Preparing to Start Your Child in a Dual Language Program

We have just begun our first week of school this year. Watching my third and fifth graders in their Spanish classes has been eye opening. Both jumped right back into the dual language program with ease and have been using Spanish to learn in their classes. But my Kindergartener, well this is his first school experience with Spanish. He is so engaged in his English class, but shies away from his Spanish class. He loses interest, logs out of his meets, and even turns his camera off. All little things that show that he isn’t understanding the language of the class and what he should be doing.

Common Dual Language Parent Worries

What is dual language learning?

A dual language program is when your child spends part of their day learning in two different languages. For most of America, child learn part of their day in English and part of their day in a second language. We have dual language programs that focus on English/Spanish, English Mandarin, English/Polish, and many other language combinations.

There are many different dual language programs, but there are two very common programs used in the United States. The first dual language program is a 90/10 dual language immersion program. During this type of program, a child spends 10% of their day in English speaking classes and 90% of their day in their second language classes. Majority of instruction for subjects is provided in the second language with reading and writing taught in both languages.

The second main dual language program is a 50/50 dual language immersion program. This type of program splits the school day into 50% instruction in English and 50% instruction in the second language. Therefore more than just reading and writing will be taught in English. For many programs they include either science or social studies in English while other programs focus on reading, writing, and math in English since these subjects are tested beginning in third grade.

Why is dual language important?

Dual language is important for your child for so many reasons. One main benefit is the global shift in our world today. So many countries outside of the United States teach children multiple languages from a young age. For our children to be competitive in the global job market, they too need to learn to be bilingual. A dual language program is the perfect place for their journey to becoming bilingual or multilingual to begin.

Another important benefit of dual language instruction goes beyond just the new language learned. So many experts recognizes that learning a language at a young age actually helps to improve your child’s mathematical, science, and musical abilities. Language learning stimulates the cognitive part of the brain, which helps to improve abstract thinking, problem solving, and logical reasoning. To many, math, science, and music are like a second language and once your brain is open to a second language, your brain is more receptive to learning other languages in the future, including math, science, and music.

Is Dual Language Right for my child?

This is a question each family needs to answer separately about each of their children. Most children will do well in a dual language program with the right supports at school and at home. But just because one child thrives in a dual language program, doesn’t mean they all will.

Ask yourself how your child handles confusion? Do they enjoy taking risks and trying new things? Do they appreciate other cultures and languages? What does your child do when you use a word they don’t understand at home?

Starting in a dual language program has less to do with your child being academically ahead or ready for kindergarten. Instead focus on their ability to problem solve in difficult situations, how they respond when trying something new or unusual, and their enjoyment of learning about other cultures.

Does speaking two languages to a baby confuse them?

In the beginning, it may seem like speaking two languages to a child may confuse your child, but the confusion doesn’t last long. Research suggests that children have two separate language systems so they are actually not confused when learning two languages early in life. Your child may spend some time code switching, or using a combination of both languages. This is normal behavior. They may also forget a word in English but recall the word in their second language. For our youngest learners, speak more than one language at home may also delay their use of words and vocabulary development.

However, with time, children learn the subtle and not so subtle differences between the two languages. Children begin to make connections between both languages and separate one language from the other. Soon your child will have a much larger vocabulary due to knowing many words in two different languages, they will also have opened up the cognitive part of the brain to be more receptive to learning future languages including music, mathematics, and science. You may even begin to notice a rise in their ability to think abstractly, solve problems, and reason logically.

How does dual language work?

Your child will learn in two different languages throughout their school day. They will spend part of their day learning in English (for most American schools) and part of their day learning in a second language (or target language). Throughout kindergarten, children will learn to read and writing in both languages.

In many programs, classrooms are built with a little more than half the students speaking the target language, or non-English language. The other half of the students may speak any language and some are actually well-versed in both the second language and English. Many of the students do speak English but some students come from non-English homes that are different from the second language taught in the dual language program. My children have students in their Spanish-English dual language program who speak Mandarin, Russian, Polish, and Japanese at home.

This means that while your child is learning a language, they will have students who are stronger in this language as peers. And while your child is learning in English, they will have peers that speak little English in their classroom. The teachers may teach different concepts and subjects, but they work to bridge these subjects into both languages. Bridging is when teachers introduce a concept taught in one language into the other language, so children develop the vocabulary in both languages.

What Does a Dual Language Classroom Look Like?

Your child will most likely have two different classrooms. They will have an English classroom and a second language classroom. The two classrooms will be similar with one major difference of the language of all the materials, posters, displays, etc. Each teacher will set up their classroom a little differently and require things to be done a little differently, but for the most part the two teachers work together as a team. They try to set up consistent expectations as much as possible.

Your child’s dual language teachers work closely together to try to make the two classrooms feel as comfortable as possible for your child. In addition to the physical setting, the teachers also work together on their curriculum. They will often teach similar concepts in English reading and writing as they teach in the second language. Therefore giving your child even more practice with the concepts and skills. Teachers also use a lot of physical movements. Our district uses Total Physical Response which pairs words with hand gestures, many of which are a sign language sign. Both teachers use the same gestures for words, helping with the language cross over.

Helping Your Little One Feel Comfortable

Remember, you do not need to teach the second language to your child. You can send your child to kindergarten and let the school take over. However, many kindergarten children feel more comfortable when they have some strategies and understand a little of the second language they will learn.

Show Appreciation for the Second Language

One of the best things you can do for your child before they begin in a dual language program is to show appreciation for other languages and cultures. It is especially important to show that you appreciate the second language your child will learn this year, and hopefully continue to learn in future grades.

Teach School Supplies in both Languages

So, what can we do to help our little one on his first few months of learning Spanish? Our plan is to begin by teaching the different school supplies that they use in their classroom. Just by knowing the names of the school supplies, he should be able to get the materials needed. It’s great if you know the Spanish words, but Google Translate works wonders if you aren’t sure. Also, our school supply lists are sent home in both English and Spanish so that’s a great place to learn the Spanish words for the supplies used in the classroom.

For a Spanish – English visual, check out our Dual Language School Supply Bookmarks.

Teaching People Watching and Observing

We will also teach him to use the cues of the classroom. This is much more natural in the class than a virtual setting, but it is still just as vital of a skill. He needs to use his eyes to see what paper his teacher has or what activity they are working on. He can look around the classroom, look at his teacher’s screen, or even see if he can see the activity in any of his classmates screens. Using cues to see what you should be working on and which materials you need can go a long way to being available to learn the language. Rely on the visual cues more than the verbal ones in the beginning.

Teach Listening

We will also praise him for doing the right things even if he doesn’t understand what the teacher is saying. It can be very frustrating for him to listen and have no idea what the teacher is saying. We talk with him about listening to the words even if he doesn’t understand the language. The more he hears Spanish, the more words he will begin to understand.

It’s a little like music, we might not know every word but we can still enjoy the sound of the language. For him, it’s definitely background noise at this point, but just listening will help him to learn. As he pairs the visual cues with the verbal music, he is able to complete the activities and follow directions while learning the language. But it is definitely something that needs to be explained to help him want to listen when he doesn’t understand.

Your little one needs to hear that it is okay if they don’t understand anything the Spanish teacher is saying. It’s okay for them to rely on the visual cues. Take the time to ask them if they remember a word their Spanish teacher used today. Celebrate the words your little one remembers! Learn what the word means in English. If they don’t remember any words, ask them to listen tomorrow and tell you one word that they heard.

Add Visual Cues to Materials

Finally, we are adding as many visuals as we can to his materials. Each of our teachers has a symbol and a color. So his Spanish teacher is green and a puffin. Everything he needs for Spanish class is in his green folder and all his Spanish materials have a picture of a puffin on them. This helps him to be more independent in finding his materials for class and limits his time looking for what he needs. We also labeled his English materials, music and even PE materials too!

It seems silly to need to teach our little ones some of these skills, but they are so important. Not only do adults continue to use visual cues, but they may also find themselves in a situation where they are listening to a conversation or lecture that they do not understand even in their native language. These little strategies will go a long way in helping your little one through the first few weeks of Spanish class. After a few weeks, these strategies will become second nature to your little one and they may even find that they recognize more Spanish words than they thought.

Parent Resources for Dual Language Learners

Be sure to check out our store for many different resources for both parents and children for dual language learners. Our resources are specific for English/Spanish dual language programs. Follow us on Pinterest for additional tips. These tips are often more general for any dual language programs, but some are English/Spanish specific. Sign up for our newsletter for specific dual language supports for helping your child and the occasional free resource for families.

Read our post on Dual Language – Why is My Child Struggling to learn more about the process of learning a second language. To further support your young dual language learner, read our posts on Dual Language – Just Beginning and Dual Language Winter Sensory Bins. Check out our resources for learning math in Spanish or Spanish reading and our Parent’s Guide to reading in Spanish. Have a child beginning in a dual language program? Leave us a comment below and let us know which languages your child’s program targets. We look forward to hearing from you.

Hi, I’m Nicole.

Here at Creatingbutterflies we provide families with practical solutions to real life problems for everything parenting, scouting, dual language, and enjoying time outdoors. We are a family of 6 with 4 wonderful becoming bilingual children who loves scouting, camping, and hiking with their family. Mom is an educator and dad is a firefighter/paramedic.