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Foreign Language Department Class Descriptions »
Foreign Language Department Faculty Biographies »

The essence of human interaction is language and communication. With that statement in mind, the foreign language staff at Arts High find it of utmost importance to create a true citizen of the world, one that will have a deeper appreciation for other cultures and who will communicate in other languages than English. The world that our students will encounter as adults will be vastly different from the one we know today. The rapid development of telecommunications will make the ability to communicate in more than one language a necessity for all future employees. Therefore, it is important to prepare our students for this multilingual environment by ensuring that they are able to function using the foreign language they have chosen to study. During their learning process, they will derive the benefits of developing insight into their own language and culture as they learn to communicate with others. We hope that by the time our students leave this school, they will be equipped with the skills, knowledge, and proficiency necessary to use the language in job, career, and higher education opportunities.

The primary goals of the foreign language department are to ensure that students:

1. Communicate in languages other than English
2. Gain knowledge and understanding of other cultures
3. Connect with other disciplines and acquire information
4. Develop insight into the nature of language literature and culture

Ms. Lidia Hill
Foreign Language Chair                  

Foreign Language Courses	Instructor
Art in Society COLLEGE CREDIT             French I, II and III         French IV  COLLEGE CREDIT      Spanish I                                              Spanish II                                             Spanish III, IV	Madame Kliger Madame Kliger  Madame Kliger Ms. Torices Ms. Hill, Ms. Torices Ms. Hill

Foreign Language Course Descriptions
Note:  For entrance to most four-year colleges, study of a foreign language is required. However, no foreign language is required for an Arts High diploma.

Spanish I
This course offers a methodical presentation of the fundamental structure of the language through hearing, speaking, reading, and writing.

Spanish II
These courses provide instruction in more complex grammar and more advanced oral and written expression in the language.

Spanish III
These courses continue to develop proficiency skills in writing, reading, and speaking, along with the introduction of literature.

Spanish IV
This course continues covering, more in depth, culture and Spanish Literature by presenting more advanced vocabulary, grammatical concepts, writing and conversational skills. All grammatical concepts are thoroughly reviewed and expanded where students will be applying these to writing compositions. Reading strategies and fundamentals of formal composition are introduced in conjunction with level-appropriate literary selections. The Spanish IV class is conducted almost exclusively in Spanish. Throughout their years of preparation for Spanish IV course in the Spanish Language, the students have been expected to practice Spanish as their level allows with designated partners, other classmates and teachers.

French I, II & III
These courses are designed to expose the student to the beauty and musicality of the French language while enhancing appreciation of the French history, art, politics, music, literature, cinema and everyday life among students, their friends and families in the Francophone world. A variety of methods are used so that students acquire confidence and passion necessary to communicate naturally in a language other than their own, learning techniques that will allow them to perfect their listening, speaking, reading and writing skills, as well as gain insight and understanding of cultural, linguistic, education and socio-political differences apparent in other French-speaking countries.

French IV
This course is designed to enhance the more advanced French students’ knowledge and appreciation of literacy texts while at the same time continuing the study of grammatical structures and vocabulary appropriate for oral discussion and written expression. After the successful completions of level I, II, and III, where the skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing were stressed by a large variety of activities which helped engage students to not only gain the ability and competency to express oneself in natural everyday situations, but the students also had the opportunity to gain insight and understanding of the different cultural, linguistic, educational and socio-political modes of behavior experienced throughout the French speaking world. By level IV, the student is now ready to analyze in depth, often by using the method “explication de texte” of important literary works, (such as those of Camus, Robbe-Grillet,) plays by Cocteau, Sartre, Beckett, Ionesco, Racine, Moliere, poetry, journalistic articles and essays, with the objective of enhancing and strengthening their language skills. Within the core curriculum of this class, students are given the opportunity to watch live coverage of programs televised directly from France and Canada on TV 5, as well as view both classic and current French Cinema and listen to topical programs from the series Champs Elysees.


Foreign Language Department Faculty Biographies

Lidia Hill, Chair
Ms. Hill, a native Spanish speaker and one who modestly represents the diverse Spanish culture, Lidia Hill has been teaching at Arts High since the year 2000-2001.  In the past, she has taught swimming, salsa dance/ Spanish films, yoga and orientation.  She earned her B.S. in Spanish from California State University Los Angeles and also her M.A. in Spanish Linguistics and Literature.  Prior to coming to Arts High, Ms. Hill worked for Citrus Community College, Glendora; East Los Angeles Community College, Monterey Park; and was Adjunct Professor at California State University, Los Angeles (Summer Sessions only).

Marian Kliger
Mrs. Kliger attended the High School of Music and Art in New York City as a violinist and pianist.  She took ballet classes at Carnegie Reutal Hall and modern dance at the Martha Graham School of Dance.  She received her B.A. in French with a minor in theatre from Hobart and William Smith College, Geneva, New York, and her M.A. from Columbia University in French literature, and M.A.T. in English from Hunter College. Besides her passion for French, the arts, film, and anything that reminds her of Proust, Mrs. Kliger enjoys traveling especially to France.  Every other summer, she and her husband take a small group of students to travel and live in the village of Vence and Paris.

Emily Torices
Ms. Torices is currently in her eighth year of teaching Spanish.  She majored in Spanish Language and Literature at the Colorado College in Colorado Springs, where she learned to love skiing, hiking and letterpress printing. For recreation and study, Ms. Torices has traveled throughout Mexico (Guanajuato, Cuernavaca, Patzcuaro, Oaxaca, Mexico City and Baja California) and visited Costa Rica, Pamplona in Spain and Buenos Aires, home to her husband.