Foreign Language Day at the University of Northern Colorado

Introduction Letter

Dear Colleagues:

We are pleased to announce that the registration materials for our annual Foreign Language Day at the University of Northern Colorado will soon be available on the web at the Foreign Language Day Web site. Please encourage your high school students to sign up for competitions, but they may also come to observe or participate in our other activities. We hope this will make it possible for a broader range of students to take part in Foreign Language Day.

Our plan is to provide competitions, workshops, and many other activities in which students may participate during the day of April 16, 2008. Competitions will run concurrently with other activities so that students will always find something of interest to do. We are providing competitions for each level, but the number of students who may compete in each competition will be limited. In this way, we hope to streamline the sessions and make the activities more competitive for your students before they are chosen to represent your school.

Passports will be provided to the students and will be stamped at each event to verify the activities the students attend. Students will be urged to speak in their foreign languages and prizes will be awarded for speaking. All students must be pre-registered. Those who are not competing or do not wish to watch the competitions will have plenty of other activities in which to participate.

The following competitions will be available for high school students of Spanish, French, and German. We have added a Heritage Spanish Speaker and Chinese Language Category for Who am I? and Show and Tell competitions, new for 2008!!

Who am I?	Level 1 Students Only
Who am I? Speakers Only-NEW	Level 1 Heritage Spanish
Who am I?	Level 1 Chinese - NEW
Show and Tell	Level 2 Students Only
Show and Tell Speakers Only-NEW	Level 2 Heritage Spanish
Show and Tell	Level 2 Chinese - NEW
Skits (5 people or fewer)	Level 3 Students Only
Memorized Poetry Recitation	Level 4 Students Only
Extemporaneous Speech	Level 5 Students Only
Extemporaneous Speech	Native Speakers Only
Song/Dance Cultural Entertainment	All Students
Dramatic Cultural Entertainment	All Students
Individual Talent Competition	All Students
Art and Soccer Competitions	All Students
Videotaped Commercial Competition	All Levels*

*Note: Each teacher is allowed to send only 2 commercials per language per level.

Please note that we will be having Spanish, French, German and Chinese competitions. Students of other languages are invited to present a short cultural performance that may include dancing, singing, instrumental, or any other creative performance as well as prepare ethnic food for sampling. This is not a competition but an opportunity for students to demonstrate their particular talents. Please contact Melitta Wagner-Heaston (see contact information below) to schedule performances.

You may bring as many students as you would like, but please register early since spaces may fill quickly. Please register all students planning to attend by March 28, 2008!! Payment is also due at that time. We will email you details concerning the location of events upon receipt of registration.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

8:30 – 9:00 Pick up school packets at the Upstairs Lobby of the University Center.
9:00 – 9:20 Opening Session in the University Center Ballroom
9:30 – 2:00 Competitions and Other Activities
2:00 – 2:45 Closing Session and Award Ceremony

We hope you and your students will join us for this day of competition and cultural experience. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions concerning this event. We look forward to seeing you in April.

If you have immediate concerns or questions please contact me via email at Melitta.wagnerheaston@unco.edu.

Melitta Wagner-Heaston, Ph.D.
School of Modern Languages
FLD Faculty Coordinator 2008

Foreign Language Day Competitions and Activities

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. All competitions listed are for non-native speakers unless otherwise indicated. We encourage native speakers to enter the extemporaneous speech or competitions designated for all levels.

WHO AM I? – LEVEL I

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. The student will have one minute to describe him/herself to the judges. Possible topics include the student’s interests, family, daily routine, etc. Students will be judged on fluency, preparedness, thoroughness, pronunciation, and vocabulary. No notes will be allowed.

WHO AM I? – LEVEL I – HERITAGE SPANISH SPEAKER ONLY (new for 2008)

Each school is allowed only one competitor. The student will have one minute to describe him/herself to the judges. Possible topics include the student’s interests, family, daily routine, etc. Students will be judged on fluency, preparedness, thoroughness, pronunciation, and vocabulary. No notes will be allowed.

WHO AM I? – LEVEL I – CHINESE (new for 2008)

SHOW AND TELL – LEVEL II

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. The student will bring an object and describe it. The presentation should be limited to 60 – 90 seconds. Students will be judged on fluency, preparedness, thoroughness, pronunciation, and vocabulary usage. No notes will be allowed.

SHOW AND TELL – LEVEL II – HERITAGE SPANISH SPEAKER ONLY (new for 2008)

Each school is allowed only one competitor. The student will bring an object and describe it. The presentation should be limited to 60 – 90 seconds. Students will be judged on fluency, preparedness, thoroughness, pronunciation, and vocabulary usage. No notes will be allowed.

SHOW AND TELL – LEVEL II – CHINESE (new for 2008)

SKIT – LEVEL III

Each school is allowed only one entry of two to five students from each language. The students will perform a simple and original presentation. The presentations should be limited to five minutes. Students will be judged on fluency, blocking, dramatic interpretation, projection, pronunciation, memorization, originality, and thematic content.

MEMORIZED POETRY RECITATION – LEVEL IV

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. The student will recite a non-original memorized poem. No props should be used. A copy of the poem must be submitted to the judges. Student will be judged on fluency and pronunciation, preparedness and memorization, projection, and quality of interpretation.

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEECH – LEVEL V

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. The student will be given a topic upon which to expound. Students will be given two minutes to prepare. No notes will be allowed. The student will speak for two to three minutes and will be judged on fluency and pronunciation, grammar, vocabulary, and delivery.

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEECH – NATIVE SPEAKER ONLY

INDIVIDUAL TALENT COMPETITION – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. This activity must have cultural relevance and include a memorized introduction by the performer in the target language. The performance should also be memorized. This competition is for individual students only, but individuals may bring an accompanist who may have sheet music. A piano will be provided upon request. Performances should not be more than 5 minutes.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to space limitations, only student participants and their teachers will be allowed at the individual talent competitions.

SONG/DANCE CULTURAL ENTERTAINMENT – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed only one entry of two to twenty students from each language. The performance should reflect the culture of a foreign country and should fall within the categories of singing and/or dancing. The performance should not exceed 10 minutes and must be memorized. No speakers or microphones will be allowed.

DRAMATIC CULTURAL ENTERTAINMENT – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed only one entry of two to twenty students from each language. The performance should reflect the culture of a foreign country and should fall within the categories of a presentation, a dramatic excerpt from a Spanish, a French, a German, play, or an original skit. The performance should not exceed 10 minutes and must be memorized. No speakers or microphones will be allowed.

ART COMPETITION: PAINTINGS, DRAWINGS, POSER ART & SCULPTURES COMPETITION – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed only one competitor from each language. Entries will be judged on quality of craftsmanship, creativity, cultural relevance, and originality.

PIÑATA COMPETITION (SPANISH ONLY) – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed two competitors. Entries will be judged on quality of craftsmanship, creativity, cultural relevance, and originality.

SOCCER COMPETITION – ALL LEVELS

Each school is allowed only one participant from each language. The teams will be comprised of several students from each language from different schools. Please see Student Release Form. This waiver forms must be signed and returned before the student is allowed to participate.

This document can also be found at: http://www.unco.edu/fld/registration_information.htm

NO EXCEPTIONS WILL BE ALLOWED. All soccer students must be registered by March 14, 2008. If additional students are interested in playing, please contact us at: melitta.wagnerheaston@unco.edu after March 24th to see if there are spaces available.

VIDEOTAPED COMMERCIAL COMPETITION – ALL LEVELS

EACH TEACHER IS ALLOWED TO SEND TWO COMMERCIALS PER LEVEL. You may choose the level(s) of students – level I, II, III, IV, V, or native speaker. Please do not mix levels in a commercial. Commercials may be no longer than one minute. Commercials will be judged on fluency, blocking, dramatic interpretation, pronunciation, memorization, originality, and cultural relevance. In addition, the quality of taping will be considered. Please see Additional Guidelines.

This document can also be found at: http://www.unco.edu/fld/registration_information.htm

FOOD TASTING - ACTIVITY – this is not a competition!

Each school is allowed one dessert from each language. Please provide dessert items only for tasting. Students should bring an authentic recipe written in the foreign language on a 6 x 8 card to identify their dessert. If the dessert requires refrigeration, a cooler must be provided by student. Likewise, we will be unable to provide a means of reheating the desserts. This activity will allow students from all languages to present their culinary delights for tasting.