CCA's Spanish Program

Overview

The Foreign Language program at CCA is an integral part of academic life.  As with all academic studies at CCA, Spanish classes call students to an Honors or Pre-AP level by using challenging and aggressive textbooks.  The curriculum incorporates the four major communication methods: speaking, listening, reading, and writing, from day one of first year Spanish.  The Spanish program challenges students to go beyond the notion of “learning Spanish because we live in Texas” to learn about the global Hispanic culture in all its facets and beauty within the framework of a biblical worldview.

Measuring Fluency

The five main areas of competence for quantifying Second Language proficiency are listening, speaking, reading, writing, and cultural awareness.  The curriculum develops and strengthens each of these areas.  As the primary goal of each of the modern languages within the Rhetoric school is to prepare students for AP level proficiency, the students must grow in each skill.

• Listening
  • Daily exercises utilizing vocabulary for given chapter
  • Authentic audio recordings of news stories and songs
  • Each chapter test contains a multiple listening sections
• Speaking
• • Oral memorizations of Bible passages and Spanish poems
  • In class prompts, with specific vocabulary and subject, to build confidence
  • All semester final exams are oral
• Reading
  • Bible passages
  • Current news articles from the Hispanic world
  • Readings from the wealth of literature from Spanish speaking authors
• Writing
  • Vocabulary specific writings for lower level students
  • Topical essay prompts for upper level students
  • Research projects covering topics from the Hispanic world
• Cultural Awareness
  • Presentations which discuss and examine the worldviews and traditions of Spanish speaking countries
  • Culture units

Biblical Integration

A biblical understanding of language and God’s purpose for His children and their speech remains the foundation CCA’s Foreign Language program.  In all levels of Spanish, the students memorize verses in Spanish from Romans, John, and Galatians. At the AP level, biblical texts are read, memorized, and discussed in depth in Spanish.  Students learn to pray and praise in Spanish, incorporating the verses learned.  Instructors also train students to consider Hispanic cultures not in comparison with their own, but rather in light of a biblical worldview.