Spanish trip to D.C.

On Monday, March 30, students from Spanish IV and Spanish V, visited Washington D.C. Michael Coy, a Spanish 1 and 2 teacher, said, “The purpose was to show the students all of the Spanish connections to Washington D.C and our nation.”They went on this trip for students to start speaking spanish out of class and for them to see Spanish and United States culture.

The students were placed in separate groups and were given a list of tasks to complete.  In the National Museum of Art, they had to look for art from Picasso, Dali, Goya, and many others.

At the Vietnam Memorial Wall they had to do a “rubbing” of a Spanish-speaking soldier from Pennsylvania. The students had to take a piece of paper, place it over a name, and use a pencil to rub over the name.

Spanish IV and V students in D.C eating tapas.

Spanish IV and V students in D.C eating tapas.

Coy said, “Students had to order “tapas” from a local Spanish restaurant.” Tapas are savory appetizers served hot or cold, typically with a drink at the bar. Tapas are a wide of variety appetizers, or snacks and they may be cold or hot.  For instance, they were required to find a native Spanish-speaker and carry a conversation with him or her.

The field trip was a scavenger hunt competition.The groups used an app, “Goosechase” to see the tasks that they needed to complete and how many points each was worth. The app monitored what other tasks the groups have completed and what place each group is in. The group with the most points earned and most tasks completed won the competition.

When the students were in D.C, they went to the history and art museum and they went to some Spanish restaurants. They also went to the historic monuments like the  Washington Monument and White House. The trip was basically to familiarize the students with Spanish and United States culture and history while speaking in Spanish. Sarah Cardone, a senior who went on the trip said, “My favorite part was going to the capitol and White House.”

Other seniors who went on the trip share what their favorite part of the trip was. Danielle Cardone said, “My favorite part was getting to see aspects of DC and having to navigate our way through the city on our own. It kind of gave a glimpse to what it will be like when we are adults on our own in the big city like that.

A senior, Emmy Turybury said, “I liked that we were able to see many different places. It was fun having a scavenger hunt rather than filling out a worksheet. I also loved being with my friends and spending the day with them.”