In a dual-language program (whether 50/50 or 90/10), one of the goals is for children to learn to proficiently read and write in both languages. Coming from an English-only classroom, every year I had some students who had difficulty with fluency and speed (how many words per minute they could read). I knew that if they were spending too much time trying to decode words, there was going to be little or no comprehension. Why? Your brain cannot spend a long time trying to figure out a word and at the same time keeping the elements of a story in check or facts if reading non-fiction. Once children became more fluent readers, teaching comprehension strategies became a lot easier.

Fast forward to this current school year.

As I have been assessing my fourth graders to try to find their independent reading levels in Spanish, I found myself dealing with a whole different issue: fluency and speed were GREAT (their decoding skills were extraordinary) yet I knew that some of them had no idea what they were reading about. They may have been able to answer simple questions such as what, when, or where, but no deep thinking. What does this mean? That I have to keep assessing until I find a book that is just right – one that offers the perfect combination of both fluency and comprehension.

Additionally, I am making the following things a top priority as well (especially for students who need it the most):

1. Concentrate even more on vocabulary acquisition. As a native speaker I feel that at times I use words that my students have no idea what I am referring to; now add to this the fact that people from different Latin American countries can call ‘a thing’ ten different ways (popcorn, straws, and sofas just to name a few)

As a parent, are you spending time with your child in order to help him/her develop more sophisticated vocabulary? Reading or talking?

2. Provide more opportunities for students to discuss what he or she knows about the characters based on title and book cover, as well as opening paragraphs and texts read aloud (specifically in Spanish)

As a parent, are you diving right into books when reading with your child or are you taking the time to activate their prior knowledge (asking them about what they already know?)

3. Model and support how to distinguish between more important and less important ideas and details

As a parent, read a book and model your own thinking out loud, so your child knows exactly what is going on in your head

4. Model and teach how to be empathetic toward characters

As a parent, put yourself in the ‘shoes’ of the characters and share with your child what you would do if you were experiencing the same

The key is to have a discussion, a conversation about what they are reading. One cannot just take into account how fast they are, but rather how much they understand. This is particularly important in Spanish as words are really easy to read (vowels sound the same regardless!).

If you are a parent raising bilingual children, think about the importance of reading. Knowing how to speak another language is not enough. In order to access great literature, one must understand what we are reading. I often tell parents to leave the writing piece to the side for a bit. Do not have your child write a summary…they will dread reading. Instead be genuinely interested in what they are reading. You can always access short summaries and reviews of texts that way you are not completely clueless about a story (unless you read it at the same time). Another GREAT tool is using picture books. They are short, yet do not let the pictures or length fool you. Nowadays, picture books are most sophisticated than ever and it can lead to amazing conversations.

Happy reading and more importantly…happy discussions.

Abrazos,

Kelly

Photo thanks to Will Ockenden

You are probably wondering what happens inside a dual-language classroom and how similar or different it is from an all-English classroom.

In every school that I have had the pleasure of working at, the first few days go in a predictable manner: excited and nervous students walking through the doors of new classrooms, parents worried about what the new school year may bring, and teachers wondering what his/her new class will be like. Teachers prepare for weeks by brainstorming ways to present new material and writing lesson plans. As a matter of fact, I spent countless hours trying to cover all areas before diving into my dual-language adventure. I survived my first week and I am both happy and excited for the days to come.

While many of my posts have been geared towards what parents can do at home to support their children in their bilingual and bicultural adventure, I thought it would be interesting to share something that happened in my classroom this week. I call it confirmation of an “a-ha moment.”

Coming back from lunch on Wednesday last week, my class was getting ready to work on science. Since I am a fourth grade teacher, I teach 60% of the day in Spanish and the remaining 40% in English. I have divided my schedule so that English instruction takes place after lunch.

After all my students settled in, I told them in English what our next hour would look like. All of a sudden, one of my students raised her hand and shared how relieved she felt about switching to English. While I did not ask my student to elaborate, her comment was definitely something that stuck in my head. Once school was over, and my students were getting ready to go home, I chatted with my student and asked what she meant by being relieved of receiving instruction in English. She did not hesitate for a second and replied, “Well, when we are learning in Spanish I just feel that my brain needs to work twice as hard… it is hard to explain, but I just feel like I am working really, really hard.” I asked a few more questions and our conversation ended.

However, I could not stop thinking about the way she felt and how she described her ‘brain’ being in overdrive. Honestly — I loved it. If learning in two languages means her brain is working harder than it would just learning in one, then I have confirmed once again that dual-language is the way to go. Which takes me to my next couple of questions:

Have you thought for a moment what it is like to learn in a two-way immersion program?

Has your child shared with you how she/he feels about learning in this type of environment?

I would love to hear from parents/guardians/other family members about this. I am really curious about your experiences and conversations with your child.

Much love,

Kelly

{Photo by departmentofed}

As always, I would love to hear from you and read your comments/suggestions.

Remember these?

Now…the BIG reveal:

I am working on a more detailed description of my classroom on my blog. If you are interested in learning more about it, check out my page at Learning In Two Languages .

Much love,

Kelly

Editor’s note: In the next months, we’ll be bringing you interviews with those who have first-hand experience with dual language immersion schools or programs: the parents who have their kids enrolled in them. The idea is to give you a closer look at what these programs are really like, how and why they work, as well as some of the challenges they face. Thanks to our contributor Elsie for coming up with this great idea!

Today, I’m happy to share my second interview with a Jackson Elementary Spanish Immersion parent, Liliana Awori.

Jackson Elementary is located in Pasadena, California on a lovely campus which includes an outdoor classroom and school garden. As Liliana notes, the biggest challenge for this school is perception as its neighborhood is mixed socioeconomically and they have been increasing test scores. Upon my visit to the campus, the students seemed happy and the community feeling was quite warm and inviting. It was one of the schools in our district with a library and part-time librarian (many do not have librarians at all). It can also boast it’s STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) program which sets it apart from other immersion programs.

SpanglishBaby: Many of our readers are bilingual themselves, and hope to pass this legacy on to their children. However, there are also many Spanglishbaby readers who are monolingual. When did you become interested in bilingual education and why? Is it an old or new tradition for your family?

Liliana: My oldest daughter attends Jackson ES DLIP Kindergarten. My husband is Kenyan and is bilingual (English and Swahili). I am a first generation immigrant from Honduras. My parents were bilingual (English and Spanish) but I was never taught Spanish. My mother’s mindset was along the lines of “You are in America. You speak English.” As a result I’ve always felt disconnected from my heritage. I want my children to have a connection to some portion of their heritage. I heard about Pasadena Unified School District language classes back in 2008; I was intrigued and excited. After much research and speaking to other parents participating in the program we felt like it would be a great option for our family.

SB: What is your school’s educational philosophy? (Ex. play-based, traditional, developmental, etc.)

Liliana: Jackson’s educational philosophy is traditional with a particular focus on Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). The STEM program was one of the major draws for us. The science classroom and science teacher are impressive. Half the kindergarteners go to the science lab once a week, where the focus is mostly on life science. During science the other half of the class is in our community garden. In the garden they plant seeds, weed their bed and water the rest of the garden. Our classroom has a fire-belly newt named Panchito, they’ve also raised caterpillars/butterflies and a worm farm. In addition to the STEM program, Jackson has a partnership with the Center for Arts at the Amory. My daughter is thriving and loving learning.

SB: What was the transition like for your child when they started school? How did you notice their language ability evolve over time?

Liliana: My daughter has friends who are bilingual, she was anxious to learn Spanish “so I can talk to Mateo”. We participated in the Pasadena Educational Foundation summer program, which was an introduction to kindergarten DLIP. After the first two days in the program, she cried and refused to go to class. Complaining that her head hurt and she didn’t know what the teachers were saying. However after the first week she happily went to class all summer and even taught her younger sisters some of the Spanish she was learning. When the school year began she was ready to go, there was still some talk about not understanding her teacher but it wasn’t much. As to her language ability an excellent example occurred during the class holiday/Christmas party. I and another Spanish speaking mom were serving the children, and I needed the mom to pass me a plate. My daughter saw me searching for the Spanish words and came to my rescue and translated the request. I was completely floored, I knew she was learning Spanish but I had never heard her speak naturally and spontaneously.

SB: Language is not only an intellectual skill, but also a social skill. How has learning Spanish enriched your student’s social experiences and friendships?

Liliana: My daughter has always been an outgoing person, we call her the mayor of Jackson and now with Spanish she is even more able to make friends. She has even offered her translating service to our elderly neighbor, Mrs. Harris. When she found out that Mrs. Harris had to let go of the Latino pool guy her response was “You know I can communicate with him, if Mrs. Harris needs me too.”

SB: How does your school incorporate Latino/a culture and celebrate the diverse backgrounds of its students?

Liliana: Acknowledgement of diversity has been woven throughout the curriculum by using authentic folklore, fieldtrips and special classroom guest. During Hispanic Heritage Month we had a fun slide show of our own school staff from Latino countries, the DLIP teacher, M. Tovar, was even included in the El Salvador slide. Our staff is a mirror of our student population, from diverse backgrounds and ethnic groups. The staff works to model positive interrelations so that the students will do the same. Our class also participated in the Cesar Chavez Essay and Art Contest.

SB: What is the experience like for parents at your school? How much parent involvement is encouraged?

Liliana: When the school year started, I was ready to jump into volunteering and helping anyway I could. It was obvious to me that the administration was very supportive of parent participation. There is a parent group that runs the garden and leads garden classes. The DLIP kindergarten also has “Friday Fun Day” every week, which is planned and executed solely through parent volunteers. The PTA even sponsored a volunteer challenge, the class that had the most volunteer hours would win a fieldtrip, and the participation was astounding.

SB: No school is perfect. What are some of the challenges, budgetary or otherwise that prospective parents should be aware of?

Liliana: Perception is Jackson’s greatest challenge. People assume because of the socioeconomic make up of our neighborhood and our past test scores that Jackson is a failing school. Nothing could be further from the truth. Our test scores have been on the rise the past three years. Our faculty is dedicated and innovative in their approach to teaching. Our students compete and participate in district wide programs with the support of their families. A modernization of the campus was completed in the spring of 2012. I believe if we could get more perspective parents to visit Jackson they would be pleasantly surprised with all the great things happening there.

SB: What is your child’s daily schedule?

Liliana: Our schedule is pretty straight forward we have school 7:45 a.m. to 2:15 p.m., after school she has about an hour of downtime for snack and play, then it’s homework time for 30 to 45 minutes. Once a week she has gymnastics, we also make a weekly visits to the Altadena Public Library and Altadena Farmers Market.

SB: What does your child love most about your school?

Liliana: My daughter loves recess like most kids, but academically she loves the science essaylab.org with all the live specimens.

SB: How can a prospective parent learn more about your school and enrollment?

Liliana: Please feel free to call the front office and arrange a tour (626) 396-5700.

{Photo courtesy of Liliana Awori}

Living In Two Worlds, But With Just One Language from NPR — I’m sure a lot of you can relate to Elysha O’Brien’s story about being a “Mexican white girl who doesn’t speak Spanish.” The college professor’s parents made a conscious decision not to pass on their native language to avoid discrimination. Sad, but very real for so many Latinos.

WISD Shutters Dual Language Program — A school district in Texas decides to end the dual language immersion program in two of its elementary schools, and the parents are rightly shocked, confused and angered. Many say they moved to the area to get their kids into the school and had to sign a contract saying they would commit to staying for six years in order for the program to be successful. What are they supposed to do now?

Dual Language Program Has Parents Camping for Days — The length parents who understand the importance of bilingualism will go to to get their kids enrolled in a dual language immersion program. ¡Qué bien!

Will y Jaden Smith llegaron a Despierta América hablando español — This is a must watch! I was actually surprised by how much Spanish Will Smith speaks and I have to congratulate it for how hard he tried to stick to Spanish during the entire interview. Good for him¡! (Hat tip to the awesome Tracy of Latinish. Gracias, amiga!)

Editor’s note: In the next months, we’ll be bringing you interviews with those who have first-hand experience with dual language immersion schools or programs: the parents who have their kids enrolled in them. The idea is to give you a closer look at what these programs are really like, how and why they work, as well as some of the challenges they face. Thanks to our contributor Elsie for coming up with this great idea!

After sharing my experiences investigating Kindergarten options for my daughter, including some Spanish Immersion Programs, it occurred to me that it might be useful for our readers to hear from parents at these schools, whose kids are living the immersion experience day-to-day. Today, I’m happy to share my first interview with a San Rafael Elementary Spanish Immersion parent, Michelle Calva-Despard:

Spanglishbaby (SB): Many of our readers are bilingual themselves and hope to pass this legacy on to their children. However, there are also many Spanglishbaby readers who are monolingual. When did you become interested in bilingual education and why? Is it an old or new tradition for your family?

Michelle: For me, personally, Spanish is a heritage language. My father’s family immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico just a few years before his birth. Spanish was his first language and he arrived at the Kindergarten door without a speck of English.

Spanish wasn’t an authentic home-language for me as a child, but I heard a lot of it through my extended family and always had an interest in becoming bilingual. Unlike my three kids who are recieving a bilingual education since kindergarten, I learned my “foreign language” as a teenager by dissecting sentences and conjugating verbs on worksheets. It took me 10 years of study (middle, high school, college) and then a year abroad at university to become a proficient Spanish speaker/reader/writer. My children will likely exceed that level of fluency before they leave elementary school.

Also, even though I speak/read/write fluent Spanish, it will never be as authentic to me as English. I think that for my children, who are acquiring their second language in that supreme window before the language centers of the brain fully mature (around age 14), this will be different. (How ironic that I began my formal Spanish language studies at the age of 14!)

SB: What is San Rafael’s educational philosophy?

Michelle: Although the plan is to move toward a more “project based learning” style, the model of instruction currently rests in a more traditional seat — which is ironic as Dual Immersion Programs are hardly traditional in the U.S. At San Rafael the 90/10 model of instruction is implemented. This means that in kindergarten, the partner language (in our case, Spanish) is used for instruction 90% of the day. The remaining 10% is taught in English. Each year, the percentages shift by 10%, so in first grade 80% of the day is taught in Spanish, in second grade 70%. By fourth grade 50% of the school day is instructed in Spanish and 50% in English.

SB: What was the transition like for your child when they started at San Rafael? How did you notice their language ability evolve over time?

Michelle: I did speak to my children in Spanish at home, but even though they understood me, they consistently responded in English.

Then kindergarten began for my oldest daughter. During the second week she received a sticker for saying “¿Puedo ir al baño?” That was it. She came home and informed me that she was going to “hablar en español” all the time. As is often the case, with my third child I spoke less Spanish than I had with the first (I knew I would regret this and I was right!). My son entered kindergarten with far less Spanish language comprehension than his oldest sister had. The program still works though. As most of the students enter kindergarten with zero Spanish language ability, the teachers are prepared and ready to help them meet the challenges of a dual immersion program.

SB: Language is not only an intellectual skill, but also a social skill. How has learning Spanish enriched your student’s social experiences and friendships?

Michelle: Besides friendships with Spanish dominant Latino students at school, as they mature, my children are becoming more comfortable jumping into Spanish conversations away from campus. In Los Angeles County, it’s not hard to find Spanish speaking experiences. From ordering food in a restaurant to taking ballet foklorico dance classes, we try to take advantage of our surroundings.

SB: How does San Rafael incorporate Latino/a culture and celebrate the diverse backgrounds of its students?

Michelle: There are the obvious ties to holidays (Mexican Independence Day) and relevant historical figures (Cesar Chavez).

Our program has attracted quite a multicultural cadre of students outside of English and Spanish dominant students. We have a student whose first language was Polish, for example, and students of different religious faiths. The very nature of a bilingual program provides a dual “lense” through which to see the world. This opens the door to a variety of possibilities–from Chinese New Year (instructed in Spanish) and Hanukah, to taking a deeper look at the significance celebrations like Black History Month.

SB: When I toured your school, I was impressed by the active PTA. What is the experience like for parents at San Rafael? How much parent involvement is encouraged?

Michelle: Well you’ve struck a cord here–as I’m completing my second term as PTA President this spring! The dual language program at San Rafael is not something that any of us “stumbled into.” Enrolling our children in this program was a very intentional, informed decision. The types of parents who make a choice like this are more prone to becoming actively engaged in their child’s school. I have said to many an inquiring parent: “I came here for the program but now I stay for it and for the community we’ve built!

SB: No school is perfect. What are some of the challenges, budgetary or otherwise, facing San Rafael, that prospective parents should be aware of?

Michelle: Class sizes are larger than we would like. We’ve had a hard time funding a program coordinator which means the crux of program development, recruitment, etc… has landed in the principal’s/teachers’/parents’ lap. Like all public schools in California, we could use some more money!

SB: What is your child’s daily schedule at San Rafael?

Michelle: My children have a similar schedule to every student in the Pasadena Unified School District. They receive the same content and teachers instruct the same standards. The only difference is the language of delivery.

The school day begins at 7:50 am, and ends at 12:35 on Mondays, 2:15 Tuesday-Friday. It was hard, at first, to get used to such an early start to our day, but it didn’t take long and now I really like it. Even after a full day of school we can hit the park or library on the way home and still make it back before 4:00!

SB: What does your child love most about San Rafael?

Michelle: I know all three of my kids would answer this question the same: AMIGOS!!!

SB: How can a prospective parent learn more about San Rafael and enrollment?

Michelle: Parent volunteers hold weekly tours. A parent volunteer maintains our website which always carries up to date information and contact information for anyone with more questions.

Attend a PTA meeting (first Thursday of every month alternating after school/evening.) I welcome anyone interested to come get a taste of what we do at San Rafael. It’s been a challenging, sometimes crazy, adventure–and I wouldn’t trade my family’s experience for anything.

You can find more information here.

There are two public dual language immersion elementary schools in my county, and there’s one school that offers everyday foreign language lessons, though it’s not an immersive setting. We applied for two of the three total options for next school year, when my son starts kindergarten, and just received word that he was not selected for either. We could choose to stay on the waiting list and wait for several months to have an official answer about that, but that doesn’t make it too easy to plan where we will send my stepdaughters to school (they are also at the mercy of magnet program decisions and the location of their siblings’ schools).

Of late, I have admitted to feeling that I’m slacking in the bilingual parenting arena because my son gets most of his Spanish input at his father’s house. I was hoping to at least be able to provide more support for his bilingualism by sending him to a school that emphasizes its importance, but it looks like he will have the standard school experience, at least for now.

Honestly, I’m perfectly fine with that, and even a little relieved. The more I step back from my attachment to my son, I see him as a boy that will grow into a capable man who, like all other adults, will ultimately choose if or how he wants Spanish to factor into his life. There is not necessarily a cause-effect relationship between going to a dual language school, or living in a bilingual family for that matter, and becoming a truly bilingual adult. Sure, there is a correlation, but none of us knows if our decisions directly make our kids into who they are.

I look at all my friends who were raised by parents that adamantly focused on one value or endeavor, such as a religion or a culturally derived belief. Those are the same friends who have deviated the most from the way they were raised. The more fanatical the parents were, the more curious the kids became about other ways to live. Granted, I haven’t done any formal experiments, but I have a hunch that this association is not imagined.

While I believe in bilingualism as one of the greatest gifts we can give our children, I think this same relationship may apply. We can promote the second language, model cultural acceptance, and fill their bookshelves with Spanish libros, but we certainly cannot guarantee the outcome. Some of us will be excited to see our kids gladly using Spanish every day in the future, while others may be a bit disappointed if they choose to steer away from it. Our efforts are not in vain, but those efforts need to have limits. For me, the limit is the waiting list.

There is a clear difference between exposing our kids to the things that are important to us and completely hooking our identity to their achievements. As hard as it is, I’m going to give up the fight for now and see where this random school decision will take our family. I need to follow my own instincts and not try to force Spanish into my son’s school life if it will create more stress for everyone. I’d rather stick to our regular goofing off in Spanish and letting his stepsisters read him Spanish stories for now. I never want to lose sight of my favorite parts of bilingualism – like being able to find humor in flawed translations. Little treasures like that are more valuable than any Spanish homework will ever be.

Photo from news.com.au

Planned Bilingualism: Five Questions to Consider by François Grosjean from Psychology Today — Another useful article from Prof. Grosjean perfect for those just about to embark in the journey of raising a bilingual child.

Surge in immersion programs spreads from the Star Tribune — In Minnesota, the number of dual language immersion programs has doubled since 2006 with a total of 85 at the elementary and middle school level, with some programs even in high school. Reading stories like this one is like music to my ears!

Stolz, Amerikaner zu sein (Proud to be an American) from The Economist — For all those who ask why Latinos can’t be like all other immigrant groups and just learn English and forget about Spanish, this is a MUST READ! The description of how how Germans used to live in small-town America decades ago, sounds eerily familiar to how Latinos live in not so small-town America today.

Speak Spanglish, Baby from Vida de Latinos — Check out the interview about bilingualism, SpanglishBaby and blogging, Ana did for this very cool website for and about Latinos in Singapore.

We did our very first Google+ Hangout yesterday and we’re super happy with the results. It felt great to just be able to hang out with a group of moms — including our expert — talking about a topic we’re so passionate about and that we’ve invested in so much.

For our fist session of SpanglishBaby LIVE, we tackled the always popular subject of dual language immersion programs. And there was so much to talk about! From the many DL options available to why you have to be willing to take a leap of faith if you want your child in one of these programs, we spent a good half an hour talking about this type of education.

First off, we’d like to thank our amazing guests for joining us in our first Hangout:

Simona Montanari, PhD, Associate Professor in the Dept. of Child & Family at California State University Los Angeles, specialist in first and second language acquisition in childhood. Simona has been instrumental in the creation and implementation of the Italian immersion program at Franklin Elementary, Glendale Unified School District.

Xochitl is one of our contributors and manager of  SpanglishBaby Playground. Her son is in a DL program in Berkeley where she has volunteered for the last four years and is part of a group of parents and teachers who successfully achieved the consolidation of all the DL programs in Berkeley into one school which will start in 2014!

Rebecca Bernard is the Chief Cultivator of TheCulturedSeed.com, a digital resource for parents that value cultural enrichment and want to grow globally-minded children. She’s also a founding parent of a new Spanish-immersion charter school that will open next year.

Although I feel like I’ve written and researched this subject a lot, I can’t believe I learned so much from this conversation. The two topics that caught my attention the most were standarized tests for kids in DL programs and what happens when a child goes to a DL elementary school, but there’s no such thing at the middle and high school level. You can watch the entire conversation here:

I hope you can take the time to watch it because I promise you’ll learn something new. And be on the lookout for the announcement of our next session of SpanglishBaby LIVE. We plan to discuss another popular subject: how to deal with the bilingual rebellion stage.

In December I got an email from Deepa Fernandes, early childhood development correspondent for 89.3 KPCC Public Radio in Southern California. She wanted to interview me and visit Camila’s elementary school because she was working on a series on bilingual education. The 3-part series finally airs this week and I got to listen to the first one live this morning. You can listen to it here or below.

The series called “Bilingual Learning: The science, options and dilemma of dual language education” started off today by showcasing the many dual language immersion early education and elementary options available for children in the Los Angeles area. California now has over 300 schools that offer this program, with Los Angeles being the county with the most offerings starting in kindergarten. What makes me happy is to know that these programs are increasing exponentially and there are just so many more options available at every level than we had even four years ago when we started exploring bilingual education on SpanglishBaby.

KPCC has also  put together a very comprehensive and impressive site at projects.scpr.org/bilinguallearning. I urge you to explore it even if you don’t live in Los Angeles because it’s full of information on language learning and the developing mind and stories of the bilingual education dilemma some immigrant families face.

If you do live in the Los Angeles area, then you must dig in and bookmark this site. There are profiles on the following schools and programs:

1. Academia Semillas del Pueblo

2. East Rio Vista YMCA

3. El Marino Language School

4. Bell Tower Trilingual School

5. Ceci’s Home Daycare

6. Long Beach New City School

7. Los Angeles Leadership Academy

8. Franklin Magnet School

Courtesy of 89.3 KPCC, a picture of my daughter hugging me after I finished reading a book in Spanish to her classroom at Franklin Language Magnet.

KPCC’s site also includes a comprehensive map of the state’s more than 300 bilingual schools that you can search by city and language of choice. This was so needed and I’m thankful for it! Check out the map here.

To culminate this fantastic coverage on bilingual education, on Saturday, January 26th, I will join KPCC’s Early Childhood Development correspondent Deepa Fernandes for “Should Kids’ Classrooms Be English-Only?”, a conversation about those and other questions surrounding bilingual education in Southern California.  A panel of professional- and parent guests will kick off this audience-inclusive discussion to be held at Los Angeles Leadership Primary Academy in Lincoln Heights. I would love to see many of you there. If you’re in the area and would like to join us, please RSVP here and/or help us spread the word.