Learning Spanish Vocabulary Words Can Be Fun

Here are ways to help your students learn Spanish vocabulary using motivating activities.

By Cathy Neushul

Spanish language lessons

Interactive Ways to Develop Spanish Language Skills

When elementary school teachers are introducing their students to a foreign language, they often go over the basics. They have students learn the numbers, colors and some vocabulary. While this is definitely important to do, students won’t remember what they have learned unless they use the vocabulary words in meaningful experiences. Here are some ways to make an exploration of the Spanish language an exciting experience for everyone involved.

Set Up a Store in Your Classroom

One of the fundamental ways adults learn a foreign language is by being forced to use the vocabulary in everyday activities. Students are the same way. They need to use vocabulary words in meaningful ways or they won’t remember them. One way to help students do this, and use the vocabulary associated with food, clothing and money, is to set up a store in your classroom. You can ask parents to donate clean food containers, clothes, books, and other items to “sell” in your store. You can even set up a register with fake money. Students can take turns being sales people and shoppers. When students visit the store they will be expected to ask for items using full sentences and converse with one another in Spanish. You can have cards with pictures and vocabulary to help students who can’t remember a particular word.

Show Students Pictures of Things That Will Spark Interest

Show students a number of pictures of different scenes. If students are into WWE wrestling, for example, show them a picture of a match. Have students come up with the Spanish words that could be used to describe the scene.  If they don’t know a particular word, you can provide the translation. Write a list of the words students came up with. You can then have students work in a group to make up a story to describe the picture. Students can then share their stories with the class. They can make the stories as wacky as they want. The important thing is that they incorporate the vocabulary they have learned into their story.

If you are teaching students about a particular topic, such as clothing, you could use pictures of people dressed up in a variety of different outfits. Students could then write descriptions of the people in the pictures. This strategy could be used to reinforce vocabulary associated with any topic.

Have Students Make a Movie

Another way to get students thinking creatively is to have them write a script for their own movie. You can have students work in groups to come up with dialogue and a story line for a short movie in Spanish. It would be a good idea to have an example of what you are looking for. Students will enjoy making the costumes and props for the movie. They can use construction paper and other items on hand to make their sets. You can then videotape the students and it can be used as a fun way to review vocabulary in the future.

Go Outside and Play

Another way to help your students learn Spanish is to go outside and play. Have students play games to practice verbs, such as run, stop, walk, hop . . . A game of Simon Says could be a fun way to do this. You could also have students practice the names of body parts using this game. This is also a good time to teach students the names of playground equipment, and outside activities. You can have them say the words as they participate in the different activities, like going down the slide. Learning how to speak a foreign language should be a fun and interactive experience. What follows are more Spanish language lessons.

Spanish Language Lessons and Activities:

El Cuerpo and Commands Vocabulary Games

In this lesson students learn vocabulary words relating to body parts. Students use games and other activities to practice the Spanish words. This lessons provides a way to get students up and interacting. You could adjust the lesson for use with any subject.

Vocabulary Quilt

Students use the book "Que Monton de Tamales" by Gary Soto to learn new vocabulary words. They then create a vocabulary quilt. This is a way to expose students to multi-cultural literature, and learn new vocabulary. It provides a creative way to have students review vocabulary.

Spanish Colors and Clothing

In this lesson students learn and review the Spanish words for colors and clothing items. Students then use the vocabulary in discussions. As an extension, you could have students draw pictures of a person wearing a variety of different types of clothing. Students then describe their pictures and identify the items in Spanish and their color.

Endangered Species

Students learn about endangered species and learn Spanish vocabulary. Students also discuss the environment and ecology. This lesson provides a way to expose students to high-level Spanish vocabulary by having them discuss complex issues.