Dual Immersion Report

1. The point of taking Spanish or any other foreign language is crucial in education. Knowing a foreign language can come in handy when you're visiting a foreign country and it is becoming an increasingly needed skill in the diversifying Untied States. Learning a foreign language like Spanish can also help you with your English by making you think harder when reading and analyzing the context and sentence structure of things written in both languages. Employers and colleges also look for Spanish speakers because an understanding of the language not only shows your intellect and your ability to learn but it also makes you valuable in a country that has a rising Spanish population like the United States. Besides all the benefits from taking a Spanish class it is also a lot of fun to learn. For me I have always been fascinated

Speaking Spanish or any second language opens a lot of doors in life. While the little Spanish I do know is incomprehensible to most fluent Spanish-speakers, it has helped me in some situations. The article Se Habla Espanol by Tanya Maria Barrientos is the story on how she (Tanya) dealt with the tribulations of being born in Guatemala, moved to and raised in the United States, and attempting to learn her native Language once again (Barrientos 645). While many of us, including Tanya, have difficulties learning a new language and understanding others cultures, the struggle will prove to be worth it in the end.

All the kids that lived in my street they were all my friends, we played soccer, football, etc...Also growing in a habitat where there’s only one language that it’s spanish and everyone speaks it. Im grateful for that because thanks to that my spanish developed so great. But right now I find it like it’s affecting me but since english was my second language I still have trouble with it more than my spanish. Sometime I feel like i do need to speak it more, it’s so difficult at times trying to pronounce some words. But that’s when my spanish kicks in and I end up speaking and mixing 2 languages in a sentence. After all I still feel grateful for knowing two languages.

In and outside of the classroom, learning about both the Spanish language and culture has always interested me. To delve myself into the culture, I decided to join Spanish Club and the Spanish National Honors Society, both which allowed me to experience and better understand the eccentric Hispanic culture.

When learning Spanish, it is interesting to think of it as the new English. Learning languages increases intellect. Spanish has many similarities with English in terms of the vocabulary. These open up ones ideas and thinking to diversify a learner intellectually. It is a fact that learning a language like Spanish leaves one sharper than anyone who just speaks, reads and writes English. Most children are advised to learn as many languages as they can. Why is this? Foreign languages like Spanish broaden the mind and this is another reason why learning it is

Nieves and Ms. Sanchez, and even television shows. While my family members taught me my primary language, Spanish, my teachers slowly taught me the English Language. The credit doesn't only go to them since video games as well as television shows also taught me a majority of both languages."

Being a bilingual student has always set me aside in the way that I view and interpret different ideas and concepts. Recently I have found myself translating poetry into Spanish then back to English in order to get a deeper meaning and full understanding of the piece of poetry. When I realized that in my head I was translating different ideas into Spanish before I would answer I began to see how much I rely on Spanish throughout the school day. My daily prayers and faith expressions are most lenient on Spanish and how my culture has affected them. My perspective seems to be different from the people around me and how I view different areas of knowledge through a more cultural and broader lense. Each individual has their believes and traditions

From the beginning of Spanish I up until now, I have definitely progressed in my learning of Spanish. By the end of Spanish I, I learned the basic vocabulary, tenses, and grammar. In Spanish II, I’ve been using the vocabulary and tenses from the previous course - along with new ones - that would help me communicate with Spanish speakers on a more advanced level. The two courses have overall helped me go from only knowing a few words to being able to have an entire conversation in the language. Moreover, learning the Spanish language has changed me. Before learning the language, I never had a big interest in learning about the culture or travelling to Spain, but I now do; I am aware that doing these two things will help me communicate with and understand Spanish speakers on an advanced level, which is what my goal is.

For my son to gain knowledge of these languages it is essential that we converse with him in both Hindi and Spanish at home. So I have decided to study Spanish. Learning Spanish is not going to be a walk in the park. I need time, energy and patience, which is a really tall order since I am a toddler’s mom. But then again this may be the fun thing I was looking to do for a very long time. I am not going to get a language learning software or

Growing up, I was fortunate enough to learn and speak two different languages; English and Spanish, However, speaking Spanish was not always my specialty. I often faced criticism, and judgement from my own family, primarily from my extended family, on how I spoke the language. According to them, my Spanish was broken, and the way I spoke the language was incorrect. I remember asking myself, “If my Spanish is incorrect, then what is the correct way to speak it?”. As a little kid, I never really understood the purpose for their comment, but as I grew older, I began

“Diga, A...E...I...O...U,” my mom says, urging me to recite the Spanish vowels. “A, E, I, O” I reply with overflowing confidence. With a loving smile, she glanced down at me and congratulates me, finding it adorable that the last vowel slipped my mind. “¡Oh! Y U!” I shout, realizing my mistake. We both look at one another and giggle. Being bilingual has always been a part of me. My parents taught me to speak in their native language at a very young age. My mom would spend hours with me, teaching me how to read. She would sound out vowels and syllables and I would echo everything back to her. Every lesson that I was given ended with a homework assignment. She would assign me words to write, and then for the next lesson, she would quiz me. As a toddler, I remember being extremely impatient and not being willing to do the assigned work. Learning a language is a challenge, even though it is easier for children to learn a language at a younger age, it is still an overwhelming task. My mom knew that and she was incredibly patient with me. Discussions with my mom about what it was like to teach me Spanish have always interested me. She has painted the experience as beautiful and unique. Discussing the topic moves her to tears because she considers the beauty of teaching her own child her native tongue beyond amazing.

If you use Spanish in your classroom, why do you think this may be more effective than using English exclusively? Findings constantly show that learners benefit from using their native language in education. Children are best served by using their first language as a resource for achieving academic success and English language proficiency. First, by using the L1 learners are more likely to engage in learning process because it allows them to make suggestions, ask questions, answering questions, and even create and communicate new knowledge with enthusiasm. Thus, it gives them confidence and helps to affirm their cultural identity. Second, using their first language is important to acquire English and it will help them to learn the English needed for academic success. Their progress in acquiring English is linked to the levels of their first language and literacy skills. Third, it is easier to understand concepts and skills in your first language and transfer your knowledge to your second language.

Growing up speaking nothing but Spanish was a struggle. In kindergarten and elementary is where I learn to speak a little bit of English. Most part of my elementary and middle school I spent in ESL (English as a Second Language) not an exciting class if you ask me. Thinking to myself, I thought my English was improving, and it was. I passed the ESL test in the 6th grade. Here lies Dobby, a free elf. Well, that’s what I thought till I moved here. My test scores did not transfer, so it was back in it again. From my 7th grade year to my Junior year in high school, I spent attempting to pass it again. My thought from there out was if I cannot pass it the one time, then what makes you think I can pass it the next time? As my English got better over time my Spanish went downhill. During that time, I was just focused on English. Being bilingual comes with its advantage and disadvantage. Everyone expects you to be perfect in both languages, when you are just trying to improve one at a time. Overall, my lesson here is that English is my second language, and people whose first

My family thought that if I just watched some of the cartoons in English that I would start to pick up the language. Unfortunately, that was certainly not the case and I fell behind my classmates. Reading and writing scores were low and my kindergarten teacher noticed. Apparently, she went over to our home and talked to my mother about my options. From that point on, she was taking time after school to teach me the language. She gave me books, videos and different activities that I could complete and I would then take tests with her. Brandt writes,

The teacher used different strategies to ensure that students are understanding the concept. The first strategy is using background knowledge. The teacher connects the lesson to the students’ background knowledge in order to engage them in the lesson. She applied error correction methods that allowed the students to feel comfortable communicating with her and with the rest of the class. When students made mistakes the teacher just repeated what was said in the correct way, allowing the students to see the correct form without judgement or embarrassment. The teacher used repetition and the students’ first language as a tool to promote learning. In this lesson students benefited from repetition because it helped them understand and apply figurative language. The teacher used Spanish to help students understand difficult concepts and to connect students’ previous knowledge with the topics they are currently learning. Being able to use their native language in class allows students to feel more comfortable when participating because they have