My son loves to go to school. He seems to thrive in the multiage, project based learning environment. His teacher creates a supportive, nurturing atmosphere in the classroom. And my son uses his Spanish confidently.

Recently my son was working on his science fair project. He came across a word he didn’t know in Spanish, so he used his knowledge of other words to figure out what it meant. That is impressive problem solving for a K/1 student. As I watch him learn, it is easy to see how learning a second language helps build other cognitive skills too.

It has been amazing to see my son and his classmates learn to speak, read, and write in Spanish together this year. Senora Bonilla has worked incredibly hard and we are lucky to have a teacher who whole-heartedly supports the full immersion model. As this program grows, I expect to see challenges and the need for adjustments, but overall this program is a unique opportunity and I’m thankful for it every day.

–Sandy Reed

 

We are very happy this program is offered within our school district. A second language is very important and this is a great way to allow children to learn a second language naturally.

Our daughter was singing songs in Spanish very early on in the school year. In the spring we have noticed she is staring to use Spanish phrases more at home and is teaching her younger siblings how to say things in Spanish. When working on schoolwork, she has even corrected my pronunciation of a word.

Thanks for offering an excellent program. We are very fortunate to have this program available to our students. It is critical to ensure the board and administration will continue to support this program so the students who have enrolled will continue to develop their Spanish. The students in this program will have an advantage as they go to college and enter the workforce.

-Denise and Chad Allee

 

From day 1 the teacher has been speaking in Spanish with the kids and the language hasn’t stopped her from teaching the curriculum. I’m amazed at how much my daughter has learned not only reading and writing in Spanish, but also math, science, etc.

Kids entering K are at a great age to learn a second language. It has been amazing to hear the kids who knew no Spanish at all before starting the program, have conversations with other kids mixing English and Spanish. It’s even cute to see them rolling their “r’s” (some of them doing it really well!)

My daughter has not only had great growth socially and academically, but is so proud of speaking Spanish and this has given her more self-confidence.

Giving children the opportunity to be bilingual will not only help them academically as has been proved, but will also give them a great advantage in their future careers.

-Gianna Gomez-Levi

We are very happy with the amount of Spanish that our daughter understands in text and conversation. We are also very happy with the dedication that Senora Bonilla has shown to the education of our daughter (and all other students) and to the integrity of the Spanish Immersion program.

Our daughter has been a part of several Friday assembly presentations spoken or sung in Spanish and she read a story in Spanish with two classmates at Bishop Elementary’s Literacy Night. She is currently preparing her science experiment project board with writing in Spanish for the Lower House Science Fair.

We would like the board to understand that this program has been invaluable in teaching our daughter how to understand, speak, think, and write in Spanish. Also, this program fits in perfectly with the multi-age and High Scope environment at Bishop.

-Jessica Goerlitz and Chuckie Goerlitz

Would you recommend this program? – Absolutely! Actually, I don’t even have to tell other parents that I know about the program, they are asking me more about it before I can share.

I was afraid that my child’s learning to read in English would be delayed by learning Spanish. I was wrong. She has still learned the same reading concepts and seems to be right on track with reading and comprehension.

I would like to Board and Administration to understand that this is the best idea I have seen in over 20 years of having a child in a school system. This program is preparing our children to read, write and communicate in Spanish right at the start of their education. With the correct guidance, I’m hoping that my daughter will be fluent in Spanish by the 2nd grade. My older children did not begin learning Spanish until middle school. It’s such a great concept to start immersing a child while their brain cells are most active.

-Erica Pettus

We are continually amazed at the amount of Spanish our daughter understands, speaks, reads, and writes. She reads almost as well in Spanish as she does in English already. She is always singing in Spanish at home, and sometimes we’ll overhear her talking to herself or her toys in Spanish. We also really appreciate the dedication of the teacher and the other parents in the program. We feel like part of a community that is very invested in the success of the program. I also love to see how close-knit the children in the class are–they really look out for each other, even more so than I recall from my daughter’s regular K-1 classroom last year.

We are enrolling our second child (an incoming kindergartner) in this program for the fall. We recommend the program to other parents both inside and outside the school district because of the dedication of the school administration, the teacher, and the other parents to this program. It is innovative and ahead of the curve in terms of preparing students for success in a global community.

Writing daily journals in Spanish, creating art projects with accompanying descriptions in Spanish, singing and reading in Spanish in front of peers. We also like how much the children in the classroom are encouraged to help each other–this a hallmark of Bishop as a whole but seems even more apparent in the Spanish Immersion program.

The Spanish Immersion program has drawn very positive attention to the Lincoln school district in just its first year. With investment and committment to the program, the Spanish Immersion program hopefully will continue to draw students from inside and outside the district and will put Lincoln on the map as a leader in innovative educational programs.

-Sarah & Thomas Gelsanliter

My daughter has learned so much this school year. She can read, write, and speak in Spanish. She even self corrects me when I pronounce words incorrectly 😉 Her teacher uses new and innovative ways to teach her children, and I am really seeing her carry-over skills at home. She loves school, her classmates, and especially, her teacher.

I truly believe that this program is making my daughter more confident. We were a bit hesitant at first, because we were not sure that this program would be a fit for my child. She is a bit quieter and more passive. She is the child who takes everything in, and barely talks. It takes her a while to feel comfortable. We debated on whether putting her in a kindergarten class where English is not spoken, would be too challenging, or overwhelming for her. Almost a school year later, my child has turned into a confident student, who loves school, and enjoys learning.

I think one of the most defining moments that shows how successful this program is came from a friend of mine. She told me that my Gabby was reading a story to her daughter. Gabby then translated the book into her best attempt at Spanish, and also taught her Spanish vocabulary. My friend was truly impressed that she could do this after not even a full year in the program.

-Jamie Coker

 

Our daughter is learning to speak, read and write Spanish at a young age when it is easier to absorb. She knows this is a special opportunity to learn something that her parents don’t know how to do as well. As the program has matured this year, we have noticed our daughter learning the core competencies in Spanish which she is translating to her efforts at home in English with reading and writing. We feel she is getting challenged academically and is not behind her English classroom peers.

Yes, we have recommended this program to other parents with children that are ready to enter school and developmentally ready for the immense challenge of kindergarten coupled with being spoken to in a foreign language all day. We believe that this program may not be suitable for all children based on their individual developmental needs and challenges.

One of the highlights of our daughters learning this year has come through the many songs the class sings. She has enjoyed the singing and acting-out part of the songs. This technique has helped her learn numbers, months, interval counting, body parts and many other words/phrases in Spanish. She has enjoyed having a reading buddy, and now likes to read in Spanish to them. As her confidence in reading/speaking Spanish grows, she is starting to be more comfortable using her knowledge with other people.

We believe offering this program as an option is vital to this district as we struggle to keep attendance up and parents engaged with their child’s education. This program is unique to this area of the state, so the district must do all it can to grow this opportunity which will result in recruiting students from out-of-district and keeping in-district students with Lincoln Schools. We will be keeping our daughter in the Spanish Immersion Program next year and we hope tremendously that she will have the opportunity to continue on this track to becoming bilingual by middle school/high school age. We see this as a precious gift that she is being given and we support the continuation and growth of this program in the Lincoln Consolidated School District.

-Michelle Washburn