The Ann Arbor Languages Partnership (A2LP) offers an opportunity to University of Michigan students and Ann Arbor community members to teach Spanish to 3rd and 4th graders in Ann Arbor Public Schools.
about
Who Are We, Where We're Going
A2LP teaches undergraduates how to teach Spanish to 3rd and 4th graders in Ann Arbor Public Schools. We’re a big program! We teach nearly 2,000 students per week, and we’re in more than 75 classrooms and 19 schools. Each year we have about 75 undergraduate students, whom we call Language Teaching Assistants (LTAs), teaching those 3rd and 4th graders. Our undergraduates develop amazing skills in instruction, group facilitation and management, learning design,and assessment; in addition, they also develop significant leadership skills. These students emerge from A2LP with a sense of confidence and purpose that few other course experiences can provide.
Our work is founded on a commitment to promote learning, for our LTAs and for the wonderful kids in elementary classrooms. It is also based on a strong sense of collaboration between all the members of our community. Although we provide detailed lesson plans for each lesson, we support the collaboration between LTAs to enhance and adapt the lessons to the learning needs of the different classrooms in which they teach.
We also maintain close connection with what is happening in the elementary classrooms, by observing LTAs frequently and by supporting their teaching with feedback targeted to address the specific characteristics of each classroom. The Seminar experience every week allows us to integrate teaching principles with the experiences that our LTAs create every week in their teaching placements.
INTENSIVE PREPARATION
in teaching Spanish at the elementary level
EXTENSIVE CLINICAL PLACEMENTS
through collaboration with the Ann Arbor Public Schools
19 SCHOOLS, 75 CLASSROOMS
In 2014, we taught introductory Spanish to more than 1700 children in the Ann Public Schools
A2LP ALUMNI
A2LP alumni are currently working in multiple industries across the U.S. including business, communications, medicine, and teaching.
OUR PARTNERS
OUR TEAM
MARIA J. COOLICAN
Director
Claudia Cameratti-Baeza, PHD
Research Manager and Curriculum Associate
Ann Crowley
Observation Instructor
Diane Aretz
Program Manager
Tiffany Chen
Program Assistant
SASHA MEJIA
Teaching Fellow
Nikole Racicot
Teaching Fellow
Jacqueline Caserio
Advanced Language Teaching Assistant
Kalen Church
Advanced Language Teaching Assistant
Natalia Cuevas
Advanced Language Teaching Assistant
Olivia Sciore
Language Teaching Assistant
Annie Pellegrini
Language Teaching Assistant
Rigo Orozco Diaz
Language Teaching Assistant
Heather Foxworthy
Language Teaching Assistant
Shelby Benham
Language Teaching Assistant
Kathleen Sharkey
Language Teaching Assistant
Tyler Bentley
Language Teaching Assistant
Lanie Essex
Language Teaching Assistant
Maansi Dalmia
Language Teaching Assistant
Audrey Orwin
Language Teaching Assistant
Bridgette Pollaski
Language Teaching Assistant
David Devries
Language Teaching Assistant
Jasneet Aulakh
Language Teaching Assistant
Casandra Pitu
Language Teaching Assistant
Kei Kohmoto
Language Teaching Assistant
Nicole Mucha
Language Teaching Assistant
Olivia Jones
Language Teaching Assistant
Maya Sankaran
Language Teaching Assistant
Theo Pistner
Language Teaching Assistant
Annika Topelian
Language Teaching Assistant
Renee Salem
Language Teaching Assistant
Marcus Hall
Language Teaching Assistant
Briayna Jordan
Language Teaching Assistant
Leah Pearl Burmeister
Language Teaching Assistant
Bradley Hall
Language Teaching Assistant
Seamus G. Lynch
Language Teaching Assistant
Lily Montgomery
Language Teaching Assistant
Madeline Poterala
Language Teaching Assistant
Testimonials
I feel that everyone has that “Aha!” moment in college when they finally find their passion and they feel like they belong somewhere. I feel as though A2LP has done that for me. I found a deeper passion for teaching and for language in general. I found a best friend in my teaching partner, who is now my roommate. So, I guess I had my “Aha!” moment during my senior year. Which shows it’s never too late to start a new adventure.
Lauren
Participating in the A2LP program as a returning Spanish teacher has taught me a lot myself. Before working with this program, I always worked independently and was just responsible for just myself and my own work. A2LP has changed my perspective and work ethic, as I am now responsible for entire classrooms and my personal successes as a teacher depend on my interactions with my students and their cooperation. Now I collaborate with three wonderful and diverse groups of students to get things done.
Sarah
I had a very touching moment last week as I wrapped up the “describing myself” unit with my students. I asked the students to pick a person– themselves, a family member, or a friend– to draw a picture of and describe in Spanish. When I walked around the room to check the students’ work, I saw that a couple of the students had decided to draw and describe me! They all said that I was “amistosa,” which means friendly. I am so happy and touched that my students feel like I have good, friendly relationships with them!
Julia
A2LP has given me the amazing experience to improve upon my Spanish while teaching children and giving back to the community. Both in seminar and in my fourth grade classes, there is an incredible sense of community that is really comforting going to school so far away from home. It is such a unique opportunity at Michigan and I’m so lucky I was able to participate in it.
Leslie
A2LP is not like any other ‘class’ I’ve taken at the University of Michigan, and for all the right reasons. Teaching students at the Elementary Schools is more of a stress-relief for me, rather than a job to attend. I think one of the best aspects about A2LP is that it benefits me as much as the students we teach: conversational skills, teaching techniques, and happiness each day from the endless energy of those kids.
Efrain
My experience in A2LP has helped me to learn what it means to be an educator. It is about so much more than teaching Spanish language skills in a classroom. Being an educator means always supporting students on their educational journey, but also it means being flexible and taking every opportunity to learn and grow. I’ve loved my time in A2LP and I will always look back on it fondly.
Meagan
I think most people can agree that knowing a foreign language is not only fun, but also a desirable skill applicable across the entire world. An advantage that A2LP gives students is a way to stand out in the global job market; we aren’t only proficient in Spanish, but we teach it too. At an internship interview for a healthcare company recently, the interviewer was fascinated by the work A2LP allows students to do. He loved the idea that we were being taught how to teach, and that we were actually able to apply those skills to the real world. He joked about how he didn’t think he could ever do it, but he continuously commented on how impressive it was that I was teaching a foreign language to other students. Needless to say, being able to speak to how A2LP teaches you management, responsibility, leadership, and creative education strategies, truly helped me stand out in a pool of outstanding applicants.
Kasey
The ability to keep up my Spanish and teach a 4th grade classroom has been one of the most amazing opportunities I have had at Michigan. A2LP has motivated me to keep Spanish an active part of my life and has given me countless opportunities to develop and grow as a leader.
Jenna
I love being able to see the change in the students as their interest in Spanish increases throughout the year. The best part of A2LP is seeing students who are actually SO excited about learning. Learning about their individual personalities is pretty awesome too!
Haley
If someone asked me, “What has been your most valuable experience at U of M so far?”, I would say A2LP with no hesitation. As an aspiring Elementary School teacher, A2LP has given me the incredibly unique opportunity of already being an educator. I am so grateful for the experiences and memories I have gained through A2LP.
Maddie
A2LP has afforded me the opportunity to combine my love for Spanish with my love for working with children. It gives me a chance to get away from the pressures of school and work to hang out with some really awesome kids. I would highly recommend the program to anyone interested.
Erin
Making a Difference:When you do something everyday, it’s easy to forget what it really means. It’s like when you hear the same word over and over again and it becomes a collection of phonemes that no longer carries meaning. In my experience, if I forget to reflect on what I do, I get lost. Sometimes, teaching can be like this. When I feel discouraged by lengthy lesson plans or unresponsive students, I only need to step back and reflect. Working with children, I feel responsible for fostering the socially conscious attitude and independent thinking skills of the next generation. I remember that I am an active collaborator in the lives of my students, helping them to be able to navigate the world that awaits them. Suddenly, everything becomes crystal-clear and my inspiration is renewed.
Kyle
A2LP has been the best student organization I could have been involved in at Michigan. All of the students and classes I have taught have pushed me to be a better teacher, and have offered me a diverse set of experiences. I love getting to know all my students and watching them learn and grow in the finite amount of time we have for World Languages. Overall, A2LP has given me a great set of opportunities and skills and I will always be grateful for having the opportunity to teach Spanish to all of my students.
Anisha
Last week I played Jeopardy in my classes. I was so worried that the questions I had created were too hard for them and I debated revising them. However, I wanted to challenge my students. So, I kept the questions the same. After the first team chose a 500 point (the highest point amount) question the whole class complained that the questions were “too easy”. This lasted the entire game. I wasn’t sure if I should be happy I taught them so well, or upset I didn’t challenge them enough. Either way, I was so proud.
Laauren
As we are well into the second semester, the relationship that I have developed with my students throughout participation in A2LP has not only grown, but is also a source of inspiration and encouragement as I prepare bi-weekly lessons for my students. I can tell that my kiddos are absolutely loving our time together in Spanish class, and in turn, I have a blast teaching them each and every lesson. They truly brighten my day and I have come to a point where I look forward to our time together with great confidence and enthusiasm!
Sarah
A2LP is an amazing program that has allowed me to connect with the Ann Arbor community in a way that I never thought I would before! I’ve grown very close with my mentor teachers and the students that I meet with every Tuesdayand Thursday! Occasionally, I will run into a student of mine at the grocery store and the excitement on their faces when they see that I am a person outside of the classroom is awesome. I would have never been able to have such a great impact on my surrounding Ann Arbor community without A2LP! There are not enough good things that I can say about this program and its impact on all the lives of the children in the elementary schools! A2LP is much more than teaching Spanish. It’s about growing with and creating a safer environment for the Ann Arbor community!
Isabella
I am very happy that I had the opportunity to be a part of A2LP for three semesters. As a senior, I look back on the skills I have gained from this opportunity, such as leadership, organization, and teamwork. Other than the incredible skills I have gained from this position, I have had such a rewarding experience as a teacher. It is a great feeling being able to connect with the students and help them learn a new language.
Marisa
Keeping it fun with Nuestras Frases – My teaching partner and I thought we weren’t sharing enough about ourselves so we decided to change this up. At the end of each lesson, we started sharing fun stories about ourselves, our families, and our experiences with Spanish. We included vocabulary from different units to tell them about our siblings, favorite foods, favorite video games etc. It’s also a great way to have fun. One week, our phrase was that we learned Spanish in Spain together and we included a picture of ourselves from Spain. When we were learning about pets, my phrase was that I wanted to have a lot of cats when I am older which got a laugh from many of the students.
Kyle
A2LP has been such an integral part of my collegiate career. Even though I am not pursuing a degree or a career in education, the preparation and execution of lesson plans in the classrooms have given me professional skills that other experiences have not. I learned to communicate with individuals of all ages and all language backgrounds. Not only that, I learned how to be professional, instructive, and approachable all at once. Aside from all of that, I have a lot of fun teaching and working with my students but also other university students who are teaching too!
Alex
Not only did A2LP bring me so much joy as an undergrad, I have the program to thank for my future plans as well! Next year I will be moving to Mexico on a Fulbright Fellowship to teach English, and I know that the skills I learned from teaching Spanish to my students over the last two years both inspired me to apply for the program and made me a competitive applicant. I can’t wait to bring some of my favorite A2LP games and strategies over to a new classroom and a new country! Thank you, A2LP!
Emily