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Photo taken in Honolulu at the Hawaii Association of Language Teachers
Annual Conference, March 2011
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Spreading the word from sea to shining sea!
As I write this spring newsletter, members of the Breaking the Barrier family are representing the company at conferences all across the country. Barbara Peterson is out in Hawaii fulfilling one of her lifelong dreams of seeing her 50th state while presenting at their annual convention, and Daniel Kincaid is at the Central States Conference in his home state of Indiana. I am down in Baltimore, the site of our next big regional conference, doing a little early planning for the Northeast Conference, which opens in less than a month. Breaking the Barrier continues to spread its wings across the USA and world! In this issue of Breaking News, we have a number of treats in store:
- A Spanish cultural article We share our interview with Ricardo Aparicio, a taxi driver in Madrid, with more than 30 years behind the wheel.
- A French cultural article On the French side, we head to Canada for a look at one of the national passions: Le hockey.
- A special "Ideal Lesson Plan" offering, written by Barbara Peterson, perfect for paired group work in class
- An interview and delightful musical offering from our friend Kenji Kikuchi, who wrote all of the original music for our acclaimed audio series, "The Adventures of Rafael, Elisa and The Tiger," which appears in the beginning and intermediate French and Spanish books
- A great grammar article that I wrote recently for Think Spanish!, explaining the mysteries of unequal comparisons
- Our updated conference schedule for 2011
- Our latest news on the 2011 editions in hardcopy and electronic formats
May this spring be one of renewal and excitement on the path to total fluency!
John Conner, Cindy Beams & staff writer Connor MacKenzie
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"Madrid sobre ruedas"
An amazing interview with Ricardo Aparicio, taxi driver
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| Taxi cabs lined up in Madrid |
Little did I realize last summer when I hopped into a taxi in Barajas airport in Madrid that I would befriend a most amazing man, Ricardo Aparicio. In the half-hour to my hotel, I was treated to some incredible stories about life behind the wheel. I called Ricardo each day I was in Madrid as I was eager to hear more. One day, we went all the way to Cuéllar, a little village in the province of Segovia.
I just knew that I had to figure out a way to get him into the recording studio!
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| Ricardo Aparicio in front of his taxi |
The following interview, conducted
with great style by Colombian Ivan Calderón, is ideal for the classroom. The play of accents (Spanish and Colombian) is wonderful for students, and the stories themselves are touching and hilarious. The text, audio, as well as questions and answers, are all available to you below by clinking on the links. Get ready for the ride of your life!
"Le hockey á Montrèal"
Lace up those skates and let's hit the ice!
 It was reported that the modern game of hockey was first played by undergraduates at McGill University in Montreal at the end of the 19th century. How fitting it is, then, to head to Montreal in this special cultural article, made available to us by our friends at Think French magazine. The accompanying audio lets your students practice their pronunciation, and the enclosed questions and answers serve up a ready-made activity for class this week. It's a power play in print!
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The Ideal Lesson Plan
A wonderful paired-group activity called "Little Papers"
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| Barbara Peterson in Honolulu |
Barbara Peterson spent most of her professional career teaching Spanish in the public schools in Ames, Iowa. Years ago, we were lucky to meet her at a conference where she picked up one of our books, went back to her hotel room, and returned the next day with a big smile. She offered to make a few suggestions in the texts, and, then, one thing led to another. She was hired as an editor and writer, and, then, as our lead representative to conferences around the country!
This month we asked her if she would be willing to share another of her "classic" classroom activities. She didn't hesitate before saying, "Of course, I will." I know you will enjoy it. The link below provides all you will need for a ready-made classroom activity
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 "An interview with Kenji Kikuchi" The genius behind our original theme music!
The success of Breaking the Barrier springs from the collaboration of countless people -- from students to teachers, from printers to designers, from actors to accountants, from writers to high tech gurus. But, where would we be without music? Nowhere! When I wrote the adventure series for our beginning and intermediate books, I wanted to have a signature musical piece that would introduce and conclude each new episode. I approached a very talented musician, Kenji Kikuchi, who hails from Japan, yet has directed the jazz band at Groton School for over a decade. Kenji kindly agreed to pen a 30 second piece for us, which is now heard in classes around the globe. Last year, he decided to take the theme music and turn it into a full piece for a jazz ensemble. The result is pure magic; it was first performed at the spring concert in THE HALL at Groton School.
Below you will find a most wonderful interview with Kenji. It is followed by a link to his extraordinary musical genius -- the full rendition of "El vuelo de Conchita" --"Le vol de Conchita" ..... I know you will enjoy it.
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Unequal comparisons
A most helpful article from the archives of Think Spanish!
 Humans always like to make comparisons. How do we stack up to our friends? Are we taller, shorter, more interesting, less up-tight, more fluent, etc.? The Spanish language has a nice way to express unequal comparison, a little formula depending whether one is comparing nouns, adjectives, adverbs, or verbs. I think you will enjoy the article and the little quiz at the end of it. Once again, it is a great activity for you to do in class.
Unequal comparisons
A link to Think Spanish magazine
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Breaking the Barrier's Conference Schedule
We want to see you!
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| At ACTFL Conference in Boston |
We love comparing notes with teachers and homeschool families around the country at the many conferences we attend. If the Northeast Conference in Baltimore, Maryland is not on your schedule, April 2-4, make plans today. I will be giving a session at 9:30 a.m. on the opening day of the conference, Saturday, April 2. Don't miss it.
If you can't come to Baltimore, come see us elsewhere. We may be coming to a conference center near you!
2011 Conference Schedule
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New 2011 editions will be on the shelves soon!
Read below to see the new things coming your way.
   
All of our French books underwent a careful editing during the past two years. The result? The much improved 2011 editions with updates to cultural information as well as accurate and precise writing on all pages. We strive for excellence. Like fine wine, our books improve with time. Each new edition promises the hope for perfection. Our Advanced French book will include the new cultural readings and icons that direct students to the right track of the recently recorded audio CDs. These books will be on the shelves by mid-May.
We also have plans to update the Spanish books. The 2010 and 2011 editions will be identical in page numbers and in exercises / answers. The maps in the 2011 edition will have some small changes, reflecting new population totals and changes in heads of states. We will continue to sell our 2010 editions though the middle of the summer until our 2011 Spanish books are off the presses.
We can take special orders for hard-cover editions of our student editions. We will also be making our books available in an electronic format as well. This will be a big move for us, as protecting the intellectual property of these books is paramount to our staying viable as a publisher. Yet, we have heard from many of you that having such a resource available would be highly desirable. There will be special protections for the titles. including a code for each user, and an expiration date for use. The cost will be the same as for the paper editions. We shall see how this goes! Check our website in May for an updated order form.
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The sun sets in Hawaii after another great conference!
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