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Amarilys Heard
Amarilys is a reader and table leader for the AP Spanish Exam with ETS. She has sponsored the Sociedad Hispánica de Amistad and the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica, both national organizations, in previous schools. |
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AMARILYS HEard
Amarilys Heard is an accomplished world language educator with over 30 years of experience in teaching. Originally from Puerto Rico and based in Florida since 1988, she brings a lifelong passion for language, culture, and learning to her classroom. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Language Education from the University of Central Florida and a Master of Education in Instructional Technology with a specialization in World Languages from the University of Maryland Global Campus.
Throughout her career, Amarilys has taught a diverse range of courses, including English for Speakers of Other Languages, Spanish for Native Speakers, Spanish as a Second Language, and Spanish for military personnel. She has also contributed her expertise to educational publishers, including Barron’s and the Defense Language Institute. At Miami Country Day School, she currently teaches AP Spanish Language and Culture, guiding students toward language proficiency and cultural appreciation.
A respected leader in world language education, Amarilys serves as the Spanish Co-Lead Consultant for the College Board, leading professional development institutes nationwide. She has presented at major conferences, including ACTFL, APAC, AATSP, and FCIS, and has worked as both a reader and table leader for the AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam with ETS/Raise.
Amarilys is also dedicated to fostering leadership through language learning. She sponsors the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica at her school and serves as the national President of the organization under AATSP, served as President of the Florida State Spanish Conference, and has been instrumental in implementing the Global Seal of Biliteracy in multiple schools.
Outside the classroom, Amarilys enjoys traveling, exploring Disney parks, and spending time with her family whenever time allows it. She believes deeply in the transformative power of language education and the idea that great teachers are lifelong learners, continuously adapting, innovating, and inspiring others to do the same.
Throughout her career, Amarilys has taught a diverse range of courses, including English for Speakers of Other Languages, Spanish for Native Speakers, Spanish as a Second Language, and Spanish for military personnel. She has also contributed her expertise to educational publishers, including Barron’s and the Defense Language Institute. At Miami Country Day School, she currently teaches AP Spanish Language and Culture, guiding students toward language proficiency and cultural appreciation.
A respected leader in world language education, Amarilys serves as the Spanish Co-Lead Consultant for the College Board, leading professional development institutes nationwide. She has presented at major conferences, including ACTFL, APAC, AATSP, and FCIS, and has worked as both a reader and table leader for the AP Spanish Language and Culture Exam with ETS/Raise.
Amarilys is also dedicated to fostering leadership through language learning. She sponsors the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica at her school and serves as the national President of the organization under AATSP, served as President of the Florida State Spanish Conference, and has been instrumental in implementing the Global Seal of Biliteracy in multiple schools.
Outside the classroom, Amarilys enjoys traveling, exploring Disney parks, and spending time with her family whenever time allows it. She believes deeply in the transformative power of language education and the idea that great teachers are lifelong learners, continuously adapting, innovating, and inspiring others to do the same.
Course Description
AP Spanish Language and Culture APSI: Deepening Practice and Enhancing InstructionJoin us for an engaging and immersive AP Spanish Language and Culture Advanced Placement Summer Institute (APSI) designed to empower educators with the knowledge, strategies, and tools to elevate their teaching practice. Throughout this workshop, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the revised course framework, the AP Exam structure, and the innovative resources available to strengthen instruction and student outcomes.
This institute will guide you in developing effective approaches for course planning, instruction, and assessment, with a strong emphasis on personalized feedback that supports every student’s learning journey. You’ll also learn how to complete the digital activation process at the start of the school year, ensuring immediate access to AP resources and simplifying student registration for AP Exams by the new fall deadlines.
By participating, you will gain practical, ready-to-use strategies in key areas such as:
Daily Course Outline
Daily Schedule (30 Hours Total)
Monday, July 8 - 11, 2023.
Synchronous Instruction:
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM (PT - 4 hours)
Lunch:
12:00 AM - 12:30 PM (PT 30 minutes)
Asynchronous Instruction
12:30 PM - 3: 00 PM (PT - 2.5 hours)
Synchronous Instruction
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM (PT - 1 hours)
(Total hours of instruction: 7.5 hours per day)
Day One
A. Synchronous Instruction
● General Introductions
● Agenda of the Day
● Participant materials
● Resources readily available
● Coverage of College Board CED:
1. Participants will review the Course and Exam Description (CED) to develop a pacing guide
during their asynchronous session for the first semester. (The CED will serve as the primary
resource for this activity. State and local standards, in addition to their school calendars, will
be needed if required by their district/institution).
2. Participants will download the CED (audio files) and spend time outlining how they will
incorporate its resources in their classroom and pacing guide. Each participant will share in the
synchronous session this afternoon. Participants will review the instructional strategies and
approaches and evaluate current practices, and prepare for a discussion.
3. Consider the following (synchronous afternoon discussion):
● If last year was your first teaching AP, what worked and what did not work?
● If this is your first year, what is your reaction to the materials assigned for review?
Resources needed:
● Textbooks and Supplementary Materials
● School calendar/standards/expectations
● Websites: AP Central, Teacher Community, Course Audit, etc.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignment.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Day Two
A. Synchronous Instruction
● Today’s agenda
● Questions
● Skills and practices
● Achievement Level Descriptors (ALDs)
● Curricular and resource requirements.
● Unit Deep Dive
● AP Classroom Unit 1
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Practice Exam - Multiple-Choice Test Questions:
● Take MCQs of the CED
● Analyze and Review MCQs: What is accessible, viable, and challenging?
● Classroom Connections: How can we scaffold and close the achievement gap
2. Participants will continue working on their syllabus/pacing guide
3. Participants will begin their Unit Plan.
4. Explore AP Classroom.
5. Explore all resources available.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignment.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections and discussions
● AP Equity and Access Policy
Day Three
A. Synchronous Instruction: Today’s agenda
● Share out
More planning: sample Unit 3
Using AP Classroom for data planning
● Essential questions:
▪ Developing EQs
● Participant unit of choice:
▪ Unit skills and instructional strategies
▪ AP Classroom connections
● AP Classroom deep-dive:
▪ AP Central
▪ MyAP
▪ AP Classroom
● Formative assessment:
▪ Scaffolding and recycling
▪ Literary text example
▪ Audio
▪ Free-response tasks
▪ Topic questions: check for understanding
● Teacher resources:
▪ AP Teacher Community
● Diversity and Inclusion, Equity and Access Activity
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Participants continue working on their syllabus and/or pacing guide.
2. Participants will be working on their unit with topics assigned, and will complete one lesson to
be presented on Thursday as final assessment/performance of APSI.
3. Participants will continue working on their syllabus.
4. Explore AP Classroom.
5. Explore all resources available.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignments.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Day Four
A. Synchronous Instruction
● Today’s agenda
● Share out:
● Yesterday’s asynchronous activity
● Scoring guidelines:
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Participants will finish details working on pacing guide/syllabus, unit and lesson.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignments.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Asynchronous Activities
1) Pacing guide
2) Syllabus
3) AP Classroom (including training videos)
4) Exploring resources (websites and textbooks, etc.)
5) Preparing final unit presentation
6) Lesson plan/activity
7) Identifying skills and learning objectives
8) Review activities
9) Summer assignments
10) Independent project
The mentioned topics will be covered during our time together. Do know that there is room for
flexibility, especially when it comes to pacing, so we can adjust to ensure your goals, needs and
expectations are met. My main goal is to have an extremely effective and engaging summer institute
by using relevant, practical, and creative instructional strategies. I look forward to sharing and to
learning from you as the lifelong learner that I am!
AP Spanish Language and Culture APSI: Deepening Practice and Enhancing InstructionJoin us for an engaging and immersive AP Spanish Language and Culture Advanced Placement Summer Institute (APSI) designed to empower educators with the knowledge, strategies, and tools to elevate their teaching practice. Throughout this workshop, you’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of the revised course framework, the AP Exam structure, and the innovative resources available to strengthen instruction and student outcomes.
This institute will guide you in developing effective approaches for course planning, instruction, and assessment, with a strong emphasis on personalized feedback that supports every student’s learning journey. You’ll also learn how to complete the digital activation process at the start of the school year, ensuring immediate access to AP resources and simplifying student registration for AP Exams by the new fall deadlines.
By participating, you will gain practical, ready-to-use strategies in key areas such as:
- Understanding the NEW revised AP Spanish Language and Culture course framework
- Designing effective course plans and delivering engaging instruction
- Implementing teaching strategies aligned with AP standards
- Assessing student progress and identifying opportunities for growth
- Collaborating and connecting with the broader AP educator community
- Understanding the NEW Exam format
Daily Course Outline
Daily Schedule (30 Hours Total)
Monday, July 8 - 11, 2023.
Synchronous Instruction:
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM (PT - 4 hours)
Lunch:
12:00 AM - 12:30 PM (PT 30 minutes)
Asynchronous Instruction
12:30 PM - 3: 00 PM (PT - 2.5 hours)
Synchronous Instruction
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM (PT - 1 hours)
(Total hours of instruction: 7.5 hours per day)
Day One
A. Synchronous Instruction
● General Introductions
● Agenda of the Day
● Participant materials
● Resources readily available
● Coverage of College Board CED:
- Course and exam description and curricular requirements
- Themes/Units
- Course Framework and skills
1. Participants will review the Course and Exam Description (CED) to develop a pacing guide
during their asynchronous session for the first semester. (The CED will serve as the primary
resource for this activity. State and local standards, in addition to their school calendars, will
be needed if required by their district/institution).
2. Participants will download the CED (audio files) and spend time outlining how they will
incorporate its resources in their classroom and pacing guide. Each participant will share in the
synchronous session this afternoon. Participants will review the instructional strategies and
approaches and evaluate current practices, and prepare for a discussion.
3. Consider the following (synchronous afternoon discussion):
● If last year was your first teaching AP, what worked and what did not work?
● If this is your first year, what is your reaction to the materials assigned for review?
Resources needed:
● Textbooks and Supplementary Materials
● School calendar/standards/expectations
● Websites: AP Central, Teacher Community, Course Audit, etc.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignment.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Day Two
A. Synchronous Instruction
● Today’s agenda
● Questions
● Skills and practices
● Achievement Level Descriptors (ALDs)
● Curricular and resource requirements.
● Unit Deep Dive
- Understanding the unit guides
- Deepening instruction
- Classroom Connections: How can we scaffold and close the achievement gap?
- Exam overview
- Scoring guidelines
- Unit plan (CED)
- Unit plan opener
- Task models
● AP Classroom Unit 1
- Topic questions: spiral and scaffold
- Question analysis
- Implementation methods
- Personal Progress Checks (PPCs)
- Class progress reports: by skill/by student
- Progress dashboard
- AP Question bank
- Using assessments to guide instruction
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Practice Exam - Multiple-Choice Test Questions:
● Take MCQs of the CED
● Analyze and Review MCQs: What is accessible, viable, and challenging?
● Classroom Connections: How can we scaffold and close the achievement gap
2. Participants will continue working on their syllabus/pacing guide
3. Participants will begin their Unit Plan.
4. Explore AP Classroom.
5. Explore all resources available.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignment.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections and discussions
● AP Equity and Access Policy
Day Three
A. Synchronous Instruction: Today’s agenda
● Share out
- Questions about developing pacing/guide or syllabus
- Purposeful planning:
More planning: sample Unit 3
Using AP Classroom for data planning
● Essential questions:
▪ Developing EQs
● Participant unit of choice:
▪ Unit skills and instructional strategies
▪ AP Classroom connections
● AP Classroom deep-dive:
▪ AP Central
▪ MyAP
▪ AP Classroom
● Formative assessment:
▪ Scaffolding and recycling
▪ Literary text example
▪ Audio
▪ Free-response tasks
▪ Topic questions: check for understanding
● Teacher resources:
▪ AP Teacher Community
● Diversity and Inclusion, Equity and Access Activity
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Participants continue working on their syllabus and/or pacing guide.
2. Participants will be working on their unit with topics assigned, and will complete one lesson to
be presented on Thursday as final assessment/performance of APSI.
3. Participants will continue working on their syllabus.
4. Explore AP Classroom.
5. Explore all resources available.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignments.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Day Four
A. Synchronous Instruction
● Today’s agenda
● Share out:
● Yesterday’s asynchronous activity
● Scoring guidelines:
- Examining the scoring guidelines
- Analyze and Review Student Samples
- Strategies for the free-response questions
- Instructional Planning Reports
- Scaffolding and Remediation: Should we allow for test corrections and revisions?
- Horizontal and Vertical Planning: How do we better prepare students before taking AP Spanish Language and Culture?
- AP Classroom
B. Asynchronous hours
1. Participants will finish details working on pacing guide/syllabus, unit and lesson.
C. Synchronous hours
● Share out of asynchronous assignments.
● Open discussions
D. Reflections
Asynchronous Activities
1) Pacing guide
2) Syllabus
3) AP Classroom (including training videos)
4) Exploring resources (websites and textbooks, etc.)
5) Preparing final unit presentation
6) Lesson plan/activity
7) Identifying skills and learning objectives
8) Review activities
9) Summer assignments
10) Independent project
The mentioned topics will be covered during our time together. Do know that there is room for
flexibility, especially when it comes to pacing, so we can adjust to ensure your goals, needs and
expectations are met. My main goal is to have an extremely effective and engaging summer institute
by using relevant, practical, and creative instructional strategies. I look forward to sharing and to
learning from you as the lifelong learner that I am!