Fall 2010 - Seventeenth Edition
| Breaking the Barrier Quarterly | Fall 2010 |
| Language Learning for All Seasons |
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Another Seasonal Treat!
With the dog days of summer behind us, we  here at Breaking the Barrier are gearing up for an excellent fall and school year. We're eagerly awaiting the new beginnings that this season brings, from the beauty of the changing foliage to the possibilities of newly filled classrooms. Luckily, we have plenty of ways to help you make this the best fall ever! Here's what you can look forward to in this issue of Breaking the Barrier Quarterly:
Here's to a wonderful fall!
John Conner, Cindy Beams & Staff Writer Will Stone
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Breaking the Barrier and ACTFL 2010 join forces in Boston Our biggest conference presence ever!
So this November we'll be wheeling out our strongest conference presence ever. BTB will be holding down a double booth and presenting THREE workshops -- two for John Conner's acclaimed The Ideal Lesson Plan and one on La Marinera, the national dance of Peru. This will be the conference to end all conferences, and we would love to see you there!
ACTFL 2010 |
The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language (ACTFL) holds an annual convention that has always been a favorite of 
La Marinera
The National Dance of Peru
 This month's Spanish cultural article takes you to South America as it explores La Marinera, the national dance of Peru. La Marinera is a unique and complex courtship dance that your students will love reading about. The article was written by Fanny Vera de Viacava, a native of Peru who is a former national champion dancer. She also is the voice of Elisa in Breaking the Spanish Barrier's "Las aventuras de Rafael, Elisa y El Tigre." Sra. Viacava and her dance partner, Manuel Ñiquen (pictured here), will be presenting a workshop all about La Marinera at ACTFL 2010, sponsored by Breaking the Barrier. As always, we've included comprehension questions to quiz yourself or your students, and we also have an additional treat: an audio version produced by a native Peruvian speaker! These treats should get your fall off to just the right start. |
Le Festival de Cannes
This fall, BTB takes you to the south of France
 Breaking News readers have consistently told us that the cultural articles in each issue are among their favorite features. These articles, on topics ranging from Spanish food to French music, provide invaluable language practice and authentic cultural exposure. As you can see, this fall we've included wonderful articles from both Think Spanish and Think French rather than limiting ourselves to one language per Quarterly -- we want something for everyone! We will strive to do this in upcoming issues of Breaking News. We hope that you will enjoy these amazing resources! This fall's French offering is all about the Cannes Film Festival. Take a walk down the red carpet as you read about the history of this annual star-studded event. When you're done, test yourself with comprehension questions tailored to the article. And as an added bonus, we've included an audio track of the article recorded by leading French voice talents. Le Festival de Cannes - Article |
The Ideal Lesson Plan
A special article by guest contributor Barbara Peterson
 Barbara Peterson is a lifelong teacher of generations of students and is a seasoned editor of BTB. She also regularly presents for BTB at conferences across the country. In addition to being a teacher, Barbara is an avid traveler and perennial student herself. She has lived, worked and studied in the US, Spain, Mexico and throughout Central and South America. For 22 years, Barbara taught Spanish at Ames High School in Iowa, where she held many elected and appointed positions, among them Coordinator of the Foreign Language Department. She was active for many years in the Central States Conference on the Teaching of Foreign Language and the Iowa Foreign Language Association, where she was named Outstanding Educator. A graduate of Macalester College, St. Paul, Minnesota, Barbara earned an M.S.E. from Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa, which has honored her with two Outstanding Alumni Awards. She was also the recipient of a King Juan Carlos Fellowship.This fall, Barbara has prepared a special treat for all of the teachers out there: an article describing one of her favorite and most effective teaching techniques, which she calls "Conversation Day." We hope you enjoy the article and supplementary materials! |
Conversation Day Article|
Speaking of Grammar Tackling a favorite topic: indirect object pronouns!
 As our loyal readers know, John Conner writes a monthly column for Think Spanish magazine.Think Spanish is perfect for all those who want to deepen their understanding of the Spanish language. Each month's issue contains wonderful articles covering a wide range of topics related to Spanish and Latin-American culture. A sister-publication, Think French, is also available.Sometimes it's the littlest words in a language that are the most important - and the trickiest. In this article, John Conner discusses a small but mighty part of the Spanish language: indirect object pronouns. These little pronouns We've also included comprehension questions so you can test yourself or your students after reading this incredible article. Think Spanish - Website Think French - Website |
BTB Looks Into Electronic Textbooks Is this really the future of publishing?  E-books are all the rage these days, with electronic texts becoming more and more common in everyday life and in the classroom. With this in mind, BTB has been exploring the possibility of selling electronic versions of some of our texts. In the coming months we'll be carefully studying if we might be able to make such an offering possible. These electronic texts would be available on a secure site to students with a password, and individual exercises could be printed out for homework or practice purposes. Of course, we will always consider our printed textbooks our main product, but this new electronic medium may offer certain students and schools the flexibility and convenience they are looking for. We'd honestly love to hear your reaction; we value the opinions of our growing community of Breaking the Barrier stalwarts. Please send us your thoughts to
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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Conjuguemos.com Update Convenient Online BTB Vocabulary Practice Last winter we announced that Breaking the Barrier would be teaming up with Conjuguemos.com to offer convenient online practice of the vocabulary in all our Spanish and French textbooks. This is a great resource, which helps make practicing vocabulary fun. We are happy to announce that, with the final kinks worked out, ALL Spanish and French vocabulary are now uploaded onto the website, ready for your use. There's no easier way to practice your vocabulary! Schools can sign up for a yearly subscription at a modest price, and individuals can demo the site for free. Just click on the "Spanish Vocabulary (by book)" or "French Vocabulary (by book)" links, then scroll down to whichever level of BTB you'd like to work on. Conjuguemos.com Free Demo Version |
Breaking the Barrier's Travel Plans
Come See Us Across the Country!
We hope that you'll come to visit us at one of the many conferences listed below. We would love to greet you personally. |
Don't fall short on your language learning! Our latest editions are on the shelves - including our brand new audio CDs and Self-Learner Specials for Advanced Spanish and French. Order yours today! |
