Spanish speakers challenge
My biggest challenge when I teach a new class 'Conversational Spanish' is to keep the Spanish speakers engaged. I found that by giving them team building roles and leadership roles in the classroom, they are able to focus on non-spanish speakers that do need help.
Since I speak a little Italian, I also teach the Spanish speakers some Italian as it is very close to Spanish and they can relate.
~Louis
While I don't teach a language class, I try to capitalize on a students experience to help other students. This keeps the entire class engaged - gives the more knowledgeable ones leadership experience, and helps those w/o the extensive knowledge about the course. I also give the more advanced students more complicated tasks related to the subject matter.
While I don't teach a language class, I have found it challenging to introduce technical words to students who are very recent English speakers. Like you, I try to use cognates and even provide links to supplementary and reference information in Spanish (whenever possible).
