LOBO QUE LOCALIZA COGNADOS

Por Marielys R. García

Alliterative Animal Name: EL LOBO QUE LOCALIZA COGNADOS (THE WOLF THAT LOCATES COGNATES)

While reading any world language text/passage, many students have trouble building up the confidence to tackle these readings with assurance that they have the tools to comprehend and analyze them. As a result, it is imperative that the students are taught helpful strategies to build their confidence in their Spanish abilities and to help them to acquire the knowledge needed to tackle more difficult texts in the future. As a result, one of the best learning strategies to reinforce within beginner foreign language learners is locating cognates. El lobo que localiza cognados would be most helpful in the classroom because it will allow the students to make connections between their native language and the target language. For example, if I were giving them a few pages of the of the beginner book “Amalia y el Saltamontes”, I would give one of the students the lobo in order to give them the job of finding words that look remarkably similar to English. In order to start finding meaning in the text, I would highlight with the class the chosen cognates and how often one would see cognates in everyday Spanish passages. Also, I would make sure to deliberately define the word “COGNATE” for all students to reference in the future, especially if they are given the task of using the “lobo que localiza cognados”. When the lobo is in action, he/she is actively looking for transfer words that look like a word in English. The lobo is not concerned with looking for any other words that do not look like English but is using the identified words to create meaning around it.

For instance, I often give my students copies of magazine articles in Spanish that are above their learning level. I do this in order to stretch their minds further and to give them a challenge in their learning. Also, I would give them some defined words to give them some confidence. However, then would be the time to unveil el “lobo” so that all students would be challenged to find meaning for the article and some of the themes that may be explored within it. I would challenge the students to be “Lobo estrellas” if they find more than 20 cognates in the shortest amount of time. The lobo would also require that students identify cognates and the English meanings of the Spanish cognates. I would reinforce to the students that this is a great way to leave today and expand your vocabulary. They have the potential to go home and tell their family/ friends that they learned 20+ words.