Over the past few months, toddlers and younger preschoolers in our Montessori-based Toddler and Bridging classes have been immersed in language about the season. They have learned about la primavera (spring), las flores (flowers), las mariposas (butterflies), la mariquita (the ladybug) and la araña (the spider). Integrating music whenever they can, the children have also [...]

When is the best time to learn a second or third language?
The earlier the better, according to research. During the sensitive period for language—from birth to about age six—children learn the primary language spoken at home and school at a rapid pace. They also have a remarkable ability to learn and even fluently speak other [...]

It’s time for Tuesday’s ASP (After School Program) Mandarin class, and a dozen Kindergarten and Lower Elementary students sit in a circle, eager to continue the song they’d learned the week before: Tour, Jianbang, Xi, Jiaozhi! (a.k.a. “Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes!”).
Teacher Ling Tang leads the song, introducing and repeating Mandarin terms for body parts [...]

“Mi Mascota” Presentations

By Lynda Jackson, Inly Spanish Instructor and Spanish Language Director
As an end-of-the-year project last spring, Upper Elementary Spanish students worked on oral and written presentations about their pets. We now have a terrific video of the presentations to share with you.
Students were asked to prepare storyboards with pictures that would [...]

This week, we asked Lynda Jackson, our Middle School Spanish instructor, to share a favorite story that illustrates a moment of joyful discovery when an idea really clicks and the “aha!” epiphany brings new life to learning.

Lynda’s Final Exam Story
As the end of the school year approaches, I think of many Aha moments I encountered [...]