Vermont Foreign Language association

This year the VFLA is presenting a four web-sessions, Saturday morning Conference Series, in light of challenges to hosting a full day program during the school week. We invite you to take a look at all of the opportunities being offered and sign up for whichever ones will work for you. They include Fun Technology Tools, Vermont’s new award for proficiency in two or more languages, an old favorite for sharing ideas across languages, and a timely session on diversity, racism, and world language teaching.

Each session will begin with some brief announcements and greetings from the VFLA Presidents. Registrations will close the Thursday previous to each session and a link with the session will be emailed to all participants. 

March 6, 2021 9:00-11:00 am: 

Tools for your Toolbox Led by Adrienne D’Olimpio

In this session you'll learn new skills to increase Remote Learning Engagement. In the first half of the session you'll learn about using Storyboard That to create student comic strips and graphic novels. I'll get you started on a quick project that you can share with the rest of the group.

In the second half of the session we will move on to combining your Storyboard That mini-project into Google Slideshows and Flipgrid Screencasts. At the end, we'll take a quick peek at the new Gimkit games and activities!

March 13, 2021 9:00-11:00 am

Seal of Biliteracy Nuts and Bolts
Led by Kerilyn Bristow and Elaine Leibly

The Seal of Biliteracy is soon to be officially endorsed by the Agency of Education! Already recognized in 40 states, the VFLA has been awarding this acknowledgement of proficiency in two languages to both World Language and ELL students for the past two years. If you have any interest in knowing how to implement it in your district, with opportunities in both elementary school and middle school for achievement recognition, as well as receiving the award in high school, please join us. We will begin with an overview, and then we will be putting you to work to help create/refine the process and give us feedback on what you need to be able to recognize students in your districts. This session is open to all levels of World Language teachers, as well as ELL teachers.

March 20, 2021 9:00-11:00 am

Swap Shop
Facilitated by Elaine Leibly and Kerilyn Bristow

A perennial favorite in the past, we invite all World Language teachers to come to this session to be enriched with new ideas, and bring one of your favorite units/activities/games/you name it to this session where we will break into small groups to share our favorite ideas, particularly those that have worked well in remote or hybrid environments. There will be a padlet for all participants to upload their resource to have access to after the session.

March 27, 2021 9:00 am-11:00 am

With diverse lenses
Led by Ainaka Luna & Bibba Kahn

In this session, participants will be able to reflect on their curriculum and learn tips to add more diversity into their units. The first hour we will explore the origins of the concept of race and how the able white body became the normal of the Eurocentric superiority that shaped the history of the New World. The second hour, we will break into French and Spanish rooms focusing on the influence of the African diaspora. Spanish language participants will focus on Afrolatinoamerican and Mesoamerican cultures. French speakers will explore Haiti and African countries cultures.