Foreign languages at FCPS not until middle school?

[Anonymous]

Has FCPS dropped foreign languages from all elementary schools or just certain schools? I'm aware of the immersion program but we sadly were not selected in the lottery. When does language instruction pick up?

[Anonymous]

My first grader is getting Spanish two times per week in FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My first grader is getting Spanish two times per week in FCPS.

Great to hear. Which school are you at?

[Anonymous]

My second grader has Spanish twice a week and had it three times a week last year.

As part of the deal of getting rid of half day Mondays, FLES was supposed to be rolled out at all schools, instead of only the some that already had it.

[Anonymous]

https://www.fcps.edu/academics/foreign-language-elementary-school-fles-programs

[Anonymous]

https://www.fcps.edu/academics/world-languages-immersion-programs

[Anonymous]

Is this an optional thing or does every child participate? Sounds great to me - my child starts K next year, so I'm just learning about the elementary schools!

[Anonymous]

My kid had it 2x week at his center elementary school and I felt it was a waste of time and only there to .ake the school look good.

Taking Spanish for 40 minutes 2x week is basically worthless.

[Anonymous]

Our school teaches the kids 10 minutes of Korean every day. It's not voluntary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this an optional thing or does every child participate? Sounds great to me - my child starts K next year, so I'm just learning about the elementary schools!

You can opt out, but it's treated as just another special, like art, PE, music, etc.

I don't know why people dislike it. It's not immersion, but I think it's fine for what it is. My 2nd grader isn't fluent at Spanish, of course, but he does know some words and phrases.

[Anonymous]

Shrevewood does Chinese. Waste of time. I wish it was Spanish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Shrevewood does Chinese. Waste of time. I wish it was Spanish.

I'm the PP above whose school does Korean. I would much rather it be Spanish.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My second grader has Spanish twice a week and had it three times a week last year.

As part of the deal of getting rid of half day Mondays, FLES was supposed to be rolled out at all schools, instead of only the some that already had it.

This was not part of the deal. Full day Mondays was an increase in cost. If anything, FLES should have been reduced to offset the cost of the longer schedule.

[Anonymous]

FLES is not effective. It does give the classroom teachers additional planning time, but an extra recess monitored by aides would be more valuable for the students.

Kids are not going to learn a language with FLES. It is an expensive "nice to have."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My second grader has Spanish twice a week and had it three times a week last year.

As part of the deal of getting rid of half day Mondays, FLES was supposed to be rolled out at all schools, instead of only the some that already had it.

This was not part of the deal. Full day Mondays was an increase in cost. If anything, FLES should have been reduced to offset the cost of the longer schedule.

It makes up for, in part, the loss of planning time. You are thinking like a taxpayer instead of a school administrator or teacher.