I was checking my Twitter account one afternoon in December, when I learned about Navidad Latina, a Christmas villancico that caught my attention. I was very impressed that this villancico not only talked about Christmas but also did it in English and Spanish, addressing all the hispanic community living in the US. What surprised me most was that it was played in the rhythm of vallenato, a very popular type of colombian folk music. I immediately contacted the singer and author of Navidad Latina, Nathalia Palis who kindly opened the doors to her music to m and with that, to all of you!
It didn’t take long to realize that the songs that Nathalia Palis writes and interprets are the perfect material for Spanish classes. Here I explain why:
| ATTENTION! |
| It´s getting harder to share content via social media. I recommend you to subscribe to this blog to assure that you will keep having access to all the free materials, activities and ideas that I share. Thank you. |
1- Natalia’s songs are specially written for young people and their families. In other words, Nathalia makes her lyrics comprehensible so she is able to deliver her messages to more people.
2- Nathalia’s songs work on topics that our students have surely worked on or are working on in some of their other classes.
3- Nathalia’s songs are full of messages of empathy and coexistence.
4- Many of Nathalia’s songs are bilingual, making them easily understood by our students. There is no better feeling in those who learn a second language, than to be able to combine the two languages in the same activity.
5- Nathalia’s songs are not artificial and although they can help us to emphasize some specific grammatical category, they are written in an authentic way, even using words and expressions typical of the author’s culture.
For all the above, Nathalia’s songs are the perfect comprehensible songs. Their melodies catch, their lyrics connect us with Spanish and their messages leave us with a clear and kind message. I recommend you to use Nathalia´s songs in your Spanish classes. Very soon you will discover that they are an invaluable resource.
Here is La Rutina in vallenato rhythm. This song talks about daily routines.
Natalia was kind enough to sing at two of my BER seminars I presented for Spanish teachers during my recent visit to California.
Find activities and resources in Nathalia´s TpT Store.
@Copyright 2020 Diego Ojeda, this material is intended for educational purposes and it’s free. It is prohibited to profit from it in any way or form. For questions contact Diego Ojeda @ diego@srojeda.com
I WILL BE PRESENTING TWO SESSIONS AT ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT ONLINE CONFERENCES FOR WORLD LANGUAGE TEACHERS: COMPREHENSIBLE ONLINE. ENJOY A PREVIEW HERE.
CLICK HERE TO FIND MORE ABOUT MY SESSIONS AND REGISTER BEFORE FEBRUARY 15TH TO GET A $25 DISCOUNT.
I´D BE MORE THAN HAPPY TO SHARE MY SUCESSFUL SECOND LANGUAGE ACQUISITION APPROACH THROUGH ONE OF MY ONE DAY WORKSHOPS. FOR WORKSHOPS DESCRIPTIONS AND CONTACT INFO PLEASE CLICK HERE
DIEGO OJEDA 