How hard is Spanish 1AB really? Is the two-year class a better choice?

[Anonymous]

I have a 7th grader who took Spanish 1AB. I was confused when my very bright 5th grader was recommended for 1A. She would like to take the same course her sister took. Her sister had regular homework, but it didn’t seem that bad.

I finally read the course booklet. Spanish 1A is a new offering for our middle school. So, I guess they are still figuring out who is the right fit. My 5th grader has an ADHD dx, but doesn’t need/use any of accommodations that she qualifies for (yet?)… I guess she stuck out as a possible good fit. She is also headed to Pre-Algebra, which makes me much more nervous than Spanish 1AB. Do you think 1AB will be harder now that there is a slower paced option? I wonder if better teachers will be assigned to 1AB.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a 7th grader who took Spanish 1AB. I was confused when my very bright 5th grader was recommended for 1A. She would like to take the same course her sister took. Her sister had regular homework, but it didn’t seem that bad.

I finally read the course booklet. Spanish 1A is a new offering for our middle school. So, I guess they are still figuring out who is the right fit. My 5th grader has an ADHD dx, but doesn’t need/use any of accommodations that she qualifies for (yet?)… I guess she stuck out as a possible good fit. She is also headed to Pre-Algebra, which makes me much more nervous than Spanish 1AB. Do you think 1AB will be harder now that there is a slower paced option? I wonder if better teachers will be assigned to 1AB.

There has been a slower paced option for many years. It sounds like your school didn’t implement it until recently.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a 7th grader who took Spanish 1AB. I was confused when my very bright 5th grader was recommended for 1A. She would like to take the same course her sister took. Her sister had regular homework, but it didn’t seem that bad.

I finally read the course booklet. Spanish 1A is a new offering for our middle school. So, I guess they are still figuring out who is the right fit. My 5th grader has an ADHD dx, but doesn’t need/use any of accommodations that she qualifies for (yet?)… I guess she stuck out as a possible good fit. She is also headed to Pre-Algebra, which makes me much more nervous than Spanish 1AB. Do you think 1AB will be harder now that there is a slower paced option? I wonder if better teachers will be assigned to 1AB.

There has been a slower paced option for many years. It sounds like your school didn’t implement it until recently.

I had three kids go through the same MS and the spanish curriculum looked different for all three. From whether it was offered in 6th to whether A/B was offered. MSs have been fiddling around with it for years, so there's no doubt different schools have different approaches.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a 7th grader who took Spanish 1AB. I was confused when my very bright 5th grader was recommended for 1A. She would like to take the same course her sister took. Her sister had regular homework, but it didn’t seem that bad.

I finally read the course booklet. Spanish 1A is a new offering for our middle school. So, I guess they are still figuring out who is the right fit. My 5th grader has an ADHD dx, but doesn’t need/use any of accommodations that she qualifies for (yet?)… I guess she stuck out as a possible good fit. She is also headed to Pre-Algebra, which makes me much more nervous than Spanish 1AB. Do you think 1AB will be harder now that there is a slower paced option? I wonder if better teachers will be assigned to 1AB.

There has been a slower paced option for many years. It sounds like your school didn’t implement it until recently.

I had three kids go through the same MS and the spanish curriculum looked different for all three. From whether it was offered in 6th to whether A/B was offered. MSs have been fiddling around with it for years, so there's no doubt different schools have different approaches.

Right, so parents need to think ahead and decide what is best for their kid. Do you want to push your kid ahead and have them struggle with AP Spanish in 11th or spread it out?

[Anonymous]

Not hard at all for a reasonably intelligent student with no language disorder. Please remember that many kids all around the world learn 2, 3, 4 languages, particularly when they live in countries that have more than one native language.

We are not a family that learn languages well, and yet in France, I was required to learn Spanish and German in school as a matter of course. My American kids are fluent in English and French; one learned Spanish, the other Latin. The one who learned Latin has a diagnosed language disorder and preferred to pick something that did not require verbal fluency.

The question is, what do you want to do in high school? Stop at AP Spanish Comp or so AP Spanish Comp and AP Spanish Lit?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not hard at all for a reasonably intelligent student with no language disorder. Please remember that many kids all around the world learn 2, 3, 4 languages, particularly when they live in countries that have more than one native language.

We are not a family that learn languages well, and yet in France, I was required to learn Spanish and German in school as a matter of course. My American kids are fluent in English and French; one learned Spanish, the other Latin. The one who learned Latin has a diagnosed language disorder and preferred to pick something that did not require verbal fluency.

The question is, what do you want to do in high school? Stop at AP Spanish Comp or so AP Spanish Comp and AP Spanish Lit?

I am told that AP Spanish Lit is a difficult course but yes, like many things, some kids can handle and some can't. Also keep in mind that this will be on top of whatever other AP classes kids are taking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a HS junior who took Spanish 1AB in 6th. That was during the pandemic and even though he is an excellent student, it was really really tough. He had an easier time in Spanish 2 & 3 in MS, until hitting Spanish 4 as a freshman, which was tough all over again. Now he's in AP Spanish, it's hard work again. He has near-fluency in spoken Spanish thanks mostly to his friend group and some ECs that are primarily in Spanish, the AP course still takes work. He'll do AP Spanish literature next year as a senior to keep the door open to some of the most competitive schools that expect 4 years of language in HS especially from a kid who's not STEM inclined.

All told, I might have advocated for a slightly slower path if we'd thought it through.

If kids make it to the 1st AP level they're fine at even the most competitive colleges.

So even if kids take Spanish every year in middle school, they still have to take it all the way through junior year for college admissions purposes? Or can they take AP Spanish in 10th after Spanish 4 and then stop after that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a HS junior who took Spanish 1AB in 6th. That was during the pandemic and even though he is an excellent student, it was really really tough. He had an easier time in Spanish 2 & 3 in MS, until hitting Spanish 4 as a freshman, which was tough all over again. Now he's in AP Spanish, it's hard work again. He has near-fluency in spoken Spanish thanks mostly to his friend group and some ECs that are primarily in Spanish, the AP course still takes work. He'll do AP Spanish literature next year as a senior to keep the door open to some of the most competitive schools that expect 4 years of language in HS especially from a kid who's not STEM inclined.

All told, I might have advocated for a slightly slower path if we'd thought it through.

If kids make it to the 1st AP level they're fine at even the most competitive colleges.

So even if kids take Spanish every year in middle school, they still have to take it all the way through junior year for college admissions purposes? Or can they take AP Spanish in 10th after Spanish 4 and then stop after that?

Some will say need to take all 4 years, especially for liberal arts majors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a HS junior who took Spanish 1AB in 6th. That was during the pandemic and even though he is an excellent student, it was really really tough. He had an easier time in Spanish 2 & 3 in MS, until hitting Spanish 4 as a freshman, which was tough all over again. Now he's in AP Spanish, it's hard work again. He has near-fluency in spoken Spanish thanks mostly to his friend group and some ECs that are primarily in Spanish, the AP course still takes work. He'll do AP Spanish literature next year as a senior to keep the door open to some of the most competitive schools that expect 4 years of language in HS especially from a kid who's not STEM inclined.

All told, I might have advocated for a slightly slower path if we'd thought it through.

If kids make it to the 1st AP level they're fine at even the most competitive colleges.

So even if kids take Spanish every year in middle school, they still have to take it all the way through junior year for college admissions purposes? Or can they take AP Spanish in 10th after Spanish 4 and then stop after that?

Some will say need to take all 4 years, especially for liberal arts majors.

Okay but assuming you plan to stop after AP and gamble that that's enough, is it possible (and reasonable) to take AP in 10th after Spanish 4?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a HS junior who took Spanish 1AB in 6th. That was during the pandemic and even though he is an excellent student, it was really really tough. He had an easier time in Spanish 2 & 3 in MS, until hitting Spanish 4 as a freshman, which was tough all over again. Now he's in AP Spanish, it's hard work again. He has near-fluency in spoken Spanish thanks mostly to his friend group and some ECs that are primarily in Spanish, the AP course still takes work. He'll do AP Spanish literature next year as a senior to keep the door open to some of the most competitive schools that expect 4 years of language in HS especially from a kid who's not STEM inclined.

All told, I might have advocated for a slightly slower path if we'd thought it through.

If kids make it to the 1st AP level they're fine at even the most competitive colleges.

So even if kids take Spanish every year in middle school, they still have to take it all the way through junior year for college admissions purposes? Or can they take AP Spanish in 10th after Spanish 4 and then stop after that?

Some will say need to take all 4 years, especially for liberal arts majors.

Okay but assuming you plan to stop after AP and gamble that that's enough, is it possible (and reasonable) to take AP in 10th after Spanish 4?

With teacher permission. That’s not a typical path if you’re not a senior or heritage speaker, but I think it’s worth doing for the right kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a HS junior who took Spanish 1AB in 6th. That was during the pandemic and even though he is an excellent student, it was really really tough. He had an easier time in Spanish 2 & 3 in MS, until hitting Spanish 4 as a freshman, which was tough all over again. Now he's in AP Spanish, it's hard work again. He has near-fluency in spoken Spanish thanks mostly to his friend group and some ECs that are primarily in Spanish, the AP course still takes work. He'll do AP Spanish literature next year as a senior to keep the door open to some of the most competitive schools that expect 4 years of language in HS especially from a kid who's not STEM inclined.

All told, I might have advocated for a slightly slower path if we'd thought it through.

If kids make it to the 1st AP level they're fine at even the most competitive colleges.

So even if kids take Spanish every year in middle school, they still have to take it all the way through junior year for college admissions purposes? Or can they take AP Spanish in 10th after Spanish 4 and then stop after that?

Some will say need to take all 4 years, especially for liberal arts majors.

Okay but assuming you plan to stop after AP and gamble that that's enough, is it possible (and reasonable) to take AP in 10th after Spanish 4?

Yes that will be enough. Colleges want to see sustained study of the same language for at least 3 years at the HS LEVEL with at least some of it in HS. You don’t have to take all the years in HS though(despite what some will tell you). If kids doesn’t love languages go spend the extra time on something of real interest.

It is possible to get to AP Spanish in 10th depending on what your MS offers, but I wouldn’t rush it. See how your kid is doing with the language and pace accordingly.

[Anonymous]

If your DC took 1A in 6th and now wants to slow it down so they start 2A/B in 9th, what are the options? Skip 1B in 7th and take 1AB in 8th and then start 2AB in 9th? Or is it better to do 1B in 7th and then take 1AB in 8th?