Academics

Our goal at Holy Cross Academy is to provide a meaningful and exciting language experience so that our students continue their Spanish knowledge acquisition and learning for many years.  We believe that the purpose of learning Spanish is to communicate with the people who speak it, to understand and appreciate their cultures, as well as to increase cognitive development. Students improve their own native language skills, problem-solving skills, and enhance their creativity through the study of Spanish. Our HCA Spanish curriculum follows the National Standards for Language Learning and incorporates Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening in a cross-disciplinary program.

Elementary Spanish: Kindergarten - 4th Grade

Students meet once per week for sixty minutes. Our primary goal is to foster a positive and foundational learning experience with the Spanish language, and set the stage for students to continue building their language skills in middle school. Students develop basic oral and listening skills in order to communicate greetings, common expressions, and simple ideas in Spanish. We also introduce students to the rich diversity of Spanish-speaking cultures including the Catholic faith along with customs, traditions, celebrations and basic geography. Focus is placed on the building of a foundational vocabulary including, for example, everyday words, numbers, colors, family terms and common objects. Basic grammar is introduced in a simple and appropriate manner through engaging activities such as games, songs, stories and simple roleplaying.  

*Students in our Pre-Kindergarten program meet once per week for thirty minutes of Spanish instruction.

Middle School Spanish: 5th - 8th Grade

Students meet every other day for sixty minute blocks of Spanish instruction, ensuring that concepts learned in earlier grades are built upon progressively and with continuity. Our primary goal is to equip students with a solid linguistic foundation, cultural understanding, and the skills necessary for continued success in more advanced language studies. Holy Cross graduates often place into Spanish 2 at the high school level, and all students are able to recite numerous prayers in Spanish, a hallmark of our program. Utilizing the Realidades textbook series and a variety of supplemental materials, key objectives of our curriculum include:

• Increased Proficiency in Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing: allowing students to express themselves more fluently.
• Deeper Grammar Understanding: enabling students to use present tense verbs, correctly construct sentences, identify different parts of speech and apply grammar rules.
• Expanded Vocabulary: increasing the range of topics including conversational vocabulary, academic subjects, daily life, and more advanced themes related to culture and current events.
• Cultural Competence: delving deeper into the customs, history, geography and contemporary issues of the Spanish-speaking world.
• Enhanced Communication Skills: developing effective pronunciation and conversational skills.
• Reading Comprehension - improving reading skills through exposure to authentic texts, literature, and religious materials written in Spanish.
• Writing Proficiency: cultivating stronger writing skills with essays, narratives and other written forms of expression.
• Technology Integration: providing exposure to authentic online content, integrating technology tools and resources to enhance language learning.

*Along with traditional written and oral testing, students are assessed through their participation in many games, songs, skits, role playing, crafts and class discussions.