The Disucator Returns!: Multilingual Disney

With a new school year starting, it is time to bring back The Disucator; ideas and information on how to bring a little Disney to your classroom!

Today's idea is for Foreign Language teachers of all grade levels and languages. One activity that is seen frequently in foreign language classes is listening activities, this helps the students to practice listening to conversations and comprehending them.  Why not give your students a treat after a hard test and yet still have them engaged in a class activity? Have them watch a Disney movie in the language they are taking! Letting them watch the movie will keep them engaged in the activity and, since it is a storyline they probably know, they will be better able to keep up with the dialogue than if it was a everyday conversation with no visuals. Also, because they know what the dialogues are generally about, they may be able to learn new vocabulary words used in the conversations.

Another idea is to keep Disney storybooks in the language you are teaching in your classroom and allow the students on some downtime to page through them.  This also may help expand their vocabulary and allow them to see where words are used in familiar contexts. 

While this sounds like something you would do for younger children, this really can be done with all grade levels and language levels! My sister watched children's movies in her Spanish class and said she really found it enjoyable, they were still learning and yet they were relaxing and having fun.  Even in college this could work! I know that if I walked into my language class and the teacher told me I was going to be watching a Disney movie in Spanish, I would be so excited! And for those teachers who may be worried about their students falling asleep or not paying attention to the film, you can make up a worksheet to give the students.  Have them listen for certain verbs or have them write down vocabulary words they do not know, just a simple exercise to keep them engaged. 

I hope that these ideas can help you bring a little Disney fun to your language class! Until our next lesson: Class Dismissed!