K-12 Gateway to the Less Commonly Taught Languages

[Harold Schiffman]

 Forwarded From: Barbara Blankenship <blankens at humnet.ucla.edu>
Date: Wed, Mar 11, 2009 at 10:04 PM



The UCLA Language Materials Project announces the new



K-12 Gateway

to the Less Commonly Taught Languages



http://www.lmp.ucla.edu/k-12





The UCLA Language Materials Project (LMP) has launched an abundant new
site for elementary and secondary foreign language teachers, the K-12
Gateway to the Less Commonly Taught Languages.

The core of the site is a complete set of downloadable lesson plans
and supplementary materials for teaching a first year language class.
Written in English, the plans can be adapted to any language and grade
level.



The lessons were created by Florence Martin of California State
University Long Beach, who has taught languages at all levels from
kindergarten through college, and speaks two Less Commonly Taught
Languages. Pilot-tested by K-12 teachers from Anchorage to Virginia,
the site offer easy navigation to a wealth of information.



In addition to the lessons, there is a section on curriculum design,
standards, and proficiency-based teaching. A resource section offers
links to national Language Resource Centers, language teachers
associations, teachers’ forums, assessment guides, and professional
development opportunities.



The K-12 Gateway resides within the larger Language Materials Project
website. Gateway visitors are only a click away from the language
profiles and authoritative bibliography of teaching materials for
which the LMP has been known since 1992. The LMP has augmented the
bibliography with detailed citations of several hundred items for
younger audiences.



The recent increase of federal interest in foreign languages has
kindled a language renaissance in K-12 schools across the nation. The
number of classes for less-commonly taught languages such as Arabic,
Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, and Russian, even in the primary grades,
has increased substantially. But there are a limited number of
textbooks and classroom materials available for learners below college
level. Likewise there are seldom curricula or state standards for
teachers to follow. The LMP’s new Gateway responds to those needs.



The Gateway was created with support from the US Department of
Education’s Title VI, International Research and Studies program.



We invite you to try out the Gateway at www.lmp.ucla.edu/K-12




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