Spanish class is one of our weekly specials in Lower School, allowing every student in Kindergarten through 5th grade to have weekly exposure to a new language and culture. Through interactive lessons, students are encouraged to step outside of their comfort zone and try new things.
Maestra Quade, Lower School Spanish teacher, does an incredible job fostering the purpose behind teaching Spanish at NLA. Through travel, missions, and constantly being immersed in different environments growing up, Quade developed a passion for other cultures. In a day and age where it is easy to focus on self, she does an amazing job showing students what it looks like to see others as uniquely made.
I let my students know that every person is an image-bearer of Christ. We can dress differently, speak differently, eat differently, look different – but we all reflect the creativity and beauty of God.
Maestra Quade
“By speaking even three words in someone else’s language or being willing to eat their food or participate in their work, we are valuing them just as God valued us enough to send His Son to eat, dress, and speak like us. I hope that message is what travels with them through their lives!” explained Quade.
Quade’s class is filled with fun and excitement every day of the week as she teaches over 300 students. She explained that teaching can occur most successfully for her when it is done in a living, moving, and interacting way.
“Because of the wide range of ages, personalities, and learning styles, every unit I develop incorporates spoken practices, written work, coloring and a little crafting, lots of visuals, table games, and all-class activities,” shared Quade.
There are many examples of how Maestra Quade fosters interactive learning in her classroom including Window to the World and Restaurant Week. One of the recent activities in her classroom invited Upper School Spanish students to help the Lower School students translate hand-written cards from students in Guatemala. These cards came from the same orphanage that students in our Junior class visited last fall on the annual Junior Missions Trip! It was an amazing opportunity for our Lower School and High School students to see the impact of the Gospel and form cross-cultural connections.
Spanish class provides an amazing opportunity for students to learn about another culture. We are so grateful for the impact Maestra Quade has on her students, showing them that all people are image-bearers of Christ.