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Have you ever looked at your students and wondered:

"Why aren't they communicating in the language?"

In this special episode of Growing With Proficiency, the tables are turned as my friend and fellow educator, Bethanie Carlson Drew, steps in as host and interviews me about my journey from lawyer to language teacher, the challenges that transformed my classroom, and the lessons I've learned along the way.

Together, we explore what happened when I realized that despite teaching vocabulary, grammar, and textbook lessons, my students still weren't communicating in Spanish the way I hoped they would.

That realization led me down a path of professional growth, curiosity, and discovery that completely changed how I think about language teaching, comprehensible input, and second language acquisition.

In this episode, you'll hear about:

✨ The powerful teaching advice my mother gave me that still shapes my classroom today

✨ Why following the textbook wasn't producing the communication outcomes I wanted

✨ The moment I discovered second language acquisition research and how it transformed my practice

✨ How comprehensible input and meaningful communication support language acquisition

✨ Why asking one personal question every day can strengthen relationships and increase student engagement

✨ The importance of professional learning and finding a community that supports your growth

✨ Three practical ways to begin creating a more communicative and comprehension-based language classroom

Whether you're new to proficiency-based teaching or you've been teaching world languages for years, this conversation will encourage you to reflect on your practice, embrace growth, and focus on what truly helps students acquire language.

If you've ever felt frustrated that your students know about the language but struggle to use it, this episode is for you.

So grab your cafecito and join us for an honest conversation about language acquisition, communicative language teaching, comprehensible input, professional growth, and the courage to change.

🎧 Press play and let's grow together.

Resources

📌 Student reflection survey.

📌 Download the free Teacher Guide:
https://growingwithproficiency.com/teacherguide

📌 Join the waitlist for Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy:
https://growingwithproficiency.com/academy

📌 Follow Claudia on Instagram @claudiamelliott

📌 Growing With CI FB Community

📌Blog

📌 Teacher Pay Teachers Store

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What actually helped students learn this year?

As language teachers, it's easy to spend our end-of-year reflection focused on what didn't work. In Episode 191, I shared some of the challenges I faced this year. In Episode 192, I reflected on behavior, classroom culture, relationships, expectations, and the lessons I learned from a particularly challenging freshman class.

But reflection isn't only about identifying problems.

It's also about paying attention to what worked.

After surveying 158 students and reading every response, I noticed three themes that kept appearing. Interestingly, none of them were new strategies or trendy activities. Instead, they were reminders of the foundations that have guided my teaching for years.

In this episode, I share:

✔ Why strong student-teacher relationships continue to be one of the most powerful tools for language acquisition

✔ What my students' feedback revealed about classroom community and belonging

✔ How stories, reading, and meaningful communication continue to support student growth

✔ Why students consistently named routines like Free Voluntary Reading and daily conversations among their favorite activities

✔ What student survey data taught me about engagement, structure, and success in the world language classroom

✔ The feedback students gave me about vocabulary support, group activities, classroom noise, and participation

If you're reflecting on your own school year, planning for next year, or looking for ways to create a more engaging and effective language classroom, this episode will help you identify the practices worth keeping.

Resources Mentioned

📌 Download the free Teacher Guide:
https://growingwithproficiency.com/teacherguide

📌 Join the waitlist for Growing With Proficiency: The Spanish Teacher Academy:
https://growingwithproficiency.com/academy

📌 Follow Claudia on Instagram @claudiamelliott

📌 Growing With CI FB Community

📌Blog

📌 Teacher Pay Teachers Store