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We are excited to announce that we are hosting the FOURTH HERITAGE TEACHER SUMMIT! The goal is to provide some very needed VIRTUAL PD for heritage teachers at an extremely affordable price, and to hear from LOTS of amazing heritage teachers across the country doing some amazing stuff!!

Key Details

Tickets will be sold at the link above until February 29, 2024.

As soon as you buy your ticket, you will have immediate access to all the sessions (they have been pre-recorded).

You can watch them at your own pace, whenever you like, until 8/31/24. (They cannot be downloaded.)

Tickets are a one time purchase of $49 to get access to all sessions.

A certificate will be provided for the sessions that you watch (there are 12 sessions, each about 45 minutes long).

To follow the conversation on Instagram or Twitter, please use the hashtag #HeritageTeacherSummit.

PURCHASE YOUR TICKET HERE

Jan-Feb 2024 SESSIONS

Empowering Heritage Language Educators: Adapting Teaching Methods for Diverse Proficiency Levels in a Single Classroom, Alana Kubeczka

In this session we are diving deep into the wild world of heritage language classrooms. You know, the ones where everyone’s on a different language rollercoaster? No snooze-fest here – we’re getting real about mixing up assignments, tweaking lesson plans, and using cool materials to vibe with diverse proficiency levels. And trust me, you will say, “Oh, I can totally do this!” This isn’t your grandma’s lecture – it’s a laid-back hangout where we swap stories, throw around ideas, and maybe crack a few jokes. By the time we’re done, you’ll be loaded with practical strategies and a fresh outlook on rocking those diverse proficiency levels in your heritage language classroom.

Indigenous Perspectives & Practices in Heritage Language Courses, Dr. Marta Silva

This session aims to explore diverse perspectives and practices of Indigenous cultures in heritage language education, emphasizing cultural relevance, community engagement, and specialized pedagogical strategies. This presentation offers a comprehensive and immersive learning experience, where the presenter will walk attendees through her decolonizing journey and the search for authentic materials that align with HL thematic units and AP themes. Pedagogical strategies will be presented in the four modes of communication. This session extends an invitation to educators eager to participate in a dynamic discussion on preserving and honoring Indigenous languages and cultures within the context of heritage language education.

Navigating the Many Faces of Authentic Resources, Arianne Dowd

Discover the wide array of the ACTFL core practice of authentic resources such as dolls, coins, commercials, legends and more! In this session we will explore the multitude of authentic resources available to language teachers as well as strategies to navigate them. In addition, connections will be made to studying the cultural products, practices and perspectives of authentic resources to build intercultural communicative competence. Come discover the many faces and facets of authentic resources that you can bring to your classroom!

Picture Books Are For Big Kids Too!,  Angela Oropeza

To teach heritage language classes is a day to day practice in affirming students’ identities and stories. The goal of heritage classes is to connect the gift that students’ families have given them (being bi-lingual and bi-cultural) to the goal of bi-literacy and their role as active participants in their local, national, global communities. The presenter will describe how she uses picture books from members of the Spanish-speaking community to share perspectives that students may recognize their own stories, or at other times; may challenge their ideas as to what it means to be latine. She will discuss planning using picture books, and what are her guiding questions. She will also spend time sharing various resources that she found useful in the planning and implementation of the unit as well as examples of student work.

Poesia Slam in a Heritage Classroom, Michaela McCaughey

Ever wanted to bring poetry into your Spanish Heritage classroom but not sure how? The presenter will walk through an easy to implement and highly engaging poetry unit, culminating in a Slam Poetry presentation, along with a visual arts element. There are options discussed for wider school involvement and arts integration in this interactive and collaborative unit. Examples, materials, and resources will be from her high school Spanish heritage classroom.

Preparing for the 2024 AP Spanish Language and Culture exam using Heritage Classroom relevant films!, Oscar Guzmán

This presentation will provide educators with tools that will serve as a resource to select appropriate films related to the different AP Spanish Language and Culture themes as well as for other Heritage Spanish classes. In addition, Oscar will also distribute a list of student relatable films and activities that have worked in his classes; and will review recently released films such as “A Million Miles Away” and “In the Heights” to help teachers talk about important historical events and topics that could be included on the AP Spanish exam this year.

Self-care & SEL: Teaching Ideas for When You Need a Break, Jen Lopez

We all need a break sometimes, and for teachers – and students – it’s often during the long, dreary (at least here in MN!) months of winter when we’re feeling most run down and exhausted. In this session, Jen will share ideas for 1-day lesson plans that center mindfulness, gratitude, and rest/recovery. She will also share how she uses guided meditation and breathing techniques throughout the year to support students’ abilities to manage stress and anxiety. Examples will be from her high school Spanish heritage classes.

Supporting heritage learners in World Language classes, Kristin Montgomery

Even when schools have a program for heritage learners, heritage learners are often placed in World Language classes for a variety of reasons. This presentation will give you tips on supporting heritage learners who are in world language classes. It will cover differentiation strategies, how to value and promote a variety of dialects and pronouns (tú, vos, usted), if you should have heritage learners as “models”, and how to create a community where heritage learners and WL learners are comfortable learning together.

Teaching SHL in secondary schools: An antiracist, decolonial and culturally responsive curriculum proposal, Dr. Aracelis Nieves

The purpose of this workshop is to contribute to this body of research and scholarship around best instructional practices for Spanish heritage language learners in secondary schools by presenting how SFL teachers can help students recognize and validate their transcultural identity by means of a transdisciplinary, antiracist, critical and culturally responsive curriculum.

Navigating Non-Binary Inclusivity: Conversations Inspired by Gloria Anzaldúa’s ‘Borderlands,” Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez

This presentation leverages Gloria Anzaldúa’s “Borderlands/La Frontera” to advocate for non-binary inclusivity in language, drawing parallels between the cultural suppression in “How to Tame a Wild Tongue” and non-binary linguistic experiences. Anzaldúa’s narratives on identity and language challenge normative structures, positioning language as a fluid medium and an activist’s tool.

Cultural study and ancestral teachings through legends: los guaraníes y la leyenda del mate, Cecilia Cummaudo

This presentation aims to celebrate and highlight the importance of the ancestral wisdom and culture of the Guaraníes, a South American indigenous group. An introduction to the Guaraní nation and cosmology is given, followed by an explanation about the legend of mate, an immensely popular and beloved product (beverage) in the south of South America. The presentation concludes with ideas for assessments and cultural celebrations in the heritage classroom.

Preventing Burnout for Spanish Heritage Teachers, Adrienne Brandenburg

The challenge of teaching heritage classes has been a stumbling block for teacher recruitment and retention in schools striving to meet unique the needs of Spanish heritage learners. Presenters will share practical advice they have gleaned while building a heritage program from the ground up, in order to help other heritage teachers avoid burnout.

Meet our incredible presenters!

Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez, He/Him/Él

Abelardo Almazán-Vázquez is in his 13th year teaching Spanish, coaching an all-gender soccer team, teaching Latin Dances, and World Language Department Head at The Putney School. He pursued his Licenciatura in Teaching Spanish as a Second Language at Universidad Internacional UNINTER and his Master’s in Latin American Studies at Cleveland State University. Native from Cuernavaca México. He has presented at various WL conferences, including “Best of Massachusetts” for MaFLA2018, co-founder of the MCTLC (Minnesota Council of Teaching Languages and Cultures) 2020 “BIPOC/Immigrant” strand, featured session presenter at the NECTFL 2021 Conference, the Keynote speaker for the GWATFL (The Greater Washington Association of Teachers of Foreign Language) 2021 Spring Conference, and the Keynote speaker for VFLA (Vermont Foreign Language Association) 2023 Spring Conference.

Alana Kubeczka, she/her

Alana Kubeczka started her journey in education 26 years ago. She has spent the majority of her years in education teaching upper elementary bilingual students, both in California and Texas. She made the move to teach Spanish to English speakers, which led her to continue her work with heritage and native speakers of Spanish in middle and high school. She is passionate about teaching language and culture and enjoys watching her students grow and learn. Alana began teaching heritage and native speakers in a small, established high school program with few resources and no curriculum. She was able to use her experience in the bilingual classroom to create a program that worked. More recently, Alana moved to work as an instructional designer at the local college where she helps teach professors to engage students and refine curriculum. She is also an adjunct professor and is enjoying teaching second language learners in higher education. Alana hopes to share her experiences with other educators in an effort to create more opportunities for students.

Angela Oropeza, she/her/ella

Angela Oropeza teaches Heritage Spanish classes and is in her 13th year of teaching, with the last four in the heritage Spanish program. She is not a heritage speaker herself but is very passionate about the goals of the classes as she is raising three heritage speakers at home. As a Chicana growing up in the midwest in the 90s, she felt empowered by the social movements of the 60s and 70s and has seen what learning about one’s own culture can do for confidence and belonging in an educational setting. She firmly believes that recognizing and actively fighting against patterns of bias and oppression and learning our true history are the first steps to liberation for all students.

Dr. Aracelis Nieves, she/her/ella

Dr. Aracelis Nieves Maysonet is an associated faculty of Spanish for Heritage Speakers in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at The Ohio State University. She is a LatCrit scholar with an interdisciplinary background in research, policy and practice committed to help eliminate the gap in educational opportunities that Latinos have, by identifying effective educational programs and teacher practices that meet the academic, social, and affective needs of those students. This commitment inspired her to create a three level Spanish for Heritage Speakers Program for secondary schools that has been institutionalized for sixteen years. This is an inclusive, transdisciplinary, translanguaging and integrated curriculum by which students can develop and validate their new transcultural identity.

Arianne Dowd, she/her

Arianne Dowd is a Spanish Teacher at South Brunswick High School. She is committed to lifelong learning. She holds dual BAs in Spanish and Psychology with a minor in International Studies from Montclair State University. She has two Master’s degrees, an MA in Spanish Literature from Montclair State University and a MAT in Italian from Rutgers University. In addition, she studied abroad in Seville, Spain, Guadalajara, Mexico, and Urbino, Italy. She is passionate about teaching with Content-Based Instruction, Comprehensible Input strategies and Authentic Resources. Creating compelling and comprehensible units comprised of cultural knowledge is her favorite hobby. She enjoys sharing her work on her blog as well as presenting about it at conferences such as iFLT, MAFLA, NECTFL and FLENJ.

Cecilia Cummaudo, she/her/ella

Cecilia Cummaudo is a native speaker of Spanish from Argentina who teaches Spanish 3, 4H, and Spanish for Spanish speakers at a charter school in Southern California that specializes in the Arts. She has worked as a coach in Tina Hargaden’s Curriculum Club and has been a teaching demo coach at CI Liftoff’s Summer Institutes. Cecilia has written leveled readers for Spanish language learners for the E-Lit app. She is passionate about building heritage learners’ literacy and, as a native speaker of Spanish herself, she is especially interested in helping her heritage students feel proud and confident in their linguistic identities. Finally, she is devoted to working towards a more equitable and socially just world by creating and sharing Own Voices stories from Spanish speaking authors.

Jen Lopez, she/her

Jen, based in Minneapolis, MN, uses Language Arts approaches as the basis for her Heritage Spanish teaching, providing a space for students to see themselves in the curriculum and express themselves through poetry, narrative nonfiction, editorial essays, drama, podcasts, creative arts, and more. Jen’s teaching focuses on identity, literacy and social issues that impact her students and their communities.

Kristin Montgomery, she/her/hers

Kristin Montgomery has been teaching language learners of all levels and ages for almost 15 years. She has taught abroad at international, public and private schools in Spain, Switzerland, Singapore, Colombia and currently in Germany. Back in her hometown in Wisconsin she taught heritage speakers in an inaugural dual language immersion program for six years. She is passionate about making cultural content interesting and comprehensible for students.

Dr. Marta Silva, she/her/ella

Dr. Marta Silva is an educational leader specializing in heritage language programs. With expertise in culturally sustaining instructional perspectives, she presents at conferences and workshops, sharing insights on inclusive multilingual education. Dr. Silva’s research and community involvement inform her practices; she holds a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction and Latinx Studies from the University of Missouri, Kansas City. As a linguist and poet, she focuses on language advocacy and social justice through storytelling. Dr. Silva is the current Kansas World Language Association President, a Latinx Education Collaborative Educators Board member, the Olathe North Latina Leadership Club’s Sponsor and Building Leadership Chair, and Olathe School District World Languages Assessment Facilitator. She has recently been appointed Diversity Chair at the Olathe NEA Executive Board. She is also involved in the Latino Writers Collective and has been an Expresión fellow of the 2023 Storytelling for Change Cohort.

Michaela McCaughey, she/her

Michaela McCaughey is a high school Spanish Heritage teacher at Trinity Academy for the Performing Arts (TAPA), in Providence, Rhode Island. Her students are multilingual artists of all genres who push and inspire her. Her curriculum focuses on social justice, culturally responsive teaching, arts-integration, and (bi)literacy.

Oscar Guzmán, he/him/él

Oscar Guzmán is currently a High School Spanish teacher at Chicago Public Schools. Sr. Guzmán serves as the current Chair of ACTFL’s Cinema SIG and has presented at various national conferences about the use of film in Spanish classrooms. Sr. Guzmán also serves as an AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam Reader for the College Board.

Adrienne Brandenburg, she/her

Adrienne Brandenburg teaches Spanish and Spanish for heritage speakers at a large public high school in northern Colorado. She presents regularly at state and national conferences on topics related to heritage language teaching and literacy, has served as the Chair of the Spanish for Heritage Learners Special Interest Group at ACTFL, and is currently on the ACTFL Board of Directors. She is passionate about deepening connections among heritage teachers and preventing burnout for teachers in this unique area of world language teaching. Finally, she is committed to the lifelong work of recognizing and dismantling systems of oppression, in herself, in her classroom, and in her community.

PURCHASE YOUR TICKET HERE

Please join our mailing list to get info on next year’s Summit!

Interested in presenting at the Heritage Teacher Summit next year? Fill out this form!