How To Say Stem Changing Verbs In Spanish

If you're using a traditional textbook, you will most certainly have to teach a unit on stem changing verbs in Spanish. They usually coincide with vocabulary related to sports (juega, pierde), talking most your classes (comienza, prefiere), or ordering in a restaurant. (pide, sirve).

Pedagogy stalk changing verbs in Spanish is all virtually spelling, and let'due south face it, with autocorrect, spell check, and talk to text, spelling is really not the most important thing to be teaching them.

Instead, teach stem changing verbs as Spanish vocabulary.

Rather than showing students the infinitives, introduce the stalk changing verbs already conjugated through a story.

Storytelling to teach grammer in context

Read or create a story for each verb family. The purpose is to show the verbs already conjugated and in context. This manner, students learn the stem changing verbs as vocabulary, rather than a grammer pattern. This is how we learned linguistic communication every bit babies too. We did not formally start learning whatever grammer patterns until about 4th course, only we were speaking properly way before then considering nosotros had heard the structures used in every day language. That's why we apply stories to teach grammar in Spanish. Think of your Spanish I students equally cognitive toddlers =).

Before reading

Present students with a picture book slideshow so you tin read together and make sure everyone understands the plot of the story. Here is a sample of "Capitan Claw no puede encontrar su tesoro", focusing on O > UE verbs.

After you lot present the story, pass out or share individual copies. Before you begin reading, depict attention to the word bank and help students write in the definition above each word. This way, when they are reading independently, they tin can reference information technology quickly.

During reading

Read the story to students to model fluency and pause to ask questions as you go. Questions provide added repetitions of the key words you lot are targeting. Questions may be related to the story, but not always. You can also use the vocabulary to inquire the students a personal question for date or to gauge their understanding.

After reading

After yous finish reading together, I will ask students to read to themselves for another repetition. Next, they read to a partner to practice pronunciation. Finally, they summarize or read aloud to a partner in English.

Throughout these activities, students are rereading the stem changing verbs in context and seeing them as vocabulary, rather than grammer.

Hither are two other examples:

Sample of Due east > IE story

Each story has comprehension questions that I use to assess their understanding or stalk changing verbs equally vocabulary. Later on we complete the story, I practise explicitly teach the grammar, but in a quick pop-upwardly lesson. Then students do a traditional grammer activity to practice the conjugating, because this is something they will have to do on a section wide cess.

Check for understanding

So far, nosotros take learned that instead of learning that pensar = to think, it'southward more constructive to teach that piensa = thinks.

Use the stories to inquire students lots of questions for repetition. And so reinforce the vocabulary and practice the terms with a Quizlet where the verbs are conjugated in the él/ella form.

Just like any other vocabulary lesson, you lot should only present a few words at a time. Consider chunking them by their grammar families (e > i, o >ue, due east >ie), and so when y'all do teach the grammer, information technology'south already organized for them.

Stem-irresolute verb families

Hither are some of the most common stem changing verbs organized by families. NEVER teach an entire family of verbs at one time – information technology'southward way too much input! Nonetheless, it's overnice to have a comprehensive list of stem stem changing verbs to pull from if you lot are writing your own stories. Notice, they are listed in the singular class.

O > UE verbs

almuerza (almorzar)
cuenta (contar)
demuestra (demostrar)
duerme (dormir)
encuentra (encontrar)
llueve (llover)
muere (morir)
muestra (mostrar)
mueve (mover)
puede (poder)
recuerda (recordar)
sueña (soñar)
vuela (volar)
vuelve (volver)

E > I verbs

consigue (conseguir)
corrige (corregir)
dice (decir)
despide (despedir)
elige (elegir)
mide (medir)
pide (pedir)
persigue (perseguir)
repite (repetir)
sigue (seguir)
sirve (servir)
se viste (vestirse)

E > IE verbs

cierra (cerrar)
comienza (comenzar)
defiende (defender)
se despierta (despertarse)
se divierte (divertirse)
empieza (empezar)
enciende (encender)
encierra (encerrar)
entiende (entender)
miente (mentir)

nieva (nevar)
piensa (pensar)
pierde (perder)
prefiere (preferir)
quiere (querer)
se sienta (sentarse)
siente (sentir)
sugiere (sugerir)
tiene (tener)
viene (vener)

Games to do stem-changing verbs in Spanish

If yous are looking for more than of a review activity or something more than hands on with stem changing verbs, check out this puzzle and matching game. They are groovy activities for stations or collaborative partner activities!

More games

Here is a Kahoot I made for my grade. You will detect that I am non asking students how to conjugate the stalk-changing verb, merely rather to utilize it in context as vocabulary.

Kahoot, Gimkit, Blooket, Quizzizz and Boomcards all have dandy digital activities to use during altitude learning. All of these sites have pre-fabricated activities that you can search for and utilise with minor tweaks.

If you are looking for more rote exercise, withal, here are some online games I have plant for independent exercise.

Stem changing verbs (matching)
Stalk-change verbs(battleship)
Stem-irresolute verbs (Quizlet)
Stem-changing verbs (rags to riches)
Stem-changing verbs e>ie (exercise quizzes-write on paper and check answers at bottom)
O>UE (practice quiz- write on newspaper and cheque answers at bottom)

Teach students how to study on their own

Brand sure you lot teach students how to study a topic similar this. When when they go to high school, they will encounter a lot of fill-in-the-blank fashion activities, so we have to gear up them. All the same, your main goal should ever be that students remember what the words hateful – not what kind of stem change they employ.

What other means practise you teach stalk changing verbs in your Spanish classroom? Comment below!