world, Hispanic immigration to the United States, and political relations between the United States and Latin America.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: none

In this course, students learn basic conversational skills such as greeting people, introducing themselves and others, talking about the weather, describing personality traits, talking about schedules and daily activities, and giving opinions. They learn to tell time, count, ask questions, and give the date. To support these tasks, students learn grammatical structures and concepts that include subject-verb agreement, gender, present tense, immediate future, and one past tense. Cultural study includes identifying French-speaking countries, learning about Paris and daily activities in France, and life in Senegal and Quebec. Students complete projects each term that focus on cultural themes.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: French I

In French II, students will expand their grasp of essential elements of French language and culture. A wide variety of activities will challenge students to speak, listen, read and write in the target language. Authentic materials will be incorporated including songs, videos, cultural readings, realia and other enrichments. Students will make presentations, participate in role-play and interact orally with peers in many different task-oriented settings designed to expand and enrich their language proficiency and their appreciation of francophone culture.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: French II

French III allows the student to use and to perfect previously learned language skills. Extensive vocabulary enrichment and complex grammar structures provide a framework for a more advanced level of communication via reading, writing, speaking and listening activities. Students learn about daily life, the arts, professions and industries, city vs. country living, fairy tales and legends, travel, and political issues in France and the Francophone world. The course includes projects developing the interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational modes of communication. A field trip to the Art Institute of Chicago complements our study of major French artists.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: French III

This is a pre-AP course that is taught in French. Students will enhance their competence in the spoken and written language as they explore universal elements in storytelling. This unit culminates in students creating their own short story in French. Students will then read a French novel and use its themes as a springboard for discussion and shared reflections. By the end of French IV, students develop a more abstract level of language and learn to work with more extended discourse. This course draws from authentic texts, videos, and real-world sources to bring the francophone culture to life in the classroom.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: French IV and department approval (Detailed info)

This course emphasizes strategies for advanced oral and written communication in French. The class is taught in French and students are expected to use French while communicating with the teacher in and out of the classroom. Students will also gain experience and be evaluated on development of their listening, reading and writing skills. This course completes the student’s study of French grammar and vocabulary at Park Tudor School. According to the guidelines for the AP Examination in French Language and Culture, the course will address six themes: global challenges, science and technology, contemporary life, personal and public identities, family and community, and beauty and aesthetics. Whereas the overall course goal is to attain higher levels of language proficiency, critical thinking skills and cultural awareness on a global scale, the preeminent purpose is to foster a desire to apply that language proficiency and cultural knowledge in meaningful ways in the future.

Grade 12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: French V, or French IV with department approval (Detailed info)

This course is for students who have successfully completed French AP and who desire to build their language skills at a more advanced level by using authentic cultural texts that include films and such supplemental material as traditional literature, websites, and popular songs. Writing and conversation will be emphasized. Students will write film critiques and short research papers. They will also engage in conversational activities that require critical thinking, creativity and presentational skills, and they may be required to record a viewer’s log for each film studied. The class will be conducted entirely in French.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: none

This course is designed to lay a groundwork for those who are interested in communicating with Chinese people and understanding Chinese culture. Its objective is to develop students’ overall competence in speaking, listening, reading and writing Chinese, with special emphasis on oral-aural skills. It also will provide students with opportunities to apply the language in appropriate social/cultural contexts. A learner-centered, task-based and proficiency-driven approach will be utilized. Students will have the opportunity to talk about their lives, perform skits, give short speeches and presentations, recite Chinese tongue twisters and sing Chinese songs. Authentic materials also will be used to promote learning effectiveness and cultural understanding.

Grades 10-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Chinese I

Chinese II is designed to further students’ learning of the Chinese language and culture. Students will engage in a variety of activities to enhance their communicative skills and their proficiency in speaking, listening, reading and writing, and increase their knowledge and appreciation of Chinese culture. Activities include performing skits, role playing, giving speeches, making presentations, reciting Chinese poems, and singing Chinese songs. A learner-centered, task-based and proficiency-driven approach will be employed. Furthermore, the use of authentic materials will foster learning effectiveness and cultural awareness.

Grades 11-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Chinese II

In Chinese III, the students continue to advance their oral and aural skills and put more emphasis on their reading and writing skills. They also will be exposed to more complex grammatical structures and sentence patterns. Formal written vocabulary and idioms will be introduced. Activities include skits, speeches, presentations, and writing compositions. Authentic materials will enhance a more subtle understanding of the culture.

Grades 11-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Chinese III

Chinese IV expands on vocabulary, grammatical structures and sentence patterns to advance students’ reading and writing proficiency. Visual materials, realia and authentic materials are utilized to promote students’ communication skills and cultural understanding. Students participate in various activities, including role-plays, skits, individual oral presentations and writing compositions. Lessons and activities are designed for the students to communicate effectively in Chinese, gain knowledge and understanding of the Chinese culture, connect with other disciplines and acquire new information, develop insight into the nature of language and culture, and participate in multilingual communities in the USA and around the world.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: none

Latin I is an introductory course designed to provide students with a solid foundation in the grammar and structure of the Latin language as well as familiarize them with the daily lives of the Roman people. The major objective of this course is to develop the ability to read and comprehend continuous Latin. In order to do that, this course will emphasize the development of a thorough understanding of the vocabulary, forms, functions, and syntax of the language. In addition, students will learn about Roman and Greek history, geography, mythology, and culture by following the life of the poet Horace through the Oxford Latin Course.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Latin I

Latin II enables students to continue their instruction in Latin grammar and language structure as well as translate extended selections of intermediate Latin prose and discuss their translation choices with appropriate grammatical terminology. This course begins with a review of Latin I, and the emphasis remains heavily on grammar and translation, with appropriate attention given to matters of religion, culture, history, and government. By the end of the year and with completion of the Oxford Latin Course, students will be competent in all important features of the Latin language and ready to read on their own for enjoyment, proceed to study of a modern language, or study Latin in college at the intermediate level.

Grades 11-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Latin II

This course is intended to develop the student’s ability to read Latin with fluency and confidence and is designed as a precursor to the AP course. Students will continue working with previously learned language skills and cultural knowledge and are introduced to advanced language constructions and literary devices appropriate to course readings. The review of morphology and syntax along with additional work on the intricacies of poetry will accompany readings in such authors as Livy, Cicero, Ovid, Horace, and Catullus. Depending on interest, students will then begin reading either Caesar’s De Bello Gallico or Vergil’s Aeneid in preparation for the AP course. Since this is primarily a reading and discussion course, students interested in pursuing their knowledge and analysis of Latin literature are strongly encouraged to enroll.

Grades 9-12
Elective
Full Year
Prerequisites: Latin III and department approval (Detailed info)

AP Latin is designed to provide advanced high school students with a rich and rigorous Latin course, approximately equivalent to an upper-intermediate (typically fifth semester) college or university Latin course. Students who successfully complete the course are able to read, understand, translate, and analyze Latin prose and poetry. Using Caesar’s De Bello Gallico and Vergil’s Aeneid as a base, students prepare and translate the required Latin readings with an accuracy that reflects precise understanding of the Latin in all its details; they also read and comprehend passages at sight, even if not with full understanding of every detail. With explicit attention to developing skills for reading, translating, and analyzing Latin texts, the AP Latin course helps students reach beyond translation to read with critical, historical, and literary sensitivity. English readings from the two texts are also included in the required syllabus in order to put the Latin excerpts in a significant context.

Grades 11-12
Elective
Full Year, 1/2 credit
Prerequisites: See recommendations below

Ancient Greek is an exploratory course designed to provide students with a basic foundation in the grammar and structure of the Attic Greek dialect as well as familiarize them with the daily lives of the Greek people. The major objective of this course is to develop an appreciation for the language and culture of Ancient Greece. In order to do that, this course will emphasize the development of an elementary understanding of the vocabulary, forms, functions, and syntax of the language. In addition, students will learn about Greek history, geography, mythology, and culture through the study of adapted Greek texts. This course is open only to juniors and seniors and does not count toward the completion of the World Language requirement. It is recommended to those who have studied at least one year of Latin or have excelled in the advanced study of another language.

This full-year, 1/2-credit course will meet approximately twice per week plus every other Wednesday.