This is the year the new language stops being a list of words and starts being a way to actually talk. Students hold real conversations about familiar topics, share opinions, and handle everyday situations like ordering food or asking directions. They read short articles or stories and write paragraphs that inform or persuade a specific reader. By spring, students can chat with someone for several minutes about their life and interests without falling back on English.
Students start the year holding short conversations in the new language about familiar topics like family, school, food, and weekend plans. They learn to ask questions, give opinions, and keep a chat going instead of just answering with one word.
Students work with real material in the language, such as short articles, videos, songs, and social media posts. They figure out the main idea, pick out details, and start to catch the tone and purpose behind what they read or hear.
Students look at how people in places that speak the language actually live, including holidays, food, music, and daily habits. They start to explain why people do things a certain way, not just what they do.
Students give short talks and write paragraphs to inform, persuade, or tell a story. They learn to adjust their words for different audiences, like a teacher, a classmate, or a pen pal, and to use media such as slides or video.
Students use the language to explore other subjects like history, science, or art, and to look at topics from a new point of view. By the end of the year, they try out the language outside class, online or with people in the community.
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Reading and listening in a classical language Checkpoint B | Students read or listen to Latin or ancient Greek texts on a range of topics and work out the meaning using context and cultural knowledge. | CA-WL.CL.INT.1 |
| Conversation in a classical language Checkpoint B | Students hold back-and-forth conversations in a classical language, working through misunderstandings to share ideas, reactions, and opinions with a partner. | CA-WL.CL.INT.2 |
| Speak and write for different audiences Checkpoint B | Students write or speak in a classical language to share ideas, explain topics, or make an argument, adjusting their words and format based on who will read or hear them. | CA-WL.CL.INT.3 |
| Using Latin in everyday and formal settings Checkpoint B | Students practice Latin or Ancient Greek phrases suited to everyday situations: a market stall, a formal speech, a casual conversation. They learn how the language shifts depending on who is speaking and where. | CA-WL.CL.INT.4 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Communicating respectfully in another culture Checkpoint B | Students adjust how they speak or write to fit the customs and expectations of the culture they're studying. That might mean choosing the right level of formality, greeting style, or tone for the situation. | CA-WL.CL.INT.5 |
| How culture shapes what people make and do Checkpoint B | Students look at objects, traditions, and beliefs from an ancient culture and explain how each one connects to the others. A Roman coin, a festival, and a cultural value don't stand alone; students work out why they fit together. | CA-WL.CL.INT.6 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Using Latin to think through real problems Checkpoint B | Students use Latin or Ancient Greek to explore ideas from history, science, or literature, connecting what they already know in English to what they're reading in the classical language. | CA-WL.CL.INT.7 |
| Reading other cultures in the original language Checkpoint B | Students read and compare ideas from ancient texts to see how people in other times and places understood the world differently than we do today. | CA-WL.CL.INT.8 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| How languages compare to each other Checkpoint B | Students study how Latin or ancient Greek is built differently from English, noticing patterns in word endings, sentence order, and grammar that help explain how both languages work. | CA-WL.CL.INT.9 |
| How cultures differ from your own Checkpoint B | Students compare everyday life in ancient Roman or Greek culture to their own, using Latin or classical Greek to explain what they notice. They look at things like food, family, or beliefs and put the similarities and differences into words. | CA-WL.CL.INT.10 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Using Latin beyond the classroom Checkpoint B | Students use Latin or Ancient Greek to engage with classmates, clubs, or broader groups outside school walls. This standard is about using a classical language as a real tool for connection, not just a subject to study. | CA-WL.CL.INT.11 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding language on familiar topics Checkpoint B | Students listen to, read, or watch material in another language on everyday topics and pull out the key meaning, using what they know about the culture to make sense of it. | CA-WL.WL.INT.1 |
| Conversations where meaning gets worked out together Checkpoint B | Students hold back-and-forth conversations in the language they are learning, working through any confusion together to share opinions, reactions, and information with a partner. | CA-WL.WL.INT.2 |
| Presenting ideas to real audiences in a new language Checkpoint B | Students prepare and deliver presentations in the language they are learning, adjusting their words and tone to fit different audiences, whether speaking, writing, or creating something visual. | CA-WL.WL.INT.3 |
| Talking in everyday and formal settings Checkpoint B | Students hold short, real-world conversations across everyday situations: ordering food, chatting with friends, or speaking politely in a more formal setting like a job interview or school presentation. | CA-WL.WL.INT.4 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Interacting respectfully across cultures Checkpoint B | Students hold a conversation, write a message, or use gestures the way a person from that culture actually would, not just with correct grammar but with the manners and habits that fit the situation. | CA-WL.WL.INT.5 |
| How cultures shape what people make and do Checkpoint B | Students look at an everyday object or tradition from another culture, like a food, holiday, or piece of clothing, and explain what it reveals about how people in that culture see the world. | CA-WL.WL.INT.6 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Using a new language to think through real problems Checkpoint B | Students use the language they are learning to explore topics from other subjects, like science or history. Working in a second language pushes them to think through ideas more carefully and find new ways to solve problems. | CA-WL.WL.INT.7 |
| Finding perspectives through another language Checkpoint B | Students read, listen to, or watch real content in the language they're learning, then weigh what different people from that culture think or believe. They practice deciding what's reliable and what reflects a particular point of view. | CA-WL.WL.INT.8 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| How languages borrow from each other Checkpoint B | Students compare the language they are learning with their own to notice how grammar, word order, or expressions work differently. Spotting those differences helps students understand how language itself works. | CA-WL.WL.INT.9 |
| Comparing your culture to others in [target language] Checkpoint B | Students compare their own cultural practices with those of the communities where the target language is spoken, then explain what those differences reveal about how each culture works. | CA-WL.WL.INT.10 |
| Standard | Definition | Code |
|---|---|---|
| Using [language] in the real world Checkpoint B | Students use the language they are learning to talk and work with people outside of class, whether in their local community or with people from other parts of the world. | CA-WL.WL.INT.11 |
An optional reading and listening test of Spanish proficiency in the CAASPP suite. Districts use it to award the Seal of Biliteracy or to validate dual-language program placements.
Students should hold short conversations about familiar topics, read or listen to simple passages and explain the main idea, and write or speak in connected sentences. They should handle everyday situations like ordering food, asking for directions, or describing their weekend without needing English for every word.
Ask students to teach one new word or phrase at dinner each night. Watch a short video or listen to a song in the language together and let them explain what it means. Five to ten minutes of regular exposure does more than long study sessions.
Start with familiar personal topics like family, school, and routines, then move outward to community, travel, and culture. Build interpretive skills first through listening and reading, then push students into more open-ended speaking and writing as confidence grows.
Language and culture are tied together. Students need to know how people actually greet each other, order coffee, or write a polite message, not just the rules of the grammar. Cultural context is what makes the language usable outside the classroom.
Verb tense control and spontaneous speaking tend to stall first. Students can often write a sentence correctly when given time, but freeze in a real exchange. Build in short, low-stakes speaking tasks every class so fluency catches up with accuracy.
Practice with low pressure at home. Ask students to narrate what they are doing in the kitchen, label objects around the house, or read a short passage aloud. Mistakes are part of learning a language, and confidence grows with repetition in a safe setting.
Look for community events, restaurants, places of worship, or cultural centers where the language is spoken. Pen pal exchanges, language apps, and films with subtitles also help. Even ten minutes a day of real contact with the language adds up over a year.
Students should sustain a conversation on familiar topics, understand the gist of unfamiliar texts at their level, and produce connected paragraphs in writing or speech. They should also compare the target language and culture to their own with specific examples, not just translations.