This document outlines a presentation on mastering the interpretive mode for the AP language exam. It discusses strategies for teaching interpretive skills using authentic materials like interviews, articles and audio passages. Examples are provided of how to scaffold interpretive activities from novice to advanced levels using things like graphic organizers, vocabulary exercises, formative assessments and more. Specific examples are also demonstrated, including a Spanish children's play and a French interview on the changing role of language. The presentation aims to equip teachers with best practices for incorporating interpretive mode practice across their curriculum.

1. MASTERING THE
INTERPRETIVE MODE
Presented by
Lou Baskinger & Ed Weiss
APAC 2014

2. TODAY’S AGENDA
DEFINITION – THE INTERPRETIVE MODE
MATERIALS FOR INTERPRETIVE MODE
INTERPRETIVE MODE ON THE AP EXAM
DEMONSTRATION OF TEACHING STRATEGIES
audio and written examples
TEACHER RESOURCES / STUDENT ACCESS

3. What ACTFL tells
us about the
Interpretive Mode

4. AP EXAM OVERVIEW
Section I (Interpretive Communication)
Multiple-choice (50% of total score): 65 items in 9 sets
4 reading
2 listening and reading combined
3 listening
Section 2 (Interpersonal and Presentational Communication)
Free-Response (50% of total score): 4 items
Interpersonal Writing
Presentational Writing
Interpersonal Speaking
Presentational Speaking

5. COLLEGE BOARD TELLS
US...

6. AUTHENTIC MATERIALS
MUST BE USED THROUGHOUT
YOUR PROGRAM
• Exposure to authentic materials
begins day one of year one!
• Scaffolding these materials through the various levels
of your program builds proficiency
• The rich diversity of these materials will energize
your lessons and engage students

7. AUTHENTIC MATERIALS
ARE...
• those designed for native speakers. They are real
text designed not for language students, but for the
speakers of the language in question. (Nunan)
• stretches of real language, produced by a real
speaker or writer for a real audience and designed to
carry a real message. (Harmer)
• “appropriate” and “quality” in terms of goals,
objectives, learner needs and interest and “natural” in
terms of real life and meaningful communication.
(Rogers)

8. A PARTIAL LIST...
• online articles
• charts / graphs / maps
• videos
• magazines /
newspapers
• films
• music
• advertisements

9. AUDIO SOURCES
• Radio interviews
• General interest podcasts
• PSAs
• Brief lectures
• Audio guides - museums, travel
comprehensibility & relevance are #1

10. WRITTEN SOURCES
• Literary texts
• Journalistic articles
• Letters
• Ads
• Instructions
• The above may be combined with maps, charts, or
table

11. DON’T FORGET THESE…
Maps
Graphs
Charts
Stats

12. ALL MATERIALS FIT UNDER
THE SIX THEMES

15. THE AP LANGUAGE AND
CULTURE EXAM
- Strategies for success with interpretive questions
- Student responsibilities
- Types of questions

16. STRATEGIES
• Each audio piece is played two times
• Note taking is permitted and encouraged
• Scanning questions in advance
• Having a knowledge of the question types is key
• Key terms that guide listening:
• comprehension, tone, audience, meaning, purpose

18. IMPACT OF INTERPRETIVE
MODE
A minimum 75% of the exam (objective and free respons
e)
requires interpretation of a variety of materials
Audio, Visual,Audiovisual & Print
Interpretive Communication
 Comprehension of content
 Critical viewing, reading & listening
 Vocabulary
 Cultures, Connections & Comparisons

20. EXAMPLES OF INTERPRETIVE MATERIALS
You will see a demonstration of two different interpretive
pieces typical of those found on the AP exam
Lou will model a letter in Spanish
Ed will model an interview in French

21. BEST PRACTICES WHEN USING
MATERIALS
FOR THE INTERPRETIVE MODE
• Advanced Organizer - a pre-reading or pre-listening
teaching aide that prepares the students for what is to
come

22. Tema curricular: La belleza y la estética
Introducción
Este texto trata de una obra de teatro para niños.
El anuncio original fue publicado en marzo de
2011 en Nueva York, Estados Unidos.

23. ¡TRAIGA A SUS NINOS A REPERTORIO ESPAñOL! MI BEBé ES UN HéROE
ESCRITA Y DIRIGIDA POR EDUARDO NAVAS
UNA PRODUCCIóN DEL TEATRO RODANTE INFANTIL SCARAMOUChES
PRESENTADA POR REPERTORIO ESPAñOL
UN ESPECTáCULO BILINGüE (INGLéS Y ESPAñOL)
Teatro Scaramouches, una excepcional compañía venezolana de teatro infantil,
presenta una original y divertida obra teatral con marionetas. El malvado y travieso
Cuchiflín intenta llevarse al bebé del Príncipe Azulito y la Princesa Perlita. Con la
ayuda de los niños el bebé impide que Cuchiflín se salga con la suya, convirtiendo al
bebé y a los niños en héroes. Repleta de colorido, risas y diversión, la obra capta la
atención de los niños de principio a fin.
sábado 5 de febrero – 12 p.m. sábado 5 de marzo – 12 p.m. sábado 2 de abril – 12
p.m. sábado 7 de mayo – 12 p.m. sábado 4 de junio – 12 p.m.
RESERVACIONES
INTERNET: WWW.REPERTORIO.ORG TELéFONO: 1.212.225.9999

24. INTERPRETIVE TEACHING
How to implement
Interpretive Teaching
into your class
A lesson plan

25. INTERPRETIVE TEACHING
Ways to incorporate the interpretive mode into your lessons
A typical story from your curriculum that is not
from the AP level
Remember… Scaffold into lower levels
Third year honors class
Fourth year class

26. GREGORIO LÓPEZ Y FUENTES
1940
A SUMMARY OF THE STORY
UNA CARTA A DIOS

27. SUMMARY OF THE
STORY

28. GRAMMATICALLY
NEWSWORTHY
HOLIDAY
TIMING IS EVERYTNG!

29. SETTING THE STAGE
Essential Questions

30. POSSIBLE QUESTIONS
What images come to mind when I say Mexico?
What do you think life is like in a farming village of Mexico?
Do you think your life is different for your great grandparents
’
life? Explain the differences?
What was the last letter … not e-mail… you wrote?
To whom did you write? Why did you write?

31. PRE-READING ACTIVITIES
Write a letter to Santa Claus
Write a letter to Los Reyes Magos
Share with class
Laugh and enjoy!
Collect and put aside

32. VOCABULARY…EMPTY LIST
Write the story…
based on the words of the list

33. READ AND DISCUSS
Create questions for comprehension
(Formative assessment)
Create questions for discussion
(Summative assessment)
Connect to Essential questions
(Interpretive mode)

34. STOP!
Lencho’s second letter….
You write it!

35. COMPARISON
Students’ letters to Lencho’s lette
r

36. WRITING ASSIGNMENT
INTERPRETIVE MODE
Is Lencho a good man or a bad man… or is
he like most of us… a combination of good
and bad qualities?

37. THE WRITING ASSIGNMENT
Una Carta A Dios
Muchas veces cuando leemos una novela o un cuento, el personaje
principal tiene características buenas o malas... o este personaje es
una combinación de lo bueno y lo malo. En el cuento <<Una Carta a
Dios>>¿es Lencho, en su opinión, una buena o una mala persona o es
él una combinación de lo bueno y lo malo.
En una composición bien desarrollada y con prueba del texto del
cuento, expliquen Uds. por qué es bueno o malo Lencho.
¡OJO! Una composición bien desarrollada es una que tiene una
introducción, tres argumentos (por mínimo) y una conclusión. Una
composición bien desarrollada también tiene una extensión mínima de
unas doscientas palabras.

38. GRAPHIC ORGANIZER
Missing : The organizer

39. LET’S LOOK AT AN EXAMPLE
OF A LISTENING PIECE
This example will be an interview in Frenc
h
Many of the following strategies can be
applied to reading interpretation as well

40. Introduction
Thème du cours : Les défis mondiaux
Dans cette sélection il s’agit du statut de la langue française dans le monde. L’émission
originale intitulée « Invité Afrique : Abdou Diouf » a été publiée le 18 octobre 2010 en
France par Radio France Internationale. La sélection dure à peu près deux minutes.
Christophe Boisbouvier, journaliste pour RFI, interviewe Abdou Diouf, secrétaire général
de l’Organisation internationale de la Francophonie.
SAMPLE ADVANCE ORGANIZER
(AUDIO SOURCE)

41. ED’S AUDIO PIECE
Theme: Personal and Public Identities
Introduction:
This article concerns the French language
and its evolution throughout time.
The effect of new technology on language is discussed.
An audio interview - length: 2 minutes, 10 seconds
Title: The importance of written language
Accent: France Year: 2012

42. ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
What role does texting play in your life?
What are the positives and negatives of texting?
What effect would a better knowledge and control
of your native language have on your life?
What effect is the increasing use of technology
based communication having on language?

43. PRE-LISTENING ACTIVITIES
Wordle with key vocabulary

44. PRE-LISTENING ACTIVITIES
Exemples des textos français:
TDS
DQP
ALP
EDR
CHUI
CPG
C pa 5pa
kestufé

45. LA LANGUE MODERNE?

46. TYPES OF QUESTIONS
Fact based - What value does M. Orsenna place on texts?
Language - What does “tout passe par les écrans” mean?
Overall comprehension - What do these two men
think about the language of today?
Summarize - What is the main lesson in this article?
Predictive - What is the future for young people
who do not master their language?

47. BEST PRACTICES PART 2
ONGOING ASSESSMENT
• Formative Assessment on Ed’s site

48. FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT
After first listening, students provide two facts
Students react to a list of five true / false statements
Students use targeted vocabulary in sentences or
circumlocute

49. SCAFFOLDING SELECTIONS

50. SCAFFOLDED ACTIVITIES
Novice - identify the participants
and main point of interview
Intermediate - describe the attitude of M. Orsenna
Advanced - provide cultural comparison of how
language has changed where you live

51. A WEB PAGE OF INTERPRETIVE SELECTIONS

52. INTERACTIVE TECHNOLOGY SUPPORTING
STUDENT ACCESS TO MATERIALS
Lingtlanguage
Audioboo podcaster
Voicethread

53. WEB RESOURCES
Ed’s listening links
Ed’s reading links Ed’s Spanish links

54. CONTACT INFORMATION
Lou Baskinger – lgbaskin@aol.com
Ed Weiss – edweiss@comcast.net
The entire presentation can be viewed at Eds site:
Simply Google “Ed Weiss”
The last link on Ed’s site is titled “APAC”
Link to Ed’s listening piece:
http://www.canalacademie.com/apprendre/fiche.php?id=
61