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Growing With Proficiency The Podcast
Welcome to Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast! Are you a World Language teacher who is looking for ideas, strategies, activities, and inspiration to create a World Language class where you and your students enjoy using the language to learn about the world and each other? Do you want to transform your class into an acquisition-driven instruction space where you intentionally provide a ton of comprehensible input?
If you are, you're in the right place.
Let's start this journey together. Head over to IG, and send me a DM @claudiamelliott to let me know what topics you would like me to cover in an upcoming episode.Join my free Facebook community, Growing With C. Also, check out my blog to start discovering some of these ideas and strategies at growingwithproficiency.com
Episodes
219 episodes
Re-Release Episode 94: Card Talk with a Twist: An Activity That Builds Community and Boosts Comprehension
Are you looking for an interactive and engaging activity to boost your students' participation and build a strong classroom community at the end of the school year? In this episode of "Growing With Proficiency, the podcast," we explore a unique...
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Episode 187: End-of-Year Activities for World Language Classes (Low-Prep Ideas That Work) With Allison Wienhold
The end of the school year can feel chaotic: testing, low energy, and unpredictable schedules. So what do you actually do with your students during those final weeks?In this episode of Growing With Proficiency, I ...
Episodio 186: El modelo 50/50: cómo motivar y facilitar interacciones auténtica en el modo interpersonal con Theresa Jensen y Maria del Carmen Benítez
Profe ¿te ha pasado esto? Haces una pregunta… y recibes respuestas de una palabra. O silencio. O miradas de “no sé qué decir”. Y tú estás ahí pensando: pero si esto debería ser comunicación… ¿por qué no se siente así? ...
Re-Release Episode 27: Shake Up Your Classroom with My Top 5 Language Teaching Strategies and Activities from SCOLT 23
SCOLT is definitely one of my favorite conferences, and 2023 was a highlight. That is why I decided to re-release this and because you can get amazing activities you can do tomorrow in your class. Are you feeling bored and uni...
Episode 185: Interpersonal Communication That Works: Goals and Scaffolds for Silent Discussion (Part 2 with Chelsea Lawrence)
Interpersonal communication can feel like one of the hardest modes to teach. You plan the activity, set expectations… and then students give one-word answers, switch to their common language, or disengage altogether.But what if the probl...
Episode 184: How to Decide What to Stop Caring About as a Language Teacher with Meredith White, Bethanie Drew and Maris Hawkins
Have you ever felt like you are doing everything, you’re running out of energy, and somehow, it still doesn’t feel like enough? In this episode of Growing With Proficiency The Podcast, I sit down with Meredith White, Bethan...
Re-Release Episode 163: Silent Discussions — A Simple Strategy to Boost Interpersonal Communication in Your Language Classes
I’m re-releasing this episode today because Silent Discussions have become one of the most powerful activities in my classroom. Recently, during a formal observation, my assistant principal watched my students fully engaged in a Silent Discussi...
Episode 183: Dictation + Communication: How to Make Dictation Purposefully Communicative With Keith Toda
Dictation is one of those classic activities many of us use in our language classes—but sometimes it can feel repetitive or not very communicative.In this episode of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast, I talk with Latin teacher Keith ...
Re-Release Episode 114: Talking about Listening Comprehension in World Language Education with Marta Ruiz Yedinek
Join host Claudia Elliott in this insightful episode of 'Growing with Proficiency, the podcast,' as she delves into the importance of listening comprehension and skills in world language education with special guest, Marta Yedinek.Disco...
Episodio 182: Comprensión auditiva en la clase de español: Estrategias y ciclo práctico para desarrollar el listening
La comprensión auditiva es una de las habilidades más desafiantes para nuestros estudiantes… y muchas veces también para nosotros como docentes.En este episodio hablamos sobre cómo enseñar listening de manera intencional en la clase de e...
Re-Release Episode 30: Low-Prep Activities and Three Pillars for High-Engagement in the World Language Class
Are you a language teacher looking for ways to engage your students? If you’re, you’re not alone. How to engage students is the most common question among teachers today, and that’s why I’m so excited about today's episode of Growin...
Episode 181: 7 Steps to a Language-Rich, Interactive World Language Classroom with Sally Barnes
What if every student in your world language classroom was actively engaged, supported, and confident in using the target language?In this practical and inspiring conversation, Sally Barnes shares the powerful framework behind the 7 ...
Re-Release Episode 5: Managing Chatty Classes: 5 Strategies to Get World Language Students Actually LISTENING
Nothing works if our students aren't truly listening, and I mean truly listening.Do you have that one class that pushes all your buttons? The chatty class where students talk over you, chat in English, and seem to tune out no ma...
Episodio 180: Del Input al Output: Un Ciclo de Instrucción que Puedes Repetir
Planear clases no debería sentirse agotador. Muchas veces el problema no es la falta de ideas, sino no tener una estructura clara que podamos repetir.En este episodio comparto un ciclo de instrucción del input al output que...
Episode 179: How to Tell Stories So Students Actually Listen: What the Brain Says About Engagement with Erica Peplinski-Burge
Why do some stories immediately capture students’ attention—while others lose them halfway through?In this episode of Growing With Proficiency, I sit down with Erica Peplinsky-Burge to explore what the brain tells us about storytelling, ...
Re-Release Episode 118: Low-Stress Assessments with AnneMarie Chase
So many teachers ask the same questions:"How do you assess in a proficiency-driven classroom?""How do you grade without overwhelming students—or yourself?"And, "How do you keep assessment sustainable?"That’s why this episode ...
Re-release Episode 22: Making Interpersonal Communication Work: 5 Repeatable Activities That Build Real Conversation with Bethanie Drew
Interpersonal communication is what our students want most… and what many of us struggle to make happen without it turning into their common language in 10 seconds 😅In this re-released episode, I’m joined by a friend and outstan...
Episode 178: Adjusting & Personalizing Instruction: The Core Skill That Makes It Possible
(Why one-size-fits-all lessons don’t work—and what to do instead)In this episode, I focus on what I consider the heart of acquisition-driven instruction: adjusting and personalizing what we do in class so all
Episode 177: How to Ask Better Questions in the World Language Classroom (Using 5-Minute Blocks)
In this episode of Growing With Proficiency, we continue the series on how to build foundational skills for language acquisition in intentional 5-minute blocks.This episode focuses on one powerful — and often underestimated...
Episodio 176: Las tres habilidades básicas para la adquisición de la lengua: Rutinas de 5 minutos para usar la lengua meta, hacer preguntas y personalizar
En este episodio de Growing With Proficiency, hablo de tres habilidades esenciales para la adquisición de la lengua que sostienen nuestras clases comunicativas: maximizar el uso de la lengua meta, hacer p...
Episode 175: How to Stay in the Target Language 5 Minutes At A Time (3 Easy Routines)
Happy New Year, profe 🎉 If you’re setting classroom goals for 2026—this episode is for you.So many language teachers want the same thing: use more target language, keep students engaged, and support acquisition… but “90% in the TL...
Re-Release Episode 14: 3 Strategies to Reclaim Your Time in the New Year From Lesson Planning to Taking Control of Your Inbox With Lisa Mchargue
Do you spend too much time lesson planning, searching for files, or managing your inbox—and still feel like you’re always behind?In this re-released episode of Growing With Proficiency, I’m joined by Lisa McCart to talk about ho...
Re-Release Episode 126: Voice and Grow: Why End-of-Year Surveys Are a Must for Our Classes
As the school year wraps up, there’s no better time to reflect—not just on what we think worked, but on how students experienced our class. In this episode of Growing With Proficiency: The Podcast...
Episode 174 — Three Low-Stress December Activities That Still Give Students Input
In this episode, we talk about December. I’m sharing three low-stress activities that keep students engaged, help them revisit everything they’ve learned, and still give them meaningful input, even when their energy (and ours) is running...
Episode 173: Why Curiosity is Key for Motivation in Language Class: ACTFL Takeaways + Easy CI Strategies for December
If you are exhausted this December and looking for simple, meaningful ways to keep your students engaged — this episode is your cafecito.I’m sharing what truly stood out at ACTFL this year, and spoiler alert: it wasn’t a new app...